She set the items on her dresser and frowned. “He laughed.”

“And?”

“And that’s it.” She picked up the hat Tom had given her and placed it on her head. “Isn’t this a lovely hat?”

“Jessica.”

She couldn’t ignore the warning in her friend’s voice. She groaned. “Fine. He laughed and said that Tom was a hopeless cause.”

“So he doesn’t care that you’re with another man?”

“It doesn’t seem that way, does it?” And that bothered Jessica, though she decided not to say it aloud. “His exact words were that I was wasting my time but he couldn’t blame me for wanting to rush in and try to help someone. He thinks it’s ‘adorable’.”

Margaret followed her out of her room and down the hallway. “Hmm...”

“Hmm what?”

“I notice you’re not wearing the hat Peter gave you. You’re wearing Tom’s.”

“I like Tom’s better. Peter got that horrible green color his mother likes. I swear, it’s like wearing vomit.”