A FRIEND INDEED? It's Summertime in New Chapel, Indiana, and feisty florist Abby Knight Salvare is up to her neck in work - supervising the construction of her float for the Fourth of July parade, managing her flower shop Bloomers, reigning in her over-eager cousin Jillian, and working with her hunky husband Marco in his private detective business - when her best friend Nikki comes to her with a big problem. Blake Ryder, a handsome, charismatic surgeon at the New Chapel Hospital is a suspect in a murder case, and Nikki is supposed to go away with him for the holiday weekend. Is Blake being targeted unfairly or has Nikki gotten herself involved with a real life lady-killer? The days are long and humid, the clues are leading in all directions, and the responsibilities are piling up as Independence Day quickly approaches. Abby can't turn down a friend in need, but can she solve Nikki's dilemma and handle all her other concerns before the fireworks?