At two o'clock that afternoon, Bev couldn't concentrate long enough to pour soap into the mop bucket. Mack's plane had left two hours ago, and with each passing moment, he was getting farther and farther away. She missed him more than she'd ever imagined she would. Josie was sitting on the food bins, watching Bev try to get the cap off the new bottle of soap.

"So, when is Jez going to let you know?"

"Today. She said she'd call today." Bev contemplated using her teeth on the cap, but decided to use a hammer instead. "Closing is tomorrow, Josie. I'm so out of time."

"What are you going to do with the animals if she doesn't come through? Or if the sellers won't sell?"

She turned the soap container on its side and pounded on the cap. "I'll have to turn them over to the other shelters. I have found several no kill ones, but my animals are hard to adopt. They can't promise how long they'll keep them, or how much they'll work with them. I'm waiting until the last second to do that."

"As you should." Josie swung her feet, clunking them against the wooden bin. "So, have you heard from Mack?"

"No. Did I tell you I'm adopting the beagle? I need to think of a name for her now. Any ideas?"

"Do you love Mack?"

Bev shot a glance at her friend. "It doesn't matter, does it?" The plastic cap shattered under the blow from the hammer, sending pieces all over the water closet.

"Did you tell him?"

The soap began to ooze out of the container, so Bev moved it over the mop bucket. "Yes."

Josie sucked in her breath. "And what did he say?"

"He asked me to go with him."

"What? You didn't tell me that! Why are you still here?"

"Because he doesn't love me."

"Of course he does! He just doesn't realize it! I can't believe you didn't go."

For the first time since she'd let Mack go, a tinge of doubt trickled through her. "He couldn't even commit to getting married or having a family someday. He's a workaholic, Josie. I could never be happy."

"Bev! The man is made of passion. Do you really believe he would marry you and ignore you? He's dedicated to work because he's never had anything else since his sister died. Didn't you say he told Whittle off? That was for you, Bev, for you. Because he loves you, because you're more important than his career. He's just still sorting it out."

Bev squashed the swell of hope. "You're a romantic, not a realist."

"I'm right this time." Josie folded her arms across her chest. "You're going to have to go after him."

"What? No way. He doesn't love me, remember?"

"Yes, he does, and you're worse than him if you don't see it." Josie shook her head. "He'll always work, Bev, but that's one of the things that makes him great. Do you want to marry Les, who goes to a bowling alley job for forty hours a week?"

"No."

"Mack will always put you first, and he'll always be successful. He's just got to figure it out, and it's your job as the woman who loves him to help him do so."

Bev put her hands over her ears. "Stop it! It's too late! He's gone!"

Then the phone rang, its shrill ring bouncing off the walls of the nearly empty warehouse.

Bev stared at Josie.

"Answer the phone, Bev."

"I can't. What if it's Jez, telling me she's not giving me the money?" Her throat felt like it was closing up, choking off her oxygen.

"And what if it's Jez, telling you she is? Or what if it's Mack, giving you the chance to change your mind? I think you'd better answer the phone."

"Right." Bracing herself against the hope that was trying so desperately to surface, Bev walked across the cement floor and picked up her phone from the food bin. "Hello?"

"Hi, Bev. It's Jez."

"Jez. Hi." Her shoulders sagged and her chin quivered. Josie had gotten her hopes up about Mack, so disappointment struck deep. "How are you?"

Josie held up two sets of crossed fingers, and then crossed her ankles.

"Super. You hanging in there?" Jez asked.

"Barely."

Jez chuckled. "I can imagine. Well, I'll spare you the torture. I've consulted with Walt, and he agrees. I'll give you whatever money you need, on one condition."

"Seriously? Oh, my God." Tears welled up in Bev's eyes. "What condition?"

"I want to be your Operations Manager for the first year. I've spent a lot of time on the boards of many charities, so I do know what I'm doing. After a year, you can fire me, but not before. I want to play, and I want to make sure you're using my money right."

"Of course." Bev tried to wipe away her tears, but they kept being replaced faster than she could swab them away. "That's fine. It's perfect."

"Stop crying, Bev. You're getting me choked up."

"I'm sorry. I'll try. God, I need a tissue." She tried to catch her breath, but she couldn't seem to. It was all too much. Just like that, her problems were solved. "I can't believe this."

"Believe it. But don't get too excited. I can really get annoying."

"Oh Jez, you could never annoy me. I'll love you forever. Forever!"

Apparently finally understanding that Bev's tears were tears of joy, Josie let out a war whoop that made the windows rattle.

"What was that? A fire alarm?"

Bev laughed and gave Josie a thumbs-up. "That's my friend Josie."

"Didn't you tell me about her? She's a vet tech who works at the clinic that serves your animals. And the one with the brother who broke your pipe? "

"Yes, that's her. She had a little chat with him. He decided that he needed a break, and decided to fulfill his lifelong dream and moved to Vermont to work on a goat farm. He's super excited, and he even thanked me for rejecting him so he could finally stop obsessing over me and follow his path." She grinned, thinking of how excited Les had been when he showed her the website of the goat farm. "I think we're safe from further vandalism."

Josie grabbed Bev's arm and whirled her around, shrieking with delight. Bev could barely hear Jez over the ruckus, now that the dogs had chimed in.

"Go work your magic with the sellers, Bev," Jez said. "You have twenty-four hours."

"I know." Bev sobered slightly, though she was still being whirled around by Josie. "What if we don't get it?"

