Rosemary exclaims, "Oh, Lee! When did you have time to do this?"
Lee grins, responding, "Nathan and I have been working on the sign for weeks now."
"Working on it? Wait, did you make the sign?"
"I did, but with a lot of help from Nathan." Rosemary giggles and jumps into Lee's arms, kissing him deeply.
"It's beautiful, Lee. Thank you!" Rosemary looks back up at the blue rectangular sign hanging above Lee's, turning to Patrick and asking, "Did you know about this?"
Patrick replies, "No, ma'am. Papa never told me."
Rosemary suggests, "Why don't you read the sign out loud for us, bud?"
Patrick smiles and reads each line written in gray capital letters:
THE VALLEY VOICE
~~~~~~~~NEWSPAPER~~~~~~~~
ROSEMARY COULTER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
"What does editor-in-chief mean, Mama?"
"It means I'm in charge of the newspaper. I'm the boss!"
"You mean like at home?"
"Patrick…that's not true."
Lee mumbles, "It's kind of true, honey."
"Lee Coulter. Not you too."
Lee grabs her hands and reassures her, "I love that about you. I wouldn't want it any other way."
Rosemary rolls her eyes and chuckles before looping an arm around Lee and Patrick's arms, leading them to Elizabeth. She excitedly hugs her dearest friend and Nathan, telling them, "Thank you!"
Elizabeth inquires, "Would you like me to take your picture with the sign in the background? Lee gave me your camera."
Rosemary exclaims, "Yes, please!" Lee, Rosemary, and Patrick stand on the front stairs of their office, and Elizabeth snaps a few photos. Everyone congratulates Rosemary and goes on about their day until the Coulter's are the only ones left.
Lee questions, "Are you ready to go home?"
"Almost," answers Rosemary. She looks up again, admiring the beautiful sign. "Thank you so much, sweetie! You sure know how to make me feel special!" She pats his cheek. "Now, what gave you the idea to make me a sign?"
"I am so proud of you for starting the paper, so I thought you deserved your own sign. Besides, you've been in this office for quite some time now, and I think it's time to make it official. And when I heard about your interview, the timeline got pushed up."
"Thank you for being so supportive of me. I owe it all to you!" She glances around, making sure Patrick isn't watching this time, and sneaks in a couple of kisses, whispering in his ear, "I love you…so much!"
The following night, Rosemary is putting Patrick to bed. Lee isn't home yet, and she is starting to get concerned. Patrick questions, "Where's Papa? We haven't seen him since this morning."
"I don't know. Papa had a lot to catch up on after being at home for a week with us." She taps his nose. "I'm sure he'll be home soon." Rosemary shows him a couple of books. "Which one do you want me to read?"
Patrick points at Tik-Tok of Oz, and she begins reading. Rosemary gets a couple of chapters in before Patrick falls asleep. Then, she sets the book on his nightstand, turns the light off, and kisses his forehead. Patrick mumbles, "I love you to infinity, Mama."
Rosemary replies, "I love you more than all the stars in the sky." She leaves the door open just enough for Laika to get through. Rosemary changes into her nightclothes and goes downstairs to the settee to work on her baby clothes designs. She wishes she knew what they were having, so she knew what to design and sew before their child enters this world. Rosemary first imagines a little boy with dark hair and blue eyes, exactly like Lee's. Then she imagines a little girl with light hair and blue eyes like her. But for some reason, she pictures their girl with Lee's personality and their boy with her personality. Rosemary glances at the clock and worries Lee is not home yet. She tries calling their office, but no one is working the switchboard at this hour. Rosemary sits back, finally hearing the car stop in front of their house. She is prepared to scold Lee when he comes inside, but he appears exhausted. He slumps down next to her, kissing her on the cheek. Rosemary inquires, "Where were you, and why are you so late, sweetheart?"
"Wow, I expected you to be mad at me."
"I was until I saw how tired you look."
