While searching for her family's missing Christmas ring, a military widow sparks a friendship with a handsome antiques dealer, who just might have the love and the lost heirloom she's been longing for.

Vanessa Mayfield's great-grandfather discovered a beautiful gold and ruby ring buried in the dirt at Normandy on D-Day. It gave him hope when all hope seemed lost and came to be known as The Christmas Ring as it was passed down through the generations of their family.

Years ago, though, Vanessa lost the ring shortly after becoming a military widow herself and has scoured antique stores ever since, hoping someone found it. After dropping her daughter Sadie off for college, the "Christmas in July" sale sign she sees passing through Marietta seems the perfect distraction before returning to her now-empty house. She doesn't find the ring, but she does find something completely unexpected: the co-owner of the store, Ben Miller, makes her smile in a way she hasn't since losing her husband.

Their friendship blossoms throughout the fall, and as Christmas nears, it's clear that something more is developing. Unbeknownst to either of them, Ben's father, Howard, has purchased a box of antiques that happens to include Vanessa's missing heirloom Christmas ring. A ring secretly worth five figures and filled with a lifetime of Vanessa's memories. Ben's father has no idea the importance of the heirloom--he just knows it is by far the most valuable piece he will have ever sold--and he's making plans to sell it so he can finally travel the world. It is his Christmas diamond in the rough.

As Vanessa works to pull off her annual Columbus Cares Christmas Military Dance, she's eager for Sadie to return home from college. But she hasn't told Sadie about Ben. Every time she tries, something stops them. But with Ben in town to help with final preparations for the dance, she can no longer put it off.

When Ben learns the truth about his father's newfound treasure, he fears it will become a wedge that drives them completely apart. Can he convince his father to stop the sale of Vanessa's precious heirloom? Or this Christmas, will love become the actual diamond in the rough?