The story picks up nine months after the season eight finale. Libero addresses viewers directly, explaining that Lele and Bianca have moved to Paris, Dante and Melina to Sulmona, and Anna is in London for her senior year at a private college. Libero and Enrica are no longer tending Nilde and Andrea Biglietti's Apulian farmhouse and have returned to permanent residence in Poggio Fiorito. On a plane to Rome, they meet Lorenzo Martini, son of Achille (one of Libero's Italian-American brothers), and Sara, sister of Marco Levi. Unaware that they share in-laws, the two find themselves living under the same roof. Lorenzo is a doctor who begins working at Villa Aurora after a brilliant career in the United States, and is hosted by his uncle Libero.