the single parent problem was a non-issue.she and charles had never had any children.charles was never home ; and even when he was , he never seemed to have the desire to do anything that would result in a pregnancy.his lack of interest in her had been the source of a lot of sleepless nights in the early years.michelle was not drop-dead gorgeous by any means , but she was attractive in her own right.at five foot four , and one hundred and twenty-five pounds , she had always maintained her trim waistline.she had recently cut her long , strawberry blonde hair , which had run in corkscrew curls down her back , to a more mature shoulder length.she allowed it to assume a wild and untamed appearance that complemented her young face and crystal-blue eyes.charles had not noticed the drastic change until he overheard someone else complimenting her on the new look .