Lee wraps his arm around her, and she rests her head on his shoulder. He sighs before beginning, "I had so many meetings today. When I got back to the office, you and Patrick were already gone. So, I thought I could get the budget done quickly and go home, but it took much longer." He kisses the top of her head, questioning, "How was your day? How are the kids?"
"Oh, my day was peachy for the most part. There was a lot to catch up on, but I think Hannah is the right choice to be my partner at the paper. I feel like I can completely rely on her to handle everything when I can't be there." She lays Lee's hand over their ever-kicking baby, stating, "I think pumpkin enjoys doing somersaults, but he's starting to run out of room. And Patrick has been missing you all day, constantly asking where you were."
"I'm sorry, honey. I'll make it up to Patrick soon," remarks Lee as he slips out of his shoes and props his feet up on the coffee table. "I am glad to hear you are happy with Hannah helping you. We'll need her for sure when squishy is born, probably until we get used to caring for an infant and an eight-year-old. However long that will take."
A worried expression crosses Rosemary's face, followed by a big yawn. "Can I warm up some dinner for you? We had beef stew," mumbles Rosemary.
"No, thanks. I had some soup from Abigail's a few hours ago. I do think it's bedtime, though," mentions Lee as he yawns himself.
Rosemary happily sits up as far as she can, letting out an exaggerated yawn before suggesting, "Let's go." Lee chuckles, and they both walk up the stairs.
Lee, Rosemary, and Patrick decide to take Friday afternoon off because they hadn't seen much of each other all week. Both of their schedules were so busy, and they were due for some family time. Lee offers to drive them to Benson Hills for shopping, eating, and having a good time together. The day passes quickly, and they head back to Hope Valley, singing songs on their way home. As soon as they step in the door, Laika greets them, squealing with delight. After the three of them pet their bouncy puppy, Lee inquires, "What shall we do now?"
Rosemary answers, "I know. Why don't we look at the pictures Carson developed? You haven't seen them yet. Have you, Lee?"
"Don't tell me you've waited for me this whole time, have you?"
"No, silly. I glanced at the photos on Monday when Carson dropped them off."
Lee laughs, "Of course, you did. I wouldn't expect anything less."
Rosemary plops on the settee and lifts her weary feet onto the coffee table. She questions, "Can you get the pictures, honey? They are on our dresser."
"I'll be right back," responds Lee as Patrick jumps on the settee right next to Rosemary. Lee runs up to their bedroom, grabs the pictures and Rosemary's fluffy pillow, and comes back down. He hands her the photos and tells her to sit up so he can arrange the pillows behind her back for more support. Rosemary giggles at the loving gesture and tries to get more comfortable. "Do you need anything else, my love?" inquires Lee. Rosemary shakes her head no, and Lee sits down next to Patrick.
Rosemary holds up the photos, asking, "Are you both ready?" Patrick and Lee acknowledge, and Rosemary shows the first photo in the stack. It is of Lee standing at the podium giving his mayoral speech.
"You look so handsome, Lee. So mayoral."
"I don't know about that but thank you." Rosemary shushes him and flips to the next photo showing him shaking hands with a line full of people. They go through each picture, bringing back fond memories of the celebration, the play, and pre-wedding photos.
"Carson really did a good job developing these. Every photo came out perfect, and I want to frame a few for gifts." Rosemary sets the photos on the coffee table, turning to Lee, saying, "I can't wait to see the official wedding photos Carson took. I think Elizabeth said they should be ready next week."
"Mama, what are you going to do with all of these pictures?"
"Well, Papa made us a photo album with a bunch of them. Why don't you and I work on putting these into one? You can help me remember them all so we can write captions."
"Okay, Mama." He lays his head on her arm. "Can we look at the book Papa made you?"
"Sure, but then it will be your bedtime, mister. Patrick, can you get it for us? It's on the shelf over there."
