"This place is packed," Melinda shouted, trying to be heard above the music. The bass was turned up so high that the floor shook."Well, we wanted to go dancing, and this was the only place for people under the age of sixty," Bree yelled back. "Should we try for a place that isn't going to make us need hearing aids before we're through?""What about your friends? Do you want to wait for them before we head off?" Melinda rubbed her temples. She had never enjoyed clubs, but figured this was the type of place bachelorette parties were expected to be at.Bree shook her head. "No, I'll text them. They're running a little late anyway."Melinda took the lead

"There's no way out," Melinda groaned. She was sitting next to Daniel on a lounge chair by the pool, drinking her fifth complimentary piña colada. "I mean, seriously, my parents have trained their children to be nothing but mindless, obedient puppets.""Isn't that a bit harsh?" Daniel asked, lifting his sunglasses.Man, he had amazing eyes. Melinda's gaze drifted down to Daniel's chiseled abs. That was the beautiful thing about swimming pools…men could take off their shirts without ulterior motives, and Melinda was enjoying every minute of it.Focus."Not at all. I've been stuck at the family business with no way out because no one else wants the job. I could leave

Melinda's phone burst into song, startling her from where she sat in the stairwell, Daniel's arm still wrapped around her. Despite the cold concrete, she hadn't been that comfortable in a long time. She pulled her phone out of her purse and saw that it was her mother."I better take this," she told Daniel, and unraveled herself from the floor. She stepped back into the hallway to avoid the echo in the stairwell. "Hi, Mom. I know we should have been there ages ago," she said. "We had a wardrobe malfunction and—""None of that matters now," her mother said in a voice that was unusually shrill, even for her. "Your sister, it appears, has come down with something—she's 'puking her guts out,' as

Daniel held Melinda's hand as they waved goodbye to Bree and their mother. Dinner had been delicious, and despite the initial shock of Bree's appearance, everyone had seemed happy to have her there, with Mark and their grandmother being the exceptions. Even their father's business associates thought it was nice that Mark had found a girl who was so “down to earth.”“I can’t believe she didn’t tell them,” Melinda muttered under her breath as they left the restaurant. “That was the whole point, wasn’t it? She was supposed to show up in her bathrobe and declare the engagement over. After we ate up all the incredible food, of course.”“Do you think she is having second thoughts?” Daniel asked. Maybe the lavish lifestyle that

Melinda woke the next morning with a smile on her face. What had she been dreaming about? It must have been pretty good, because she felt like nothing in the world could bring her down. And then she remembered, it hadn't been a dream. It had been Daniel, lying with her in the sand under a full moon. She snuggled deeper under the covers, wishing it never had to end. But Bree was supposed to get married today. And then tomorrow, Melinda would be back in Amor. If there were only a way to convince her mother to stop listening to Grams and allow Melinda to move on with her life.Except, nothing was how it was supposed to be. The elation Melinda had felt instantly vanished. Bree couldn't marry Mark, which meant there'd be no celebrating. And with everyone in such bad temper, there was no way they would agree to sell the diner. A sense of dread washed over Meli