A warm-hearted rich man's son, Richard Gardener needs to overcome three obstacles: find a way the family business can run without him, help his mother cope with grief, and stop butting heads -- and other parts of his anatomy -- with the gardener.<br><br>Ethan Fields has worked for the Gardener family for many years. He’s struggling with debt and the desire to leave, and has loved Richard far longer than the man would believe. Ethan can cope with most things, but his anger with Richard’s mother won’t fade. Until that and his feelings for Richard are resolved, he feels trapped and, alas, the idea that sex will get Richard out of his system isn’t working.<br><br>To make the situation worse, both men assume too much and don’t say the right words, and Ethan’s offer of ‘just sex’ grows more complicated by the day. Can Richard and Ethan stop getting their wires crossed before their paths diverge?

Flowers for the Gardener

Though movement involved a lot of effort, his lack of response came from a fear of appearing uncomfortable. Ethan might make a big issue out of some reaction so small as to be minuscule. Nothing strange about bathing in afterglow…though many didn’t with the hired help. He so needed to stop thinking of Ethan as an employee. He wasn’t his mother and needed to put an end to reacting the way she expected him to. As he had done for too much of his life. Ethan…the man meant more to him than a member of staff. Truth was, Ethan’s attention meant more to Rich than to Ethan.


Rich closed his eyes at the sting of tears. He held his breath, afraid of making a sound.


The hand continued to stroke his hair and the silence reigned, Rich losing track of the minutes, of whenhe at last breathed again.


Chapter 44