Bad boy meets good girl. Shy. Sweet. Smart. Hope Hanson has fictional characters where most people have friends. A loner at school, she thinks love is as fictional as the stories she reads. Real-life love shattered her parents' marriage with punches and screams, resulting in her Dad leaving them. Three months later, her new fractured reality is turned upside down when her Dad returns and Hope becomes his new target. Grumpy. Sarcastic. Angry. Heath Travon has almost everything. He's intelligent, rich, and the daydream of the girls at Bellmare High School, but all he wants is to be left alone. Beneath his cold eyes and icy attitude, he's mourning a devastating loss that has him both fighting for every breath and wanting each one to be his last. By accident they collide in the hallway. One look at her and he finds himself intrigued. Heath sees the tears she doesn't shed, the bruises she desperately hides, and the truths behind her lies. Hope sees his buried pain, as well as the thoughts he doesn't reveal and isn't fooled by his tough persona. As Hope's home situation worsens and Heath's grief spirals, both are determined to help each other. He is adamant about protecting her and she is adamant about saving him.