"Sure is colder than the last time we did this," Jo remarked as she fastened her seat belt.

Fritz winked at her. "I know how to keep you warm."

Jo giggled as the car picked up speed. A blast of warm air from Fritz's car's heater hit her face as he drove onto the interstate.

"What do we have to listen to this morning?" Jo began to search through Fritz's CD collection.

"Anything you want is fine with me," he told her.

She found a Katy Perry CD and slipped it into the CD player, and soon she was singing along with 'Roar.'

A little while later, they were once again passing through miles of farmland.

"This reminds me of the farm your grandmother grew up on," said Jo.

"She told us many stories about that farm," Fritz replied.

"Did you ever meet Renate and Horst?"

"We traveled to visit them when I was very young. Minna and I loved to play with our many cousins on that side."

Eventually, they came to the wooden covered bridge. Neither of them said a word, and as soon as it was behind them, Fritz kissed Jo's lips.

"You're so romantic!" she sighed.

"That is what I wanted to do the last time we drove over it," he confessed.

"Why didn't you, then?"

"I - I was not sure how you would take it at that time," he said softly.

Soon they were pulling into the parking lot of a cozy little cottage diner.

"I thought that most likely you would prefer this to McDonald's," Fritz chuckled.

Inside, the walls were painted a warm yellow, and booths with red leather seats lined both sides of the room. Down the middle were wooden tables surrounded by four chair each. Soft jazz music floated into the dining area.

"Would you prefer a booth or a table?" asked the waitress, a middle-aged woman with short dark hair.

"A booth will be fine," said Jo.

Soon they found themselves seated in two of the red leather seats across from each other, hot meals in front of them both.

"This is just so different from the first time we came here," Jo remarked as she dug in.

Fritz smiled. "It is a little chilly for a picnic in a park today."

"Oh, I don't mean just that!" said Jo. "The last time, I hadn't shared my secret with you yet, and I had no idea who you really were."

He cupped his face between his hands, and his voice was low and tender. "It must have been so hard for you, to have a secret of that magnitude and to feel you had no one to share it with."

She nodded, and tears filled her eyes. He kissed them away.

Arriving at the farm, they saw that a light sprinkling of snow covered the house, barn, silo, and trees, giving the scene a transcendent feel.

Tom opened the door and invited them in. "The kids are playing 'Candy Land.'"

Jo and Fritz entered the living room, where they saw Marcy sitting on the sofa and Marshall, Regina, Adam, and Daniel sitting in a circle around the game on the floor.

Marcy smiled at them as Adam and Daniel rose and came over to greet their uncle.

"Uncle Fritz!"

Fritz embraced each boy in turn.

"And now, I have news for you," he told them. "Miss March will soon become your aunt Jo!"

"When?" asked Adam.

Fritz and Jo exchanged a glance. They hadn't discussed a date yet.

"I was thinking perhaps in the summer, when the weather is nice," Fritz said at last. "Does that sound acceptable to you, Josephine?"

"Sure," Jo replied. "That will give us plenty of time to get ready."

Marcy and Tom embraced both adults.

"We're so happy for you," said Marcy. "I sensed there was something between you the first time we met you."

The boys said goodbye to the Blackwells and found their coats, and soon, the group was headed back to Concord.

"Can I start calling you Aunt Jo now?" Adam asked as they rode along.

"Of course! I'd be honored." I'm really their great grandmother. That thought made her gulp.

They arrived back at Fritz's apartment at last with two very tired little boys. Skipping baths and bedtime stories, they put both boys right to bed.

"Will you still be here in the morning when I wake up, Aunt Jo?" asked Daniel as she tucked him in.

"I sure will!"

"Hurray! Can we have blueberry pancakes made from scratch?"

"If your uncle has the ingredients, I'd be happy to make them."

He yawned a huge yawn, then grinned and closed his eyes. Jo kissed his cheek, then joined Fritz in the hallway.

"You will be all right alone here with the boys for a few minutes, yes?" he asked her.

She frowned. "Where are you going?"

"To buy the ingredients for blueberry pancakes."