"I got married already," I blurted through the spit and sobs. Mom didn't say anything. Or move. My chest chuffed up and down like a freight train trying to stop too fast. Her hand came off my shoulder. "What?"

After a surreptitious Wednesday elopement, Julie almost makes it to the Saturday ceremony without her mother finding out. But taking matters into her own hands comes at a price: the added stress of deception, guilt, and ultimately having to face the disappointment and hurt caused by her decision. Will Julie prove to be just one more link a line of broken mother-daughter relationships, or could the truth set her—and her mother—free after all?