Emma Carter has always chosen the safe path. As a fifth-grade teacher in her Vermont hometown, she’s built a life of steady routines and familiar faces. But when she’s offered a coveted education fellowship across the country, everything she’s built including her bond with Jake Reynolds is suddenly uncertain.

Jake has been at Emma’s side since childhood. Their connection is undeniable, though neither has ever spoken aloud what everyone else seems to see. Until Emma’s departure forces buried feelings into the open.

As she weighs her future, Emma begins to realize the comfort she’s always counted on with Jake isn’t just friendship it’s something deeper. And when Jake finally risks honesty, the ground beneath them shifts in ways neither expected.

With time running out, they have to face the truth: were they ever just friends, or has it always been something more?

Is it too late to claim the story that’s been waiting all along?