Three days later, Francesca returned to Kingsward City.

Yvonne had arranged a series of blind dates for her. Francesca, not wanting to disappoint her mother, had complied, though so far, none had felt right.

Once or twice, Julian had crossed paths with her during these outings. As he’d put it himself, he hadn’t interfered.

A month later, at Springhaven Bistro, yet another blind date came to its unremarkable end.

Francesca excused ...