Their return flight arrived in Denver early Sunday morning. After wishing the Hasletts well, the O'Tooles dropped Norman and Rita off and then headed home. A few hours later, Oliver suited up again and sat down on the bed beside Shane, who had dozed off. He gazed adoringly at her, pushing strands of hair from her face behind her ear. She was sleeping so soundly that she didn't stir.
"Oh, my goodness," Oliver spoke quietly to himself. In that moment, he was overcome with emotion as he studied her. She was ravishing—and he was engulfed by gratitude for her and the life they had made together.
He didn't want to leave her, but he had promised to spend time with his dad for Father's Day. He wrote her a note and left it on the bedside table, then he kissed her on the cheek and left, locking her inside. Oliver and Joe attended the church service and ate lunch at a favorite diner.
"So, how's Shane?" Joe asked.
"I think she's going to be okay," Oliver told him. "She needs plenty of rest right now. That baby book thing took a lot out of her."
Joe nodded. "I bet you're glad it's over."
"That is an understatement," Oliver remarked, and they chuckled. "I wouldn't be surprised if she's still asleep."
"She'll want some lunch, right?" Joe asked.
"I'm not sure. Unfortunately, she experienced a bout of motion sickness on the flight home this morning. But she hasn't been eating a whole lot lately anyway."
Joe furrowed his brow at Oliver. "What's going on?"
Oliver proceeded to tell his Dad about Shane's emotions regarding Victoria's album. "All of that, on top of the fact that Father's Day was approaching, not to mention that this is the time of year when she lost her dad—it's just a lot to process."
"I understand. But if she's not feeling better soon, I'd take her to a doctor."
Oliver smiled. "She'll be fine, Dad. But I promise, I will take care of her."
"You better," Joe warned, "or I'm coming after you."
Oliver chuckled and smiled warmly at the thought of how much Joe O'Toole loved his daughter-in-law.
Before leaving the diner, Oliver had decided to phone Shane. He hated to wake her but knew she needed to try to eat something.
"Hello?" she answered drowsily.
"Hi, sweetheart," Oliver greeted her. "I'm sorry to wake you, but I wanted to make sure you're okay."
"Oh, yeah, I'm fine now—just sleepy," she replied.
"Do you want me to bring you some lunch?" Oliver inquired.
"Lunch?!" Shane exclaimed. "What time is it?"
"It's a little after one o'clock," Oliver told her.
"Oh, my goodness! I slept through the service! Why didn't you wake me, Oliver?"
"You needed to rest, Shane. It's been a busy few days and you were sick just a few hours ago."
"Oh, Oliver, I'm so sorry," Shane said.
"Don't be. It's okay—Dad and I just finished up at the diner. Tell me what you want and I'll bring it home."
After Shane's order was ready, the two gentlemen left the restaurant and headed to Oliver and Shane's residence. By the time they got there, Shane was up and bright-eyed. She cast a glowing smile at the two of them as they entered the house.
"Hello, Shane!" Joe said.
"Hi there! Happy Father's Day!" she told him as they hugged.
"Thank you. We've enjoyed some father-son bonding time, but of course, you were missed. You look radiant, by the way," Joe said, eyeing her suspiciously, then looking back at Oliver, who raised his eyebrows and smirked.
"Thanks! I certainly had no intention of missing the church service today, but someone decided not to wake me up," she said as she punched Oliver in the shoulder.
"I was only thinking of your well-being, my dear," Oliver said, planting a kiss on her cheek. "Here's your turkey sandwich with a fruit cup. I'm surprised you didn't want your usual—tuna."
Shane laughed tensely as she took the bag. "Oh, well, you know—I can't eat tuna every day. Thank you for this. I'm famished!"
Shane ate while the men chatted. Joe spent the afternoon with them—he lounged in the recliner and Oliver and Shane took the loveseat. They talked for a while and reminisced over old photos that Oliver had asked Joe to bring to share with Shane. The afternoon went by quickly, and around five o'clock, Joe decided to head home.
After seeing his father out the door, Oliver returned to the living room and sat down again on the loveseat with his wife, pulling her close to his side.