"Yes, ma'am," yells Patrick as he gets up and runs to get the book and sits back down between his parents. They flip through the album, looking at each picture and the notes Lee wrote about them. Then, they come to the ones from Brookfield when they first met Patrick.
"Is today the 14th?"
"Why?" asks Lee.
Rosemary points to the date. "It's been exactly one year and one day since we met you, Patrick." Patrick grins.
"You're right, Rosie. It was the day our lives changed for the better."
Patrick hugs Lee and Rosemary, offering, "Thank you for bringing me here and loving me every day. I will always love you both to infinity." They both squeeze him, and they all burst out in laughter.
Rosemary wakes up early on Father's Day. She carefully gets out of bed and tiptoes out of the room, hoping not to wake Lee. Rosemary walks across the hall to wake up her sleepy son, sitting down next to him on his bed, pushing his curls out of his eyes.
Patrick wakes up, and the first thing he says is, "Good morning, Mama. Is it scavenger hunt time?"
"No, not until after church," responds Rosemary as she gets up off the bed to open the drapes. "Why don't you get dressed and meet me downstairs."
"Yes, ma'am." He looks around for Laika, inquiring, "Where is she?"
"She's cuddled up next to Papa."
Rosemary leaves Patrick, padding down the stairs to the kitchen and slipping her apron on. The plan is to bring Lee his favorite breakfast in bed, but she realizes there is no way she can carry up a heavy tray of food, nor should she. Rosemary fills the kettle with water and puts it on the stove, thinking about her options. Rosemary remembers the blueberry muffins she made last night and decides to serve those plus some fresh fruit. She sets the table for her and Patrick and starts cutting the strawberries and grapes. Rosemary puts some muffins for Lee in a basket and some for her and Patrick on the table, fills up three bowls with fruit, and pours two glasses of orange juice. Patrick finally comes down with Laika and Nanny following him. "Where have you been? I thought you wanted to help."
"I'm sorry, Mama. I fell back to sleep until Nanny woke me up a few minutes ago."
"That's alright. I changed my mind about cooking Papa something fancy. I thought it would be better to have muffins and fruit instead. Why don't you feed them and let them out, and then you sit down and eat?"
"Okay, Mama. Are you going to eat with me?"
Rosemary nods yes, sitting down and eating a grape when the kettle whistles. She gets up to make Lee's coffee and sits back down with Patrick. "If you eat all of your fruit, I'll let you have another muffin." Patrick scarfs down all his strawberries, grapes, and muffin and holds out his plate for more. Rosemary laughs and hands him another muffin. They both eat everything on their plates and bring their dishes to the washbasin. Rosemary puts Lee's coffee mug and fruit bowl on the tray with napkins and silverware, asking, "Are you ready to wake up Papa and give him his breakfast?"
Patrick shouts, "Yes, ma'am."
Rosemary hands him the box with Lee's gift inside, instructing, "You take his gift and the basket of muffins, and I'll carry the tray." Patrick and Rosemary go upstairs, and she quietly sets the tray and the basket of muffins on the dresser. Rosemary arranges a few muffins on the tray and brings them over to Lee's nightstand. She sits down on their settee and whispers to Patrick, "Alright, it's time to wake him up." Patrick smiles and does what his mother tells him. Lee grunts when Patrick jumps on him, yelling, "Wake up, Papa! Happy Father's Day," but he recovers quickly, tickling Patrick until he gets away. Eventually, Lee glances over and notices Rosemary sitting there, grinning at her two boys.
"Good morning, sweetheart."
"Good morning, my dear husband. We brought you breakfast in bed." Rosemary walks over to him and hands him the tray with the muffins, a bowl of fruit, and a mug of coffee. "I hope you are not too disappointed. I had a special breakfast planned for you, but I'm too pregnant, I'm afraid, to carry a heavy tray of food up here."
"Come here and sit next to me," suggests Lee. Rosemary sits on the edge of the bed, right next to him. He reveals, "I am not disappointed at all. You do so much for us every day. As a matter of fact, I happen to love your muffins, so for me, this is equivalent to something special."
