Grace raises an eyebrow when Rebecca asks her to swing by the office. She's worried it might be about her exam marks or something like that. After all, Grace works her fingers to the bone to pass her exams and get grades as shiny as a new penny. Education is her golden ticket to a better life.

Rebecca isn't the type of professor to chit-chat with students one-on-one. So Grace is as curious as a cat to know why Rebecca wants to meet her. She walks to the office and gives the door a gentle knock.

"Come in," Rebecca calls out, and Grace pokes her head in like a shy turtle.

"Ma'am, you asked to see me?" Grace says, polite as pie. Maybe even extra polite, just to be safe.

"Oh, come in and take a seat. I need to have a little pow-wow with you about something important," Rebecca says with a smile that could light up a room.

'She's smiling. Maybe it's not doom and gloom after all,' Grace thinks.

"How's your mother doing these days?" Rebecca asks after Grace plops down in the chair. Grace's eyes go wide as saucers.

"How...?"

"Oh, I know more about my students' lives than you might think. It helps me be more understanding," Rebecca says. But that's a fib as big as Texas. The real reason she's been snooping into some of the girls' matters is to find a match for Dion. But Grace swallows it hook, line, and sinker.

"She's not doing too hot. We don't have enough dough for better care," Grace says, her voice as sad as a country song.

"Grace, I've got a golden opportunity for you. You can say yes only if it tickles your fancy. If you don't like it, you can walk away, no harm, no foul," Rebecca says.

"What is it, ma'am?" Grace asks. She's so curious she could burst, wishing Rebecca would just spit it out already.

"Well, a family with more money than they know what to do with is looking for a girl to marry one of their boys. He's a real gentleman, decent as the day is long. Raised right, you know? But they want him hitched before their father checks out. They just want to see the old man happy before he heads off to the great beyond. So they asked me to pick out a perfect girl for their brother. And no other girl on this campus can hold a candle to you. You're kind, respectful, hardworking, smart, and pretty as a picture. So I told them about you. They're coming to meet you today. You can have a chinwag with them and make up your mind. No pressure," Rebecca says.

Grace's jaw drops like a hot potato. She can't believe the sweet words Rebecca just poured over her like honey. There's no way Rebecca knows her that well. Come to think of it, Grace is pretty darn sure Rebecca doesn't know diddly about any other students beyond their grades.

"Oh, here they come! I'll let you folks chat in private," Rebecca chirps before Grace even has a chance to wrap her head around what's happening.

A man and woman in their fifties breeze into Rebecca's office, and it's clear as day they're loaded just by the cut of their clothes. They smell good, too - like money. Rebecca greets them with a smile as big as Texas, and they start yakking away. But for Grace, this moment feels like a waking dream. She's trying to wrap her noggin around this whole shebang, so her brain doesn't pick up a lick of what Rebecca and the two guests are gabbing about. Grace's ears might as well be cotton-filled, and Rebecca's words keep bouncing around in her noggin like a pinball.

The man and woman plop beside Grace, and she snaps out of her daze.

"Hello, Grace," the woman says, sweet as pie.

"Hello, Mrs..."

"I'm Maria, and this is my husband, Antonios," she introduces them, giving her hubby a loving look.

"I'm sorry. I can't give you an answer lickety-split. I don't want to give up on my education. I have lots-" Grace starts to say, her words tumbling like marbles.

"Listen here, Grace. We know your mama's under the weather. We can foot the bill for her medicine until you tie the knot with my brother. If you stick with him for a year, we'll keep the cash flowing for your mom's meds. And we'll let you finish your degree, even pay for it. You just have to stay hitched for a year. We don't reckon our father will last even that long. All this to make him happy as a clam. But we won't do you dirty. You'll need to sign a prenup, too. You can give it a once-over before you John Hancock it. Think it over, Grace. You're doing this for your mama, and we're doing it for our pop," Antonios says, laying it all out.

"But I don't know a thing about you. How do I know you're not pulling my leg-"

"That's a fair question, Grace. But we don't have time for that malarkey. If you don't play ball, you might land in hot water. Think about it. You might not get your fancy degree, or your mom might get the boot from the hospital. Who knows, Grace? Life ain't always a bed of roses," Antonios says, and Grace's jaw drops like a lead balloon.

"Are you threatening me?" she asks, her voice shaky as a leaf.

"We're on a tight schedule, Grace. You've got until the stroke of midnight. Here's my number. You'd better ring me up before the clock strikes twelve and say you're on board. Then you can meet my brother bright and early tomorrow."

"And keep this in mind, Grace. I know you're a smart cookie. It's fine and dandy to tell folks you're getting hitched this month. But I hope you've got enough sense to know which parts of this little chat you should keep under your hat for your own good," Antonios says, his voice as smooth as butter but with a hint of steel underneath.

"But-" Grace tries to pipe up.

"Oh, here's a $1000 check to tide you over. If you've got any medical bills nipping at your heels or want to treat your mama to something nice, this ought to do the trick," Antonios says, sliding the check across like he's dealing cards.

Antonios and Maria stand up and skedaddle out of the office without so much as a 'see you later, alligator.'

Grace stares at the check-in of her mitts like they might sprout wings and fly away. Sure as shootin', she has bills to pay. Grace even has some debts hanging over her head like a dark cloud. And the man said it's only for a year. Plus, she can keep hitting the books. Grace gets lost in her thoughts, her mind buzzing like a beehive.

"Grace, this is a golden opportunity, shining brighter than a new penny. If you turn up your nose at it, don't you worry about your pretty little head? There's a whole passel of girls in this university who'd jump at the chance faster than a cat on a hot tin roof," Rebecca chirps, snapping Grace out of her thoughts quicker than you can say, 'Jack Robinson.'