Eighteen-year-old Dakota Buchannan is determined not to be the messed-up, orphaned teenager with an over-the-top imagination the media describes her as. After her father’s accidental death at Jennings oil refinery, she finds out that she has a much older half-brother and moves to Houston, Texas, to live with him and his young daughter, Savannah. It doesn’t take long for Dakota to settle in and capture the heart of a young man. Life seems to be going quasi-normal until CEO Jake Jennings breaks into Dakota’s home to confront her. In his narcotized state, he assaults her while incoherently apologizing for something his late father did, of which she has no recollection.

She eventually escapes, and Jake is charged. Released on bail, he returns to his penthouse, and Dakota’s boyfriend takes her away for the weekend to clear her mind, but on their return, the front page of the local newspaper confirms ‘Jake Jennings plummets to his death.’ Dakota’s half relieved the man is dead, but the other half replays in her mind what he was trying to tell her that terrifying night and whether or not he actually killed himself or did someone push him off his balcony.

Feisty and determined, Dakota never loses sight of hope or the importance of family and friendships. She navigates her new life with her moral compass –– reconciling the past and seeking answers while discovering secrets and lies.