Sam snorted. "If it were only that easy. We'll stick an end in the dirt, and it will start growing as if it's always been here. Our only problem will be pulling it down after the festival before it has time to take over the town."

Mary Jane laughed out loud, as if what Sam had said was the funniest thing she'd ever heard. Still smiling and with her hand on Sam's arm, she looked at Madison. "Your mom's supposed to be here in a minute to help. All the former Kudzu Queens are supposed to help out, and Harriet's so good with decorating and things that Sam and I just grabbed her to work on our committee." She sent another sickening look at Sam, making Cassie even more self-conscious about her bedraggled and sweaty self. "We felt bad about your father's funeral being yesterday and everything, and we even told Harriet she didn't have to come, but she said she wanted to. I guess it helps to keep her mind off of things." Her hazel eyes regarded Cassie casually. "Sort of what running must do for you."

Sam looped several long strands around his neck and rubbed his hands together. "We'd better get started. I'm supposed to be at the clinic at one, and we've got lots of this leafy stuff to drape. Madison, why don't you and your aunt stay and give us a hand?"

Cassie glanced at her bare arm, realizing she'd forgotten her watch. "Sorry-I'd love to, but I can't. I've got an appointment with a realtor at eleven-thirty. Plus I desperately need a shower."

Sam paused with the kudzu around his neck and a small pucker between his eyebrows. He looked for a moment as if he were going to question her about her appointment but then changed his mind. "Yeah, you're right. You could use a good hosing down with soap and water."

Cassie stuck her hands on her hips. "You should try running yourself sometime. It'll keep some of that fried food you eat off of your stomach." Her gaze strayed to his knit shirt smoothed over a flat abdomen and tucked into a pair of jeans. The ever-present cowboy boots were on his feet.

He grinned. "But I do. Five miles a day. I just go at night when it's cooler and I won't be running into anybody who might catch a whiff of me. You should go with me sometime."

Mary Jane hadn't moved during the entire exchange, nor had she been able to look anywhere else but at Sam's face as he spoke to Cassie. Madison had walked across the square to where Harriet had pulled up with the van and was slowly unloading a double stroller.

Cassie smirked. "No, thanks. I prefer to be alone."

Sam picked up more kudzu from the ground and handed it with a smile to Mary Jane. Without looking at Cassie, he said, "That's another bad habit she's learned in New York. We'll have to do our best to break her of them while she's here."

"Don't bother," Cassie said, waving a dismissive hand in the air. "I won't be here long enough for anything to stick."

Mary Jane cleared her throat. "Is your meeting with Ed Farrell?"

Cassie nodded. "I was surprised to hear he had a respectable job. You'd think he'd be scratching out a living on the old dirt farm he grew up on." An evil grin split her face. "Hey, Sam, weren't you Ed's favorite punching bag in high school?" As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she regretted them. She pictured the old Sam, all legs and arms, with thick glasses and a sweet smile. He had never been anything but kind to her and never failed to laugh at one of her pranks. She saw Sam's jaw clench.

Mary Jane saved her by speaking. "And those two are still at it-but in a more civilized way now. As a matter of fact, they're both running for the vacant town-council seat."

Cassie reached her hand around her back to squelch a drip of sweat rolling down between her shoulder blades. "Gosh, Sam. Do you ever have time to do any doctoring? With all your other activities, it's a surprise that you have any time left at all."

A stiff grin crossed his face. "Actually, I do. That's one of the main reasons I left Boston to practice medicine here. Unlike living in the big city, I can have a life and a career at the same time."

Without thinking, Cassie's hands went to her hips in a defensive posture. "I have a life!"

Sam turned back to his kudzu. "I'm sure you do, Cassie. A very exciting and glamorous one."

She dropped her hands, feeling very unsettled all of a sudden. Facing Mary Jane, she said, "I'll talk to you later. Tell Stinky I said hello." Without looking at Sam, she waved in his direction, then turned to run across the square and join her sister.

Cassie stood next to Harriet, the old, familiar feeling of being overly large next to the smallness of her younger sister as strong as ever.