Rosemary smirks at her husband, saying, "I know you are just trying to make me feel better."
Lee asks, "So, what if I am. It doesn't make it less true."
Patrick jumps back on the bed, sitting right next to Lee, and interrupts, "It's time for your gift, Papa." He hands him a box, and he not-so-patiently waits for Lee to finish up the fruit and sip his coffee. Lee picks up the box, questioning, "What do I have here? Are you going to tell me what it is?"
Patrick giggles, replying, "No, Papa. You have to open it and see."
"If you insist. Or does Mama want to do the honors?" Lee tries handing it to Rosemary, who puts her hands up and laughs.
"It's your gift, Lee. You really should open it yourself. Patrick went to a lot of trouble, getting this gift."
Lee smiles, inquiring, "You did, Patrick?"
"Yes, sir."
Lee grins and peeks inside the box. He grabs the two autographed baseball cards: Red Faber and Eddie Collins of the Chicago White Sox. "How did you get these, Patrick?"
"Mama gave me the idea to write them and ask for their autographs. She thought they would be happy to since we met them after the game, and she was right." Lee stares at the cards in disbelief. "There is something else in there, Papa." Lee looks in the box again and sees an envelope at the bottom. He opens it, and it is a picture of the three of them with Red, Eddie, and Shoeless Joe Jackson. Red and Eddie signed the photo as well.
"Patrick, this is unbelievable. Thank you. I completely forgot they took a picture of us before they left."
"I know. I did, too," adds Rosemary.
Lee wraps his arm around Patrick and squeezes him, revealing, "I think this is the best gift I have ever gotten. Thank you so much. I love you to infinity!"
"I love you too, Papa!" exclaims Patrick.
Rosemary wipes a tear from her cheek and mentions, "Patrick and I have a lot more planned for you today, starting after church. So, you better eat up now." Lee rubs his hands together, grinning.
After church, Patrick leads Lee and Rosemary outside, away from everybody. Patrick inquires, "Can I have the first card, Mama?"
Rosemary hands him the card and the small box, replying, "Of course. Don't forget to explain what he has to do first."
"I know, Mama," whines Patrick. Lee and Rosemary cover their faces, trying not to laugh. "We are taking you on a scavenger hunt today, Papa. Mama and I have come up with six clues for you to solve. Each clue leads to a new location, which leads to another and another until the end.
Patrick hands Lee the card, reading aloud, "Clue One: A place you go almost every day." Lee smiles, asking, "Do I talk out my thoughts and tell you where I think it is?" Patrick nods, and Lee starts talking out loud, "Well, there are lots of places I go every day or almost every day. I go to Abigail's, our office, the sawmill, or home. Um. I don't think you mean home, so it leaves Abigail's, our office, or the sawmill. Hmm." Patrick glances at Rosemary and happily giggles. "I guess my first choice is Abigail's Café, so let's go there."
"Are you sure that is where you want to go?" questions Rosemary as she hands him a small box.
"What's this?"
"It is a gift from us to help you figure out the right answer." Lee lifts the lid off the box, and they both chuckle when he sees paper clips.
"I guess we're going to our office," remarks Lee. Rosemary grins, and they walk to the home of The Valley Voice and L. Coulter Enterprises. Lee unlocks the door, and they step inside. He immediately notices the envelope propped up on his desk, so he grabs it and slides the card out. Lee reads, "Clue Two: A place that houses more than animals. Interesting. What houses more than animals? I don't know. This is a hard one. Our house houses more than animals." Rosemary hides her smile because she knows Lee is playing around with Patrick this time. "How about…no, they don't have animals anymore." Lee clears his throat, pretending to think. "Hmm. I am not sure, little man. I might need your help."
Patrick skips over to his desk and brings back a folder. "Here, Papa."
