“Oh. Well, that is a lot,” she replied. “And it’s probably beyond what the town can match.” Her shoulders slumped slightly for a minute, then straightened hopefully. “But I know you love running the garden center and being a business owner here in Larkin Bay too. Have you decided if you’re going to accept it?”

Kara shrugged. “No, I really haven’t,” she answered, looking away. “Courtney Blackstone was with me when I got the offer on Friday, and I’ve got thirty days to consider it.” She drew back when she saw the mayor’s stricken look.

“But I honestly haven’t made up my mind yet,” she hastened to reassure her.

“I see,” April replied, her face now slightly ashen. The mayor took a deep breath and then gamely turned the conversation to what a beautiful day it was and how she was surprised that the nursery wasn’t open for the spring season yet on Sundays.

“We start our spring hours next weekend,” Kara told her. “This is the last day we’ll be closed until after Christmas again. It’s hard to believe that it’s time to start planting, but with this early spring weather, I doubt we’ll see any more frost this year. So really, most of the summer plants can start going into the ground over the next few weeks.”

The mayor nodded and promised to be back soon to buy her own bedding plants and, after a few more minutes of small talk with Mary and Kara, excused herself to hurry out to a brunch she had to attend.

“I think I shocked her,” Kara said, turning to Mary. They’d both seen April’s worried frown as she’d turned away.

“Change can be hard,” replied Mary, her tone thoughtful, “but unfortunately, sometimes, it’s inevitable too.”

Chapter Twelve

The following week Kara winced as she looked at the scenes Mary was FaceTiming her from the garden center.

“Now, I know you’ve got things to do tonight, and there’s nothing you can do here, but I thought you should know what’s going on. I’ve shut off the water, and the plumber is on his way. I can stay until he gets here and then show him what we need fixed.”

“No, I’ll come over right now. I just have to drop Maeve off at her grandparents first.”

Mary snorted. “And do what? It’s just the greenhouse that’s flooded, thank goodness, and I’ve already opened up the sides so everything can drain out.”

“I can’t just not help!”

“Yes, you can. Besides, we won’t turn on the water again tonight. I’ve already closed up and sent everyone home a little early. Hopefully Will can get things sorted before morning, so we’ll have water back on inside before the sun even rises.”

“But?”

“But nothing. Will and I go way back. I’ll stay here until he tells me what needs doing and then get him on it. You don’t have much of a choice anyway. This has to be fixed. We can’t operate without running water.”

“I know,” Kara sighed.

“This isn’t really a surprise, either,” Mary continued. “They told us when we renovated out there that the pipes were old and would need replacing sooner rather than later.”

“They did. I just didn’t have the money at the time to do everything.”

“I know, and fixing the roof was more important. It’s just bad luck that this needs doing too.”

Kara was silent.

“After I talk to Will, I’ll have him call you. Honestly, I don’t mind staying a little later tonight.”

“Are you sure?”

“I am. You just have fun tonight. Forget all about this. I’ll try to find a workaround with Will to keep the costs as low as I can.”

“Do you think that’s possible?”

Mary laughed. “Of course it is. We’ve been keeping this place together with duct tape and bubble gum for years now. We can do it again.”

Kara felt a sad, hopeful smile drift to her lips. “I hope so, Mary.”

“I know so, darling. I’ll see you in the morning after everything’s all fixed up.”

“Thanks, Mary. Night.”

“Night, love,” Mary said and disconnected the phone, leaving Kara wondering what would go wrong next.

“Stop fussing. It’s not a date,” Kara said out loud for the third time an hour later as she finished getting ready to go out. But deep down she knew a tiny part of her wanted to pretend that tonight’s dinner was a date, and she smiled at the idea as she continued to fuss with her hair and applied a light coat of mascara to her lashes.

And, what exactly makes a dinner between two single people a date as opposed to a friendly night out?

Tossing a pair of pants onto the queen-size bed in her room, Kara tried to decide whether jeans were too casual for tonight. She reached for a dark wool skirt in the back of her closet, then chided herself.

“Stop it,” she told her reflection in the mirror firmly. “You asked Scott out for dinner to thank him for helping with Maeve and her hospital visit.”

She had decided that just giving Scott the planter didn’t seem like she was showing nearly enough gratitude for helping her when Maeve had been hurt. So, since tonight wasn’t technically a date with this gorgeous man, it shouldn’t matter one bit what she was wearing. Except getting dressed to go out had never been that easy for Kara. Once she’d decided her usual uniform of jeans and a T-shirt might be inappropriate, she was lost. She sighed, gritted her teeth, and finally pulled on black, slim-fitting pants, a long, floaty floral blouse, and chunky silver jewelry.

After applying more makeup, she was finished. She nodded in satisfaction at her reflection in the full-length mirror. Her outfit was comfortable but also pretty, and after sweeping her hair back in a loose, cheekbone-defining chignon, Kara was pleased with what she saw reflected in the bathroom mirror.

I don’t look half bad.

Going downstairs, Kara quickly straightened up the front room and tried not to worry about the garden center’s plumbing problems while she waited for Scott to arrive. As she tidied up her daughter’s things, Kara sighed and stopped to hug a stuffed rabbit. Although Maeve had only been at her grandparents’ house for a few hours, Kara already missed her.

Tucking a stray piece of hair behind one ear, Kara set the animal on a shelf and frowned as she reminded herself that she would have to ask Jamie’s parents when she picked up Maeve if the rumor about him moving home was true. It might make things slightly weird for her if he was as she’d been used to doing things with Maeve all on her own since she’d been born. Having Jamie in the picture consistently would take some getting used to.

Kara had just finished fluffing the couch pillows when the front doorbell rang, causing her to jump.

“Stop being so jittery,” she chided herself. “It’s just a man—you’ve gone out to dinner with men a gazillion times.”

Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and blinked when she saw Scott standing on her front porch. She’d seen him a few times in his work clothes, and she’d even, through the wonders of Google, seen him in his snug-fitting professional baseball uniform. But tonight he was dressed up for dinner and she quickly decided she liked him outfitted this way the best of all. Well-tailored dark pants showed off his narrow waist, and his broad shoulders—encased in a suit jacket with a silky-looking open-necked shirt underneath—gave him a sexy yet casual look. He was handsome, but what really made Kara pause and stop from uttering the words of welcome that had been on her lips was Scott’s smile. She felt her pulse increase as she basked in its glow. His sexy grin, combined with his sparkling eyes, strong muscular build, and—as he’d proved when he helped her rush Maeve to the hospital—kind nature made him incredibly attractive. Kara had to admit she didn’t even know him that well yet, but she was definitely more than a little besotted.

She felt a blush rise to her cheeks and stepped back to let him in. Scott handed her the small bouquet he was carrying.

“Flowers!” Kara exclaimed delightedly. “Thank you! These are lovely. Since I own a garden center, no one ever gives me fresh-cut flowers and I love them!”

Scott grinned at her obvious pleasure. “I’m glad you like them. I must admit that I thought twice about getting them for you, but they were such beautiful spring colors, I couldn’t resist.”

“They’re perfect. Thank you. I’m all ready to go. Just give me a minute to put these in water,” she replied.

While she fetched a vase, Scott admired the pretty, traditionally laid out family home. The walls were painted a silvery gray, and the furnishings were colorful and looked very comfortable.

Kara returned a moment later with the flowers he had given her arranged beautifully in a cut-glass vase.