Lainie Simpson carried some serious baggage. Her ex-husband's betrayal had left her cold, bitter, and isolated. Formerly a successful attorney, she holed up in her home writing fantasy novels until....Lainie is pulled back into the legal world to help defend Paul Stafford, a high school principal accused of sexual misconduct with students. Despite his pleas of innocence, Lainie knows better. She has seen what men are capable of. She struggles to provide a competent defense despite her hatred of the man and what he had done.Little by little, Paul's life crumbles under the weight of an aggressive legal system. The best that Lainie can summon is ambivalence. Until finally, he stands on the edge of a dark abyss, ready to jump. It is only then that Lainie begins to suspect he is innocent. Now she struggles not only to prove his case, but also to try and keep him from slipping over the edge. She finds she cannot help him until she regains her own humanity.