Lee opens the folder and sees a drawing of Lee and Patrick on one horse and Rosemary on another horse. They are talking and laughing together while riding somewhere in the woods. "When did you draw this, Patrick? It is so good."
"I drew it this past week when you were out being mayor."
"I love it so much. Let me hang it right here." Lee tacks it next to Patrick's other drawings, and Patrick giggles. "Is it the livery?" questions Lee.
"You got it, Papa! Let's go!" exclaims Patrick. So, they walk over to the livery, and right when they get inside, Patrick finds the envelope and box Rosemary stashed on a shelf the day before.
Patrick brings them back, and Lee reads the card, "Clue Three: It's one of my favorite places for you, me, and Mama to go together. You're going to need our favorite horse, Charlie, to get us there." Lee thinks about it for a moment, inquiring, "One of your favorite spots, huh? And we need a horse? Interesting." Lee scratches his chin, pretending not to know. "Could it be our picnic spot?" Patrick looks to Rosemary to see if he can answer and give Lee his next gift. She motions for Patrick to proceed, and he hands Lee the box. Lee removes the lid and peeks inside, seeing two pairs of sunglasses.
Rosemary puts her glasses on, saying, "Finally, we match," and they all laugh.
"Thank you, honey. I'm assuming the sunglasses are from you," mentions Lee. Rosemary grins and nods her head while Lee hands Patrick his sunglasses and puts on his own. "Are we ready to go? But wait Rosie, how are you getting there? You aren't supposed to ride a horse."
Rosemary answers, "This ride will be for you and Patrick. Have fun, and I'll see you two later." She kisses Lee, messes with Patrick's hair, and strolls out of the livery with the card and box.
"I guess it is just you and me, Patrick." Lee saddles up Charlie, and he helps Patrick climb up before joining him. They both put on their sunglasses, and Lee signals the horse to go. Patrick entertains Lee, talking about something Nicholas said the other day. And before they knew it, they were at their picnic site. Lee sees a car parked on the side of the road, saying, "Uh, oh, buddy. Someone else might be here already." He takes another good look at the car, asking himself, "Wait, is that ours?"
Patrick responds, "I'm not sure, Papa. Can we still check it out?"
"Okay," replies Lee, and they hop off Charlie and tie him to the tree. Patrick grabs Lee's hand and drags him to the clearing, where they see Rosemary sitting on a blanket with her back up against their tree. She smiles and waves when she sees them.
"Come on, Papa. Mama has lunch for us." Patrick and Lee run to Rosemary and sit down on the blanket.
"Hi, sweetheart. I am so happy you came. We missed you on the ride."
"I wish I could have been with you too. Now, who is hungry? I brought lots of food."
Lee notices everything lying on the blanket and inquires, "How did you carry all this stuff from the car?"
"Don't worry. I made a lot of trips and didn't overdo it this time."
"Rosie, you should have gotten some help. You are supposed to take it easy. Don't you remember?"
"I'm sorry, Lee. I guess I don't know how." She hands a sandwich to Lee and Patrick and keeps one for herself, hoping to distract her overly cautious husband. Lee rolls his eyes but decides to let it go for now. They enjoy their lunch, and then Rosemary pulls out a cloth bag, handing it to Lee."
"Another gift? You two are spoiling me."
"No, this is just something for us to do," replies Rosemary.
Lee peeks in the bag and chuckles when he sees a quoits game. "If I remember correctly. Mama and I played this on the ship, and I let her win, which she was not happy about."
"You are correct. So, you better not do it again."
"Don't worry. I won't." Lee hops up first and helps Rosemary get on her feet before walking out into the field. He digs the spike into the ground and leaves about six inches exposed. "Why don't you go first, Patrick? I'll go next, and Mama will go last." Lee hands the metal rings to Patrick, and he throws all four of them, with only one landing on the spike. Patrick gathers the rings and passes them to Lee, who does better, getting three on the spike. Finally, Lee picks up the rings and hands them to Rosemary. "Here you go, sweetheart."
