"That definitely falls outside the parameters of our obligations, not to mention it is a serious violation of trust. She already told you she did not want you to find him. And she's our superior! This may be pushing things too far this time, Shane." said Oliver, exasperated.

He was sitting on the edge of the bed, removing his socks. It had been a long day and he was ready to sleep. Shane was getting ready for bed as well, trying to unclasp her necklace. Oliver noticed and reached over to help.

"Thank you." she said as she carefully placed her necklace on its holder. "Oliver, I know it's a long shot, but she has had so much heartache! Her mother, Peter, her father. She has lived her life putting her own happiness on hold. And I promise not to say anything if it's bad news." said Shane. "I'm just going to do a bit of digging, that's all."

Oliver sighed, standing to get his pajamas. "Shane, these are people's lives. We have to be careful. What if you arrange a meeting and it goes badly?"

"I know, but what if this were me and you?" Shane asked as she used her walker to lower herself onto the edge of the bed.

Oliver turned and stared at her with raised eyebrows.

"What if we were separated for twenty years after you knew I loved you? Wouldn't you want to reconnect?" asked Shane.

Oliver looked at her tenderly, "Of course I would, but this is different, Shane. Peter and Andrea are not you and me. She may not be interested anymore. Besides, he could be married with six kids." He kneeled down next to the bed where Shane was sitting, preparing to say his nightly prayers.

"She is definitely still interested, I could tell!" declared Shane. "And as for Peter, we won't know until we try. If you sent me a proposal letter like that, wouldn't you want to know I never received it?"

Oliver took Shane's hand in his and looked thoughtful. "I'd like to think I've learned not to send important invitations through the mail without confirming receipt of such invitations. Need I remind you of a very uncomfortable Valentine's day?" said Oliver, grinning at Shane.

Shane laughed, remembering.

"I probably would have done exactly what Peter did. There would have been no moving on from you, Shane. I would have thought of you every day." said Oliver, with more emotion in his voice than he intended. "I would have prayed for you too."

Shane smiled down at him. "I hoped you'd say that. Maybe Peter is still thinking about Andrea everyday! We have got to find out!"

Oliver sighed and rubbed his temples with his free hand. "Okay. You have your section leaders permission to search, not that not having my permission would stop you. However, you are to make no contact unless you run it by me first. Your word on that, Mrs. O'Toole?"

Shane sat up straighter and grinned triumphantly, "I understand Mr. O'Toole. I give you my word."

Oliver smiled and rubbed Shane's hand with his thumb. "You know, it's hard to disagree with you when you look so beautiful."

Shane blushed, sensing his sincerity. "That is good information to have, for future reference."

Oliver chuckled.

"Oliver?" said Shane.

"Hmm?" said Oliver, looking up into her eyes.

"Could I maybe, pray with you tonight?" asked Shane, looking a little uncomfortable.

Oliver was surprised. He prayed every night, but Shane had never asked to join in. He could not prevent the grin that spread across his face. "Of course."

Shane nodded without saying anything and placed her hand in Oliver's. Oliver looked absolutely giddy as he took her hand in his.

Shane smiled as they finished. Oliver prayed for a lot of people. Peter and Andrea, Norman and Rita, their parents. And for Shane. She hadn't expected that.

Oliver slipped into bed and Shane snuggled in. He kissed her goodnight and held her hand to his chest, wrapping his other arm around her, holding her close.

"Shane?" he said softly.

"Hmm?" she replied, clearly already starting to fall asleep.

"What made you want to pray with me tonight?" asked Oliver.

"Oh, well, I pray every night. I just thought it would be nice to do it together." said Shane matter-of-factly.

"Every night?" said Oliver, surprised.

Shane realized she hadn't yet told him. "After my accident I realized I had experienced too many miracles not to be praying. I guess I just...wanted to. It just feels right, like someone is actually listening, ya know?"

Oliver felt an inward thrill of delight. "Mmmhmm." he said, "I do know."

Shane was beginning to drift off once again. "I love you, Oliver." she said sleepily.

