As the truth of Sam Cassel's late wife and child pummels all in Arkendale, Oregon, Jenny Cope and Alvin Harris attempt reconciliation. Sam decides to leave the state, unable to quench his unrequited love for Jenny as she and Alvin ponder marriage. When a horrific tragedy changes all lives in the Willamette Valley, wedding plans are altered, as well as Sam's move. Jenny and Tommie suffer hardest, but no one is left untouched, each Smith and Cassel questioning if life can ever be the same.

Continuing the series, this novel takes place from 1977 to the end of the decade, The Peoples Temple suicides and the murders of Harvey Milk and George Moscone entwined with Arkendale's tragic loss. As Robert Tucker heads to San Francisco, Jenny ponders the fates of other men she loves. Children sustain her, as does unexpected affection, but will it be enough to carry her from the greatest loss she has ever faced?

One secret threatens to unravel all Jenny has maintained, a mystery she shares only with Sam. Watching her children develop, Jenny wonders if they will be spared the same limitations of their father, Alvin's handicap never far away.