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He’d been waiting for just such a day

He made a quick call to Sorrow, and was surprised when she answered groggily Usually she was the first up and at ’em He smiled to himself--it was none of his business, but still, he hoped it was the sheriff who’d irl deserved to find happiness

"No problem," she said, when he asked for a personal day In fact, she sounded downright excited about it, and he’d suspected she would Any excuse to get into that kitchen, cooking up an exotic breakfast confection sure to aggravate her father

Anxious to surprise Marlene before she headed out for the day, he worked fast,a picnic out of whatever basics he had on hand Asses, bread, cheeses, juice, a ther it all in his pack

On his way out the door, he cast a longing look at his Harley It , but a woman like Marlene wasn’t ready for the bike Yet

She answered the door, and it took his breath away She was such an elegant lady, always pulled together, her clothes and hair just-so But this , she wore jeans and a no-frills sweater, in a red that low

"To here? Is so’s the h Marlene still had her aunts, the routine she’d had with her hout the day, thinking it time to dress her mother, or feed her, or help with the bathroom, and maybe she’dthat Eer there to need her help Marlene’s days would feel long and empty for some time to come, and he’d help her avoid that emptiness if he could He held out his hand "You need to come with me"

She touched a hand to her cheek "I need to finish putting on my face"

"Your face sure looks on to aped at the sight--he couldn’t peel his eyes from her, and if she didn’t hear the truth in his words, then she was plum deaf He repeated earnestly, "Coravely, grabbing her jacket and purse fro him on the porch

She’d juht face She really was going with hiently took the the door for her "Where are Ruby and Pearl?"

She widened her eyes, and it ," she exclaimed "They took the old pickup all the way to Silver City There aren’t even any sales right now"

"Good for theency?" she asked once he’d gotten in "It’s not the lodge, is it?"

"Nope" He pulled out of her driveway, headed for Route 88

"Where are you taking ency at the falls?"

"No, h to savor her wide-eyed confusion "There’s a picnic at the falls"

"A picnic?"

"Our picnic" He gestured to the pack thrown onto the backseat "It’s supposed to hit ht we’d take a brisk walk out to the falls We can sit on the rocks--they get nice and war out to the falls?" She still sounded fluht shoes for that"

"I’ve got snowshoes in the back," he said with a straight face, "but I don’t think it’ll cohed "Marlene I saw your shoes They’ll do just fine I was out that way last week The old fire road is clear, and the trail to the falls is pretty chewed up and dried out by now Shouldn’t give you any trouble It’s a short walk anyway"

The fire road was a longer walk--about two h there hadn’t been snow in days, thick blankets of it clung to the pine boughs, shrouding theliht linificent"

She’d whispered, and the reverence and awe in her voice ht her here

Her pace slowed as she took it all in The water was flowing again after the long winter, but patches of ice still clung in shadows along the edges, an iridescent white blue "It’s like a fairy tale"

He took her hand "Then come on, princess Time for your feast"

The fresh airthe countryside with her eyes as ravenously as she was eating her brunch "I’ve never been here in the winter," she said finally

He put down his fork, his interest only in her The sunlight dappled through the trees onto her cheek, and her expression of awe er "It’s my favorite time to come," he told her