"Great idea. Maybe I can get The Prickly Pear to cater it."

Soon, Phoebe and Elise were hip-deep in party plans. The invitation list included a few bonus eligible men for Daisy, per Jane Jasmine's advice: "Hedge your bets," Jane had written. "You can invite any number of single men to a party, and none will know he's being 'singled out' for attention."

When Wyatt opened the colorful envelope that had been slipped under his door, he suspected ulterior motives. The flowing, feminine script was a clue. Sure, it was just an invitation to a party to celebrate the engagement of one of his neighbors, Elise Foster. His grandparents had mentioned her, too-many times. But the personal note from the party's hostess, none other than Phoebe Lane, confirmed his suspicions.

"Everyone would really like to get to know you," she'd written. "Hope you'll be able to make it."

He had to admit he was tempted. Though his coworkers at the studio had invited him time and again to socialize with them after their day's work, he always declined. He simply had too much to do. Eventually he would delegate more responsibilities, as he collected a loyal and competent staff. But right now he felt compelled to oversee every detail personally. Interviewing potential guests took hours out of every day, but he insisted that all people to appear on the show be thoroughly screened. The last thing he wanted was for "Heads Up" to turn into another daytime trash TV show.

His grandparents would have urged him to go to the party. They'd told him often enough how much fun it was to live at Mesa Blue because of the nice neighbors. They'd made lifelong friends here.

So Phoebe's invitation was tempting. Wyatt would have liked to meet new friends, people he could relax with-let down his guard, talk about anything and everything. A woman friend would be nice, too. He'd been without serious female companionship for longer than was healthy. But a party wasn't the place for him to meet friends of either sex. In his experience, parties were where publicity-hungry people of every ilk tried every persuasive trick they could think of to get themselves on TV.