TALIE REYES PICKED UP the stack of letters that the mailman had left on the rear counter of the gallery. Her attention was caught by two large boxes sitting on the floor, but she flipped through the envelopes anyway.
When she came across one with Sofie’s handwriting on the envelope, she smiled. Though she and Sofie spoke weekly via Skype, they also carried on correspondence by mail. The letters, unlike their conversations over the computer, were filled with all of Sofie’s dreams for her future, all of the things she wished for.
Talie opened the envelope and pulled out a page torn from a wedding magazine. “Dear Mama,” she read. “Well, it happened. I was so nervous and so was he, but Cameron wasn’t going to let anything—or anyone—stop him. We were taking a sail, and just as the sun touched the horizon, he got down on one knee and asked if I’d marry him. Of course, I said yes. I didn’t have a moment’s hesitation. I knew it was exactly what I wanted. Oh, Mama, you were so right. He makes me laugh and he makes me feel beautiful and I trust him completely. I just needed to be patient and it all became clear. We’re planning a summer wedding in Albuquerque, and I’m going to need your help because I have no idea what I’m doing. Please don’t tell Papa yet. Cameron wanted to ask his permission first, so he hadn’t even bought a ring yet.
“I have to go! I’ll write more later. Love you! Sofie. Oh, the picture is a wedding dress I like. When I come home we have to go shopping for a gown. I refuse to set foot in a shop without you.”
Talie smiled to herself as she slipped the letter back into the envelope. She’d always known the time would come when her daughter would need her advice. It was sad that she was so far away, but she couldn’t feel too bad. Her daughter had found a new dream for herself—a man, a home and maybe soon, a family.
“Take a breath of the new dawn,” she murmured to herself, “and make it part of you.”
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Keep reading for an excerpt of Just One Night by Nancy Warren