Page 135 of First Bride to Fall
He finished the piece with Lanie and shouted, “Yay!”
He clapped her baby hands together, and she copied him. “Yay!” She turned her sweet freckled face to Nell with a big smile.
“Excellent!” Nell clapped her hands. “Encore!”
Grant positioned them to play another song, then started “Mary Had a Little Lamb” with a ragtime beat. The cabin door burst open and eight-year-old Alexander rushed inside. With his blond hair and dark eyes, he was all Grant, only pint-sized.
“Mom! Dad! Come quick!”
Alexander had been outside gathering rocks for their gratitude garden. Nell and Grant had started one in the backyard of the cabin. They’d painted rocks honoring things they were grateful for, like special places, things, and people they loved, including all of Nell’s family. Alexander had begun painting his own rocks, too. Lanie would get her chance when she was a little older.
Grant and Nell exchanged startled glances.
Had he found a snake or something dangerous?
Nell shot toward the door, and Grant followed, carrying Lanie.
“This way!” Alexander’s expression was urgent as he coaxed them down the hill.
“Alexander,” Nell said. “What is it? Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.” He gave her an excited grin, and then Nell knew she had nothing to fear. Whatever it was, it wasn’t dangerous. Maybe he’d found something by the stream. A special rock or a burst of four-leaf clovers? As they moved along, Nell could hear the sound of the cascades growing louder and louder.
“Slow down, little buddy!” Grant called, traipsing after them.
Lanie giggled in his arms, enjoying the jiggly ride. “Giddyup, horsey!”
Alexander reached the clearing and pointed to the sky.
Nell clasped her hands to her heart.
A spectacular rainbow arched through the air high above the crest of the falls.
Red. Orange. Yellow. Green. Blue. Indigo. Violet.
Nell caught her breath. “Alexander, it’s beautiful.”
“Yout-if-ful,” gurgled Lanie, and the others chuckled.
Nell’s heart fluttered, and happiness blanketed her soul.
Grant held her hand. “Do you remember?”
She stared lovingly in his eyes. “I’ll never forget.” This had been the best ten years of her life, and they were only going to get better. She’d found her one true love, and together they’d built a wonderful home and family.
Alexander tugged at her free hand and glanced at the rainbow.
“Mom, Mom! Can I paint it?”
“For our gratitude garden?” Grant asked, clearly pleased with the idea.
Alexander nodded, and Nell and Grant grinned at each other.
She thumbed Alexander’s nose. “Absolutely.”
Lanie laid her head on her Daddy’s shoulder, and Nell held Alexander’s hand.
Then they all stared up at the heavens, knowing all was right with the world.
