Meredith's life has been measured in men - a dash, occasional marathons, a few she gave inches, and they took miles. But Sam was different. Sam would last at least his lifetime. Neither of them could have known when they met all those years ago what loving each other would mean - like when you are so close to something so big, you can't really see it at all. The tie that binds is tested when Sam calls to cash in on a promise - for Meredith to take care of him while he's dying. Married with a family, Meredith and her husband, Henry, agree she must go - a decision that seems to be too easy. Meredith and Sam leave the familiar trappings of Nevada, where they grew up, and embark on a road trip to his final destination, her home-away-from-home, Santa Barbara. Using the landscapes of Nevada and California, she draws the parallels, contradictions, and intersections that make her and Sam's relationship complicated and mysterious but essential and compelling. How can Meredith grieve stepping back and moving forward with or without Sam?