Back at the cabin, they showered and got dressed, ready to face the day, before they started making their phone calls.

“Do you want to call your dad and I’ll call mine?” asked Chance.

“Would you mind if we call them together? I’d like to hear your dad’s reaction, and I’m sure mine will want to talk to you, as well.”

“Yeah, sorry. You’re right. I was just trying to avoid the question of who we call first.”

“I’ve already decided it should be your dad. He’s been waiting and waiting for this. It’s only fair.”

Chance smiled and came to give her a kiss. “Thanks.”

“It’s not just for you. It’s important to me, too.”

“I know, that’s what I’m thanking you for—for caring, for being you.”

She shrugged. “I can’t help being me. It comes naturally. Let’s get on with it. It’s going to take us a while to call everyone we need to. We’d better get started.”

They took their coffees outside to the back porch and Chance dialed the number and hit the speaker button before laying the phone down on the table.

Hope opened her mouth, but he answered the question before she could ask it. “You can be the one to tell him, if you want.”

“Thanks.”

“Hello?”

“Hi, Alice. You’re on speaker with me and Hope.”

“Oh, good morning, kids. Hang on, let me get your dad. Frank! It’s Chance and Hope.”

They smiled at each other as they heard a mumbled conversation on the other end of the line, and the phone rustling before Frank’s voice came through loud and clear.

“What do you two want on a Sunday morning? I thought you’d still be in bed.”

Chance chuckled. “Morning, Dad; it’s nice to talk to you, too. We can hang up and leave you to it, if you’re busy.”

“I didn’t say that!”

“He’s only teasing,” said Hope.

“I know. I can ignore him. How are you, young lady?”

“I’m doing great; thanks, Frank. In fact, I couldn’t be happier. Is Alice still there?”

“I’m here, sweetie,” called Alice.

“Good, because there’s something we want to tell you both …”

“You’re getting married?” Frank’s voice rose into a croak as he asked the question.

“We are, and we wanted you to be the first to know.”

“Congratulations!” called Alice.

“About bloody time, too,” said Frank.

Hope grinned at Chance. “The best things in life are worth waiting for, Dad. You know that.”

“Ay, son. You’re right about that, and you sure did find yourself the best. I’m happy for you, both of you. I might give him a hard time, Hope, but I can tell you, you’ve got yourself a fine man there.”

Hope’s eyes filled with tears as she watched Chance cover his eyes and turn away. She knew they’d had a tough time with each other over the years, so to hear his dad say that must mean the world to him. “Oh, I know it,” she said. “I’m a lucky lady.”

“You are that,” said Frank. “And he’s one lucky son of a gun to have you. You’re perfect for each other.”

“Thank you. We think so.”

“I’m so happy for you both,” said Alice. “Have you told Missy?”

“No,” said Chance. “We will, but we both wanted you to be the very first ones to know.”

Frank’s voice sounded hoarse again. “Aww, thanks, son. That means a lot.”

“It means a lot to me, too, Dad.”

“Hope, have you had any thoughts about your wedding yet?” asked Alice. “We probably need something to talk about while these two dry their eyes.”

Hope chuckled. “Not yet, no. He only just asked me this morning. I’ll keep you posted with whatever we decide, though. And don’t forget, you don’t need to worry about traveling, or about where you’ll stay. We’ll take care of it all.”

“Thanks, sweetie. You’ve given me something to look forward to. I’ll have to start looking for a new frock.”

Hope looked at Chance. He was still recovering his composure, and besides, she didn’t need to ask his permission. Alice was going to be her family too, now. “If you’d like, we can go shopping together? I’ll come down there and we can go wherever you want.”

“Ooh. I …” began Alice.

“You hear that, Chance?” Frank interrupted. “They’re going shopping together now.”

“That’s all right, Dad. I’ll come hang with you when they do. We can go fishing or something.”

“You’ve got yourself a deal, son.”

“Sounds good to me, Alice,” said Hope. “If they’re fishing, they won’t notice how long we’re gone.”

“Sounds good to me, too,” said Alice with a giggle, and for the first time, Hope thought about her as a woman like herself.  A woman who’d somehow met and fallen in love with a grumpy, lonely man. It made her wonder if Alice was happy, and if she had friends or fun in her life.

“Maybe we should make it a regular thing?” Hope suggested.

