Spring Flowers, Summer Love

Rowena took a sip, and grimaced. Tea of any sort didn’t appeal to her. But this place did. Serenity Bay. Home. Piper had been back for two years, Ash for one. Finally she was back, too.

Rowena took in the view of the shimmering blue water and the surrounding hills decked out in autumn’s blazing hues. She had done the right thing, hadn’t she?

“I wish we could think of a way to get Row to move back, Pip. Then the Bayside Trio would be back on the Bay, together again.” Ashley sighed. “That’s my dream.”

Rowena allowed her smile to creep out. “Then your dream just might be coming true, Ash.”

“What?” Piper jerked upright, stuck out her pink-tinted toenail and jabbed Ashley’s foot. “Did she say what I think she said?”

“I’m not sure I heard right.” Ashley cleared her throat. “Does that mean you’re thinking about moving back here, Row?”

“Come January, if things work together as I plan.”

“Yes!” The other two enveloped her in the group hug ritual they’d perfected through six years of boarding school. Once her two best friends were again seated, Rowena noticed their exchange of funny looks.

“What?”

“Oh, nothing.” Ashley’s gray eyes opened wide innocently.

Rowena wasn’t buying it. “Tell the truth.”

Ash held out her left hand and let the sun light up the diamond facets on her rings. “I was just thinking that Pip and I both found our Prince Charming here. Maybe the same will be true for you.”

“The Wingate brothers are sixty-five if they’re a day. I don’t think they qualify, Ash.”

“At least they have a kingdom.” Piper smirked.

“I don’t want someone else’s kingdom. I’m going to get my own back. You two already know that.” Rowena leaned back, closed her eyes and wondered if she’d finally bit off more than she could chew.

“Maybe you’d better explain what coming back to the Bay has to do with Wingate Manor.”

“The Wingate brothers hired me to redo the Manor’s landscape.” She leaned forward, a picture forming in her mind. “You know how they’re always trying to expand their reputation, be more than a fine place to dine or host wedding receptions and anniversary parties?”

“Of course.” Piper frowned. “Henry’s held garden tours for the last two years. And now Wingate hosts summer stock performances for a couple of months. They have a great space for private birthday parties, too.”

“Last year they started patio barbecues,” Ashley added.

“They’re going to expand even more.” Excitement skittered up and down Rowena’s spine. “They intend to reorganize the patio spaces for more private functions, make a tearoom to generate afternoon traffic from the garden tours—lots of new things.”

“Wow. I’ve heard rumors but nothing of this scope.” Piper was probably thinking how this would impact the town. As economic development officer, Piper liked to know about everything that affected Serenity Bay.

“Michael and I went there for dinner not long ago,” Ashley told them. “The chef is fabulous. But how do their plans affect you, Row?”

“I came up with an idea to revamp the grounds, make them an attraction in and of themselves. Henry wants fountains, little vistas where artists can paint, a summerhouse where the horticultural society can meet, or rent for private parties. Once I’m finished, Wingate will offer the perfect backdrop for couples to take their wedding pictures, winter and summer.”

“It sounds like it will cost the earth,” Pip mused.

“That’s the best part.”

“You’ve got a funny look on your face, Rowena. Spill it.”

“I’ve agreed to handle the landscaping in exchange for the land once owned by Davis Nurseries.”

“So you are moving back!” Ashley crowed.

“Next January, yes.”

Piper frowned. “Wait a minute. This revamp—it’s coming out of your pocket?”

Rowena nodded. “I get the land free and clear in exchange for the job.”

“Which means you’ll quit at Yelland Gardens.”

“Yes. If everything at Wingate comes together as I’ve planned, I can decide whether or not to return to my old job later.” Their doubts echoed her own. “The opportunity to get the land back was there. I couldn’t ignore it.”

“Because of your father,” Piper murmured.

“Yes. If I can just get him back on the land, I’m sure he’ll finally be able to shake off this depression. It’s my fault Dad had to sell Davis Nurseries’ land to the Wingate brothers for pennies on the dollar. It’s my duty to get it back.”

“But how are you going to pay for it, find workers, the equipment?”

“I’m not saying it will be easy. But I am going to do it.”

Ashley hugged her. “If you need any help, you just ask.”

Ashley—with her elegant hair, three-inch heels and designer clothes—up a tree, limbing? Rowena had to smile.

“I mean it.” Ash’s gray eyes pinned her. “I’m here for you, Rowena. You’re my friend and I want to help.”

“Thank you both. In the meantime, does our annual birthday bash include food? I’m starved.”

“You’re always starved.” Piper rose, headed for the kitchen. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

Rowena let herself daydream of better days and a thriving nursery. It would be that way again, she promised herself. And it would be worth giving up her career for. It had to be.

“Moving back is perfect, of course,” Ashley mused. “It will be wonderful to have both you and Pip nearby. But I think it would be even nicer if you could meet someone.”

Rowena tucked her ragged nails under her thighs and wished she’d found something more stylish than jeans and a T-shirt for the weekend. “Forget it.”

“I’m going to pray about it.” The glint in Piper’s eye promised she’d do exactly as she said.

“Me, too,” Ash agreed. “You just never know what God has in store.”

Rowena opened her mouth to protest, then closed it. She knew what lay ahead: months of backbreaking work at Wingate Manor and sweat equity in a nursery left untended too long—with nary a prince in sight.

But that was exactly what she owed her father.

Chapter One