She’d permitted herself a lazy day, comfortable in her casual pantsuit, her hair loose on her shoulders. Compiling a list of prospective wedding guests was a perfect task to while away an afternoon. Tomorrow Janice and Catherine were expected for luncheon, and she anticipated getting a large chunk of the initial wedding preparations out of the way. She still had to push Travis in the correct direction and have him propose to Catherine. Ruth wasn’t without feeling. She understood that a sensitive and romantic girl such as Catherine would expect Travis to ask her while down on one knee, and not informed by the prospective groom’s mother that a wedding would take place in under a year. To that end, she was determined to make it happen. The birthday party, scheduled only four days away, would be public enough to assure Travis’s compliance. If she played it cleverly enough, Ruth would make the announcement herself during the party. A sound in the outer foyer caught her attention. She hurriedly rose from the carved secretary desk.
