As a widow, Ellen is confronted with decisions that she feels inadequate to make. For the first time she must take charge of her own life and that of her three almost-grown daughters. Loneliness and fear of inadequacy sap her energy, the girls drain her emotionally and the first man he dates -- well, the dating scene has changed drastically from what she remembered.

When she meets Drew Yardley, a man with a wonderful sense of the ridiculous, the middle child violently rejects him, another tells her to “go for it, Mom,” and yet another rebels but gives in finally to his charm. The biggest obstacle of all, however, is the fact that Drew is already married, and there is no option of divorce. The timing and circumstance is incredibly wrong for Ellen and Drew. As they wrestle with the integrity of an impossible situation, the middle daughter slides deeper and deeper into a troubled world, complicating any decisions they make. Ellen realizes she will have to choose between one of her children and Drew.