The Parenthood Pact

At twenty-five, Lexi Carter's perfectly calibrated five-year plan is unraveling. Between her grueling 45-minute daily commute to the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law and her exhausting hours as a paralegal at Harrison & Croft, LLC, she feels like she's barely keeping her head above water. Partner track feels miles away, her love life is a string of failed dates with men who can't handle her schedule, and the picture-perfect future she mapped out is slipping through her fingers.

Enter Devon-her steady anchor, best friend, and the one man who has always been there to catch her when she breaks. Ever since she literally crashed into him on their first day of college, covering his t-shirt in coffee, Devon has quietly loved her. He's built his life in the cozy coastal town of Heron's Cove as the head football coach at Harbor Crest Academy, but his heart has remained firmly anchored to Lexi. Through late-night traffic jams, tearful breakdown calls, and takeout delivered straight to her porch, Devon is the silent harbor in her endless storm.

One night, drowning in stress and a little too much wine, Lexi proposes a frantic backup plan: If they're both still single at thirty, they'll have a baby together.

Devon agrees to the pact without hesitation, keeping his true feelings hidden behind the playful agreement. But as Lexi slowly stops obsessing over her rigid timeline and finally looks up from her law books, she begins to see the man who has been standing right in front of her all along. Now, they both have to answer the question: Is their five-year plan truly falling apart, or was the best part of her future waiting in Heron's Cove the entire time?