The First Time I Saw Him by Laura Dave is the sequel to The Last Thing He Told Me, picking up five years after Owen Michaels vanished, with his wife Hannah Hall and stepdaughter Bailey now settled into a quieter life in Southern California alongside Bailey's grandfather Nicholas. When Owen suddenly reappears at Hannah's art exhibition without a word, it shatters their fragile peace and signals imminent danger, forcing the two women to flee using hidden resources and clues left behind. As they race up the California coast and beyond to Paris—where they honeymooned—Hannah grapples with cryptic warnings, past secrets tied to crime syndicates, and the desperate hope of reuniting with Owen while protecting Bailey amid relentless pursuit and revelations about forgiveness and family.