"Then we'll find another property. But go see what you can do. And call me as soon as you know."

"I will. Thank you so much, Jez."

"My pleasure. It'll be fun. Ta ta."

"Bye." As soon as she said her farewell, Josie yanked the phone out of her hand and threw it aside so she could grab both of her arms and spin her around.

"She said 'Yes,' didn't she? Didn't she?"

Bev couldn't wipe the grin off her face. "Yep."

"How much?"

"Whatever I need."

"No way! No way! That's so awesome!" Josie lost her footing and tripped, sending them both catapulting to the floor, where they were attacked by Mac and the beagle, who'd come running at all the excitement. "You have to call Mack and tell him."

Her laughter died in her throat. "Leave it alone, Josie."

Josie held up her hand. "Fine. I'll say no more. But he'd be proud of you."

"Give it up, Josie. He's moved on." But she knew Mack would be proud of her. A sad smile curved her lips. Maybe she would call him tonight.

"Don't you need to go talk to the sellers?"

Bev glanced at her watch. "Yikes. I didn't realize it was so late. Will you finish up here?"

"You bet. Go kick some bootie."

Bev hugged her friend. "What would I do without you? You're the best."

"I know. Now go save this shelter!"

"I will!" Bev was running before she even reached the door.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Bev was knocking on the seller's front door, Mac and the beagle at her feet. The owners were strong advocates of her work at the shelter, so she'd decided that Mac and the beagle might help her cause.

The door opened to reveal Pete Smith, the owner of the building. "Why, hello, Bev. What are you doing here?"

"Hey, Pete. I have to talk to you guys. Is Rose here?" She danced on her toes, unable to stand still. She could almost taste success, inhale the sweet scent of victory for her animals.

"Yes, she's in the kitchen. What's going on?"

"Can I come in? It'll just take a second."

Pete shrugged and held the door open. "Come on in."

"Thanks." She had just stepped through the door, when Pete snapped his fingers for Mac, hoisting him under his arm. She stifled a small smile. Mac would be her secret weapon.

As soon as she walked into the kitchen, Rose dropped the carrot she was peeling and ran over to hug Bev. "I'm so sorry about your shelter, Bev. You know we wouldn't have sold it if we didn't need the money."

Bev patted Rose's back. This was going to be easy. "It's okay, Rose. I don't blame you at all."

"I'm so glad. We were so upset when that awful little man insisted on the ten days, but then he threatened to withdraw his bid. We simply couldn't afford to lose the money." Rose wiped her hands on her apron. "Are you staying for dinner?"

"Actually, I don't have time." Bev sat down at the kitchen table, and the beagle hopped onto her lap. Mac was still showering Pete with kisses.

"Oh, that's our fault, isn't it? You have to clear your animals out of there today, don't you?" Rose shook her head. "I'm really sorry."

"No need to apologize," Bev said. "I actually have a solution that could keep you from feeling bad."

"Really? You found other land? I'm so relieved."

"Actually, what I got was a donor."

Pete sat next to her at the table, propping Mac up on his lap. "How much did you get?"

"As much as I need."

"No kidding, huh? That's amazing. How'd you manage that?" Pete looked impressed.

Bev grinned. "Just got lucky." She could contain herself no longer. "I have permission to outbid Whittle for the property. Whatever you want, I can give it to you. Tell me what it'll take to get you to sell the property to me instead. I have the money."

The words sounded so incredible rolling off her tongue. Better than they had even in her dreams. If only Mack were here to enjoy the moment with her. He'd revel in it, even though it would be foiling his client's plans. He'd be on her side.

Then she noticed the utter silence in the small kitchen. Rose and Pete were looking at each other, and Rose looked like she was going to cry.

Finally, Pete spoke. "It's too late, Bev."

"No, it's not," she said quickly. "You aren't bound until you take the money. Obviously, you'll have to give the deposit back, but I'll cover that. Just don't tell Whittle you're selling it to me, because he'll probably sue. Tell him you're selling to Walt Barnum. He'll never have the guts to go up against him."

"Walt Barnum is your donor?"

"Yep. Well, his wife actually, but it's the same thing. Whittle will never dare challenge him. Walt would crush him." She felt so empowered, so strong Whittle couldn't touch her. Bev looked at Rose. "So, it's not too late. Tell me how much you want, so I can call Jez. She'll get the check today if I call her soon enough."

Pete looked at Mac, and Rose looked at her carrots.

"You won't sell it to me?" She wouldn't have believed that they would choose Whittle over her. It didn't make sense. "I don't understand."

"We'd love for you to have that property," Pete said. "I would've sold it to you in a heartbeat, even if it was only one second before the closing, with that nasty little man standing right there, but we can't do it. We sold the property two hours ago."

"You sold it? But the closing is tomorrow. You couldn't have sold it." She felt like the earth had cracked open and sucked her soul right out of her.

"I'm so sorry, Bev, but it's gone."

She blinked. "Gone? What do you mean, gone?"

"We signed the papers. We don't own it anymore. It's too late." Rose looked pained. "I'm sorry."

She was going to cry. No, she couldn't. Mack would never cry. Ever. So neither would she. Bev stood up. "I have to go."

Numb, she stumbled to the door. To be so close and fail. It hadn't even occurred to her she would fail. But she had. By two hours. One hundred and twenty minutes was all it would have taken for to have everything she wanted.

Except Mack.

Nothing would have changed that.