Timeless

by evitascarlett

"She belongs to a different time." It wasn't the first time Kitty had heard the comment whispered in regard to her and it probably wouldn't be the last. It was true after all, she did belong to a different time...a time when she had been his. Kitty looks back during a milestone occasion in her life.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Timeless

Dodge City, Kansas; 1934

"She belongs to a different time."

Kitty smiled slightly as the whisper she had overheard echoed through her mind on an almost constant loop. It wasn't the first time that words had been uttered; it probably wouldn't be the last…and it was true after all, she thought to herself as the wooden rocking chair in her bedroom rocked slowly back and forth. She was from a different time; a time when Dodge City hadn't been tame…when gunslingers were real, living breathing villains instead of just ghosts in stories that were told to the young. She was from a time before paved roads, automobiles, electric lights and those new fangled radios everyone had to have. Hell, she had even been around before the telephone was invented, she thought wryly. There was a time long ago when that would've bothered her; but that time had long since passed…along with so many other things. In her time she had seen covered wagons become a thing of the past and had seen man take flight in an airplane, something she had refused to do when offered the chance. She'd even seen a few of those moving picture shows that they called movies. The world was a much different place now from the one she had known long ago.

She turned her head towards the dressing table, catching a glimpse of herself in the mirror as the ticking of the clock softly filled the air, mingling with the sound of her rocking, sparing her from complete silence. Time had indeed passed; its evidence was etched upon her face in the lines around her eyes, the white streaks that mixed with the faded red of her hair. Reading glasses were sometimes perched upon her nose, but her blue eyes had remained bright…although the sparkle they used to hold had been lost many decades before. Kitty clutched an object in her hand and held it tightly as she leaned her head back against the chair and closed her eyes. "A different time…" Yes, she was from a different time; one that for most people had rapidly faded into the past but for her it was always right there on the threshold of her mind, beckoning her to come home, to slip back to that time when she had been his.

"Do you think she still loves him after all this time?" That was another whisper Kitty had overheard that day. They thought that just because she was getting on in years that she must be deaf…but she wasn't. She could hear very well for a woman her age…and she was used to people talking about her. People had talked about her in one way or another all of her life. She didn't really care, and in answer to their question, yes, she still loved Matt Dillon. How could she not? No amount of time could change the contents of her heart; there was no course of action that could cure her. She would always love him…why it was so hard for people to fathom or accept she didn't know. All she knew was what she felt…and what she missed so deeply.

"Oh, Matt," she whispered as she unclenched her hand and caressed the surface of the object that she held. The memory of her first day in Dodge flashed through her mind and she could recall that fist glimpse of the town through the stage coach window. Kitty scoffed lightly, stage coaches, another relic of the past now…but maybe that was a good thing considering how much trouble she always seemed to have with them. Her mind turned back to that memory though, remembering the gray sky and the muddy streets; the dull ugly buildings. She had been 19 and running out of cash but she hadn't had the least bit of inclination to stay, until she had seen Matt Dillon walk into Delmonico's and order the biggest breakfast she had ever seen a man eat.

She didn't know why he had intrigued her so much that day; she wasn't certain that she could claim it was love at first sight…she hadn't believed in things like that, but something about Matt had made her stay. Maybe it was his presence, his looks, his demeanor…or maybe it was because when she looked at him she had somehow felt safe despite not knowing him. She had to stay, she had to get to know him…she had to go and fall in love with him.

Kitty laughed softly at herself; she had tried not to fall in love; at least that's what she had told herself at the time but in all honesty it had all been over for her the first time Matt looked into her eyes and smiled while tipping his hat to her. That had been all it took for her heart to rebel, for a renewed sense of life to flow through her veins. She recalled the first time he had taken her fishing and that first kiss between them as their fishing poles laid abandoned on the creek bank. She brushed her aged fingertips across her lips, remembering in vivid detail the feel and taste of his mouth against hers. How she wished she could kiss him just once more…long and slowly, just like that first time, like so many times following it.

