Taking a deep breath, he looked for something to take his mind off what he’d soon be doing. High on the wall behind Chloe, he found his salvation.
A copy of the Gettysburg Address, magnified for impact, hung as a reminder of why they were here. As Peter’s eyes skimmed the text, he paused, and thought about what the words meant.
Above everything else, the speech was written to give battle-weary soldiers hope. Abraham Lincoln wanted them to know that their lives and the lives of those who’d died weren’t in vain. But in all the rhetoric, did he realize how hard it would be to unite a nation that had splintered in two and was struggling to move forward?
With a sigh, Peter wondered if anything had really changed.
The sound of clapping yanked him out of his thoughts. Katie’s ability to daydream in the middle of a crowded room must be rubbing off on him.
As everyone moved toward the start of the exhibition, he made his way through the crowd to Katie.
“You made it.” Her gentle smile undid some of the knots in his stomach.
“Sorry I’m late. It took me longer to get here than I thought.”
She linked her hand under his elbow. “You’re here now and that’s all that matters. You look handsome in your tuxedo.”
Feeling even more self-conscious than usual, he touched the bow tie at his throat. “After spending so much time in Montana, I’m not used to wearing a suit. It’s not as comfortable as jeans.”
Ethan smiled from beside him. “Tell me about it. Diana said we’d have the shortest marriage in history if I didn’t wear a suit tonight.”
“Was that from the same woman who wanted you to wear a red Santa jacket to your wedding?”
“I said the same thing, but it didn’t make any difference.”
Katie stood on tiptoes as Chloe said something from a few feet away. “Mom and Aunt Beatrice are about to cut the ribbon. Is Dad taking some photos?”
Reaching into her pocket, Barbara pulled out her cell phone. “I don’t know, but I’ll take some anyway.” In a flurry of red satin, she disappeared into the crowd.
After the ribbon was cut, Katie was practically jumping on the spot. “I can’t wait to see everything. Is everyone ready?”
Diana looked up at Ethan. “You push, I’ll lead.”
With a good-natured grin, Ethan sighed. “That just about sums up the story of my marriage.”
“And it’s only just begun,” Diana replied.
Peter let Ethan and Diana go first before following them. “Did Chloe show you any of the exhibition yesterday?”
“No. We wanted it to be a surprise. Did you get everything done at work?”
“Most of it. It’s amazing how much I can do from Sapphire Bay. No one seemed to miss me.”
“Is that good or bad?”
Peter smiled. “It should be good, but I was a little disappointed. I thought the company couldn’t run without me.”
“I think we all have that problem.”
Walking into the exhibition was like stepping back in time. Chloe’s team had started at the beginning of the letter’s journey. They’d recreated a scene from the gambling house in Chicago when Patrick Kelly had won the letter. Tracing his footsteps, they’d traveled across America, investigating sightings of him after he’d supposedly died, and pinpointing where he’d reappeared.
Katie’s eyes widened when she saw a 3D holographic image of her great-grandfather standing in front of a steamboat with his wife. “I never realized how similar Penny is to our great-grandmother. They could have been sisters.”
Peter looked at the image and then at Katie. “You have the same-shaped eyes and mouth, too.”
Tilting her head to the side, Katie tried to see what he did. “Mom said the same thing. Maybe it’s easier to see the resemblance in someone else.”
As she moved to the next display, Peter glanced at the dresser where Katie’s family had found the letter. He hoped like crazy this went well. He’d only known Katie for a few months, but he knew she was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.
