Emily was ready for a change. When her friends had left for college and city life, she'd stayed behind to nurse her mother. Now, at twenty-seven, she was seriously considering selling her florist's shop and leaving the small Minnesota farming community. And that's when Nick Simon came home. Nick came for his grandfather's funeral--but quickly decided to stick around and break down Emily's stoical reserve. Nick drove her crazy, but there seemed to be no way to get rid of him. Nor could Emily convince the town they weren't really having a torrid affair! A very good old-school romance between stoically reserved Emily and irrepressible Nick Simon. Beautiful descriptions of life in a rural community of a midwestern American town. Elements of nature, life, love and strength come together seamlessly in this well-woven tale. The man-woman dynamic may seem anachronistic in today's times, but there are still some universal lessons to draw from it.