Homicide Detective Adam Dawson's life is a never-ending nightmare. Caught in the grips of a toxic marriage built on trauma and shared secrets, and suspended from Chicago PD, his only shot at redemption lies in small town Peyton Illinois. All he has to do is complete a six-month assignment with the local authorities while things blow over back home, work on his issues and addictions, and come back home to right the ship. But when he meets Detective Caleb Straus, a man with his own traumatic past, he'll find that much like everything else in his life, nothing goes to plan. Time alone to think for himself brings up devastating realizations, and the last thing he needs is someone like Caleb making things more difficult. His new partner is kind to his own detriment, and determined to make up for the mistakes of his past and shattered expectations of the community he loves. He's fluent in Adam's language, and even though Adam is a walking red-flag, Caleb's determined not to give up on Adam the way everyone gave up on him. When the local High School's principal ends up murdered in what appears to be a crime of passion, the two are forced to learn to work together quickly. As they weave through the secrets in the principal's closet, and a string of blackmail, they find how thin the line is between wants and needs, and what happens when you get greedy. Both men are helpless to fight the bond forming between them, but that doesn't change the cold hard facts. And when reality sets in, the devastation might be enough to obliterate any hope they've found, in life, themselves, and each other. TW: Suicidal ideations. Alcohol and prescription drug addiction. Cheating (Not between main characters.)