Matt had tried to keep from giving in to that pull between them for awhile; it had frustrated her at times…but she could never stay mad at him for long. One stolen kiss too many during a hot muggy August night had brought him to her bed for the first time, and the memory was as fresh now as it had been sixty years before; she could still feel his hands upon her, his heated kisses, the tenderness he had given her. She could still remember how it had felt to lay against his chest, his strong heartbeat in her ear, his fingers trailing along her bare back. She could still hear the words he had said to her as they laid tangled in sweaty sheets in the darkness of her room.

"I'm only going to hurt you in the end, Kitty," he murmured. "Not because I want to; but because that's the way a lawman's life is."

She had understood what he meant, that his job could kill him at any given moment. She told him that she understood, that it didn't matter how much time they had together as long as they had something. But he had meant more than just the warning about his life span. No marriage, no babies, no public declarations of their relationship. It hadn't been so hard to swallow that pill at first. She had been young and she had hope of some magical someday when he'd give up his badge and maybe marry her. It didn't even really bother her that they couldn't publicly announce their feelings for each other…everyone knew…and everyone talked.

An old melody floated through the window, and her eyes opened at the sound of it. She was surprised that an old song like that had made it into the rotation for the celebration going on in her back yard. It took her back in time once again, to a night when she had overheard a little too much of the talk about Marshal Dillon and his 'saloon girl' that he'd had the audacity to escort to the barn dance. It wasn't so much the words about her that had hurt; she had heard them all before…it was the things they were saying about Matt, and how she had felt in relation to those things. She had fled the dance in tears, only to have Matt come after her after saying his piece to the townspeople. Their first dance had taken place in the deserted saloon as the music had drifted through the open doors…and later on as she had laid in the circle of his arms, she had allowed herself to whisper 'I love you' to his sleeping form. It was awhile longer before she got brave enough to speak them while he was awake…even longer before he finally said it back to her.

Kitty smiled sadly; he didn't always say it often, but she had known…even during those moments when he broke her heart by putting her last, she had known that he loved her. And her love for him knew no bounds, despite those few times she tried to break free from it and him and his damn badge. That pill of knowledge that had been so easy to swallow in the beginning had gotten more difficult as time went on, when she ached to tell the world that he was hers, when she longed to feel his child growing within her. But he wouldn't budge; he said it was for her safety; that she had agreed to the life he could give her…that she was free to find someone to give her the things she wanted.

She shook her head; "You just didn't get it, did you, Cowboy?" she said softly. "I only wanted it with you."

A breeze whipped through the room, the curtains fluttering wildly, bringing a smile to her lips as he gaze dropped to her hands…to the gold band that adorned her ring finger on her left hand. She had gotten her man after all…but not in the way she had intended. Her gaze flicked to the framed photo that sat on her dresser; the one taken on their wedding day…they looked happy, they had been happy, despite the hurried nature of their nuptials…she had even managed to look good for it, if she did say so herself…after all, she had been three months pregnant at the time.

Looking back, she could laugh now at the startled look that had been on his face when she gave him the news; she was sure that she herself had worn a similar expression when Doc had told her the diagnosis. Pregnancy was the last thing she had chalked her illness up to that month; she had figured that her time for babies was so low in the hour glass that it wasn't even worth considering anymore. Doc had actually laughed when she told him that she thought she was too old…and then he had reminded her of women she knew that were older than her who were still delivering babies.

Five minutes after she told Matt about his impending fatherhood, he proposed. Thirty seconds later, she told him no. His shock was so great at her refusal that he had picked up his hat and left without another word. He came back the next day and asked again, telling her that he had to take responsibility, that they had no choice. She told him no. He didn't leave quietly that time; opting instead to slam the door behind him.

Work kept him away the third day but he was back the fourth, his hands clenched at his sides as he eyed her in frustration. "For god's sake, Kitty, marry me before it starts to show."

