Was it a mistake to allow my personal feelings get in the way of business?

I feel like I broke a cardinal rule of business (keep it business and don't get personally involved) and I'm not sure how to proceed.

I hired a writer from the Warriors for Hire section to rewrite an article for me. The original article wasn't bad but it wasn't great and this is for my business site which requires quality content.

The writer charged $15 for the rewrite (which I consider at the higher end of the writers you find on the WF). Her portfolio, website and recommendations were all great.

She did a good job and I asked for another rewrite and for her to work on some of my web pages. The first job was the rewrite and that money was sent via paypal first. The turnaround was to be 48 hours. The money for the web pages followed a few days later.

At the four day mark, I sent her an email asking about the ETA for the rewrite. She had run into some computer problems and was delayed and I'd have it the next day (a Saturday). Saturday came and went with no communication and no article.

I called her home twice and left messages, emailed her and PM"s her on the WF.

Emailed her again on Sunday - nothing.

I started suspecting there was a personal issue involved due to some postings on her Facebook account. I felt badly for her but was upset at the lack of communication.

I let her know that I wanted a refund and didn't hear from her for 2 days. She finally admitted she was going through some stuff and had some setbacks but wanted to complete the work.

I had already disputed both payments with paypal.

I decided to call her so we can handle this more directly. She told me about some of her problems and I shared similar situations that I had been through and I thought it was a very good call.

She asked me to remove the paypal disputes and she'd complete the work. I agreed but told her to work on the article rewrite and depending on the turnaround and quality, I'd make a decision on the other pending work.

She promised me the article by 12 noon that day.

At 12:49pm I received an email saying that it was running a little late but that I'd be getting it.

I never did.

Unfortunately, I had closed one of the paypal disputes (for the higher sum of money) and somehow just left a comment on the other one instead of closing it which is what I meant to do.

Several days later I requested my refund emailing her that she was apparently not ready to get back to work and it was find but I needed my money and to find another writer.

She refunded $15.00 that was still in dispute, but mentioned nothing about the other payment.

I emailed her about that and she told me that she simply didn't have the money because she had to refund a large sum to another client.

I feel like a fool! I let her pour her heart to me (she genuinely seems like a nice person) and someone else's refund is more important than mine. I would have given her chance if she have kept her word and kept me apprised of any delays.

Of course, she's still willing to write for me but I can't trust that she'll follow through.

Did I make a mistake getting sucked into this situation and giving someone the benefit of the doubt?