The candlelight wish

When Phoebe Caldicot loses her much-needed job as an instructress at a select Bath seminary, she knows exactly whom to blame. Sir Miles Saunderton, the elder brother of one of her pupils, is managing, infuriating and the last man she ever wants to see again. As she gazes into a candle flame, she wishes for security. Marriage seems her only option, but where can a penniless ex-schoolmistress find a suitable husband?

The rippling water in a silver bowl stills, and Lady Xanthe Simms and her huge white cat Titus see the image of the desperate young lady. But desperation and wishes are what keep life busy and entertaining for the resourceful fairy godmother. With a melodic hum-and the fluttering to the floor of one of her gold-tipped wing feathers-Lady Xanthe sets forth to grant Phoebe the opportunity to make her wish come true. But opportunities are never certainties . . .