Brigid Frazier’s been climbing a precarious ladder out of nowhere for years and although she’s making progress, she knows that any misstep could cause a tumble back into oblivion. She’s finally given in and begun working with an illustrator for the children’s book series she’s writing, and it looks as if she’s cleared another rung.

When his family is finally found, Gabriel Bresnahan comes back to Eden to face his past, carrying the same shattered heart he’d left with. As memories stir and the friends he’d left behind welcome him back, he begins to breathe again, but he’s not sure even the truth will heal him. There’s only one person who can help him now and when she lets him move with her for a few days, feelings he shouldn’t have, begin to flourish.

With Gabe so close at hand, Breet feels the ground shift beneath her and all she can do is cling tightly to reality. He might be the man she wants, but he’s not the settling down kind and she’s anchored deep. No matter how many different endings she’s imagined, who they are and where they came from make it impossible to be together. There’s absolutely no point in risking her heart again. Is there?