Chance raised an eyebrow at her, but she smiled and nodded. She’d like to do it.

“I’d like that,” said Alice.

“Thanks for calling us,” said Frank. “Congratulations to the both of you. I’ll bet you need to get us off the line now so you can call everyone else, don’t you?”

“Yeah, we should,” said Chance.

“Don’t worry, son. You know I’m not a big talker. You’ve told me what I’ve been waiting to hear, and it means the world that you called us first. So, go on. Go call around, but be sure not to forget Missy. I won’t be able to talk to her till you do.”

Chance smiled. “We will, but we need to call Hope’s dad first.”

“Give him my best.”

“Will do.”

“Bye, Frank; Bye, Alice,” called Hope.

Once she’d hung up, she smiled at Chance. “I’m so glad we told him first.”

“Yeah, thanks for doing that.”

“I wanted to, but now I want to talk to my dad, too.”

“Of course. Do you want to put him on speaker, or would you rather talk to him privately?”

“No! I want us both to tell him.” Hope wanted him to feel as close to her dad as she did to his—even if she knew that’d take a while.

Chance smiled. “Okay, good. I was hoping you’d say that.”

“Are you ready?” When he nodded, she took her phone out and dialed the number, then just like he had, she hit the speaker button and laid the phone down on the table.

“Good morning, Hopey. What are you up to today? I’m cooking again. I’m trying out a casserole and I made an extra one. If it turns out well, I thought I might stop by the cabin and bring it for you and Chance.”

Hope’s heart melted a little. Was this really the same cold, distant man whom she’d barely talked to in the years since her mom died? Chance cocked his head to one side and made a little aww sound, reminding her that yes, it really was possible for a man to change so much in such a short time. “That’d be lovely. Thank you. Listen, you’re on speaker with me and Chance.”

“Oh. Good morning, Chance. Don’t bank on having casserole for dinner, will you? It might turn out to be inedible.”

Chance chuckled. “You never know. It might be great.”

“Anything’s possible, I suppose. Anyway, what’s going on?”

Hope smiled. “We have news.”

“You do?”

“Yes.” She looked at Chance. He seemed relaxed and happy, not at all nervous about what her dad might say. “Chance asked me to marry him, and I said yes. We’re getting married, Dad!”

“That’s wonderful news! Congratulations!”

“Thank you,” said Chance.

“Have you had any thoughts about your wedding?”

Hope shot a quick glance at Chance. “Not yet, no. I don’t want anything big, though—just family and close friends.”

“Don’t worry, Hopey. I wasn’t going to try to turn it into some big event for the rich and famous.”

“I know.” To be fair, she had been concerned for a minute there that, as his only child, he might want to throw a big wedding for her.

“I was just wondering …” Uh-oh, she looked at Chance, but he didn’t seem worried what he might be about to say. “I wondered if … It’s just a thought, and probably not a good one, but would you want to hold it here?”

She looked at Chance, who shrugged. She had been thinking they’d probably get married here in the valley.

“I mean, at the house.”

“Oh.” She looked at Chance again and he held his hands open and nodded, in a gesture that said whatever she wanted was good by him. “Maybe,” she said. “I’d have to think about it, see how I feel. How would you feel, Dad?”

“I’d be proud. I can’t lie, it would be emotional. Wherever you get married, I’ll be emotional, but if you want to do it here …” His voice trailed off.

“I know. I feel the same way. Maybe it’s a good idea, or maybe it would feel too sad. Let me think about it?”

“Of course. It was only a suggestion. What do you think, Chance?”

“I think it could be an awesome idea. It could feel right, but at the same time, it could make for a bittersweet day for you. I think you should think about it, the same as Hope.”

“You’re right, of course, but what about you? How would it be for you?”

Chance smiled. “I’m fine with wherever we do it. I don’t have any expectations of the day itself. Not for me. As far as I’m concerned, it’s all about Hope. I’m looking forward to the wedding; but honestly, I care more about the being married part than the getting married part.” He gave Hope an apologetic shrug—as if he were telling her something she didn’t already know!

“Spoken like a true man,” said her dad. “Just know that whatever you decide, whatever you want, will be wonderful in my eyes. And, Chance?”

“Yes?”

“Since you’ve already honored one tradition. Would you be so gracious as to allow me to honor another?”

