A teardrop sends out many ripples…
The road that Lara and Finn Murphy have taken together has been full of curves and bumps and foggy patches. But despite his demanding country music career and tragedies along the way, they found forever with each other. And now, with the addition of their two young children, their home is filled with even more love and joy.
But, when Finn goes on his summer tour without Lara and the kids, some of the pieces of their idyllic life begin to crumble. Lara struggles with who she is as an individual, especially after finding herself in a perilous situation. Their son, Chance, starts to act out because he is missing his dad. And Finn feels like he can’t protect any of them like he wants to.
Instead of it getting better upon the musician’s return, though, things only get worse. The couple, torn apart by false accusations and poor choices, must find a way to come together when heartbreaking news is revealed. Is there any way they can turn all the tears of sadness to ones of happiness?
EXCERPT:
He turned serious. “Are you all right? I know it’s a lot.”
I took a deep, silent breath. It was a lot. I wasn’t truly all right. But I had to be. There really wasn’t an alternative. I needed to be—both for the kids and for their dad.
“Yeah.” I finally managed the one word answer.
He took a moment, too, and said, “I love you.”
I sighed, recognizing those words as a signal for the conclusion of our conversation. Although they were sincere and special and never lost their meaning, hearing them instantly deflated my soul. When I was speaking with him, I felt secure. I felt serene. But I knew the moment we would lose that phone connection…
“Lar?” he queried.
“It’s just…sometimes I wonder if that’s enough.”
“What?” His one word started with puzzlement but concluded with fear as he realized that the last comment he had said was that he loved me. His next two words were even more pronounced. “Lara? What?”
“I’m sorry. I’m just tired,” I tried with what was mostly the truth. “Go. Have fun. Make that crowd light up.”
“Lara!” He immediately admonished me before trying to take the lead in rectifying how I felt and what I said. “No! What did that mean? What do you need? What can I d—?”
“I need you, Finn,” I blurted out and then more softly echoed with, “I just need you.”