Feisty and fearless George Warren (given name: Frances, but no one calls her that) has never let life get too serious. Her plans for senior year include partying with her friends and then getting the heck out of town after graduation. But family has been facing hard times since her father, a police sergeant, got injured. If he can't return to work, it will put George's college plans in jeopardy. When she meets Francis, an older guy who shares her affinity for sarcastic banter, she falls recklessly, hopelessly in love. But because of their age difference, she tells no one-- and ends up losing almost everything, including herself.