"It isn't god who concerns me at the moment," she remarked tartly.

He sighed in aggravation; "Why don't you just tell me what it is that you want and then maybe this will be easier for both of us."

Her eyes filled with tears; "I want you to marry me because you want to…not because you feel like you have to 'take responsibility'."

Kitty brushed her fingertips across her rings; he had finally gotten the idea and he had returned to her on the fifth day with his mother's sapphire ring and a more fitting proposal.

"I love you, Kitty; I want you to be my wife…I've wanted that for a long time but you know why I never offered it to you. I know you don't like the reason why I'm offering now, but there's nothing we can do about that. I can't say that the baby isn't part of my decision, because we both know that he is…but the decision was easy to make because I love you and I want to be with you and our child, the way it's supposed to be. I'll give you everything I can…I just can't promise you that I won't end up hurting you in the end. It wouldn't be because I want to…"

"I know, Matt," she whispered, laying her fingers against his lips as he knelt before her.

"Will you marry me, Kitty?"

Her smile wobbled as she nodded; "Yes, Matt; I'll marry you."

He breathed a sigh of relief as he slipped the ring onto her finger. "I'm glad you finally said yes…I was starting to get worried."

She gave him a playful smile; "Could've been worse, I could've used a little buckshot."

Her soft laugh filled the air of her room; they had married six days later…and people talked…they talked even more seven months later when Joshua Adam Dillon came into the world but she hadn't cared. She had Matt and she had his son, they had a little house on the edge of town and a mostly cozy existence. She hadn't asked him to give up his badge and he hadn't offered. Nor did he ask her to give up the Long Branch, although he did ask that she let Sam take over the majority of things, which she was glad to do as her pregnancy advanced. She cut Sam in as her partner; letting him take care of the day to day while she tended the business end of balancing the books and keeping things stocked.

By the time Josh was two, Dodge was quieting down greatly from the way it had been when she had first arrived. She was relieved, it meant that her husband was in a little less danger…that he came home more often than not, that his trips out of town for long periods of time were growing fewer. There was still trouble; Dodge would never be rid of trouble, but for the most part it was easily handled. There had been a few minor injuries to her husband during that time, but nothing life threatening for which she was thankful.

When her son was two years and four months old, she delivered her second child; a daughter, christened Johanna Kathleen Dillon, who had Matt wrapped around her tiny finger from the moment Doc laid her in his arms.

Life had seemed incredibly good, Kitty thought to herself. She knew that her daughter was most likely her last child and she had been fine with that. She and Matt had a son and daughter, they couldn't ask for more when they already had more than they had ever expected. All of her someday daydreams had come true. She was a wife, a mother, and still a successful business owner. Matt was a loving husband and father; he gave them everything he had…he did everything for them that he could.

Her eyes squeezed shut; an ancient pain rippling through her heart. She should've known better, she should've known that it couldn't last…that the daydream would be shattered. Hot tears pricked her eyes as that fall day came flooding back to her mind, the sound of gun shots in town, her stomach clenching as she ran outside to drag four year old Joshua into the house and out of possible harm's way. She had lifted Johanna from her high chair and sat huddled with her children in the sitting room as they listened to the noise, trying to patiently answer Josh's questions while her heart was in her throat. Suddenly silence reigned in the town and the only thing Kitty could hear was her daughter's soft whimpers and the pounding of her own heart. She knew that something was wrong, she felt it down to her bones…and the proof came in the form of Newly O'Brien, who stood on her porch with his hat in his hand, a look of sorrow on his features.

"He's dead, isn't he?" she asked; her voice shaking, her world crumbling around her as she held her daughter tightly in one arm, the other wrapped around her son as he pressed against her side.

Newly shook his head; "No, he's…he's up at Doc's…you should hurry; he's asking for you."

