For Whom The Wedding Bells Toll

Connie picks Jason up at the airport after his summer of traveling through Europe, Russia, and China. She tells him that a wedding will take place in two days but refuses to identify the couple until she has explained everything that happened while he was away. Jason soon learns that the summer has brought surprising changes for Whit, Jack, Eugene, and the women in their lives.

The events had begun when Jack noticed that Maxwell’s Flower Shop was for sale. Since Whit’s return, Jack had been thinking about leaving Whit’s End and finding a business of his own. Bernard then mentioned that the Antique Emporium might also be available. The shop sounded much more suited to Jack’s interests, and he began considering whether it might give him a future of his own in Odyssey.

That same day, Tom Riley introduced everyone to Margaret Faye, a wealthy investor who was considering running for mayor. Margaret asked Whit to have dinner with her so she could hear his views about Odyssey. Although Whit regarded it as a business meeting, Connie was suspicious when Margaret promptly called it a date.

At dinner, Margaret described how she had rebuilt her life after her husband’s death by investing in local businesses. She believed that God had given her a gift for making money and leading others, and she wanted to use those abilities as mayor. Whit questioned whether possessing a talent automatically meant that God wanted her to use it in the most powerful position available.

Their conversation turned into a vigorous debate. Margaret insisted that her success and leadership qualified her for office, while Whit asked whether she had truly sought God’s particular calling. When she dismissed leading a soup kitchen as a waste of her abilities, Whit challenged the idea that serving people in need could ever be beneath someone’s gifts.

Whit returned to Whit’s End believing that their many disagreements had ended any chance of another meeting. Instead, Margaret arrived the following morning and told him that the debate had been wonderful. Few people could match her in an argument, and Whit’s intelligence, honesty, and commitment to the Bible fascinated her. She invited him to an exhibition of Renoir paintings that afternoon.

The museum visit became the first of many outings throughout the summer. Whit and Margaret continued to disagree about theology and politics, but they shared a love of art, museums, concerts, and galleries. Their friends began wondering whether the companionship had become romantic, while Whit himself remained unsure what their relationship meant.

When Bernard questioned him directly, Whit said that Margaret was a friend he admired and respected. Later, he admitted to Tom that he did not understand modern dating or know what Margaret expected. He had been married to Jenny for so long that this uncertain kind of relationship felt entirely unfamiliar.

During an outing in Connellsville, a thunderstorm drove Whit and Margaret into a café. Margaret told Whit that her respect and affection for him had grown. She wanted their companionship to become a true partnership, but her businesslike language left Whit confused until she finally spoke plainly.

Margaret had not brought Whit there merely to discuss another concert or exhibition. Looking directly at the startled man across from her, she announced, “I’m asking you to marry me.”