Lucy Walker is a young woman with a dark past, which is revealed slowly throughout the first half of the novel through the nightmares of the horrific abuse and neglect she suffered at the hands of her drunken father and drug-addicted mother. She is living on her own in Chicago, Illinois, and has finally decided to seek professional help for the PTSD, severe anxiety, and sleeplessness she has experienced for years. Some of her story also comes out during her sessions with her psychiatrist, a compassionate woman who helps Lucy throughout the course of several years.

At the start of her therapy, Lucy meets a man by the name of Robert Maxwell, a young accountant who fancies himself a science-fiction author, although his book isn't yet complete. He saves her from being attacked on the street by a drunken homeless man and asks her out on a date. Their whirlwind romance begins almost immediately, and Lucy thinks she has finally found the love of her life, but her past still haunts her, and she fears that telling him all her secrets will ruin what they have. Unfortunately, Robert has issues of his own, and Lucy finds herself lost, alone, and despondent, a victim of abuse once again. Will she ever be able to recover this time, move on, and find the love she truly deserves?