Patricia Potter (50 page)

Willow always had hope, Jess knew. Willow would always have hope. And, by God, she somehow managed to turn hope into reality. He hadn’t seen her fail yet. For chrissakes, look at himself.

His thoughts were interrupted as person after person came up and looked at the baby.

“Why Penelope?” one asked. “Is it a family name?”

Willow looked up at Jess with laughter in her eyes—and a secret message. By now Jess knew all about Odysseus and Penelope. He knew about a lot of things, including love and happiness and belonging, and pictures in the sky.

“Goes a long way back, a very long way back.” He grinned with a wry warmth that made Willow tingle with love and anticipation. “But yes, it is a family name.”