Abigail was humbled, but she didn’t have time to explain it all to her son at this moment. She would soon. She thought of everything she had learned about Penny and her family since the day they announced the engagement. Their strong family connection to relatives in Greece. About the tragic death of Alexa’s mother and how that shaped her as an adult woman. How hard Penny worked from the time she was a teenager until now, never feeling entitled to anything. Plus, she learned of Penny’s warmth and genuine care for others from the Widows. Abigail had made snap judgments based on old stereotypes, lack of knowledge, and her own biases. “I was wrong. She is as special as you are.”

“Yes, she is.” George echoed the sentiment with a nod. “The key to any successful relationship is to keep growing and changing. And admitting mistakes when it’s the right thing to do. And forgiving whenever you can. Right, dear?”

“Right.” Then the two of them, Abigail and George, walked out of the museum hand in hand, followed by the mayor and his bodyguards, leaving Chase to change his destiny.

The Blakeman siblings stood side by side watching their parents leave the building, actually touching each other in public.

“What has gotten into them?” Chase asked, and then turned to his sister and his best man, gesturing to the couple. “And we need to talk about the two of you because this is weird, too.”

“Love is in the air, bruh,” Lloyd said, squeezing Sarah’s broad shoulders. “What can I say? She swept me off my feet.”

“It was more of a stick tackle,” Sarah claimed, mimicking the move, then she put on her coach voice. “All right, Chase, hustle up and go stand over there,” she commanded, pointing to a particularly lovely section of the garden lit by lanterns. “I’m counting on you to turn this setback into an opportunity. You got this?”

Now that was a pep talk a third team all-state former high school lacrosse player understood. He high-fived his sister and his friend. “I got this.”

Chapter 31
The Scheme

The Mother of the Bride