The Things You Kiss Goodbye — Leslie Connor

Bettina Vasilis can hardly believe it when her strict father approves of her first love, basketball star Brady Cullen. Right when Brady starts to change for the worse, she meets a "cowboy" who is everything Brady is not -- gentle, caring, and interested in getting to know the real Bettina, or "Beta." as he nicknames her. Bettina knows this is the last guy her father would approve, but she still finds herself longing for the scent of Cowboy's auto shop when she's anywhere else. When tragedy strikes. Bettina must tell her family the truth -- and kiss goodbye the things she thought she knew about herself and the men in her life.

Leslie Connor has written a lyrical, heartbreaking, and ultimately hopeful story about family, romance, and the immense power of love.