"To us darling," he toasted.

"And to our children." Jean added, sipping heavily at the bubbly wine. A gentle smile sweetened her lips and she sighed in contentment. A wave of love swept over her new husband as he looked at her.

Jean's mind was on the children, after three years away from her son, it was now only a matter of days before they were reunited! "Oh Tom, you do think Paul and Linda will be pleased… about us, I mean, don't you?" she asked hopefully. "You don't suppose that they'll be hurt by our not waiting…"

"I'm sure they'll both be thrilled, Jean," he assured her. "They're both in their teens now and understand about waiting, and besides my Linda has always considered you more a mother to her than an aunt. We've just made it official!" The darkly handsome man's face clouded for an instant. "My only concern is Paul. I hope he doesn't resent my trying to take Dan's place…" he said somberly.

"He was never actually that close to his father," Jean said with a far away look in her eyes. Suddenly, her face brightened. "Oh, I just know they'll both be thrilled… as thrilled and happy as we are. Especially when they hear the news about the ranch!"

"Well, Paul might like the idea, but I have my doubts about Linda. From what I gather through her letters she's at that stage where she requires a lot of action, if you know what I mean, and I'm not quite sure a ranch in Colorado is quite her style."

Tom laughed, but both parents were beginning to feel strangely subdued at the realization of what relative strangers their children would be after three years separation.

"You know darling," Tom mused, "the kids are probably as close to each other as we are. We have the perfect ready-made family and it's well past time for us to start living… making up for the lost years."