Rosemary inspects the rings and lines herself up with the spike. She throws one after another, and all four land perfectly. Rosemary brags, "I haven't lost my touch, have I?"
Lee laughs, responding, "I can guarantee you never will." Rosemary giggles because she knows it's true.
They play another couple of rounds, of which Rosemary wins, before she checks the time, suggesting, "We better get going. We have more clues for you."
"Okay, let me help you gather everything up first."
Rosemary smiles, saying, "Thanks, sweetheart," as Lee and Patrick help her get everything into the car. When they finally finish, Patrick hands him another envelope.
He reads aloud, "Clue Four: First, you need to return Charlie. Then go to the place with a brilliant reflection." Rosemary watches him in anticipation. "A place with a reflection? Reflection? A mirror? A prism? No, those don't seem right." Rosemary tells Patrick something, and he grabs another box out of the car and hands it to Lee. Lee opens the lid and sees various types of fishing lures. His face lights up, questioning, "Could it be the dock at the pond?"
Rosemary giggles, answering, "Good job. I will see you guys later. Have fun!" And she drives away with a grin on her face. Lee and Patrick take their time riding back to the livery to return Charlie and then to the dock about thirty minutes later.
When they get close enough to the dock, they see Rosemary standing up and smiling at them. She announces, "Hello, there, Mister Mayor."
Lee laughs, flirting a little with his wife, "You sure seem to pop up everywhere today."
"It's my husband's first Father's Day today, and I wanted to do something special for him."
"Well, he must be a very lucky guy to be married to someone as stunning as you."
"I am the lucky one," responds Rosemary as they both chuckle.
"Are you going to read the clue now, Papa?" whines Patrick.
"Where's the clue?" inquires Lee.
Patrick points to the tree stump with a small rock lying on top of something white. He picks up the envelope, removes the card, and clears his throat before reading the clue, "Clue Five: Four words: Dream, Encourage, Adore, and Amuse." He scratches his head. "I have no idea on this one." Rosemary is pleased because she knows this one is stumping him, so she reminds Lee to talk out his thoughts. "Um, let me think. Do they have anything in common? They are all words that describe our family, which doesn't help because I need to think of a place."
Rosemary points to Patrick, and he grabs the box hiding at the corner of the dock. Patrick hands it to him, offering, "Here, Papa. I hope this helps." Lee lifts the lid and is surprised to see a book, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
Rosemary quietly suggests, "Open the book, honey."
Lee opens it with a shocked expression, inquiring, "Is it really Mark Twain's signature?"
"Yes, sir!" exclaims Patrick.
"How did you find this?"
"Penelope found it for me in a New York City bookstore," reveals Rosemary.
Lee hugs Patrick and her, saying, "This is incredible. How does this day keep getting better and better?"
Patrick shouts, "Did you figure out where we need to go?"
Lee thinks about it some more, and his face lights up when he thinks he has the answer, questioning, "The saloon?"
Rosemary's face falls when she realizes the saloon is a valid answer since they watched the movie in the Queen of Hearts. She thinks for a few moments and gives him four words, "Your gift to me."
Lee chuckles, responding, "Oh, right, it's The Hill, isn't it? The Hill represents four words as well, hope, inspiration, love, and laughter." He glances at Rosemary and Patrick, asking, "How do we get there?"
Rosemary holds out her arms, revealing, "Ta-dah, our car is over there."
"Great, let's go!" The three of them hop into the car, and Lee drives them out there. Lee parks at the bottom, so Rosemary doesn't have far to go. They walk out onto the stage, and Lee notices three chairs lined up, facing the middle. Patrick tells Lee to have a seat on one of the chairs, and they will start shortly. Patrick and Rosemary walk to the center of the stage, and she whispers something in Patrick's ear, and he smiles.
