Oliver twisted the pen in his hand as he stared at the small calendar on his desk. Friday, April 11th. 19 days left. He took a deep breath, trying to shove the panicked, but also excited feeling from his mind before the others arrived for the day.

Shane had been back at work for an entire week. She had transitioned back wonderfully. The wedding plans were also coming together nicely. Heather, Joe, Norman, and Rita had all helped. They had rescheduled, rearranged, and confirmed everything twice. The updated wedding invites had been mailed, leaving Oliver worried that someone would slip and tell Shane. Those she spoke to regularly had been sworn to secrecy and Heather was keeping a strict eye on Shane's phone.

From what Oliver could tell, Shane had no idea they had changed the wedding date. There had been a few close calls, but she still seemed oblivious. The question was, how long could he keep it that way? And more importantly, when should he tell her?

Oliver stood up and began to pace. He felt almost as nervous as just before he'd proposed. Well, that was until he'd seen Shane's smile as she walked down the aisle towards him, as Rita's maid of honor. In that moment he was calm, the path ahead clear and certain. He had felt certain about this change, this surprise, but what if…

Norman and Rita walked through the DLO doors, holding hands and smiling.

"Morning, Oliver," said Norman.

Rita quickly followed with a cheerful "Good morning!" and a glance around the room. "Oh, where is Shane? Is she feeling alright?"

"Yes, she had an appointment this morning. Heather took her and wanted to drop by afterwards for a tour of the DLO. They should be here by eleven o'clock." Oliver said as he glanced at his watch. "So, how did the check up go yesterday? Everything going well?"

Norman nodded, "Officially 24 weeks. Only 4 months to go! "

Rita placed her hand on her growing belly. "She's growing perfectly on schedule."

"Wonderful!" responded Oliver. "Are you feeling alright, Rita?"

Rita seemed surprised. "Oh, yes! I'm doing great! Just getting bigger each day!"

"You promise to let me know if we need to temporarily lighten your workload as your due date gets closer?" Oliver asked sincerely.

Norman nodded glancing at Rita, "We definitely will."

Rita smiled to herself. They were both so concerned about her well-being.

"Oliver, before Shane gets in, have you decided when you are going to tell her about the wedding?" Rita asked, looking a little nervous.

"I've been trying to decide, do either of you have an opinion on the matter?" Oliver asked, hoping they could shed some light on his course of action.

Norman glanced at Rita, surprised Oliver wanted their opinion. "Well, it should probably be at least a few days before."

"Yes," jumped in Rita, "you'll need to give her time for the surprise to wear off so she can really enjoy the moment, but not too much time." Rita looked thoughtful and scrunched her nose. "I'm sorry, that probably wasn't very helpful. I'm sure whatever day you choose will be wonderful!"

Oliver sighed. "I hope so."

Rita gasped and grabbed Norman's hand, placing it on her belly. "Right here, Norman! Maybe she'll kick again!"

Norman awkwardly looked at Oliver with his hand on Rita's belly. "I haven't felt her kick yet." he explained.

They stood there, silently, all staring at Rita's stomach.

"I felt something!" announced Norman with a boyish grin on his face, "Was that her?" Rita nodded, looking happy and slightly emotional.

He gave her a kiss on the cheek and leaned toward her belly speaking softly, "Hello little one, it's your daddy here."

Oliver smiled too, but then his brow furrowed ever so slightly. He wondered, for a brief moment, if such a moment would be a part of his future with Shane. He tried not to dwell on such thoughts. Life with Shane would be happy regardless. But the desire was still there, and he still hoped.

They were interrupted as incoming wheeled in a large bin of mail to sort. Norman picked up a package on top of the pile. After feeling it for a moment, he said, "I think this package contains a sock, but only one."

"Well, I'm sure that's an interesting story!" exclaimed Rita.

Oliver chuckled. "Maybe a mystery? A missing sock searching for it's match, perhaps?"

Norman and Rita were still surprised at times when Oliver made jokes at work. He was much more relaxed than he used to be. They all chuckled as Oliver began to examine the outside of the package.


Heather pulled into the only available handicap parking spot at the Denver Post Office.

"Why don't you want to tell Oliver? It's wonderful news!" exclaimed Heather as she gave Shane a surprised look. "You moved your left leg! Twice!"

Shane spoke earnestly, "It was such a small movement, Mom. And what if it was a fluke? I don't know if I'll make any more progress and I don't want to give him false hope. On the other hand, if I am going to make a full recovery, I'd love to surprise him someday!"

Shane subconsciously rubbed her left leg that was still tingling. She could feel more sensations each day, but she felt if she told anyone she would somehow jinx her progress.

"If you have somehow forgotten, your right leg recovery started with a similar small movement. Have you even told him the progress you've been making with the walker?" asked Heather with raised eyebrows.

Shane shook her head. "Nope."

Heather sighed, "You two and surprising each other…"

"Oliver has a surprise for me too?" asked Shane half jokingly, but then noticed her mom slightly hesitate to reply.

Heather recovered quickly. "He had a whole week of surprises before you came back to work. And then you surprised him with your return!"

Shane laughed. "True. But Mom, he gets this smile, this look on his face when he is pleasantly surprised and I love it so much that…"

Heather sighed, but also smiled, "Okay okay, I will try not to say anything. But if I accidentally slip you will have to forgive me. I'm old, you know. These things start to happen."

Shane chuckled, "Deal!"

