When her tall, dark, delicious husband joins their three kids in calling her "Mom," Karol Simons has an identity crisis. Sure she loves the pint-size trio, but what's happened to her dreams of writing a novel? Determined to have it all, she turns to her neighbor for help.Dyanne Thornton is thrilled to stand in as Mom for three weeks so Karol can write. Bursting with baby fever, the career-woman trades her glamorous clothes and four-inch heels for the playground and potty training. She hopes to convince her reluctant husband they should start a family of their own, right away.Everyone's in for some big surprises....

"They're ruining everything." The words tangled in Karol Simon's throat as she watched in horror as a backhoe bit into the tree house she and her family had constructed with their former neighbors and best friends Hope and Singh. The rest of the yard, including Hope's prize-winning roses and the strawberry bush the children had planted, lay in heaped mounds of roots and blooms.To Karol, it looked a lot like her life.Her tears, few at first, now streamed down her face as she watched butterflies and birds flee into her yard to escape the destruction of their homes and so many of Karol's memories. She wanted to run to her husband, to collapse into his arms... Instead, she pulled the curtain back farther, using it to wipe her tears. "It looks like a cemetery," she said without turning around, certain Rob wasn't listening.He was. "Get away from the window, Kay. It's rude for one thing. It's depressing for another. Do you think I don't know how much you miss Hope? I miss Singh, too. But the Lord led them to another place, to another job, to other--"She held up a hand. "Don't say it.""I will say it. To other friends. Hope and Singh are going to find new friends. A new church. A new life in North Carolina. That doesn't mean they'll forget us here in Tallahassee. It's just a chance to share them with someone else."Rob laid aside his Linux Pocket Guide and stood. Four strides brought him to the window. His weekend work boots struck the floor with the same confidence she heard in his voice. Not so long ago, Karol had heard the same assurance in her own voice. Was she the same woman who'd once run Vacation Bible School and the women's ministry committee? These days the only running she did was from herself... and from God. She'd expected to miss Hope, to be sad for a little while, but this was more than that.Karol needed her.She hadn't realized how much her friend helped her be a good mom, a good wife. Hope had a houseful of children, seven in all, and taught her children at home. She'd taught Karol a lot about being a mother and being a friend.Now that the crew next door had moved away, though, Karol couldn't just pick up the phone and call. Their busy schooling schedule had been easier to interrupt when it only meant walking next door and waiting for a break in the action. Now when Karol called, she got the answering machine indicating the family's school hours. In the evenings, Hope was tired with moving in at first and then Karol started to unravel and didn't want to call and detail her failures. She called her friend less and less these days and seemed to lose it more and more. And her husband was starting to notice.That was the part that made her heart pound as Rob took her hand. Her pulse quickened, too, both in anticipation and fear. Things had grown awkward between them. Rusty. She wasn't ready to deal with him quite yet, though lemon Pledge and sawdust were a hard combination to ignore.He knew it, too. Rob stood close behind her, running his hands over hers until she released the curtain. He brushed away her last tear with his thumb before lacing his arms around her waist. She closed her eyes as his stubbled face prickled against her smooth one, waiting for the kiss that was sure to come. It'd be a soft one, right in the curve of her neck most likely. Even after three kids, he still knew how to buckle her knees.He kissed her ear instead, first with his lips and then with a whisper. "I know this is hard, honey. We all knew it would be. I get up every morning and reach for the phone to call Singh to pray or to borrow a tool from him, only to realize he's gone. I know it's even deeper with you and Hope, but maybe God has a purpose in this, for us as well as them."We'll see them soon enough. Charlotte isn't that far away. They mentioned coming down for Ryan's birthday, remember? And we're taking Mia over for hers and Eden's party next month. Until then, I figure we can wor