Ever since her boyfriend Gus was killed in 9/11, Billy has been pretending.

She finds it easier to stay silent and go through the motions of grief than tell the truth: that she was planning to leave Gus, and that his death left her feeling a mixture of ambivalence and anguish that she is still struggling to resolve. Drawing from her experience, Billy writes a play: 'The Lake Shore Limited'. The opening night brings together three people whose lives intersect and interweave with Billy's: Leslie, Gus's older sister, haunted by his death and constantly aware of what could have been; Rafe, the actor who brings the joy and sadness of his own marriage into his role; and Sam, a recently divorced man who is irresistibly drawn to Billy's distinctive, enigmatic beauty.

Together these four voices create a mesmerizing novel of entanglements, connections and inconsolable losses.