Harriet wiped a strand of honey blond hair out of her eyes and stared up at her sibling. She seemed pale and tired, but her smile was as bright as Cassie remembered. "I'm so glad I found you. My baby-sitter canceled last minute, and I can't get a thing done here with Knoxie and the baby. At least Joey and Sarah Frances have vacation Bible school this week. Otherwise I might as well just duct-tape myself to the kitchen sink, since I wouldn't be moving from there, anyway."

Harriet handed Knoxie to Cassie. "Just stick her in the back of the stroller. I learned not to put her in front because Amanda grabs hold of Knoxie's pigtails and it really puts her in a state."

The little girl smiled at her aunt as Cassie took her, holding her suspended over the double stroller and not sure how to proceed. Cassie spied two feet holes and began lowering the toddler, kicking legs and all. The child ended up with her right leg in the left foot hole and her left foot somehow in the front seat. Knoxie began to whimper.

"Here," said Harriet, handing Amanda to Cassie. Effortlessly, she scooped up Knoxie and had her seated properly in the stroller without breaking a sweat. Calmly, she took the baby and set her in the front seat. "See? It's easy with just a little bit of practice. You won't have any problems."

Cassie's eyes opened with realization. "Wait a minute. I don't know anything about taking care of children. Besides, I have an appointment at eleven-thirty, and I need to shower." The baby gurgled, and Cassie stared at her with apprehension.

Harriet waved her hands dismissively through the air. "Don't be silly. You took care of me when I was little. It's just like riding a bike; you never forget how. And I'll ask Madison to help. She's got a tennis lesson at eleven, but she can help until then." She reached into the van and pulled out an enormous diaper bag and looped the shoulder strap over the handle of the stroller. "Everything you need is in here. And there's a few bottles already made in the refrigerator at your house. She'll probably be hungry in about an hour."

Cassie rested her hand on the handle of the stroller and then yanked it off as if she had been scorched. "But what about my appointment?"

Harriet slid the large, heavy door of the van shut. "I'll try to be back by then, but if I'm not, just bring them with you. Everybody in town knows them, and they'll be glad to keep an eye on the girls while you do your business." She waved and took off at a brisk walk toward Sam and Mary Jane.

"But . . ." Cassie's objections died in her throat as a little hand pulled on her fingers. She looked down at the stroller, and Knoxie grinned up at her, her light green eyes completely without guile. Cassie looked up and saw Madison jogging slowly toward her.

"Mama says you need my help more than they do. I'm kinda glad. I'm pretty tired of hearing all of Mama's stories about her stint as Kudzu Queen."

Cassie tugged on the stroller, but it didn't budge. Madison leaned down, unhooked the lock, and began walking next to her aunt.

"When I get old like you, I'm not going to have any babies, either. Mama had me nine months after she was married, and she's been stuck here ever since." Madison lifted her ponytail off the back of her neck and wiped off the sweat. "I'm going to live in New York, have an exciting career, and be just like you. I don't want to have anything to do with diapers and bottles. I've had enough of that to last me a lifetime."

Cassie decided to ignore the "old" part and concentrate on the baby part instead. "I never said I didn't want babies . . ." She stopped in mid-sentence, aware that she had never told Andrew she wanted any, either. She pictured her apartment, with its clean lines and white carpets, and couldn't picture anywhere in it where the primary colors of baby toys or a lace-covered bassinet wouldn't look wildly out of place.

Knoxie had been singing tunelessly to herself but stopped suddenly. She twisted her head around, her red hair almost gold in the morning sunlight. "I'm not a baby. Do you like me?"

Cassie poked her head around the top of the stroller and stared into the wide eyes of her niece. "Of course I do. You're pretty darned cute."

Without warning and at the top of her lungs, Knoxie shouted, "I need to go potty. Right now!"

Amanda, jerked out of a doze by the commotion, began to cry.

"Uh-oh. When she says now, she means now." Madison picked up the baby and handed her to Cassie, then yanked Knoxie from the stroller. "I'll be right back."

