he was already defeated , for some reason . as she listened , she realized the noise was the muffled ringing of a phone . angry color started at his collar and worked its way up franks cheeks . i was desperately trying to convince him . `` hold on , little girl , '' i pant in her ear . ''i said , no wonder you ca n't get married if you 're always so touchy . ' again i felt that tiny shock that she was becoming attached to someone else . 