Dax Colyn is one of the bad boys of Willow Valley. A fearless volunteer firefighter and hard working, sexy mechanic, he makes all the woman swoon and he likes it that way. He keeps people at a distance since his mother died. He doesn't want to let anyone in, much less a woman he knows he could fall in love with. Ava Anderson keeps people away, too. Haunted by her tortured past and constantly fearful of the future, it's only her daughter Olivia and Dax's dad Rowdy that she's let in. But when tragedy strikes, it pushes Dax and Ava together, forcing them both to let go of their fears. They soon learn how hard it is to keep pretending and how easy it is to let others in. Especially when those people are family.