Madison ran with her little sister up to the front door of the nearest house. When a woman answered, Madison disappeared inside with Knoxie.

Amanda's cries had now turned into yelps, and Cassie stood on the sidewalk, helplessly bouncing the baby up and down in her arms. Eventually, she began practicing with different handholds, finally placing the baby over her shoulder and patting her on the back. After a huge and decidedly unladylike burp, Amanda quieted down and cuddled against Cassie's shoulder.

Cassie stared down at the sweet cheek next to her jaw, the soft plumpness of it rising in a delicate swell. Cassie kissed it lightly, smelling that mysterious baby scent that is as intoxicating as any love potion. The baby snuggled more deeply on her shoulder, and Cassie smiled. They stood in a contented stupor until Madison and Knoxie reappeared.

She continued the rest of the walk with the baby perched on her shoulder, not too concerned about the drool sliding onto the bare shoulder outside her tank top. When they reached the house, Madison held the door open for Cassie, and she walked slowly up the stairs with the now-sleeping Amanda. She nudged open her sister's door with her foot and spied the portable crib in the corner. All the sheets had been pulled off the double bed, and Cassie felt an odd pang, realizing her sister and her family would be going back to their own house that night.

Slowly, she lowered the baby into the crib and watched her rum-pled bottom wiggle until she settled down again. Cassie stood in the hushed room for a long time, staring at the familiar wallpaper and furniture. Nothing at all had changed, and it was easy to see in her mind's eye herself and Harriet sitting cross-legged on the rosebud-covered bedspread, whispering to each other about crushes, dances, and fights with friends. Cassie had done most of the listening, and she had done so happily, grateful for this connection to the world of the in-crowd and scores of friends. And mostly, what it was like to go through life getting attention by just walking into a room.

The baby sighed in her sleep, jerking Cassie out of her reverie. She looked frantically at her arm, trying to figure out what time it was. She hated being late for appointments, even if this one was with Ed Farrell.

She stared down at the smooth skin of her arm, wondering how she had forgotten to put on her watch. She lived by that timepiece and was as naked without it as if she had just run outside in the altogether. Feeling almost disoriented from not knowing the exact time to the second, she rushed out of the room, closing the door as quickly and softly as possible. She hurried down the hall to her own room and the comfort of a cool metal band on her wrist that regulated her day and helped her get things done.

Six.

The stroller bumped into the curb, then rolled back onto Cassie's foot. She winced at the pain, then winced again as she noticed the scuff mark on the toe of her shoe. She pushed it harder this time, bringing it successfully over the curb, then strolled the children down the sidewalk to where Ed Farrell had told her his office stood. The building had once housed Hal's Heavenly Bakery, and as she stood before the large storefront window, she had a brief memory of herself on her father's shoulders, eating a doughnut on the way home from church. She saw her mother holding Harriet, a wide smile on her face as she reached up to stroke Cassie's cheek.

Cassie stared at the brick three-story building sandwiched between Bitsy's House of Beauty and Walton's Drug Emporium and blinked hard, erasing the memories along with the tingle of nostalgia in the pit of her stomach. Propping the door open with her foot, she maneu-vered the double stroller into the office. The strong odor of new carpet and crisp air-conditioning hit her hard.

She paused for a moment inside the door while she took off her sunglasses and tried to stick them into her purse. Her smart leather bag was now crammed with two pacifiers, a small squeaky toy, and a container of Cheerios, leaving little room for anything else. With a sigh, she stuck the glasses on top of her head. She lifted her gaze and caught a glimpse of a richly furnished waiting room, with dark, polished wood floors, Oriental carpets, overstuffed leather sofas, and real oil paintings on the walls. Nothing remained of Hal's bakery, not even a lingering aroma of baking bread. Cassie's first thought was to step outside and make sure she was in the right place.

A squeal from a corner erupted when a woman pulled herself to a stand behind an elaborate mahogany desk. A wide pink headband cut through a near-bouffant hairdo, and sat upon the whitish-blond hair like a lipsticked smile.

"Cassie Madison! I can hardly believe you're standing here in front of me." The woman enveloped her in an embrace of downy arms and bosom, then held her at arm's length as if to get a good look at her.

