Melinda puttered around the apartment, pretending to pack things up. Her thoughts were on the events of the weekend and not on her collection of inconsequential things. This was a pre-furnished apartment and since she was trying to fit into the mortal world, she never bothered to bring any of her private items from the family home. She gave up the pretense of packing; most of the stuff would fit into one box anyway. Overnight, she had come to grips with the fact that although they may not share a love deep enough for true love, they still loved each other and she would continue with the wedding. She was more concerned over his comments about what he would do with the family property if he owned it. It was their third walk through the garden maze on Sunday afternoon.
Eric turned to her as they sat on the bench and said, "I don't understand why your family has kept this garden around. This might have been nice at the turn of the last century but it's the 21st century. You have more than enough space for a swimming pool, tennis court, or a massive deck with a nice hot tub in it."
She was too stunned by the statement to even respond. She couldn't imagine not having the garden to come out and stroll in day or night. Besides it was also tied into their magic ... as much as they poured magic into the property, it also provided them with power when they needed it. "I don't think it has occurred to any of us that we should do something besides have the garden. It's a part of our history."
"You should mention it to your sister Sarah. I know she doesn't spend much time here what with Marcus's house. We could hold business meetings or outings here if there were something for the guests to do." He smiled brilliantly, thinking of the points he could win at work having a place like to impress the Board.
She grimaced at the memory; steps would need to be taken to make sure Eric didn't find out that she owned the estate. He assumed that Sarah as the oldest child had inherited the property. But when her parents had died, Sarah had already been married to Marcus, who had a family home of his own to manage. Carla lived in the faery mound with her husband Gabriel since he was a prince of the realm. Her parents had left her sisters other things that they could use in their marriages and she had been given the responsibility of taking care of the house and land. Sarah would help her perpetuate the myth that the house belonged to the oldest sister, and Melinda would make sure her will specified the house went to someone other than Eric.
Looking at the time, Melinda saw that it was ten o'clock in the morning. Feeling good about life at the moment, she decided to make a picnic lunch to eat with Eric in the office. He had told her on the trip back last night that he wouldn't be available to eat lunch out today, so she thought she could take it to him. With a spring in her step, she went about digging out the basket and preparing subs for lunch with a fruit parfait for dessert.
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Melinda Conley was the last of three magical sisters to marry. After failing to find a mate in the supernatural community, she falls for a mortal. So what happens when her magic garden says he's not her one true love?
