An explorer at heart, former university professor Phillip Singleton's adventures have only taken place in his imagination – until recently. Exploring the Cornish coast to research a travel book, he encounters a living example of a pirate archetype. Dark-haired, black-bearded Carne Treleaven might have been hewn from the very rock his name describes, and Phillip is eager to discover more. Carne has little patience for the awkward, dreamy professor, an outsider who must be steered away from local secrets. He agrees to serve as a guide to seaside caves where smugglers once operated only to keep Phillip away from more recent activity. As personalities clash, secrets unfold and riches are revealed, the two polar opposites find the point where their similarities lay. Carne's old beliefs are shattered by his attraction to a man, and he must decide if he's willing to take a huge step outside his familiar life and into a brand-new world.