Oliver swallowed hard, "I love you too."

Oliver stared into the dark as Shane's breathing deepened beside him, thoughts swirling. He thought of Peter and Andrea. He thought of how many times he had almost lost Shane, in more ways than one. Somehow the stars had aligned and this was his life now, the best woman he had ever known sleeping next to him, his wife. It was better, so much better than he had ever imagined. The gratitude filled him as he slowly drifted off to sleep.


It was the last day of July. Shane pulled up in front of the post office and braced herself for the heat wave as she stepped out of her air conditioned car.

She had left at lunch to attend a therapy appointment. Today was the first time she'd attempted walking with only a cane. It went well and Dr. Noom had asked her to start practicing at home. They were so thrilled with her progress that several doctors from different parts of Colorado were planning on attending her next appointment to observe her treatment. She couldn't wait to tell Oliver.

Shane was smiling as she used her walker and slowly made her way to the DLO. She hadn't used her chair at work in two weeks. She was healing and it felt nothing short of miraculous. Rita and Norman would be having their baby any day, and Oliver was much happier now that the influx of mail to the DLO had stopped increasing. Life was good.

She turned a corner and saw Andrea talking with Hazel and her brow furrowed slightly. If she could just find Peter! Andrea had been polite and friendly since they delivered her package, but Shane and Rita had both noticed an underlying sadness. Rita even noticed Andrea had been crying when they passed one another in the ladies room the previous day.

Shane was frustrated. She had easily tracked Peter to Albuquerque where he spent nearly two years working for the same newspaper. She contacted them immediately. They refused to give her any further information, but she had been able to look up old articles and find a last name. Peter Baker. Should be easy enough, but it was too common of a first and last name and with no leads to where he relocated to, Shane was coming up empty handed.

She had searched for other newspapers with his name, but nothing. She had begun to read his articles to catch any hints of personal information, but so far nothing of substance had surfaced. He was a gifted writer, and one opinion piece about his sister and the importance of family relationships had brought Shane to tears.

Oliver had surprisingly suggested a trip to Albuquerque, but Shane didn't think that would be helpful without a solid lead.

She sighed as she pushed the button to open the DLO doors. Oliver had had it installed after she returned to work so she wouldn't have to knock everyday.

As she walked in, the sight before her brought a look of confusion to her face, followed by a smile.

Oliver and Norman were standing in front of a large table. Rita was sitting to the side with her feet elevated. On the table was a doll with a baby blanket underneath.

"You see Norman, it's a lot like wrapping a package." said Oliver as he showed Norman how to swaddle the doll. "Making sure each step is done properly so that it all stays together. Without closing the top, of course."

"Oh, of course." said Norman, concentrating very hard on the doll in front of him.

"You're doing great!" encouraged Rita.

There was a moment of silence, all eyes on Norman.

"I did it!" he declared, holding up the doll triumphantly.

Shane laughed right out loud, alerting them all to her presence.

"I mastered the swaddle!" said Norman, excitedly.

"That's wonderful!" said Shane, still smiling.

"It was Oliver that finally helped it click. No one else had compared it to an envelope before. Really helped me visualize." explained Norman.

Shane looked at Oliver with raised eyebrows and a slightly amused expression. She glanced at the perfectly swaddled doll. "Where did you learn how to swaddle a baby?"

Oliver looked slightly embarrassed and shrugged, pointing to a book open on the table between him and Norman, "It's all right here in this book."

Shane just smiled at him.

"Now she can come any time." said Rita as she patted her belly. She looked at Shane, "Norman was worried he was holding her back because he wasn't quite ready."

"Ah." said Shane, "Hence the swaddling practice."

"Yep." said Norman. He leaned down, placing a hand on Rita's belly, "You can come whenever you are ready, little one. We're ready on our end."