Patrick explains, "We are acting out our version of one of your favorite scenes from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer." Lee laughs, and the two of them begin. Rosemary and Patrick, playing Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer respectively, pretend to be walking and come up to what they describe as a dead tree. Tom and Huck talk about what they will do with the money if they find the treasure, and then they start digging various holes around the tree. After getting tired and bored from digging, they eventually give up when Tom realizes they were doing it all wrong. He tells Huck they need to come back at midnight and dig where the shadow of the tree limbs fall. Rosemary and Patrick bow when they finish, and Lee claps and cheers. "Bravo, Patrick, Rosie. Wonderful job. And you're right. It's one of my favorite scenes from the book."
Patrick yells, "Did you like our version better, Papa?"
"I sure did," replies Lee as he turns the chairs around, placing them close together so they can look out at the hill. He sits back down and motions for Patrick and Rosemary to join him. Patrick sits next to Lee and Rosemary next to Patrick.
Rosemary reveals, "The skit was Patrick's idea. He knew how much you loved the scene."
"Thanks, buddy," remarks Lee as Patrick climbs onto his lap. "It is such a gorgeous day, Rosie. Do we need to hurry back to town? It has been such a great family day. I don't want it to end."
"I've been hoping you would want to stay longer. I love it out here, especially when it's just us. But we are not done celebrating Father's Day, so we can't stay out here all afternoon." Rosemary scoots over next to Lee and reaches for his hand, mentioning, "We can certainly enjoy ourselves here in the meantime." Lee squeezes her hand, and they spend the next few minutes or so in companionable silence.
Patrick breaks the quiet, inquiring, "When will we do another play out here, Mama? It was fun!"
"I don't know, bud. It might be a while. Once your little brother or sister gets here, I have no idea what our new routine will be. We probably won't want to or have the time."
"When does the baby come again?" questions Patrick.
"Next month," replies Rosemary as she pats his leg. "Maybe we do one next spring when it gets warmer."
"Okay, Mama! Can we play quoits again?"
"If Papa wants to, then yes." Lee agrees.
"I'll get the quoits," shouts Patrick as he races to the car and back.
Lee gets up, offering his arm to Rosemary. She accepts, and he escorts her down the stairs and into the field. Patrick hands the game to Lee, who sets it up again so they can play some more. This time Rosemary gives Patrick some pointers, and he gets better with each round, almost tying her a couple of times.
Rosemary questions, "What time is it? I left my watch in the car."
Lee pulls out his pocket watch, answering, "It's 4:30 pm. Do we need to go now?"
"No, we are still good. We can play a little while longer."
"Good because I need to beat you at least once before we go." Rosemary giggles at the silly words coming out of her husband's mouth. Patrick starts them off, and they play a couple more rounds. And sure enough, Lee gets his wish, winning the last one. He is so happy he gets carried away, picking up Rosemary and spinning her around.
"Put us down, Lee Coulter. You don't need to throw out your back again."
"If you insist," remarks Lee as he puts Rosemary down gently and narrows his eyes at her. "You didn't let me win, did you?"
Rosemary laughs, revealing, "Sweetie, I could never let you win. I might take it easy on you, but never enough for you to beat me."
Lee rolls his eyes, responding, "Good because you should never let me win no matter what."
"Don't worry, Lee. I won't," remarks Rosemary with a chuckle. "You beat me fair and square."
"Where to next, Patrick?"
Patrick runs to the stage and grabs another envelope, giving it to Lee, who reads aloud, "Clue Six: Mama and I want to share this place with you. It is close to home." Lee thinks about it while he picks up the game, and they walk over to the car. "Hmm. You want to share this space with me, and it's close to home? The only thing I can think of close to home is Elizabeth and Nathan's house or maybe something in the woods. But I don't see why you would share either of those with me."
Patrick giggles, "Mama told me it started as a special place you made for her, then it became a place where we could grow things."
Rosemary adds, "And now it will be a place where we can build things."
He smiles at her and inquires, "Is it our backyard?"
