After 18 years of marriage, Gerry Rubato arrives home to find his wife, Maureen, dead from a blood clot to the brain and his two-month-old son, Reese, screaming in his crib. Gerry is devastated to be left alone dealing with an infant, as well as his teenage daughter, Tanya, who ran away from home with an older boyfriend. Following Tanya's disappearance, which occurred prior to Reese's birth, not even a private investigator has been able to find her.

After a two-month hiatus to deal with his grief and care for his son, Gerry finally hires Lisa, a woman in her late 20s with a masters degree in child psychology. Gerry must now force himself to leave his son and return to the catalog/Internet retailer where he's an executive. With the help of Maureen's sister, Codie, and his new team member, Ally, he is striving to deal with the blow he's been dealt.

Over time, Ally's warm concern and love for Reese endears her to Gerry and they fall in love. Gerry still searches for Tanya and strives to deny his guilt over his involvement with Ally. To cope with his devastating loss, Gerry begins to write in a journal to his daughter in hopes she will someday read it. He opens his soul in the journal he calls "While You Were Out in the World." Gerry faces many obstacles in choosing the right path for his small family.

Michael Baron creates an unforgettable tale of one man's devastating grief from the loss of his soul mate, while at the same time keeping his life together for an infant son and teenage daughter. Gerry's character is so lovable; a genuine gem of a man any woman would be happy to be involved with. His recovery takes him through much soul- searching of all his mistakes, which he believes may have led to his daughter's decision to leave. I truly loved this story. It is so well-written that it's hard to keep yourself separate from the fictional characters. I absolutely recommend this book and plan to read every other work written by this author. Triple-A reading!