Susan Morris stared down at the phone, still warm from her hand, and dissolved into tears. She heard Jon striding toward the kitchen and dried her face with the dishtowel on her shoulder, knowing full well she wouldn’t fool him.

Jon’s eyes widened. He was carrying Kiley, ready for bed in her Veggie Tales pajamas. “Who was that? Is it your dad again?”

“It was Marissa.”

“Marissa? She hasn’t called in months! What happened?”

“She’s coming to visit tomorrow.”

“But she’s okay? Nobody died or anything?”

“She’s in town for a convention and has an opening in her schedule tomorrow.” Fresh tears stung her eyes. “So . . . I . . . invited her here f-for lunch.”

Trouble always seemed to follow Miss Isabella deLancie with dogged determination. Tonight was no exception. Although she’d been invited to the Earl of Kenneway’s spring soiree with the express purpose to meet her future husband, she had vowed to make an early escape. However, her stubborn grandmamma thwarted her plans by catching her just as she’d taken a step over the balcony, denying her the opportunity to shimmy down the trellis unseen. Not only had she torn the hem of her dress, but also she had to endure a fifteen minute dressing down from the elegant deLancie family matriarch, followed by a list of repercussions that were sure to follow. Her ears were still burning from the ordeal.

With a sigh she leaned against the wall in the earl’s lavish ballroom, praying for the Almighty to get her through the night. She had no desire to meet the man her grandmamma had proclaimed “your perfect match.” She could think of a thousand more fulfilling things to do, such as counting every blade of grass in Hyde Park.