“I feel so silly,” Mabel whispered.“I should be happy.”
Barbara bit her bottom lip.“It’s okay to cry.”
Penny turned to Emily.“Our grandma died about six months ago.We’re getting better at living without her, but some days are worse than others.”With a shaky smile, she looked at her mom and sisters.“This is the dress I want to wear when I get married.”
Mabel smiled through her tears.“It’s a beautiful dress, Penny.Are you sure you like it better than the first one?”
“The other dress was lovely, but this one feels right.It’s the one.”
With a happy sigh, Mabel hugged Penny.“You look amazing in this dress.And what’s even better is that your dad and I want to give it to you as our wedding present.”
“You don’t have to—”
“I know we don’t, but we are.Just say thank you.”
Penny hugged her mom.“Thank you.I love you, Mom.”
“I love you, too.I might need another cup of lemonade before we look at the bridesmaids’ dresses, though.I’m an emotional wreck and we’ve only just started searching for the perfect gowns.”
Katie smiled.“I’ll pour you a glass of lemonade while Penny gets changed.”
“And I’ll hunt through the evening gowns for our bridesmaids’ dresses,” Barbara added.With only a few weeks until the wedding, she hoped their search went just as well as Penny’s.
CHAPTER 11
Theo added some finishing touches to his interview with an organic poultry farmer and smiled.The audio of clucking chickens at the beginning of the recording was perfect.But the crowning glory was hearing the farmer sing to his feathery friends.The morning ritual was bound to make his listeners chuckle to themselves.
He just hoped they kept tuning into KZSB.Since Barbara’s social media campaign hit the Internet, the number of people listening to his interviews and the local music he played had gone through the roof.
Raising his arms above his head, he stretched and thought about Barbara.By now, she’d be in Bozeman, searching for the perfect wedding dresses.It was hard to believe he’d only known her for a few weeks.Spending time with her felt so right that he was sure something had to go wrong.After his last failed relationships, he’d given up hoping he’d ever find someone who accepted him as he was.Lawsuits, false accusations, and an uncertain career weren’t what most women looked for in the perfect man.
“Is anyone home?”
“In my studio,” he yelled to Ethan.When his friend appeared in the doorway he frowned.“I thought you were running a program at the tiny home village?”
“I am, but it doesn’t start for another hour.Have you heard anything from your lawyer?”
“Not yet.He probably won’t call until later in the day.”
“Let me know if you hear anything.”Ethan handed him an envelope.“This was sticking out of your mailbox.”
“Thanks.”Theo checked the return address.His gaze shot to his friend.“It’s from the county’s grant allocation committee.”
“Are you going to open it?”Ethan said impatiently.
“What if they don’t want to fund the radio station?”
“Then you have some decisions to make.”
Theo looked down at the envelope.Holding his breath, he broke the seal and pulled out a sheet of paper.The last three applications had ended the same way.A single piece of paper with a generic paragraph or two explaining why he hadn’t received any funding.
But this letter was different.He had to blink twice to make sure he was reading the words correctly.“I got it,” he murmured.
“The funding?”
He nodded.“They’re providing enough money to cover my operational expenses.There’s something else.The communications manager at the county office wants to talk to me.She’s looking at different ways of engaging with small communities around Flathead Lake and thinks the radio station is a good place to start.”
“Does this mean you won’t have to close?”
