The Rowans' rambling Maine farmhouse is just big enough to contain the four generations of family members, ranging in age from eight to eighty-six, gathered there the week before Christmas. Becca Rowan has driven north from Boston with only one thought -- reclaiming the daughter she gave up when she was a frightened teenager. Now thirty-two, with her career success assured, Becca's recurring fantasies are about the life she'll have with her daughter. Raised by Becca's older brother and his wife, Rain Rowan, now sixteen, has no idea she was adopted. Though she had promised not to reveal the truth until Rain turned twenty-one, Becca is finding that promise impossible to keep. She knows her family will be shocked by her announcement that she's no longer willing to wait, but she's unprepared for the depth of their reaction.