"You got it!" exclaims Rosemary as she hands another box to him. Lee glances inside and is confused about what he sees.
"A chisel and a hammer? What are these for?" he asks.
"You'll see when we get there," replies Rosemary as they pile into the front seat of the car and Lee drives them home.
Lee parks in front of the house and questions, "Shall we go to the back?" Lee jumps out of the car and opens the door for Rosemary and Patrick. Patrick hops out first, and then Lee offers his arm to Rosemary. She accepts the gesture, and they walk towards the back. "Do you want to go through the house? It is easier."
"No, Papa," responds Patrick, so they use the side yard. When they reach the back, Lee notices a wood table being held up by two large wood barrels, sitting under the pergola with what appears to be woodworking tools sitting on top of the table and hanging off the pergola.
"What is all this?" asks Lee.
"I've noticed you have gotten more interested in woodworking over the last year, so I thought maybe you would want tools of your own or a place to work. You can make this into a workshop if you want and build it how you like. And I'm sure Patrick will love to help you."
"I would, Papa. I would," adds Patrick.
"This is amazing, Rosie, Patrick. This whole day has been so special to me. My first Father's Day! I can't imagine anything else topping this in the future. Come here," and the three of them hug." Lee suggests to Patrick, "Turn away if you don't want to see me kissing Mama." Patrick giggles but instead of looking away like he usually does, he watches as Lee embraces his wife, kissing her a few times and resting his forehead on hers, not wanting to break the moment.
Lee and Rosemary reluctantly step back after a few long moments, and Rosemary excuses herself. She sits down at their small black table to give her boys some bonding time. So, Rosemary happily watches as Lee shows Patrick all his new tools and what to do with them when suddenly, Rosemary feels her abdomen tightening and then letting up a short time later. She massages her belly, and it comes back again. Then, Rosemary tries to find a more comfortable position, but nothing helps. The feeling keeps coming back. Finally, when it happens a few more times, she realizes it is not going away, so she calls out, "Lee, I need you."
Lee immediately knows something is wrong by the expression on her face. He walks to her as calmly as possible, not to alarm Patrick. Rosemary whispers in Lee's ear, "I think something is wrong with pumpkin."
Lee rubs their little one, whispering back, "Squishy is going to be fine. I'll take Patrick next door, and then we can see Faith. Will you be okay by yourself for a minute?" Rosemary nods and puts on a brave face for her husband and son.
"Hi, buddy. Would you like to hang out with Jack and Allie? Mama and I need to run into town." Patrick can sense something is wrong, but he nods and follows Lee over to Elizabeth's anyway. They knock on the door, and Elizabeth has a feeling it's about Rosemary. "Can Patrick stay with you?"
"Of course. Patrick can stay as long as you need. Keep us updated on what is happening."
"Thanks, Elizabeth. I will." Lee rushes back to Rosemary, who still appears worried. "Can you walk, or do I need to carry you?"
"I think I can walk. Please help me up, though." Lee helps her stand, and they slowly walk to the car. Fortunately, by the time they reach the front yard, Rosemary stops. "Lee, it's not doing it anymore." She rubs her belly, relieved that pumpkin is still moving around. "I still want to go to the infirmary, though. I'll go sit in the car, and you call and see if Faith is around."
Lee replies, "Yes, honey." Lee runs into the house and taps the switch hook a few times, and Florence answers, "Hello, Mister Coulter. How may I direct your call?"
"Have you seen Faith? Rosemary thinks something is wrong with the baby, and we want Faith to examine her."
Florence volunteers, "I'll go find her and tell her to meet you at the infirmary."
"Thanks, Florence," responds Lee as he races back out to the car and hops in the driver's seat.
Rosemary grabs his hand and squeezes, shouting, "It's back."
Lee squeezes her hand back, stating, "Florence is finding Faith for us. She'll meet us there."
Rosemary leans back in her seat and grasps her tightening tummy, yelling, "Drive, Lee!"