One Snowy Night (Sweet Home, Alaska #1) - Patience Griffin Page 0,116
lined it up beforehand. She had come to appreciate that he didn’t want to spoil Ella, just relieve her hardships.
Using her good arm, Hope poured another cup of coffee. “Piney says she’s going to be here at noon to make sure we have a little food prepared for the day,” Hope said to Donovan. “I insisted she didn’t have to do that.”
Ella put down her mug. “Yeah, I told her I was capable of opening a can of soup for you two.”
“There’s no stopping Piney,” Donovan said. “She’s a force of nature. However, I’m not sure she’ll be able to control the size of the New Year’s Eve reception. Jesse said he heard a couple from another town telling someone at the Christmas Festival how they planned to come back for the New Year’s Eve bash. I guess they felt welcome here in Sweet Home.”
“Yes,” Hope said. “Rick said all three cabins are booked.”
“Really?” Donovan said. “I wonder why he didn’t tell me.”
“Maybe he’s concerned about you wobbling out to do one last check on the cabins,” Hope said. “Maybe your wife-to-be gave him a heads-up to that fact.”
“Oh?” Donovan didn’t sound affronted.
Ella got into the game with a rib. “Dad, we’re seriously worried about you breaking your other leg. We’ll all feel better when you stop using those crutches.”
Hope turned to Ella. “I know Wandering Moose is all packed, except for our shower stuff. Do you mind taking care of it this morning?”
“Okay, Mom.”
“Hold up,” Donovan said. “I’ll shoot Jesse a text to see if he and Shaun can run by to do the actual moving.”
“Dad, I can do it,” Ella insisted.
“Don’t argue with me. I’m getting married today.” He delivered it with a tease and a smile while pulling out his phone. “Besides, you’re busy. You do remember that you’ll be standing up with us tonight, right?” Sparkle and Rick, too.
“Yeah, I remember,” Ella said, giving him that same smile back.
“And that Boomer needs to have a bath today,” Donovan reminded her. “The ring bearer has to smell good. I promised Father Mike.”
Ella hugged Boomer. “He’ll smell like a rose. Promise.”
At noon exactly, Jesse and Shaun showed up, and right behind them was Piney. But not just Piney, the whole Sisterhood of the Quilt—the Chicas included.
“What is this?” Hope asked. “Are we going to have a sew-in?”
“No,” Piney said. “We’re going to have a wedding shower. We’re armed with food and maybe a present or two.”
“I don’t know what to say,” Hope said.
“Don’t say anything. We’re on a schedule. Donovan is only giving us an hour.”
“Donovan?” Hope said.
“Yes. Your groom is pretty good at keeping a secret, I think,” Piney said.
The girls and women ventured into the studio, which looked sharp with a fresh coat of paint, the reinvented Sisterhood of the Quilt wall hanging, and updated window coverings.
Hope noticed as she stood in the doorway that the women were all gathered in one corner of the room.
“What are you all doing?” Hope asked.
“Wait a second,” Ella said from behind Hope. “Dad said to wait up. He’s having trouble getting down the hall.”
Hope looked over her shoulder, and sure enough, Donovan was gimping toward her on his crutches.
“Donovan, what’s up?”
“It’s your wedding present,” he said. “Tell them that I said you can see it now. I’m almost there.”
Hope glanced back into the studio as the women parted, revealing a sewing machine with a large white bow on top, right in the spot where her old sewing machine usually sat.
She turned back to Donovan, who was coming up behind her. “How?”
“The Sisterhood of the Quilt selected it, I ordered it, and Jesse picked it up and slipped it in here a while ago,” he said.
“But Jesse just got here,” Hope said.
Donovan smiled mischievously. “Then he did a good job of sneaking in through the garage undetected.”
Hope wrapped her good arm around her future husband’s neck—careful not to knock him off his crutches—and laid a passionate kiss on him, while the Sisterhood of the Quilt made catcalls.
“Mom! PDA! There’s children present!” Ella scolded.
“Okay, get out of here,” Hope said to Donovan. “It’s girl time.”
As he turned to go with a big grin on his face, she patted him on the butt. She still couldn’t believe that she could kiss Donovan Stone anytime she wanted now.
“Hurry up, Hope,” Piney said. “I told you we’re on the clock.”
“What clock? The wedding isn’t for another twelve hours,” Hope said, so happy the Sisterhood of the Quilt was here.