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drum up interest in his magic act. I want a baby and I’d like my two best friends to be behind me on this.”
    Now it was Melina and Lucy who looked at each other. Grace’s stomach dropped when neither of them managed to even fake a show of support.
    “In light of Logan Cooper’s actions, I know why you’re doing it,” Melina finally said, “but you’re running away from your issues. You can’t just ignore your desire to find Mr. Right, with part of Mr. Right being someone who can give you an orgasm—”
    “I’m not runnin’ away,” she said, even as she pictured Logan’s face and wanted to cringe. He’d been an undergraduate student when she started counseling him about academic and career options. He could be charming when he tried to be but he also blamed the world for anything that went wrong in his life. When he’d propositioned her, she’d declined as politely as possible, but he’d obviously harbored a grudge. Later, at a university mixer with faculty and graduate students, Grace did something stupid and played right into his vindictive little hands. Wearing a wrap-around dress, she’d let it slide apart enough to flash Steven LaBrecht, a professor she’d slept with several times. Logan used his camera phone to take a picture, told the dean she was “flirting” with him, and filed suit against the university. Now she was on academic leave pending the board’s ethics hearing. Eventually, she’d be a star witness in Logan’s suit against the university.
    But she wasn’t going to dwell on all that right now.
    “Instead of runnin’ away,” she said, “I’m runnin’ to somethin’ far more important than an orgasm—which I can give myself anyway. Whether the ethics panel dismisses Logan Cooper’s charges against me or not, I won’t be returnin’ to the university. I’m movin’ forward with my plan.”
    Lucy scowled. “You can’t let that little twerp drive you away.”
    “I’m not. Not completely. I liked my job, but the truth is I haven’t been truly happy for a while. The idea of havin’ a baby? That makes me happy. I’m not rich by any means, but I can afford to take some time off. I want a new start. A family before it’s too late.”
    “Too late?” Lucy said. “You’re only twenty nine years old.”
    “My parents had me when my mama was forty and my daddy was fifty-two. I was ten when they died. ”
    “We know, honey, but your mom died in a car crash. And your dad died of a known heart problem. It wasn’t necessarily age that took them from you. Can’t you wait a little bit? See if someone special comes along?” Melina’s tone was pleading.
    Graces shook her head. “I’ve gone almost twenty years without a family. I don’t want to wait anymore. I want to move on with my life and that means havin’ a child.”
    “Without love. Without passion.” Lucy’s voice held a dark tone.
    “Passion is just the foam on a latte. Nice, but it’s not the actual latte.”
    “Lord, Melina,” Lucy said. “She sounds a lot like you before Rhys.”
    “Not quite,” Grace said. “I’ve had passion in my life. I’m just sayin’ I don’t need to focus on a man as the be-all, end-all. I want a family of my own. One that’s goin’ to be there for me even without orgasms in the picture. In a way Logan Cooper has done me a favor by forcin’ me to get my priorities straight.”
    Melina scowled. “How dare you say the guy did you a favor? He’s dragging your professional reputation through the mud. The ethics committee will see how ridiculous his allegations are.”
    “Maybe. I hope so. But either way, I’m not goin’ back to the university. I’m goin’ to make a completely fresh start. This mornin’ I contacted several surrogacy services to see if an arrangement can be worked out, and one agency has set up an interview for me two days from now. The man’s from South Carolina.”
    “You’re going to move to South Carolina?” Melina asked.
    “I figure bein’