Gary, an orphan, and Molly, who feels herself orphaned, meet, fall in love, and marry, delighted to have formed a family unto themselves. But problems arise when the tightly knit, hardscrabble community they move into isn't welcoming or approving. The community softens a bit when Molly gets pregnant, but then, days after giving birth, a devastating medical emergency arises and Molly is comatose. Gary finds himself caring for young Otis alone and facing a mountain of medical bills and the loss of his job. All hopes for happiness-and for Molly-seem to be evaporating, until a desperate Gary calls the only person left who can help them-Molly's estranged sister Suzanne. Suzanne agrees to come only because she has no place left to go, but once she's settled in Molly's household, Suzanne gradually begins to appreciate the kind of life she used to ridicule, and to her amazement, she begins to fall in love with Gary. And then Molly awakens, and all three must now struggle to understand what has happened in the past, and what will happen now.

Told from the points of view of Gary, Molly and Suzanne, this is a novel that asks the question: how do you keep your loved ones safe? And provides the answer that if safety is not possible, community and family, and unexpected help from the most unexpected sources, sometimes is.