Rita smiled affectionately at Norman. She had had very few contractions since her false alarm a few weeks prior. She kept getting bigger, even when it seemed like she couldn't. Each day as they worked they were also on 'Rita watch.' She was never left alone, not even for a minute. Oliver and Shane had begun to feel nearly as anxious as Norman. They were all excited to meet this little girl and intended for her to have as safe an arrival as possible.

"How was your appointment?" asked Oliver as he walked over and gave Shane a kiss on the cheek.

"Great! Next time they want to…" began Shane.

The DLO phone began to ring. Oliver answered it quickly. "Hello. Denver DLO. Oliver O'Toole speaking." He looked confused, "Uh, okay. Is everything…" The person on the other end had clearly hung up.

He put down the phone and turned to face everyone, "Uh, our supervisor would like to see Rita and Shane in her office immediately. It sounded urgent."

"Oh!" said Rita as she slowly stood. "I hope everything is okay."

"Me too." said Shane.


Shane and Rita made their way to Andrea's office as quickly as they could, which was actually quite slow. Andrea was watching for them out of her office window and opened her door quickly, let them in, closed and locked it, and then closed the blinds before taking her seat behind her desk.

"Please, take a seat." she said quietly.

"Um, is everything okay, Andrea?" asked Rita, looking concerned.

Andrea looked nervous and stood again, pacing behind her desk.

"Yes. No. Maybe. I don't know. I received a letter yesterday and I don't know how to…" she picked up a letter off the desk and thrust it toward Shane. "Read it. Out loud. Please."

"Um, okay…" said Shane, taking the letter. Andrea sat down again and waited.

Shane glanced at Rita and then cleared her throat, unsure of what she held in her hands.

"Dear Andrea,

I hope this letter finds you well. I know I made a promise to not bother you ever again, but I will be in town for the first time in twenty years. I've traveled all over the world, but I've never managed to make my way back to Denver, until now."

Shane paused with wide eyes and looked at Andrea "Is this from…?"

Andrea nodded, looking as if she didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"Peter?" asked Rita with a gasp.

Andrea nodded again, looking dazed.

Shane continued:

"My sister moved there last year and I'll be visiting next week. I would love to have lunch in the park and catch-up, if you are interested. If this is inappropriate because of your current life circumstances I completely understand. I simply thought it would be a shame to be so close and not at least try.

I'm available on August 1st, any time. My number is 255-675-2242. I hope you have a few minutes for an old friend. I hope and pray you are happy.

Always,

Peter"

"Wow!" said Rita.

"This is great!" said Shane as she set the letter down on Andrea's desk. "Are you going to call him?!"

Andrea nodded, "I, uh, already did last night." She looked nervous, hands trembling slightly. "He called me back a half hour ago."

"And?" asked Shane, her curiosity at its peak.

"I told him I'd meet him for lunch at our tree tomorrow." said Andrea in a whisper.

"Ah! That's wonderful!" said Shane, clapping her hands together.

Rita tilted her head to the side, noticing the look on Andrea's face, "Don't you want to go?"

Andrea looked conflicted as she began pacing again, "Of course I do! I called him right away because I knew if I didn't I would regret it forever, but then I heard his voice and it registered in my head that this was really happening. He made me laugh so easily and all the feelings came flooding back that I've been trying to run from for the last 20 years. He went quiet on the phone, I thought maybe he'd hung up, and then he said, "It's so nice to hear you laugh again." I told him I only just recently received his package, the whole story sort of spilled out."

Andrea rubbed her temples, "I could never keep anything from him. He went silent again after that and then said he'd see me tomorrow." Andrea sighed, tears beginning to pool at the corners of her eyes, "If I had gotten that package 20 years ago, I would have walked away and done my best to stay connected with my father."

Shane and Rita sat and waited, sensing she had more to say.

"But now," she said, shaking her head, "it's been so long. Too long. I'm not the same girl he remembers from before. I used to be so light and carefree and optimistic. I used to laugh so easily. I'm older now."

Rita smiled, "Well, he's older too, but he's still Peter, right? And you're a wonderful person!"

