Alex Martinez is not looking for love, not believing he knows how. He believed his station in life was determined by his birth into poverty. Proud and powerful in his neighborhood, he knows who he is and where he stands.

Until Lola walks into his life.

With her piercing blue eyes and bright personality, Alex can’t help falling for her. But she is his cousin’s best friend and out of his league. They come from different worlds, and Alex knows Lola deserves more than his broken past.

Tired of the shallow sorority friends and the lifestyle she once led, Lola is looking for deeper, more meaningful connections. She thought she’d found this in her new best friend, Toni. Then, she meets Alex, Toni’s cousin, and Lola finds herself drawn to Alex and his fierce loyalty and protectiveness toward his family. But she also sees the softer, more vulnerable side of Alex.

Just as their relationship begins, the past comes sneaking back in and threatens to drive a deeper wedge between them. Can their relationship withstand Alex’s past becoming his present?