"Now, let's get inside so I can finally get my long promised tour of the famous DLO."


Shane wheeled herself through the door of the DLO as her mother held it open. Heather called out, "Shane and I are here!"

Why was everyone always announcing her presence lately? Was it something about the wheelchair? It was odd...

She looked up to see Oliver walking towards her from behind his desk, a certain smile on his face that seemed to be reserved for when he saw her. He was wearing one of her favorite ties that matched his eyes perfectly. He walked right up to her, bent down, and planted a kiss on her cheek, followed by a "Good morning, sweetheart." that made Shane smile all the way up to her eyes.

"Good morning, Oliver." replied Shane, glancing around the room. "Where are Norman and Rita? They promised to take Mom on a detailed tour of the DLO."

Heather was already looking around. "This place is amazing. It's like stepping into another time!"

Oliver smiled with satisfaction at her assessment. "I have a firm belief that staying connected to the past helps us live better in the present. So we have a little of the old…"

"And a little of the new." Shane winked at him as she turned on her computer.

"A perfect combination." said Oliver as he stared at Shane.

She met his gaze. They all knew he wasn't talking about the DLO.

"Well," said Heather, trying to subtly let them know she was still standing there "I wonder if…"

The Dormans entered at that moment. Norman was carrying a box of letters and Rita looked like she was going to burst with news, but then she saw Shane and Heather.

"Oh, hello! So glad you are both here!" She hugged them both and then turned to Oliver. "You were right, Oliver! It was Lester's sock! Such a strange coincidence!"

Shane and Heather wore matching expressions, eyebrows raised, wondering if they should even ask. "Do I want to know?" asked Shane, glancing at Oliver.

He shook his head. "Probably not. A tale of missing footwear."

"Hazel sent us back with these," said Norman, holding up the box. "Shane there is actually a letter addressed to you here, care of the DLO."

"For me?" Shane took the envelope and examined the outside. She didn't recognize the return address. "Maybe it's a wedding card…" she said as she tore open the envelope.

"Heather, may Norman and I please give you the official DLO tour?" asked Rita excitedly.

Heather grinned, "I would love that!" They all walked away as Norman began explaining the history of the dead letter office.

Oliver smiled at how proud they were of the DLO.

"Oh my goodness, Oliver!" exclaimed Shane as she read the card in her hand.

"What is it?" asked Oliver, as he walked over to her side.

Shane held up the card and Oliver read it aloud.

"Ms. Shane McInerney,

You are cordially invited to celebrate a renewal of wedding vows for Todd and Celeste Williams, April 26th at 4:00PM."

There was a picture of a smiling couple and a handwritten note.

"Please come, Shane! You're the reason this is finally happening! Feel free to bring a plus one. With much love, Annie."

"Wow." said Oliver, "That is something!"

Shane was practically squealing and looked as if she would jump right out of her chair, if her body would allow it. She grabbed Oliver's hand and squeezed it several times. "It's so wonderful, Oliver! Such a happy ending after so much heartache! They are an amazing family. Oh, and look, it's at the same flower gardens mom and I visited last week." She glanced up at him with a small smile, "Will you be my plus one?"

He grinned, cupping her hand in both of his. "Always."

Shane sighed happily, "It should be a lovely evening."

"Yes, it will be." said Oliver, his mind spinning with an idea that must be brought to fruition.

"Shane, hi!" said Hazel as she entered the DLO. "I must have dropped this letter," she said as she placed the envelope in the box on Shane's desk.

"Oh, thank you Hazel," said Shane.

"You must be getting excited for your wedding!" Hazel said with exuberance. "Right around the corner!"

Oliver could feel himself starting to sweat. He didn't know how to stop this conversation in a natural way.

"Yes," said Shane, "only 50 days to go!"

Hazel's face shifted to confused and then recognition of what she had forgotten. Oliver was internally in panic mode, he looked at Hazel intently, willing her to end the conversation before she ruined everything.

Joe walked right through the DLO doors at that moment. "I have lunch for everyone! Oh, sorry Hazel, I didn't know you'd be here too or I would have brought more food."

Hazel glanced at Oliver and with a wink that was much too obvious said, "Uh, that's okay. I'm having lunch with Lester today! Bye!" With that, she ran from the room.

Shane looked baffled. "Why did she wink at you like that?"

Oliver did his best to look very perplexed, "I, uh, I don't…"

Joe wasn't sure what was wrong, but he could tell Oliver needed a change of subject. "Maybe it had something to do with Lester." Joe leaned in slightly and half whispered, "Word on the sorting floor is, he might pop the question soon."

"Really?" said Shane, completely distracted. "How do you know the talk on the sorting floor?"

Joe chuckled, "I've got friends on the inside circle." Shane laughed. Oliver tried, but he was still recovering from the near catastrophe. He gave his father a very quick nod of thanks when Shane wasn't looking.

"Well, I've got sandwiches and chips for everyone. Where is everyone else?" asked Joe.

"Norman and Rita are giving my mom an official DLO tour." Shane added quickly, "She can have my sandwich if there are not enough."

"Oh, I have one for her too. Oliver told me she would be here when I called about what kind of sandwiches to get." explained Joe.

"Great!" said Shane.

Oliver walked over and pushed the button on the wall speaker. "Mom, Norman, Rita...lunch is here."

Shane looked amused, "Look at you using technology!"

Oliver simply shook his head, grinning.