Chapter 203

• The event continued each evening. A week passed. Then a month. And Staci continued to appear to propose to me each evening. I couldn't understand how she managed to endure that much pain and rejection. But every night she appeared, hoping I would say yes and leaving each night with her heart ripped apart by my refusal.
• Her friends begged her to stop and to salvage what little pride she had and start over away from our hometown. She continued to ignore them. Then a few brave souls approached me and suggested that I stop dining at the country club so to put an end to the farce. I ignored them.
• Night after night it continued. One change was that I never took another date to dinner at the club. I could at least manage to keep the conflict just on the two of us and not subject anyone else to the spectacle.