She could see the struggle on Chance’s face. She wasn’t sure what her dad meant, but she knew he’d worded his request so carefully that it’d be hard for Chance to say no.

Chance smiled ruefully. “I guess you outplayed me on that one, huh? Since it would be ungracious of me to refuse, then yes, and thank you.”

“No, thank you.”

The sound of her dad’s laughter made her smile, even though she didn’t understand what was going on. “Is anyone going to explain it to me?” she asked.

“When Chance came to ask me for your hand in marriage, I understood that he is a traditionalist at heart. Or at least, he wanted to honor the tradition. My question was whether he would be comfortable in allowing me to uphold the tradition of the family of the bride paying for the wedding.”

“Oh!” She looked at Chance and he shrugged. She didn’t even know he’d asked her dad’s permission. She was glad her dad had played it this way. She knew he would want to pay for everything, and she also knew that Chance might be uncomfortable with it. But framing it as a tradition to be honored had put him in a position where he couldn’t really say no.

Her dad chuckled. “And on that note, I’m going to have to get back to my casserole. I’m sure you have other calls you want to make. If I produce something edible, I’ll give you a call later, and see if you want me to deliver it for you.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

After she’d hung up, she raised an eyebrow at Chance. “I didn’t know you’d asked his permission.”

Chance smiled. “Well, you’re not supposed to know, are you? It doesn’t work that way. I couldn’t exactly tell you I was going to ask him.”

She laughed. “No, sorry, that was a bit dumb of me. What I should have said is that I’m amazed and grateful that you did that.”

He nodded. “It was the right thing to do. I’m glad I did.”

“Me too. So, who do you want to call next?”

Chance shrugged. “Dave and Monique and Missy are next on my list, then the guys, but what about you?”

“I want to call Toby, he’s the closest thing I have to a brother, or a friend.”

“Yeah, you should call him. I like him. Do you think he’ll come to the wedding?”

She laughed. “Slow down, would you? We haven’t even decided when the wedding is going to be, let alone where.”

He frowned. “Oh, yeah. Details, huh? I guess we should work them out.”

“We should, but let’s get done with telling everyone first. Should we call Dave and Monique next?”

“Yeah.” He called their number and waited while it rang.

Monique picked up. Hope loved her. “Chance?”

“Yep, me and Hope, we’re on the speaker. Is Dave with you?”

“Yes. Let me put the speaker on my phone also. Okay. Dave. It’s Chance and Hope. Say hello.”

“Hey. Is everything all right?”

“Couldn’t be better,” said Chance.

“Hello!” called Hope.

“We have something to tell you; that’s why we’re calling on a Sunday morning.”

“Oh, yeah? What’s that?” Hope could hear the smile in Dave’s voice. He already knew what was coming and so did Monique, by the sound of it.

“Tell us the good news!” she said in an excited voice.

Chance chuckled. “I’m sure you’ve already guessed, but I just asked this wonderful woman to be my wife, and she accepted.”

“We’re getting married,” said Hope.

“That’s wonderful. Congratulations!” said Dave.

“Ça c’est magnifique!” cried Monique. “I’m so very, very happy for you both. Hope, you have to know that I worried for years about my lucky Chance.”

Hope smiled; she hadn’t heard that one before. Chance rolled his eyes.

“We all did,” added Dave. “I used to think he was destined to be the lonely old cowboy.”

“But I prayed for more. I knew there was a special lady out there for him,” said Monique. “He found you.”

Dave chuckled. “The first time we met you, I knew he’d found Hope.”

Chance groaned. “I thought you’d be the last one to start with the word plays.”

Dave chuckled. “Sorry, it’s just too tempting. It’s got to be done. And I have one more for you both.”

“Go on, what is it?” Chance pursed his lips at Hope and she chuckled. He might pretend to get tired of people playing with their names, but he loved it, really.

“You both have to remember to give hope a chance.”

Hope smiled. “Oh, that’s a new one! I love it, thank you.”

“I have one too,” said Monique.

“Go on, you may as well jump on the bandwagon,” said Chance. “What’s yours?”

“It’s a, what’s the word? An acronym, that’s it. Hope, is an acronym.”

Chance raised an eyebrow at her, but Hope shrugged. She’d never heard of one.

“You know, where the letters are all the first letter of another word? Hope means: Hold On, Pain Ends.”

