Elizabeth was taking advantage of little Jack napping to write a letter to Julie. Though she had written a quick message to Julie when she had wrote to her mother following the receipt of the gift, she hadn't had a chance to sit down and write to Julie with the activities of the holiday. It felt good to be able to pour her heart out in a way that she couldn't quite do with her mother. She knew her mother loved her but her mother still fully embraced a world that Elizabeth had chosen to take a step away from. Sometimes she wondered if her parents weren't still a little hurt by that choice.

Elizabeth was just signing her name when there was a soft knock at the door. Putting down her pen, Elizabeth hurried to the door, not wanting whoever was there to have to knock again. She was still hoping that Jack might sleep a little longer.

Opening the door, Elizabeth found Rosemary standing on the doorstep. Her friend was practically beaming. It was clear that Rosemary had good news that she wanted to share.

"Little Jack is sleeping, so keep your voice down," Elizabeth said, stepping aside so that Rosemary could come inside.

"Of course," Rosemary said in hushed tones. "I hope I'm not interrupting."

"You're not," Elizabeth assured her. "I just finished a letter to Julie. So what has you beaming?" Elizabeth asked as she led Rosemary over to the settee.

"I want you to keep this to yourself for a few days, just until things are official."

"Of course," Elizabeth said, her curiosity piqued.

"Bridget and Ivy are going to stay in Hope Valley. Lee and I are going to adopt them," Rosemary told her, the joy evident in her voice.

"Oh, I'm so happy for you, Rosemary," Elizabeth enthused. "You and Lee are going to make wonderful parents and those girls do seem settled here. How do the girls feel about it?"

"Brian said they seemed okay with the idea, but Lee and I haven't discussed it with them. Brian wanted to wait until all the details were figured out before telling them. Now that Lee and I have talked things over with Bill and it's just the act of signing the papers to make it official, I think he'll do so."

"I hope Brian plans on staying in their lives."

"He does," Rosemary assured her. "The girls will spend some time with him over the summer months and Brian will always have an open invitation to our home. Bill says he even wants to remain as their guardian."

"Oh, I'm glad. Those girls need Brian just as much as they need you and Lee," Elizabeth said. "Their big brother is a hero to them. It's why Bridget connected to Nathan when she saw him in uniform. I think that losing him altogether might have been just too much on them."

"Is that their teacher speaking?" Rosemary asked.

"It is," Elizabeth admitted.

Rosemary nodded. "I don't doubt your skill at knowing your students. However, I think Brian needs them just as much. I can't blame him for not wanting the responsibility of raising them. I know I wouldn't have at his age either."

"I know. You thought children were sticky," Elizabeth reminded her.

Rosemary laughed. "Yes, that was my opinion and it still holds true. Little Jack can sure make himself sticky while trying to eat."

Elizabeth laughed. "That's for sure," she agreed.

"However, there is so much more in between those 'sticky' moments. I realize that now. However, even a couple of years ago, I don't think I would have been ready to be a mom. I feel ready now and I also feel like that young man needs family to care about him even if he is ready to see the world on his own. He lost his mother as well, though I think maybe we tend to overlook that because we expected him to be responsible for his sisters."

Elizabeth sobered, nodding as she thought over her friend's words. "You make a good point, Rosemary. So, what do you intend to do about it?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Rosemary admitted. " I don't expect Brian to think of me and Lee as mother and father as I hope Bridget and Ivy might eventually, but I would like him to know that he can come to us with his problems. I want him to know that we'll be happy to share his burdens or offer advice. I just don't know how to do that."

Elizabeth reached out and placed a hand on her friend's forearm. "Just make Brian feel welcomed and the rest will work itself out naturally."

Rosemary nodded. Elizabeth made a good point. Some things you just couldn't force.


After dinner that evening, Brian directed Bridget and Ivy to join him on the settee in the Coulter's livingroom. Leaving the dishes for now, Rosemary and Lee followed the siblings to the sitting area of the room. Rosemary took a seat in the easy chair, while Lee stood behind her, one hand resting on her shoulder.

With Bridget sitting next to him and Ivy sitting in his lap, Brian got right to the topic that he wanted to talk to them about. "The Coulter's and I have been discussing possibilities with Judge Avery about who is going to be looking out for the two of you," Brian told his sisters, glancing briefly over to the Rosemary and Lee. "I don't ever want the two of you to think that I don't love you, because I do. However, I don't think the two of you tagging along with me to different postings is what is best for you. Nor do I know anything about raising a child. You both expressed an interest in staying in Hope Valley with the Coulters, and Miss Rosemary and Mr. Lee like that idea as well."

"We get to stay?" Bridget asked, looking from her big brother to the couple who had been looking after her for the last couple of months.