Cassie stared at the woman in her soft-pink knit suit, more cleavage showing than was necessary for a receptionist in a realtor's office, and tried not to smile as she thought how much this woman resembled a dish sponge.

The woman spoke again, small white teeth peering through the brightly hued lips. "You don't remember me, do you?"

"Um, sure I do. You're . . ." Cassie leaned over the baby to tuck a blanket around her, racking her brain for the identity of this stranger.

"I'm Laura-Louise Whittaker." She paused, seemingly waiting for a glimmer of recognition. "You probably remember me as Lou-Lou. I was on the cheerleading squad with Harriet all through high school."

Cassie's eyes widened with recognition. "Of course. I didn't recognize you with, um, your hair. It's, ah, you're doing something different with it, aren't you?"

Lou-Lou patted it gently with the palm of her hand. "I'm a blonde now." She leaned forward with a conspiratorial air. "And it's true-we really do have more fun." She let out a shrill giggle-the same gig-gle that had made Cassie's skin crawl in high school. Some things never changed.

Lou-Lou straightened and smoothed her skirt. "My. Where's my professionalism? I'll tell Ed, um, Mr. Farrell, that you're here. But we'll have to chat later. I'm just dying to hear all about New York City."

She slid behind her desk and pushed a long pink nail on an intercom button. She winked at Cassie. "Mr. Farrell. Your eleven-thirty is here."

Cassie gave Lou-Lou the warmest smile she could find. "Lou-Lou, I hope you don't mind, but I was wondering if you could watch my two nieces while I meet with Ed?"

Lou-Lou threw her hands up in a picture of apparent delight. "Why, I'd love to. Me and Harriet are practically sisters, and I love her kids- all five of them!-like they were my own. Just leave that stroller right there and Aunt Lou-Lou will take care of these little dumplings while you attend to business."

At that moment, a door at the back of the office opened, and a man appeared in the doorway. Cassie noticed the man's height first. His dark slicked-back hair, parted in the middle, almost skimmed the top of the doorway. She remembered that Ed Farrell had played on the junior varsity basketball team his freshman year before quitting for a reason she couldn't quite recall.

He approached her with an outstretched hand, his broad smile traversing most of his slender face. She looked again at his hair. She remembered that it had been the same mousy brown as her own and wondered absently if he dyed it. His double-breasted suit made a slight swishing noise as he walked, and the sheen of it under the flu-orescent lights convinced Cassie it wasn't made with natural fibers. She chided herself silently for being such a snob. Ed Farrell had apparently done very well for himself, and she should be admiring him for his success instead of belittling him for an unfortunate choice of suits.

He shook her hand while cupping the back of it with his other hand. His skin was rough, a cold reminder of his years pulling a hoe. As if reading her thoughts, Ed slipped his hands from hers a little too quickly.

"You look wonderful, Cassie. Long time no see, huh?"

His deep voice was that of a smoker's, like hot tar over gravel. She smelled nicotine mixed with mint as he spoke.

"Thank you, Ed. And, yes, it has been a long time. But it wouldn't be gentlemanly of you to make me remember exactly how long it's been." Cassie stopped herself from saying anything else, wondering why she was talking like Scarlett O'Hara all of a sudden.

He winked, then touched her on the elbow. "Let's go back to my office where we can sit down and talk."

Cassie glanced over at Lou-Lou, who seemed to be having a marvelous time shaking a rattle and making funny faces at the girls. She watched as Lou-Lou sent a luminescent gaze toward Ed. "I'll bring you some coffee in just a minute, Mr. Farrell."

He nodded with a wink, then ushered Cassie into his office.

The office decor was even more elaborate than that of the reception area. Built-in bookcases with recessed lighting illuminated small objets d'art. An oversized crystal chandelier dangled from the ceiling, each pendant tipped with gold. A blueprint, almost the size of the huge mahogany desktop, hung in a gilt frame over the fireplace. Cassie was about to sit down on a sofa when the print caught her gaze.

