A sexual assault at the library where Lorinda works causes Lorinda to realize that she wants desperately to make her marriage to Chet work better than it does. But it has been an uphill battle. Childhood sexual abuse, combined with an ultra-religious up brining has given Lorinda some very mixed messages about her own sexuality, and the fact that she is utterly taken with the openly gay new library co-worker Robin causes Lorinda a huge problem.
The birth of Michael, Lorinda’s first boy, seems the answer to her problems of intimacy with Chet, but in fact, all it does is to open the door for Robin become closer to Lorinda. As Michael gets older, Robin invites Lorinda to go camping with her. The event turns into their first kiss. This sends Lorinda into a panic, and she abandons Robin’s friendship. But Lorinda can’t take it. She needs Robin. Chet’s jealousy and lack of compassion drives Lorinda to seek Robin at her own home, and there they finish what they started.
A strange, complicated romance between Lorinda and Robin has begun. At one point, Robin tries to get it on with Lorinda during a yard sale and Lorinda’s mom catches them, confronting her daughter. But their bliss is short lived, when one of their clandestine rendezvous ends when Chet comes home early and catches them on the act. Chet’s reaction is to threaten Robin’s life, and when they are alone, rape his wife.
At first, Lorinda seeks out Robin, but when Robin’s brother chases her out, Lorinda seeks refuge in her bible. Chet tells her he wants another baby. Unfortunately, after becoming pregnant, Lorinda has a miscarriage. But Chet won’t give up, and Lorinda becomes pregnant again. During a jogging session, Lorinda runs into Russ, who works with her at the library. He gropes at her, and in a strange twist, Lorinda has sex with him on her own terms.
Lorinda decides to take her gynecologist’s advice and go see a psychologist, Dr. Beller. She has a hard time speaking to the doctor, but Beller gives her a paper pad and asks her to write her troubles instead, which Lorinda has no problem doing.
And the birth of their second son, Taylor seems like a way to bridge their differences. A chance encounter with Robin at the library does not reconcile the former lovers.
Chet gets a good job at a smelter and decides to ask his parents for a loan to buy a new house. It is about this time that Lorinda suspects Chet of infidelity for the first time when he fails to giver her a good reasoning of his movements. Chet confesses to her, and Lorinda forgive him.
Next, Lorinda catches Chet spying on her running partner, Tara, when she comes to shower in their house. Once again, she forgives her husband. She joins a running group and meets Aaron, a handsome runner. She has sex with him on the trail.
Next, Lorinda meets Blake, another library co-worker, and she accepts his invitation to his house, but instead of having sex, which is what she supposed would happen, Blake turns out to be some kind of Christian redeemer, trying to help her with her sex addiction, saying that he knows all about her. After forcing her to take STD tests, Blake and Lorinda make out in an abandoned lot.
Frustrated, Lorinda joins a Christian sexual problems intervention group “Living Waters” where they treat homosexuals and other deviants. She begins group therapy, but like with her psychologist, she has a really hard time opening up to share her real situation with anybody.
At a grocery store, Lorinda meets a total stranger and has sex with him. She is getting worse, not better. She returns to the library to cover for someone and finds a message from Robin in her old computer. She dials Robin and they confess their love for each other. During the next meeting of Living Waters, Lorinda finally gets the strength to confess her love for Robin, and when the leader of the group, Dawn asks her to sign a document that she will refrain from sexual relations with anyone of her own sex, Lorinda refuses to sign and is thrown out of the group.
Robin comes back into town and meets Lorinda at a bookstore. They make out. She returns home to find out Chet mismanaged all their funds and they have lost their home because he didn’t pay the mortgage. One of Lorinda’s fitness clients, Sandy, is a lawyer and offer to help. But there is nothing to be done. They lose their home, and move into a rental. From there, Chet abandons Lorinda and their two kids and Lorinda finds out he’s not been paying the rent on the rental either. Sandy lets her and her children move in to her house.
Chet posts on Facebook about Lorinda’s infidelity with Robin, and that’s the last straw. He wants to take the children away from her. That’s the last straw, Lorinda goes off to kill herself by jumping over the waterfalls. Sandy rescues her, and soon, they go off to Vancouver on retreat together. There, Sandy proposes marriage to Lorinda, and this in part because of the passing of a historic law that allows same sex partners to marry in Washington. Sand and Lorinda marry and buy a ranch together. Robin catches up with her old lover, but she dies shortly after. Dr. Beller kept all of Lorinda’s notes, and Lorinda publishes a book.
