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of spoiling a woman’s innocence. That was all they wanted. At least she wouldn’t have to put up with that anymore, once she was married.
    Next week. She would be Mrs. Joel Parrington next week. Yet he didn’t love her and she didn’t love him. It didn’t matter. She was never going to love again, so it didn’t matter.

Three
    Marcus Hammond’s blood pressure was rising. He glared across his desk at his elder daughter, but for once his displeasure was not making her cower. There she sat in her night rail glaring right back at him. He couldn’t believe it. She reminded him so much of his wife. But he wasn’t going to stand for this rebellion.
    “Go to your room, Sharisse!”
    Her large amethyst eyes rounded even more. “You mean you won’t even discuss this with me?”
    “No.
    Her chin raised stubbornly, and she sat back in her chair as if settling in. “I won’t go to bed until this thing is settled.”
    “You won’t? You won’t! By God—”
    “Will you just listen to me?” Sharisse’s voice turned pleading.
    “Listen to more nonsense? I will not!”
    “But don’t you see? I can’t marry Joel now. How can I when I know Stephanie loves him?”
    “Stephanie is a child,” her father blustered. “She’s too young to know anything about love.”
    “She’s seventeen, Father,” Sharisse pointed out. “Wasn’t Mother seventeen when you married her?”
    “You leave your mother out of this!” Marcus warned furiously.
    Sharisse backed down. “If you’ll just listen to what I’m saying…I don’t love Joel, but Steph does. So why should I have to marry him, when she wants to?”
    “This should have been brought up when it was settled that you would marry him, not now, with the wedding a week away. You were perfectly willing to marry the boy before your sister made her ridiculous confession to you. It’s too late now, Sharisse.”
    “Oh, I could just scream!” Sharisse cried in frustration, shocking her father further. “It’s not as if we aren’t intimately acquainted with the Parringtons. Joel’s father is your best friend, has been since before I was born. If the situation were explained to Edward, he would certainly understand.”
    “Like hell he would,” Marcus growled, appalled at the thought of telling his friend he wanted to substitute daughters at this late date. The very idea! “I will hear no more about this.”
    “But, Father—”
    “No more I say!” He rose from his chair to his full intimidating height, and Sharisse paled. “You’re not too old to take a strap to, Sharisse Hammond, and by God, that’s exactly what I’lldo if you so much as mention this nonsense to me again!”
    Sharisse didn’t answer. Her courage fell, and she ran from the room. At the top of the stairs she stopped, her heart hammering. Had she ever been so frightened before? How she’d got the nerve to defy her father, she didn’t know. To go against him after that last horrible threat…impossible. She had known it wouldn’t be easy telling her father, but she hadn’t thought he would refuse her so furiously. And to threaten her with a whipping! She shuddered.
    Sharisse found Stephanie in her room, sitting anxiously on the edge of the bed, waiting. “I’m sorry, Steph,” was all she had to say.
    The younger girl started to cry. “I knew it wouldn’t do any good. I told Trudi so, but she was so sure you could do something.”
    Sharisse moved to the bed and tried to comfort her sister. “Please don’t cry, Steph. Maybe after Father thinks about it awhile…”
    “If he told you no, he won’t change his mind.” Stephanie sobbed harder. “I shouldn’t have told you at all. I should just have left here the way I planned.”
    “Leave?” Sharisse wasn’t sure she had heard correctly. “What do you mean?”
    “Never mind.” Stephanie sniffed.
    “You don’t have anywhere to go, Steph.”
    “Don’t I?” Stephanie said angrily, thinking Sharisse was feeling sorry for her. “For