The door opens, and this guy comes in, kind of tall, clean cut, definitely nice-looking, but there’s something wrong with him. He strikes me as both wounded and perhaps a little dangerous.

And so it began.

Cece and Mack never expected to fall in love. She’s a sensitive A-student; he’s a high school dropout. But soon they’re spending all their time together, bonding over a rescued dog, telling their darkest secrets. Everything is perfect. Until. Until. Mack loses control and makes a horrible mistake, and suddenly everything is impossible. Cece and Mack struggle, with both humour and compassion for each other,to answer the question: how do you survive when the person you love can’t stay?

Award-winning author Paul Griffin has written a story of first love that is both heartbreaking and uplifting, filled with characters, both dog and human, that will change the way you look at the world.