In March 2023, Tanner Hughes locks up his late grandparents' cottage in Pensacola, Florida, preparing to leave for good. Raised by his grandparents after his single mother died in childbirth, Tanner reflects on never knowing his biological father. A former army special forces soldier turned USAID security contractor, he has spent years traveling the country, visiting families of fallen friends, and never settling down. His grandmother, before her death, expressed concern about his rootless life and urged him to find a place to call home. She also revealed a long-kept secret: his father's name is Dave Johnson, from Asheboro, North Carolina.

Tanner drives his prized reproduction 1968 Shelby GT500KR to Pine Knoll Shores, North Carolina, to visit his best friend Glen Edwards and Glen's family. Over three days, Tanner and Glen catch up. Glen expresses worry about Tanner's plan to return to Cameroon for another USAID security job, suggesting Tanner is avoiding settling down. Glen offers him a job and encourages him in his search for his father, though both acknowledge the difficulty: the name Dave Johnson is extremely common, and DNA databases yielded no close matches. Tanner's grandmother's deathbed note is all he has to go on.

Tanner arrives in Asheboro and begins methodical research at the library, cross-referencing old and new phone books to map out Johnson households. After exploring the charming downtown, he heads to a sports bar called Coach's for dinner. There, he notices a young man in a backward baseball cap aggressively grabbing a young brunette woman's arm. When the confrontation moves to the parking lot, Tanner intervenes, calmly convincing the young man to back off and leave the girl alone.

As Tanner prepares to leave the parking lot, the same girl—Casey Cooper—accidentally reverses her mother's Suburban into the rear of his Shelby, badly damaging it. Casey is shaken, tearful, and panicked about her mother's reaction. Tanner keeps his composure, walks her through exchanging information, and ultimately drives her home in the SUV since she is too shaken to drive and her phone is dead.

At Casey's house, her mother emerges onto the porch. Tanner notices her immediately—a woman in jeans and a white blouse who looks too young to be Casey's mother, with an air of tentativeness that hints at past disappointment. He is struck by an instinctive curiosity about her, feeling she has a story he wants to know.