Liz Swanson is a loving wife and mother. Her life isn't quite what she'd imagined, but she considers herself lucky. She has a good husband, beautiful children, and fulfillment outside of her home through volunteer work. On some days she doesn't even notice the dull ache in her heart. While she's preparing for the family's summer kickoff at Lake George, the ache disappears and her sudden happiness is mistaken for anticipation of their weekend. However, as the family heads north, there are clouds on the horizon that have nothing to do with the weather. A careful observer might see the signs that something is wrong, but only Liz's daughter, who's found some hidden journals, has any idea. By the end of the weekend, there will be no escaping the truth or its painful buried secrets, and it will take all of their strength to get through the storm together. From the book's first page: "Forever and always," she wrote on the folded note card before setting it upright on the kitchen table. It had been her question and his answer twenty years earlier when he'd first said, "I love you." She'd heard it from boys before, but she'd never really felt it herself until then. "Forever?" Liz had asked, shyly and hopefully, almost afraid to believe it. "And always," Scott had answered with a tone and a look that erased any doubts she'd entertained. A year later, with two more years of college facing each of them, she'd had it engraved on the inside of his wedding band. Getting married before finishing college hadn't been considered practical or encouraged by their friends. True love, they were cautioned, should be able to wait a couple of years. They were not to be deterred, however. Their only surviving parent, Scott's mother, had just smiled and shrugged, knowing that their path couldn't be any worse than the one she'd followed....
