3 days before my wedding, Dad called: “I’m not wal…

Soil acidity could be adjusted. Growth could be nurtured. Variables could be controlled.

The variables outside the glass walls were spinning rapidly out of my hands. My phone vibrated against the metal counter. The caller ID showed Sarah Jenkins.

Sarah was the events director for the Bozeman Botanical Gardens, the venue where I was supposed to marry Elias in two days. She was also a friend, and she stocked my bespoke salves in the garden gift shop. I wiped my hands on my canvas apron and answered.

“Penny, I need you to listen to me very carefully,” Sarah said. Her voice was stripped of its usual cheerful rhythm. “Your brother-in-law, Preston, is currently sitting in my outer office.

He just placed a thick manila envelope full of cash on my desk and asked for the buyout price to secure the entire garden property for Saturday night.”