"Mysteries, like great beauty, sometimes reveal themselves slowly."

Beauty starts within. That is the message Peter Vilaro gently delivers to young Lizzie Vitale, his troubled thirteen-year-old neighbor. Pere's faith in her future and his tender support for Lizzie, who is bullied at school and unappreciated at home, transcends his sudden death. As she matures, Lizzie, now Liz, carries her warm memories of the old man with her to Chapel Hill, where she manages an international database. Her quick intelligence and skills as a researcher prove useful as she tries to discover what happened to her friend more than a decade earlier. Befriended by the old man's nephew, Lluc Toset, Liz gradually unravels the secrets surrounding her beloved Pere's death.

But this isn't the only mystery in Peter Vilaro's life. Lluc now knows why his famous uncle left Spain and where he went, but other questions remain. Unwilling to share his concerns with a woman he's come to love, Lluc returns to Spain to tackle his fears alone, leaving behind a grieving Liz.