Love Hurts

When her long-term boyfriend leaves her for a younger woman, successful businesswoman Tessa Piggott shakes up her life. She resigns from her high-flying job and takes a position as director of an international nonprofit. She also renounces men entirely-but when she encounters ladies’ man Frank, he’s determined to change her mind.

Tessa is in The Gambia to find out why SEED’s merchandise is stuck in a warehouse, but the local merchants refuse to deal with a woman. For help, she reluctantly turns to Frank-who has followed her out to the country-and unwittingly ends up assisting with one of his own business negotiations.

Battling with a colleague at work, Tessa is too busy to pay any attention to a despondent Frank, who is struggling to adjust to living with his university-student daughter. When Tessa’s private conversation with a politician is revealed to the public, she jumps at the chance to vindicate herself by participating in a radio debate.

Frank and Tessa finally have dinner together, but she remains wary of taking the relationship any further. Work continues to be her top priority-so much so that she forgets about a subsequent date with Frank and about her mother’s visit to London. Frank, however, steps up to the plate, and when a tragedy occurs, it is him she turns to for comfort.

Now in an open relationship with Tessa, Frank reconnects with another girlfriend but feels dissatisfied with the arrangement, especially when he spies two other suitors for Tessa’s affections at SEED’s charity fun run.

On a business trip to Chad, Tessa resolves some of her conflicts with her coworker Bob and flirts with a project manager there. Back in London, Frank is busy buying a riverside wharf for development and stumbles into a one-night stand. But when he confesses his affair, Tessa’s reaction is not what either had anticipated.

Following their spat, Frank and Tessa take a reconciliation trip to Maidenhead. Upon returning to London, Tessa tries to help Diane with her failing marriage, while Frank copes with his daughter’s love life.

Frank, Tessa, and Jade have become a close family unit, and when Jade wishes to quit school, Tessa suggests a worthwhile alternative. Then Frank’s ex-wife, Helen, throws a wrench into the family harmony by objecting to Jade’s plans and impugning Tessa’s motivations.

When Tessa hits it off with Frank’s family at his brother’s wedding, Frank is emboldened to ask her to move in with him. Still reluctant to commit, she rebuffs his offer, but when her mother endures a health crisis, Tessa begins to reconsider her relationships.

Just as Tessa feels settled and secure in her romance with Frank, he starts getting cold feet, exacerbated by the problems with his wharf project. On the eve of her work trip to Mali, he makes a pivotal decision that disillusions Tessa about love and work right in the midst of a life-threatening emergency.