She hadn't wanted to take the children with her; she didn't want them to have that memory of their father, seeing him lying so deathly pale in that bed…the bloody bandages and the solemn looks on the faces of the people they knew. Ma Smalley had stepped forward to claim them when they reached the bottom of Doc's stairs, but her son…her little boy who was so much like his father, refused to leave her side.

Doc held the child at bay as she slipped into the back room for a private moment with her husband. The sight of him had stolen her breath despite knowing what to expect. Four bullets, Newly had told her as they had hurried to Doc's office…four bullets…one was only a little more than a graze; the second he would've recovered from in a week or two…but the third and the fourth…they sealed his fate.

"Matt," she said softly as she cradled his large hand between hers. "I'm here."

His heavy eyes opened, sweat beading his skin. "Kitty," he murmured.

A tear broke free and slid down her cheek; "I'm sorry," he whispered as he used what little strength he had to raise his hand and swipe at the teardrop on her cheek.

She shook her head; "It's alright, Matt; it's not your fault."

He swallowed hard; "There were just too many of them, Kitty…we didn't stand a chance."

She nodded; Newly had hurriedly told her about the brazen group of bank robbers who had cleaned out the bank…and had apparently robbed her of a husband and her children of their father. "It's okay, I know."

"I was right," he stated weakly.

"About what, Cowboy?"

"I told you I'd only hurt you in the end…I was right…and I'm hurting Josh and Johanna too."

"They love you, Matt…they won't understand at first but they'll always love you; just like I love you."

"Where are the kids?"

"Josh is outside with Doc; the baby is downstairs with Ma."

His hand gripped hers, "Josh was stubborn, wasn't he?"

She nodded; "He gets that from his father."

"I shouldn't want him to see me like this…"

"I'll get him," she replied before he could finish the statement. She rose from her seat at his bedside and opened the door and beckoned for Josh. She could tell by the look on his face that Doc had spared her the explanation and had done it for her. She sent him to his father's bedside, and at Matt's request, she left them alone for a few minutes. When Josh stepped back through the door a few minutes later, Kitty knew that Matt had added to Doc's explanation. Her son threw himself against her, his arms hugging her legs tightly as he cried. She held him and soothed him until she finally convinced him to let Newly take him downstairs to join his sister.

"Kitty," Doc said from the doorway of the back room. "You should be with him now…I don't know how long he has."

"Will Festus make it back in time, Doc?" she asked softly.

"I don't know, honey; I hope so."

She returned to her husband's beside and took his hand, noticing that his breathing was shallower now. "Kitty?"

"I'm here, Matt…I'm here."

"I love you," he stated, his breathing labored.

"I love you too, Cowboy."

"I wish it didn't have to be this way…I didn't want it to be this way."

"I know," she cried; "But we both knew, didn't we? We both understood?"

He gave a slight nod; "I just want you to know that I never wanted to leave you and the kids."

"I'd never think for a moment that you'd want to, Matt. Like you told me long ago, it's the way of a lawman's life. It hurts…and I don't want you to leave us…but if you have to go, it's okay…we know you love us and we're always going to love you…so if you have to go, it's okay."

He managed a small smile for her; "Smile for me, Kitty; please?"

She forced a smile to her lips to appease him and then she lowered her lips to his and brushed a soft kiss against his mouth, murmuring "I love you" over and over. He whispered it one more time before the rise and fall of his chest ceased. Her heart squeezed tightly and a sobbing wail tore from her throat that made Doc flinch as he hovered in the doorway

In an instant the world she had known was gone…Matt was gone…and all she could think of in those first moments was their last kiss, the last night they had shared, the way he had wrapped his arms around her just that morning before leaving. Gone…nearly twenty five years of her life, her heart, her very soul. It was difficult to fathom that he would no longer lay beside her; that she'd be raising their children alone…it was hard to think about trying to go on without him.

