"Can you believe this view?" Lisa Stillman sighed and let her eyes rest on the stunning vista that surrounded their little picnic blanket. "I know I've traveled around the world and seen places, but nothing really compares to this. We should do this more often, have picnics outside. Not only is it beautiful here, but we have some privacy for ourselves as well", she noted to her husband, Jack Bartlett.

"Well, Lis, you know I would love to, but my bones aren't what they used to be. My knees don't quite bend like they did when I was a young man. I'm not looking forward to the day when you have to call medical help to get me back on my feet", Jack said and placed the wine bottle back to the basket after pouring them some wine.

"Oh, don't be like that", Lisa slapped him playfully on the chest. "You're doing fine. But if it helps you, we could bring some of those folding chairs with us."

"And be on our rear ends in no time", Jack could already see their legs pointed toward the sky. It made Lisa giggle. She knew the ground wasn't very solid in these lush areas, but she wasn't going to give up on these picnics; they were the luxury that not everyone could afford.

"Cheers", Lisa took her wine glass and clinked it with Jack's. The man smiled and took a sip. "Oh, this is excellent. What was it called again?" she asked, letting the drink tickle her taste buds.

"It's, uh…" Jack took back the bottle and held it at arm's length since he couldn't see too close without his glasses. But before he could reply, Lisa's phone rang. He glanced at his wife and raised a suspicious eyebrow, causing Lisa to make a face.

"I know, I know. I know I said cell phone's should be off, but I totally forgot to put it on mute. Let me just–" Lisa took it from her pocket and laid the wine glass on the blanket before she checked the number. "Hmm, this is strange. I should probably see who it is. I'm sorry", she apologized and slid the green button to answer. "Hello? Yes, this is she. What…? Is he okay? Oh my–" Lisa gasped and covered her mouth.

"What is it?" Jack worried.

"Yes. I will be there as soon as I can", Lisa assured. "Thank you for calling me. Okay. Thank you. Bye." She hung up and didn't know how to act.

"What was that?" Jack asked again.

"It's Dan, he's in the hospital. There's been an accident."

"An accident? What happened?"

"A horse kicked him in the head. I'm sorry, Jack, but I gotta go", Lisa said and stood up. Jack's eyes followed her.

"But why did they call you? You're his ex-wife. Doesn't he have someone else, someone more closer?" Jack wondered.

"Apparently I'm still his emergency contact", Lisa figured. "I'll make this up to you, I promise", she leaned to give Jack a big, wet kiss. "I'll call you. Can you…" she gestured toward the food that was spread all over their picnic area.

"Yes, yes. I'll get it, you just go", Jack assured and hurried her with his hand.

And just like that Lisa was on her horse and on her way to Heartland to pick up her car. Jack sighed and looked after her for as long as he could. When she was out of sight, Jack started to gather the things around and tossed the wine from the glasses on the grass.

It wasn't until the evening rolled around that Lisa got back from the hospital. She got out of her truck and Jack looked at her through the window over the sink. He had volunteered to do dishes since he had nothing else to do, therefore giving Amy more time to do the night chores and Lou an opportunity to help Georgie with her homework.

Jack rinsed a plate and laid it on the table when Lisa walked in. She said nothing when she put her handbag down on the table, but instead walked over, kissed Jack on the cheek and took the towel to help him to dry the dishes he had already washed.

"How did it go with Dan? I was beginning to worry when I didn't hear anything from you", Jack asked when they had done the chore in the silence for a while. Lisa's eyes were strictly on the task in hand, as if she was worried she was going to miss a spot even when it wasn't that serious.

"Jack…" Lisa started, taking her time to continue. "Dan died."

"What…?" The sponge from Jack's hand dropped on top of the bubbles and he turned toward his wife. Lisa still kept going like what she had said had not been as serious as it sounded. "Are you okay…?" Jack was concerned.

"Yeah. I'm… okay", Lisa nodded, but he could see she was holding back tears.

"Lisa, it's okay to cry", Jack encouraged and gently put his hand behind her back to caress it. "You just lost someone."

"Yeah, I know. It's just… there's just so much to arrange, you know, I don't know where to start. Like do I invite all the people we used to know as a couple or is that going to be awkward? Or are there other people I haven't met, people who he became friends with after our divorce?" Lisa shrugged sadly.

Jack resisted the urge to comment how he doubted the fact that Dan had made any friends after divorcing Lisa, because the best thing about him had been Lisa and without her, no one would even bother. But knowing it was bad to speak ill of the dead, Jack held his tongue.

"Why is that your job…? Doesn't he have any family who could make these arrangements?" Jack asked carefully. He couldn't help but be irritated that even when he was dead, Dan found a way to make people do all the work for him.

"His brother lives in Montana but they haven't talked for years over some feud", Lisa explained. "And his sister died of cancer some years ago. I'm all he has. Or had…" she changed the word to past tense quickly, feeling another wave of sadness washing over her.

"Yeah, okay, that makes sense then", Jack nodded, cutting it some slack. "Is there anything I could do?"

"No, it's fine. You just keep on doing what you're doing. I'll handle this", Lisa assured. Jack nodded and kissed her hair, then getting back to washing dishes. It was silent again and Jack tried to come up with something to talk about, but it all felt so futile in the light of the recent events.