Slowly, she walked over to it, staring closely, and pointed at a small rectangle in the lower right of the paper. "That's my house."

Ed approached her with a small smile. He spread his blunt fingers, a gold signet ring circling his pinkie, over the northwest quadrant of the paper that was covered with about two hundred blue squares.

"Yep. That's my development. That used to be your cotton fields, now quickly becoming Farrellsford swim and tennis community. Bought it from your daddy."

Cassie could only nod. After a moment, she said, "I didn't realize how big it was-and how close to the house."

Ed led her back to the sofa and motioned for her to sit. He joined her on the opposite end of the cushion. "Don't worry about your privacy. We've plans to plant pine trees at the boundary line that will eventually block the view from your house entirely." He smiled, and she noticed how incredibly white his teeth were.

Cassie waited a moment for him to continue, and when he didn't, she said, "Looks like you've done pretty well for yourself, Ed."

He stuck his shoulders back, puffing out his chest. "Yep. Well, there really wasn't anywhere for me to go but up. You know what I mean?"

She looked down at the hands in her lap, unsure how to respond.

He spoke first. "So, you want to sell your house. You've certainly come to the right place."

She smiled up at him, grateful for the change in conversation. "Yes. I'd like to put it on the market as soon as possible. I have some cleanup to do-like the attic and all the closets need to be gone through-but I have a job and a fiance waiting for me in New York, and I'm really eager to get back."

"A fiance, hmm? You marryin' a Yankee?" He winked at her but gave the impression that he really wanted to hear an answer.

Cassie flattened her hands on her lap. "He's not from New York originally. He was born and raised in California, but he's been in New York for twenty years. He owns an advertising agency there, and I work for him."

Ed nodded. "Yes. Well, I hope you're both patient people, because it could take a while to unload an old house like yours. People these days wanting to spend that kind of money want something new-like what I'm offering them in Farrellsford. Sure, an old house is nice to look at and all, but it lacks a lot of modern conveniences that today's sophisticated buyers want." He stood, his brows furrowed as if in deep thought.

"If you don't have a jacuzzi in the master bath or Corian in a super-large kitchen . . ." He paused, pursing his lips together. "Let's just say it'll be a hard sell. Even if you add all those things, you'll still be competing with new homes in the same price range."

Cassie's face fell. "I've never sold a house before, and I just had no idea. How long do you think it could take?"

He lifted his shoulders. "A month. Two months. A year. Who knows?" He smiled warmly. "Now, don't get me wrong. It's a beautiful house, and I'm sure there's a buyer for it out there somewhere. It could just take awhile. Unless you're willing to look at other options."

Cassie sat back on the sofa. "Like what?"

Ed leaned against the edge of his desk, concentrating on a brass globe on its surface. "Well, you could always sell the land. It's a lot more valuable than the house."

Her eyes widened, and dread settled in her stomach area. "But what would happen to the house?"

The suit rustled again as Ed folded his arms across his chest. "It would be up to the land developer. If they put up a golf course, they could use the house as a clubhouse." He gave her a pointed look. "Or a pool."

She sat up. "A pool? But . . ." She stopped, realizing the implication.

With a compassionate smile, he said, "I know. It's not what we want, but I wanted to mention that you had options." His brows furrowed. "And I wanted to thank you for coming to me first instead of Roust Development. They're the ones who've already bought the property on either side of yours. They want to put up a mall-can you believe? Imagine the noise and traffic-and all in our backyards." His tongue clucked. "That's what happens when outsiders move in. They don't care about what was here first." He shook his head solemnly. "So, I'm glad you came to me. I'll make sure that whatever happens to your property, it's for the benefit of both you and the town of Walton."

He walked back over to her and sat down. "I'm here to help you make the right decision for you." He patted her hand in her lap.

Cassie stood, needing to move. "I'd like to start with trying to find a family to buy the house. If that doesn't work, then we can discuss plan B."

He nodded compassionately. "I understand. And I will do my very best to find a nice little family for your house." He stood and moved to the chair on the other side of his desk, looking up as Lou-Lou walked in with a silver tray and coffee service.