Kitty opened her hand and stared down at the Marshal's badge that she had been clutching; thirty six years later and it still hurt just as badly as it had that first night when she laid in their bed alone and cried like never before. A tear spilled down her cheek, the unwanted memory of his funeral washing across her mind. She stood stoically in her black dress, their daughter on her hip, their son's hand held tightly in hers. She had had it all…and now she was the thing Matt had always feared. She was his widow; left with two small children…and his badge that no one knew she had pinned inside her dress, needing to feel the metal pressed against her chest as if it was some sort of anchor to him.

Festus broke what was left of her heart that day when he made his way to her and told her that he wished it would've been him, that he could've taken Matt's place. He vowed to her that he'd catch every last member that was left of that gang…and he looked her in the eye and told her that he'd keep the promise he had made to his friend long ago.

She didn't have to ask what it was, she knew. Festus set off on his mission, and as promised he caught them all…killing the man who had shot Matt. With his mission complete, he turned in his badge as deputy and built himself a small cabin on the property next to hers so he could look after her and the kids.

People talked; but she didn't care. She was too consumed by her grief, too busy raising her children. Festus was a brother to her, nothing more, nothing less and she couldn't and wouldn't even think of asking him to betray his promise to Matt. He was a loyal man, and when he had sworn to Matt years before that he'd always look out for her and the kids, he had taken that promise seriously. He did whatever he could for her, fixing things that broke, taking Josh fishing and bringing him back out of his shell. He gave little Josie love and attention and when she grew old enough he taught her how to ride. He taught Josh the things men needed to know; things his father wouldn't get to show him. He took his meals with them more often than not…and he was always careful not to sit down in Matt's vacant chair at the head of the table. He wasn't trying to replace him; it wasn't possible; but he had vowed to be there as a friend and honorary uncle and he was.

Doc of course had been there too, looking after them with fatherly and grandfatherly concern. Six months after Matt's death when she was still looking too thin and still dressing in black, Doc had been the one to take her aside and give her a stern lecture about taking care of herself…about how Matt would feel about the hollow way she was living.

Kitty smiled a little as she recalled him swiping his finger across his mustache and then pointing it at her, telling her that he better not see her wearing black the following day, because if he did, he was personally going to come into her home and gather up every scrap of black cloth she owned and burn it. She hadn't doubted his word…and the next day she put on green instead of black and forced herself to try and heal inside.

She wasn't sure that she was successful in that department; no, she knew she wasn't, because she had never completely healed. Time didn't erase the hurt or the love and the longing; but she got used to carrying the ache. After a respectable amount of time, would be suitors came around with their bouquets and pretty words. She sent them all way with the same message. There would never be another man for Kitty Dillon; no man could take Matt's place in her heart, her life or her bed. Word finally got around that she had no desire to change her status; that she was firm in her conviction to remain Matt Dillon's widow. She didn't need a husband, not a new one anyway. The money she made from the Long Branch coupled with Matt's pension that she had been eligible to receive provided well enough for her and the children. There was no need to settle into a relationship she didn't want.

She sighed deeply, thinking of all the years that had passed without Matt. Seven years after his passing, she buried Doc near him and mourned the man who had been a father to her. She watched her children grow up, watched the world slowly change and evolve. She watched Festus walk Johanna down the aisle at her wedding. She had thundered with rage when her son put on a badge of his own.

"The only thing that badge is going to get you is a place next to your father," she had seethed angrily as Josh stood before her desk, a shining piece of tin pinned to his shirt.

"It's what I feel called to do, Mother."

She scoffed; "That doesn't mean it has to be answered. What about your schooling? What about the law practice you dreamed of owning. What about Jessica?"

"I need to do more than just read law; I need to do more than just defend it in a courtroom. I'm still going to marry Jessica, nothing's changed there."

Kitty shook her head; "Do you want her to end up a widow like me? Do you want your children to grow up without you, like you grew up without your father?"

Josh looked at her, the look on his face the same expression she had seen on Matt's face countless times before…and it didn't help much that their son looked so very much like him. "You're the one who taught me to be proud of everything my father stood for."

