That afternoon as we walked slowly, hand in hand back towards the mission, Neil asked the question I had been dreading to answer.

"Does Grantland…" he trailed off. Before he could speak again, I began to pour out all that had happened over the past three months. "I broke off our engagement the evening you left for Baltimore." I said softly, holding up my left hand for him to see. "As you rode away, I realized that I was not only losing my best friend, but the man I loved. I didn't get a chance to tell you then and had you not come back you probably would've never known." I finished quietly; finally able to comprehend all of the events that had transpired. Neil was back, he loved me, and to top it all off we were getting married! I felt like singing to the high heavens, so great was my joy. All too soon though, we found ourselves in front of the schoolhouse.

"I think I should go on from here alone; Ruby Mae would have word spread throughout the entire cove by morning if she saw the two of us together. I don't want anyone to know until David and Ms. Alice do. David may not want to speak to me, but he deserves to know.

"That's fine." He mumbled; his voice distant and his eyes far away.

"Neil what is it?" I feared that I had hurt his feelings by wanting to keep our engagement a secret. "I can't stay; I made arrangements to return to Baltimore tomorrow." At his words, I felt tears begin to pool in my eyes and my lower lip began to quiver.

"Shh Lass, don't cry. I'll come back as soon as I can tie things up; most likely no more than a week."

Nodding my head in response, I allowed him to pull me into a gentle, yet comforting embrace.

"I'll be back as soon as possible; I promise." Pulling himself away from me, he placed his hand lightly against my cheek. "I love you." He whispered hoarsely before turning to leave.

"Neil! Wait!"

"Yes, Christy." He paused and turned to face me. "I love you too." I choked before I threw myself into his embrace. My arms seemed to move on their own accord as they slid around his neck and my fingers lost themselves in his curls. Resting my forehead against his I whispered "Promise me you'll come back, promise me." He nodded his response and ever so gently sealed his promise with a kiss. All too soon I felt him pulling away and the more he pushed the tighter I clung; I had lost him once, I wasn't about to let it happen again.

"Lass." He said softly before reaching behind his head and unclasping my hands bringing them down to rest within his own.

"The sooner I leave, the sooner I shall return." He was right, as usual. Wiping away the tears that had spilled onto my cheeks, I nodded slowly.

"I love you." He whispered softly before mounting Duke and riding back across the meadow.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The week that followed was perhaps the longest of my life. Even the arrival of the new school term could not distract me from counting down the days till Neil's return. Truthfully though, what distraction it did provide was of great comfort. The very evening of Neil's return to Baltimore, I spoke with Ms. Alice about our engagement. I had feared that Neil once being her son-in-law would cause her to resent me. I didn't want her to feel that I was replacing her daughter. Much to my surprise, she had revealed that she had known about our mutual feelings for quite some time. It was with her blessing that I found the courage to speak with David.

Needless to say though, my discussion with David did not bode well. It ended with him storming off and me in tears. Of all of the angry insults he hurled at me like stones, the one that hurt the most was his comparison to Margret. "You'll end up just like her. You're becoming Margret now by filling the void left by her in the Doctor's life." His words brought up doubts that I had been forcing down deep inside. What if I did end up like Margret? Both Neil and Ms. Alice had spoken of my uncanny resemblance to her on more than one occasion. Could my worst fears be realized? Was I really just a replacement for his first wife?

Neil was due home Saturday on the noon train from Baltimore, Maryland. Early Saturday morning, Ben Pentland, Jeb Spencer, and I set off for El Pano in Jeb's wagon. The seven mile trek seemed to drag on far longer than it normally did. I was concerned that we would be late and the train would arrive before we did. Much to my relief, we were early. Ms. Alice had sent along a list of supplies that were needed at the mission, but I was such a nervous wreck that Jeb ended up having to order most of them. Mrs. Tatum, the lady who ran the boarding house suggested that I should wait for the train at the platform instead of pacing back and forth across the general store. I complied and gingerly picked my way across the muddy road towards the platform.

Up and down the platform I walked for what seemed like far longer than fifteen minutes. Finally, I heard the sound that was music to my ears; the whistle of the approaching train. As the train screeched to a halt, the butterflies in my stomach began to flutter faster and my heart began to hammer. Hugging my arms around myself, I closed my eyes and allowed the warmth from the steam to envelop me. An instant later, the gentle warmth dissipated but in that moment my nerves calmed and my worries faded into pure elation.

Lifting my head, I quickly scanned the passengers descending the train; Neil was nowhere in sight. Panic began to course through my veins. What if he had decided not to come home? What if he had missed the train? What if… My thoughts trailed off as I heard his deep, booming, Scottish brogue bidding farewell to the conductor. Turning my head towards the sound of his voice, I found him down at the other end of the platform surveying the unloading of his baggage. All sense of propriety and patience left me as I hiked up my skirts and ran towards him. Neil turned around just in time to catch me. I threw my arms around his neck and laid my head against his shoulder; he was home and would never leave me again.

"Whoa, there lass!" He said as he chuckled softly. "I take it that you missed me then?" A roguish grin broke across his face and I couldn't help but smile back. Was it any wonder that I loved this man? One simple smile from him and my knees felt as if they would give out. Lifting my eyes up to meet his, I found that his green eyes were dancing were laughter and brimming with love. A polite cough from someone behind us brought me back to reality. I blushed crimson when I realized how many had witnessed my very un-lady like actions. Relinquishing my hold on his neck, I stepped back to allow Jeb to greet him. I later discovered that it had been Jeb who had discretely ended our reunion.

"Well howdy doc! All of us in the cove sure are glad to have ya back."

"It's good to be back Jeb." He spoke to Jeb but looked at me. His eyes were searching mine and I swore I could've seen the gears turning like clockwork in the back of his mind. He didn't say anything but merely smiled and turned back to Jeb. Twenty minutes later we set off back towards the mission. There had not been room for all of us in the wagon after Neil's supplies were loaded onto it, so it was agreed that I would ride with Neil on Duke; who had been boarded in the stables in El Pano. The prospect of riding behind Neil the long seven miles to the mission filled me joy; Neil had been so silent since his arrival and truthfully it worried me. Neil was a quiet man, but he wasn't acting like himself. The journey back would provide me with the perfect opportunity to discover why.