Rita said this with such sincerity that Andrea smiled. "I just don't know…"

Shane had been sitting quietly, taking in what Andrea was saying. When she finally spoke, tears threatened to fill her eyes and she found it difficult to speak.

"Second chances don't often come, but when they do, we need to embrace them for what they are, which I...I believe is God trying to do something wonderful in our lives. I almost lost everything at the beginning of this year, even my life, but I didn't. For some reason I kept breathing when the odds were stacked against me. And because of that, I have Oliver." Shane swallowed trying to compose herself. "What we have, what we now share together, was worth every painful moment it took to get here. Now, I don't know Peter, but his letters to you speak volumes about who he was and is. I know showing up tomorrow is a risk, for both of you, but I think you'll find it is one worth taking." Shane smiled at Andrea encouragingly as Rita sniffed loudly next to her.

Andrea stood there a moment, thinking, her face not revealing her feelings. Finally she sighed, allowing a small smile to appear. "Well, I have nothing to wear. Would you two be willing to help me?"

Shane and Rita looked at one another and grinned.

"Of course we will!" said Rita.


Shane, Rita, and Andrea sat on a bench under a tree in Washington Park, Andrea and Peter's tree within sight. They were all quiet, waiting for Peter to show up. Andrea had asked them to come with her. She had dreamed the night before that she had waited for him all day, but he never showed up. She was worried it was a bad sign.

Shane glanced at her phone: 12:13. "He should be here any minute." She was feeling almost as nervous as Andrea looked. "Andrea, what does Peter look like?"

Andrea went completely rigid and gasped, "That's him."

"Where?!" asked Rita.

All Shane could see was a couple walking their dog, two kids on bikes, and a figure approaching from far away.

"That little speck in the distance is Peter?" asked Shane, confused. "How can you tell from so far…?"

"It's the baseball cap." said Andrea, "It was a gift from me for his birthday years ago. He loves baseball. Besides, he's walking like Peter does. Do you see the bounce in his step?"

Shane and Rita didn't, but they smiled at one another.

"He's getting closer. I think you should probably start walking towards your tree." said Rita, trying to be encouraging.

Andrea stood, hands shaking, face pale, "I think I am going to be sick. Are you sure I look alright?"

Shane smiled, "You look absolutely beautiful." Rita and Shane had shopped for a new outfit and taken Andrea to get her hair and makeup done, per her request, the night before. Honestly, Shane thought all of the changes made her look ten years younger.

"You can do it!" said Rita, "We'll stick around for a bit, just in case you need us."

"Thank you." said Andrea. She turned and slowly walked down the path towards Peter.

Rita practically squealed, "This is like watching a movie, only better, because it's real!"

Shane turned to say something to Rita and found herself squinting off into the distance instead. Was that Oliver? She would know that posture anywhere. But why? He caught her looking in his direction, smiled, shrugged his shoulders, and pointed up into the tree above him. Shane shifted her glance upward. There was Norman, in a tree.

"Um, Rita?" said Shane.

"Hmm?" replied Rita.

"Did you know Norman is in a tree not far from us with a pair of binoculars facing our direction?" asked Shane.

Rita sighed, not taking her eyes off of Andrea and Peter, "Yep."

"Oh, okay…" said Shane, confused.

"I told Norman he didn't need to worry because I hadn't had one contraction this morning, but I still saw them following us in Oliver's car when we left the DLO." explained Rita. "He just cares so much, so I thought it would be better if I pretended not to notice."

Shane chuckled a bit and shook her head.

"She made it to the tree!" announced Rita. "And he's almost there!"

Shane and Rita watched silently as Andrea and Peter shared an awkward hello, a few words, and then embraced for a lot longer than you would normally do when seeing an old friend. They suddenly felt as if they were being intrusive.

"She seems just fine. Perhaps we should go?" suggested Shane.

Rita nodded in agreement. "I'm so happy for them!"

Shane began to stand and Rita did too. Shane turned to start walking down the path toward Oliver and Norman when Rita suddenly reached from behind and clutched her arm tightly.

