Three years ago, Annabeth Wheeler’s husband Cam died in a car accident. Since then, she’s forged a career writing about grief and coping with loss. The problem is that Annabeth isn’t actually coping very well. She’s coping so badly, in fact, and feels like such a fraud that she has decided to end her own life. She goes to Open Skies Ranch to prepare her third book for publication, knowing that once it’s done, she’ll be free to end it all.
Three years ago, Eric Neilson was shot in the chest and told that his only hope was a heart transplant. He beat the odds – and he’s now at Open Skies to meet the wife of the man whose heart is now beating in his chest. He only plans to see Annabeth, shake her hand, maybe have a casual coffee. He certainly has no intention of telling her who he is.
On Annabeth’s last night, she asks Eric to stay and make love to her: she needs to do one last life-affirming thing, to feel alive just for a little while. Eric is resistant, but he knows now that Annabeth is not really healing or moving on, and stays with her to offer comfort. What neither of them count on is developing real, strong feelings for each other.
As they begin to fall in love, Eric grapples with the knowledge that he must tell her the truth. But if he does, won’t he lose her forever? Or maybe Annabeth will find it in her heart to forgive him… maybe it’s possible that together, they will both finally have a happy ending?