Hope smiled. “Oh, that’s lovely. I’ve never heard that before. Have you, Chance?”

“No.” He smiled, but he didn’t look happy.

“I hope it is true for you,” said Monique.

“Thanks.”

Chance made the right noises until they got off the phone, but he wasn’t right. Once they’d hung up, Hope turned to him. “What is it?”

He shrugged. “Nothing. I’m just being dumb. Let’s get on and call Miss and the others, huh?”

“Okay.” She didn’t want to push him. There’d been times when she’d asked him for a bit of leeway when she was reacting to something badly; when she knew she was being too emotional, but still needed a bit of time to get past it.

They spent most of the rest of the morning on the phone, sharing their news with Missy and the Remingtons and Toby. Hope tried not to dwell too much on the fact that the only person she wanted to call was the guy who used to work for her. Yes, he’d become a dear friend over the years, but she’d never even have met him if she hadn’t hired him.

“Is there anyone else we want to tell?” she asked when they got off the phone with Shane and Cassidy.

Chance shrugged. “Not that I can think of.”

“Well, I can think of someone, but it’s someone of yours.”

“Who?”

For a second, she wondered if he was deliberately being obtuse, but he didn’t do that. As big as calling was in her mind, it seemed it wasn’t such a big deal to him.

“Don’t look at me like that. If it’s someone important, then I’m sorry, but I’m drawing a blank here.”

“No, I’m not mad that you’ve forgotten someone! I’m just feeling weird that I want to call her, but it seems you don’t.”

“Who?”

“Renée!”

“Oh!”

“Yeah. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up, especially if it wasn’t on your mind in the first place.”

He shook his head. “It wasn’t, but you’re right. I’d like to tell her.”

“I would, too.”

“You’re not just playing that whole thing up because you think it’s important to me?”

“No. It’s important to me. I like her, a lot. I want to share our news with her. She’s a part of your past who’s still around to be in your present.” She shrugged. “I don’t know what else to say.”

Chance got up from his seat and came to squat in front of her. He rested his hands on her knees and looked deep into her eyes. “I love you, honey.”

She cupped his face in her hands and planted a kiss on his lips. “And I love you, Chancey bear.” He narrowed his eyes at her, but she laughed. “Every time you call me honey, it makes me think about how bears love honey, and you’re my Chancey bear.”

He groaned.

“You should be grateful I don’t say it every time I think it, or you’d be hearing it several times a day, every day.”

“Okay, I guess I can at least be grateful for that.”

She smiled. “There you go. I know you said you’re trying to look for the bright side more than focusing on the downside. You’re getting there. That’s progress.”

He nodded grimly. “I’m glad you noticed. I’ll tell you one thing I haven’t managed to find a bright side for yet.”

“What’s that?”

“That damned photographer last night.”

She sighed. “No, I haven’t found a bright side for that yet myself. I hate it, if I’m honest. I’ve been able to put it out of my mind all morning, but it’s still there like a dark cloud on the horizon.”

Chance nodded. “I think it’s more likely to brew up into a thunderstorm than go away. No matter how I try to spin it in my mind.”

“I know, and you’re probably right, but we can’t do anything about it until it happens.”

“I guess, but I’m afraid it’s going to happen at the worst time.”

“What do you mean?”

“Aren’t we about to start planning our wedding?”

“Yeah.” She sighed. “But we can’t let the thought of press intrusion affect us. We just have to get on and do what we’re going to do.”

“Do you have any idea what you want to do—or when?”

“No. I haven’t had much time to process it yet. What about you? You’ve had a bit longer than I have. When are you thinking?”

He shrugged. “Like you said, I’m such a guy. I’d be happy to get someone out here this afternoon who could say a few words, I’d put a ring on your finger, you’d put one on mine and we’d be done.”

Hope smiled. “That sounds like a plan to me.”

“No. You deserve more than that. A woman should have the wedding she wants, but we’ve never talked about what you want. The when will depend on how long it all takes to organize, but I’d like us to do it soon. I don’t want to wait too long.”

“Neither do I. I think I would like to have the wedding at Dad’s house.” She’d been thinking about it since they spoke to him earlier and it felt right. “If that’s okay with you?”

“It is. I think it’s a good idea. It’s right.”

“Okay, so we know where, how about we say the when is as soon as we can make it happen?”

He grinned. “I’m in.”