"Rita, are you okay?" Shane asked as she turned to look at Rita. Rita had wide eyes. She looked at Shane and then down at the ground. Shane looked down as well and gasped. A small puddle was forming on the cement below Rita's feet.

"I think my water just broke." whispered Rita, eyes frantically searching for Norman. She found the tree he was in and waved while pointing at her belly.

Oliver and Shane both agreed later that they had never seen Norman run that quickly. He practically jumped out of the tree, did a sort of somersault, and was instantly in a full sprint. Oliver did his best to keep up.

By the time Norman got to Rita, contractions had begun, just minutes apart. They all knew this was it, it was real this time. The significance of what was happening settled over everyone.

"Let's get you to the car." said Norman softly.

Rita nodded, but then paused and grabbed the underside of her belly, clearly uncomfortable.

"Remember to breathe," said Norman softly. "Your body knows what it needs to do. You just have to breathe."

"I...I don't know if I can do this Norman." said Rita, looking into his eyes with a worried expression.

His face softened into a look filled with love and respect. He reached his hand up to touch her cheek. "I know you can. You are the bravest person I have ever met. And I'll be with you every step of the way."

Shane felt like she was going to cry, she loved these two so much.

Norman put an arm around Rita and gave a slight grin, "Let's not do this here, however."

Rita chuckled slightly, "Good idea." She began to walk, but another contraction hit and she had to pause.

"Oliver! My wheelchair! It's in the trunk of your car." exclaimed Shane.

Oliver began running as fast as he could towards the parking lot while Shane, Norman, and Rita made slow progress after him.

He was back within minutes and Norman began to run toward the parking lot with Rita in the chair. There was no way that Shane could keep up with her walker, so Oliver folded it up and scooped Shane up in his arms. She bounced up and down as Oliver ran. Shane couldn't help but smile, thinking what a sight they all must be.


Oliver sat in the maternity waiting room once again at the Denver Mercy hospital. Shane had gone right in with Norman and Rita and he simply had to wait. He had wondered if he should return to work while waiting, but Shane had given him her phone and had sent several messages from Norman's phone already. The first was, "She is progressing quickly!" and the second said, "Everything is going well!" The last had come just minutes prior that declared, "Anytime now!"

He glanced at his watch and was surprised to see it had been just over an hour since their arrival. Was it supposed to happen this quickly? He returned his attention to a magazine article he was reading about a father's role in pregnancy and birth. He found it very thought provoking.

An older couple sat down next to him with 'welcome baby' balloons and flowers. He smiled politely.

"We're about to become grandparents!" said the woman excitedly.

Oliver smiled, "Oh, how wonderful!"

"Are you an uncle, waiting for the news?" she asked.

Oliver nodded, closing the magazine, and smiled at the reference to being an uncle. "Uh, yes I am. A little girl on her way into this world. Should be any time now."

"Oh!" exclaimed the woman excitedly, "Ours is a boy! Such a wonderful day!"

"I agree," said Oliver.

Bill entered the waiting room and spotted Oliver.

Oliver excused himself and stood to shake Bill's hand, "Hi! Shane says it should be anytime now!"

"How is Rita?" he quickly asked. "Is she okay?"

"Well, Shane said everything was going well, so I assume yes," said Oliver.

Bill nodded and then grinned. "I can't wait to meet her. I hope she likes me."

Oliver smiled. Bill was about to meet his first grandchild for the first time. It felt like a privilege to be here on such an occasion.

"I wish Sunny could be here with us today." said Bill with a touch of sadness.

"Oh, I truly believe she is," said Oliver with conviction.

Bill smiled in response.

Shane came into the room and they both stood. She had a huge smile and tear stained cheeks. "She's here. Mom and baby are both doing fantastic. They are helping Rita get cleaned up and then Norman said they'd like you both to come in."

Shane hugged Bill and congratulated him on becoming a grandfather.

Oliver then embraced her tightly. Shane whispered in his ear. "It was beautiful, Oliver. Absolutely beautiful."