Orphaned at a young age, Cain Samson ran away from the foster care system and grew up on the mean streets of Washington D.C. Living the life of a gangster, Cain's existence changed when Contessa, a kindly old Brazilian immigrant, takes him in. With her guidance, Cain turns his life around, gets his GED and even wins a scholarship to prestigious Howard University. Academically gifted, Cain later wins an exchange student's spot at the Catholic University of Salvador in Bahia, Brazil. It's where Cain meets Marianna Vasquez-Anselmo, a gorgeous Brazilian student who falls in love with him. Problem is Marianna's controlling ex-boyfriend, Wilson Sawyer, the son of a wealthy British Diplomat, won't let her go. Cain will do anything to protect the woman he loves, and it may cost him everything...including his life.