"You should be proud," she cried; "But that doesn't mean you have to follow in his footsteps."

"I'm not going to die like he did, Mama."

"You don't know that."

"Neither do you. This is a different time; things are different now…Dodge isn't the wild place it used to be."

Seeing that she wasn't getting anywhere with her stubborn boy, she decided to use her ace card; the time honored tradition of motherly guilt. "If you loved your mother, you wouldn't do this to her."

"If my mother loves me, she'll understand why I have to."

Kitty's lips pressed together in a thin line; trouble was, she did understand in some ways…but not enough to make it all right. "I'm begging you, Josh," she said quietly; "Please, don't do this."

"It's already done, Mama. I'm sorry…I know you aren't happy with the choice, but it's the way it is. I'm going to be just fine, you'll see."

She exhaled a weighted breath, her son had taken a few bullets…but he had lived to tell the tales of each of them. After each bullet she begged him to take off that badge…after each grandchild he presented her with, she begged him to take off the badge. He was still wearing it…so much for the power of maternal guilt.

She rocked gently in her chair listening to the noise outside. It was her birthday, she was 80 years old that day…and in the backyard was her two children, their spouses and the nine grandchildren they had bestowed upon her…and number ten was due any day now. Friends were gathered as well, but she felt the absence of Doc and Festus…and most importantly, the absence of her husband. That was why she had slipped away, taking refuge in her bedroom. Sometimes, when she needed him most, Matt would come to her when she was alone. She closed her eyes and waited; thinking of all the times over the last three decades when she'd felt his presence around her, the brush of phantom lips against her brow…the feel of strong, familiar arms slipping around her as she drifted to sleep.

The creak of the old chair brought back that phrase she had heard whispered. "She's from a different time." She did indeed belong to a different time…a time that had been filled with Matt's love; a time of sweet stolen kisses, of long passionate nights, comforting embraces…fiery arguments…tender forgiveness. She belonged to the time when she had been his and he had been hers.

She felt a hand squeeze her shoulder, the soft but invisible pressure of lips against her brow and she smiled sadly. "I know, Matt," she whispered. "I love you, too."

His presence remained and she revealed in it until it faded and the door of her room cracked open, revealing her son.

"Are you okay?" Josh asked as he walked into her room.

She swiped away the moisture on her cheeks and then glanced at him. "I'm fine."

"What are you doing up here instead of outside at your party?"

"I wanted to be alone with your father for awhile," she answered; knowing that she'd get his usual skeptical look. She had a feeling that her son half believed that she was crazy in that respect…but she didn't care. She knew the truth; she knew that Matt had never completely left her, that he was always there when she needed him.

Her son stooped down before her and caught sight of the object in her hand before he raised his blue eyes to her face. "When are you going to let him go, Mama?"

Her spine stiffened; her tone carrying an edge of sharpness. "Never."

"It's been a long time," Josh said his hand closing over hers, his father's badge caught between them.

"Doesn't matter…he's still my husband and I love him. I may be from a different time…but love like I had with your father is timeless and it doesn't end just because we were parted."

Josh nodded; he knew better than to argue with the stubborn woman before him. "I'm sorry I interrupted."

"It's alright," she said with a soft smile; "He doesn't always get to stay for long…it's kind of like old times," she added with a quiet laugh.

A breeze blew through the room and Josh watched as his mother titled her head, as if she was pressing her cheek against the palm of a hand that was cradling her face. Maybe she wasn't crazy…maybe his father was there with her. He gently squeezed her hand. "When you two are finished with your visit, we'd appreciate it if you'd come back downstairs and join us…you have a passel of grandchildren waiting to hug you some more."

"They just want me to cut the cake," she remarked lightly, a small glimmer lighting up her eyes.

Her son smiled as he shook his head; "No; they want Grandma, they've been very vocal about that…probably has something to do with her spoiling them."

"That's my right as a grandmother."

"I know; you've told me."