"Yes," Brian told her. "The Coulters are going to adopt you and after I am posted elsewhere, I will come to visit when my job allows and during the summer, I'm hoping the two of you will want to come visit me for a few weeks wherever my posting is."

"That could be fun," Bridget said.

Ivy, who had remained quiet so far, looked over at Rosemary. "Does that mean you would be are new Mom and Dad?" the little girl asked.

"We're not trying to replace your mother or father, sweetie," Rosemary replied, adding the mention of their father only because the child had. From what she understood, the Petersons' father hadn't been the best of role models. However, he had been their father, and she knew she needed to respect that. "No one could ever do that. Lee and I just want to look out for you and show you that you're not alone. You and your sister are already very special to us."

"You can even continue to call us Mrs. Rosie and Mr. Lee if you want," Lee added.

Ivy looked at her sister. It was clear that there was some silent communication going on between the two girls. A communication that none of the adults wanted to interrupt. The three of them simply waited for one of the two girls

"What if we wanted to call you Mom and Dad?" Bridget asked tentatively. She looked from Lee and Rosemary up to her older brother sitting beside her. It was clear that his approval was important as well. "Would that be okay?"

"If that is what you would like to call us, Lee and I would be honored," Rosemary replied. "But that isn't a choice you need to make right now."

"Allowing someone else to fill the spot left empty by Mom's death is not being disloyal to her," Brian told his sisters, putting one arm around each of them and holding them close. "It's natural for a child to want to receive the unconditional of a parent. That person isn't always necessarily the person who gave birth to them."

"Like Ally?" Bridget asked. "She told me her Dad is actually her uncle but that he's been the only father she's known."

"Exactly like that," Brian told her, trying to get a hold of the emotions welding up. It touched him that while Nathan had been trying to help him navigate the current situation, his daughter was doing the same exact thing for Bridget and chances were, Ivy as well. Brian knew his two sisters didn't have many secrets from one another.

"What if something happens to Mrs. Rosie and Mr. Lee like it did to Mommy?" Ivy asked in a tiny voice.

Brian held his baby sister a little tighter against him. He hated that someone her age had to worry about something like that but after what she had gone through he supposed it was to be expected. Nor could he simply promise her that nothing like that would happen. Though the chances were low, there was always the risk.

"Then you have me and all the other wonderful folk of Hope Valley who have been helping us through everything these last few months. No matter what happens, you will always have someone looking out for you."

"And we have each other, Ivy," Bridget said, reaching out and taking her sister's hand.

Ivy nodded in reply though she didn't say anything.

"I know you've been through a lot, Ivy," Brian told his sister. "More than any child should have to face. You and Bridget both. I wish you didn't have to learn about the harsh realities of life so young, but you have. I can't change that. Nor can I promise you that you won't face more trials. What I can promise you, is that as long as you look to God, there will always be someone there to help you through the hard times. It was God who led you and Bridget here to Hope Valley because he knew that we all needed the people here. Always remember that."

"I'll try," Ivy said quietly.

"That's all I can ask of you," Brian told her, placing a kiss on the top of her head.

"I also wanted to tell you that I'm going to be moving to a room at the saloon this weekend."

"You don't have to. You're more than welcome to stay here," Rosemary said.

Brian looked over at her. "I thank you for your hospitality but I think it'll be for the best. This will give the girls a chance to adjust to the new arrangements while I'm still posted here in Hope Valley."

"But we want to see you as much as possible until you're posted elsewhere," Bridget said, speaking for both her and her sister.

"I'll be right in town," Brian told her. "Besides, I'll be staying here for a few more days. We'll make the best of them, okay."

"Will you read us our bedtime story to us until you move out?"

Brian nodded. "I can do that."

"And you'll have an open dinner invitation as long as you're in town," Rosemary told him, choosing not to confuse the children by trying to convince the young man to stay as well. "Anytime you want to join us for dinner, just come by."

"I will," Brian replied. "Thank-you," he told Rosemary. Brian had a feeling his sisters were going to make sure that he made use of that invitation on occasion.

"If the Coulters adopt us, does that make them your family as well?" Bridget asked, looking up at her older brother.

Brian opened his mouth to reply but Lee beat him to it.

"It most certainly does," Lee stated. "Your brother might not need me and Rosemary to look out for him, but everybody needs family to lean on from time to time."

Brian didn't even attempt to contradict Lee's statement. In fact, the older man's declaration gave him a sense and peace. Brian knew that even with Lee and Rosemary taking custody of Bridget and Ivy, he still had to remain strong for his sisters. He needed them to know that they could count on him. That they could share anything with him, the good and the bad. While Brian knew he could share the good times with his sister, he knew that they were still too young to burden them with his troubles. It was reassuring to know that he'd have someone to take his troubles to in the future, even if all he needed was an ear to listen.

Lee was right, everyone needed family and he and his sisters had found a new family here in Hope Valley.