Every time Melissa saw Creagon, she marveled at how he never seemed to change, never seemed to grow older. And, considering Melissa had only seen Creagon twice in the last fifteen years (twice since that one long-ago night William Davenport had eventually come to mutter "I'm sorry" for), she was surprised at how Creagon could manage to appear so ageless. Especially since it had obviously been no lark making it on his own out in the big wide world with neither his father's money nor name to back him.

The last time Melissa had seen Creagon was at her brother's wedding to Marne.

Marne Davenport nee Marne Mason: the wife of Melissa's brother; the sister of Melissa's husband.

And before Creagon and Marne's wedding, the only other time had been when her brother had attended Melissa's wedding to John. And, some time during those festivities, Creagon Davenport had met Marne Mason; and, love had blossomed.

At Melissa and John's wedding there had also been a fight between Creagon and his father. The first time those men had seen each other in ten years, and they'd been at each other's throat. Thank God William hadn't been invited to Creagon's marriage. Melissa had sneaked away to attend it-one of the few things she had ever done in her life to flaunt her father. And, William Davenport had been furious. He had raved on for days, dredging up old, best-forgotten skeletons and rattling them in front of Melissa's eyes until Melissa had collapsed and been under a doctor's care for four whole weeks.

And, so her father had died sorry. But, sorry for what? Maybe that was what was bothering Melissa. Because William Davenport had been so seemingly firm in his righteous indignation that he had, for the most part finally convinced Melissa that she wag the one who should have been sorry.

So, why hadn't Melissa been able to tell the dying man that she was sorry?

It had been Melissa's fault, hadn't it? What Melissa had done was wicked… wicked… wicked. If she could accept that now, then why hadn't she been able to tell her father she was sorry?