She eyed him somewhat sternly and figured it was worth a shot. "Take off that badge."

Josh rose from the floor and leaned toward her to press a kiss against her cheek. "Let's not go into that."

"It would be a nice birthday gift."

"I got you a radio."

Kitty frowned; "I'd rather you took off the badge."

"Not today, Mama."

"Someday?"

He nodded; "Someday."

"Hopefully before it's too late."

"You worry too much, Mother."

"I have reason to," she remarked. "I love my children…and I've already buried one lawman."

"We know that…but we have our lives to live and this is the life I chose."

"That doesn't mean I have to like it."

"No, you don't have to like it," Josh agreed; "But it's the way it is."

"You're just like your father."

Her son grinned at her; "Thank you; it could be worse…I could be just like you; thankfully that got passed on to Josie."

Kitty smirked at him; "Don't go thinking that I can't still give you a slap if you need it, because I assure you that I can."

"I don't doubt it for a minute. Now you come back downstairs in the next ten minutes or I'm coming back and carrying you down."

"I'll be there," she retorted; "Now go on…I have company…and next time knock first!"

"Yes ma'am," he said with a grin before leaving the room and closing the door behind him.

She shook her head at the closed door; "Cowboy, it seems like we can't ever escape interruptions," she whispered. She could smell his scent and she could feel the strong hand that squeezed her shoulder once more.

"I guess you know that I have to go back out there," she murmured after a few moments. A hand caressed her arm in acknowledgement and she smiled softly. "You're welcome to come along, you know…or you can just wait for me here."

There was a feather light sensation of pressure against her lips for a mere second but she smiled. "I'll be back in a little while, Matt."

"Take your time," she heard his voice say quietly as she rose from her chair. She paused for a moment to look at photo that hung on the wall; the one they had taken shortly after Johanna had been born. She smiled, his presence still felt in the room…her chair rocking without her.

Kitty returned to the backyard gathering but she couldn't resist the urge to look up at her bedroom window; and when she did she saw him standing there, a smile on his lips; his eyes boring into hers for a long minute before his gaze traveled toward his children and grandchildren.

Joshua Dillon was standing a few paces away and his seven year old daughter tugged on his hand. "Daddy, who's that man?"

"What man, Abby?"

"The one in the window, the one Grandma's watching," she answered, pointing a finger in the direction of the bedroom window.

Josh looked but he didn't see anything there. "There's nothing there, Abby; Grandma's probably just enjoying the sunshine on her face."

Abby shook her head, her red braid flipping over her shoulder. "Look, Daddy; he's right there…he looks like you."

"You're seeing things, Abby; there's no man up there," he told her, although he wasn't certain that was the case. "Go play."

With his child mingling with her siblings and cousins, Josh moved toward his mother. "Is he still here?" he asked.

"He is," she answered without hesitation.

"Did you cut your visit short?"

Kitty shook her head; "He'll wait for me…he doesn't mind; we're good at waiting."

"Mama," he began to say but he trailed off.

"What is it, Josh?" she asked; her gaze meeting his.

He studied his mother for a long moment; his words dying on his tongue. If it comforted her to believe that her husband was still there in that house with her, then who was he to take that from her? She deserved whatever peace she had found; after all she had raised him and his sister on her own; she kept them fed and clothed and a roof over their heads. She had made sure that they never wanted for anything, that they were loved…that they knew that their father loved them too.

"Nothing," he said with a shake of his head before he pressed a kiss to her cheek once again. "I just want you to know that I love you."

She caressed her son's face; "I love you too, son."

"Happy Birthday."

"Thank you," she replied before the voice of her granddaughter calling out to her pulled her away in the child's direction.

Josh looked up at the window but he still saw nothing and so he turned his gaze back to the retreating figure of his mother. She was right, she was from a different time and place…and he wasn't sure they made ladies like her anymore. She claimed her love with his father was timeless; but in his mind, she herself was timeless too.