“Emma? Have you got the shirts?”
“Right here.” She chased down the stairs, lofted two plastic-wrapped T-shirts across the living room, then dashed back up. “Gotta brush my teeth.”
“Hurry.”
A slight pause ensued, followed by, “Dad! Charley ate my toothbrush!”
Alex didn’t miss a beat. “The whole thing?”
“Naw. Just the end.”
“Get a new one out of the medicine cabinet and I’ll corral the dog.”
“Okay!”
“Becky. Here’s your shirt.” Alex peeled the plastic from one pink T-shirt and set it beside Becky’s half-full cereal bowl. “Drink the milk.”
“Do I have to?”
“Yes. Next time don’t use so much. Where’s your brother?”
He found Josh standing on his head in the family room. He opened the second T-shirt, flipped the boy right side up and tugged the shirt over his head. “You’ve got a big head, kid.”
“Because I’ve got so many brains in there.” Josh peered at the shirt, upside down. “It’s got Lisa’s ribbon on it.”
“It does. Em. You ready?”
“Yup.” She raced down the stairs, grabbed a pink leash and laughed at her father’s wince. “Dad. Get over it. He’s color-blind.”
“But smart,” Alex countered. “He can probably sense the pinkness of that leash.”
“I think he looks just marvelous,” Becky crowed. “And it matches his pink collar, Dad.”
“He’s an awareness dog,” Emma crooned, close to Charley’s face. “He’s doing his part for the cause.”
He was, Alex decided. Like the rest of the family.
“And he smells like toothpaste,” Josh added. He hugged Charley and pulled on his sandals. “Are we ready to go?”
“Let’s do it.” Alex put the supplies he’d need for the day into the back of the SUV with the dog, despite Josh’s earnest plea to ride in the back so Charley could have his seat. “Don’t eat this,” he instructed the animal. He started to close the hatch, then eyed the dog.
Cute. Hairy. Red. And he’d already eaten one sneaker and now a toothbrush.
Alex reconsidered, gave Charley a short whistle and brought him into the front seat with him. Better safe than sorry.
They pulled up to the high school parking lot shortly after nine. Floats, marching bands, fire trucks and civic groups milled around the school grounds. From below, it was hard to pick out any one group or float, so Alex took the grass route up the hill and parked.
A blast of pink stood out from the sea of red, white and blue bunting.
He corralled the kids, handed Emma the leash, then opened the back hatch again. He pulled out his own personal banner and looped it around shoulder and waist.
Emma laughed, delighted.
Becky grinned and high-fived him.
Josh peered up. “L-I-S-A...” he spelled, slowly. “Lisa!”
“Good job, bud!” Alex lifted him up and hugged him. “You read that all by yourself.”
“I know. My teacher says I’m stinkin’ smart.”
“And she’s correct.” Alex grabbed the dog’s leash and met the girls’ gazes. “Are we ready?”
Emma’s nod said she read beneath the surface of his question. She thinned her lips, then smiled. Nodded. “Yes.”
“Beck?”
“We’re getting nothing done standing here, Dad.”
“That’s my girl.” He grinned down, tweaked her pink baseball cap and started forward. “Let’s go.”
They moved through the throngs of people. Few noticed them at first, but as more and more people read Alex’s banner, talk shimmered from group to group. By the time they drew close to the breast cancer awareness float, folks were watching and waiting, all around.
Today, he and his family were the talk of the town. The center of attention. And if all went well in a few moments, he wouldn’t mind in the least. He slipped the banner off as they approached the Breast Cancer Corps float, wanting to surprise Lisa. Make her day. And if she answered the printed question with a “yes”? She’d make his day, too.
* * *
“The bunting is perfect, Vi. I love it.”
“Me, too. And those balloon ribbons?” Viola pointed to the four corners of the float where Ozzie’s breast cancer balloon ribbons marked their mission. “Amazing.”
“Lisa, here’s a lei.”
“Love it!” she declared, draping the pink floral necklace around her shoulders. “We’ve got the music ready, right?”
“Right here.” Sabrina double-checked the CD of uplifting tunes and did a sound check. “The speakers appear to be working fine,” she added when the quick noise startled a group of square dancers standing nearby. She raised her gaze to Lisa’s, then paused, grinning, looking somewhere beyond Lisa’s left shoulder. “We’ve got company.”
“Do we? Awesome.” Lisa turned, not sure what to expect, but when she saw Alex, three kids and a dog, all decked out to march with their float, tears smarted her eyes.
Pink baseball caps with the breast cancer ribbon covered each of their heads.
The three kids were wearing T-shirts that said “I wear pink for my Mom,” and that only made her eyes water more.
Alex’s shirt declared that he wore pink for his wife, and Lisa’s heart melted further, glad he’d come to a great level of peace with Jenny’s death.
But then Alex paused before the float. He pulled out a long white banner that had been draped over his shoulder. Silent, he watched her as he put it on, his gaze saying he’d taken on her battle wholeheartedly. The banner was done in a plain bold pink font and read simply: “Lisa, will you marry me/us?”
The import of his shirt and his question hit her full force.
He wanted her. They wanted her. Even the dog got into the act by pawing the wheel of the float as Alex dropped to one knee in front of everyone.
Quick tears streamed down Lisa’s face.
Alex proffered a ring and a raised brow.
She nodded.
He grinned, stood and held out his arms.
She jumped off the float, into his embrace, a hug she wanted to enjoy forever.
Laughter and clapping surround-sounded them, a sweet backdrop for the eager embraces of three children, a dog and a man who loved her, just as she was.
Lisa didn’t need fireworks or pomp and pageantry to tell her today was special. She had everything she needed right here, in Alex’s arms.
* * * * *
If you enjoyed this book by Ruth Logan Herne,
be sure to check out her next story set in Kirkwood Lake, coming in September from Love Inspired Books!
Keep reading for an excerpt from Rancher’s Refuge by Linda Goodnight