Goooooooood Afternoon Hearties!

I wrote this one a while back, before some of this season's plot had really been developed in regards to the oil business, so we're just going to pretend that Lucas still has full control and Henry is just consulting here and there. This was a short little plot I really wanted to do but it took a while to figure out the right way to incorporate the prompt. I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out, and I hope you all enjoy it too!

Hang in there friends! The end of the season approaches and until then, I'll just be here sharing these little shorts! Keep sending those ideas for ones you'd like to see! I'm working on one of them now and can't wait to share it! =)

Lucas was exhausted.

Not that he'd admit it to anyone, but he was.

Then again, he supposed that being this tired was to be expected, considering he was more or less running two businesses, one of which he knew nothing about, on top of trying to keep up with the residents of Hope Valley, which sometimes felt like a job in itself.

And then there was his courtship with Elizabeth, which brought endless joy and excitement to his world. Every moment with her seemed like a new adventure indeed.

Or, at least, it would be if he could keep his eyes open.

He'd felt the weariness setting in for a few weeks now. He'd wake every morning, starting early at the saloon to ensure that they didn't have a repeat of the mushroom situation. Gustave was often up early anyway, so they'd go over the orders before he left to walk Elizabeth to school. As of late, he was always sure to arrive at her home a bit early, giving him enough time to play with Little Jack before Laura got there.

Once he'd lightly kissed Elizabeth goodbye at the schoolhouse, he'd return to the oil office, where he would meet with Hickam and Henry, working through the day's plan, which occasionally required him to head out to the barracks or spend hours pouring through financial logs and oil records. More often than not, by the time Elizabeth would walk through the door in the evening, he would feel like he was swimming in numbers.

She'd always persuade him to have dinner, sometimes at the saloon, sometimes at her home, sometimes at the cafe, wherever the wind took them that evening. Jack joined them most of the time, always eager for the stories Lucas would read to him before they ate if they were at home. After the young boy was to bed, Lucas would spend a few extra minutes with Elizabeth. Sometimes they'd simply sit next to one another, arms pressed together as they read their individual books, while other times they'd continue their discussion from dinner. But his favorite evening activity was turning on some music and pulling her into his arms for a dance before he, reluctantly, had to leave.

But still his day would continue as he returned to the Queen of Hearts, making his way into his office to go over the books there, not willing to relinquish control of the business he loved. Eventually, he'd realize that the only lights on in town were his own and would drag himself back to his suite for what never felt like enough sleep.

And it never really was.

Yawning as he came out of his office at the saloon, Lucas headed toward the dining room to meet Elizabeth, Rosemary, and Lee for a late lunch. He ran a hand over his face as he walked, hoping to erase some of the exhaustion he knew was on display there. He needed all the energy he could muster because Rosemary had insisted they all meet to discuss the year's Christmas celebration, which was still weeks away.

What Rosemary didn't know is that they'd already been planning for months. It may have taken some convincing, but Elizabeth had finally talked Lucas into installing a small stage in the saloon. They'd also discussed the possibility of it being the first step toward building a larger theater, but for now, they were simply enthusiastic about the possibility of having live performances in their little town - something that there surely wouldn't be a lack of with Rosemary around. Lee, of course, had immediately been consulted and was providing the lumber for the stage free of charge and volunteered some of his men to help install it.

The tricky part was figuring out how to keep her out of the saloon long enough to build the stage. The Queen of Hearts had needed some general repairs for a while, but Lucas had pushed it off until now, hoping that he'd be able to hand over control of the oil business entirely before digging into the repairs. But now that they were approaching the Christmas season once again, it made the most sense to renovate before the celebration.

Still, even if they could use the remodel as an excuse, Rosemary knew everyone and everyone knew Rosemary. And Rosemary knew everything about everyone and everything, so keeping it a secret was already proving to be more difficult than anticipated. They'd even kept the news of the renovations from the town for now in an attempt to keep things under wraps. Everything was on a very need-to-know basis and so far, only Lucas, Elizabeth and Lee knew.

Rosemary and Lee hadn't arrived yet when Lucas made his way into the dining room, but Elizabeth was just walking in. She smiled when she noticed him, but the grin quickly turned to a frown as she made her way over. "Lucas, you look exhausted."

"Mmmhmm" he hummed, followed by a small laugh that sounded more like a simple huff of breath as he allowed his eyes to close for a brief moment. When he opened them, she was looking up at him with concern.

"Lucas," she scolded, "I'm worried about you."

He shook his head, "Like I've said before, I'm fine" he insisted. "I'm just a little tired, that's all."

The stubborn expression on her face didn't dissipate, "you can say that all day long, Sweetheart, but I know you." She reached a hand up to run along the side of his face, fingers running over the wrinkles that had formed at the edges of his tired eyes.

He reached up to take her hand in his then, running his own thumb over her palm. He was about to respond when Rosemary and Lee made their way into the saloon.

"Elizabeth! You're here already! Perfect!" Rosemary sang as Lee closed the door behind them.

Lucas straightened his back, blinking a few times in a last ditch effort to appear more awake than he felt. He took a deep breath and followed Elizabeth as they headed to a nearby table to meet their friends.

"Oh, Lucas" Rosemary stopped as she took in his appearance, "You look terrible."

"Rosemary!" Lee whispered under his breath, earning him a pointed glance from his wife.

Elizabeth rested a hand on Lucas' arm as he chuckled. "I'm fine, Rosemary. Just a bit tired today."

Rosemary made eye contact with Elizabeth and the two friends shared a worried look, but she dropped the subject regardless as both couples took their seats.

"I've already had a few ideas for what we could do this year," Rosemary jumped in immediately, spreading out her papers on the table between them. "We'll have the wishing tree, of course, and I figured we could return to the idea of having a festival this year. I know you two have a lot on your plates so I'll take care of absolutely everything."

As she talked, Lucas let his eyes close, relishing in the relief such a simple action brought. It was just for a moment, and he knew that Rosemary would have everything under control anyway so there was really no…

Elizabeth's elbow nudging him in his side brought him back to reality, his eyes popping open and refocusing. They were all staring at him.

"So, will that be alright, Lucas?" Rosemary repeated, an expectant look on her face. Lee looked at him with a mixture of compassion and concern, while Elizabeth's expression read of worry.

He cleared his throat, "I'm sorry, will what be alright?"

Rosemary laughed, "Will it be alright to use the saloon for the dinner again? We'll probably need to spend a few days decorating ahead of time and I know that cuts into your business, but if this year is anything like the last time we did the festival, then I'm sure it'll make up for it."

"Well, the saloon will be closed up until that week for renovations anyway" Lucas pointed out as if it were public knowledge. He felt Elizabeth's hand rest on his arm again, but didn't catch the warning.

"Renovations?" Rosemary questioned, her eyebrows furrowing. "What renovations?"

"Well, there are some general repairs that need to be attended to" he began, barely even conscious of the words he was saying. "And then we'll be installing a…"

Suddenly he was cut off as Elizabeth leaned over to press her lips to his. It wasn't a long kiss, but it was a forceful one, and he could hear the gasp from Rosemary as he came to his senses.

"Elizabeth!" Rosemary exclaimed, shocked at her friend's forward nature. "What are you doing? We're in public!" she whispered under her breath.

As she pulled back, Elizabeth's eyes met Lucas', her gaze signaling a warning that he couldn't quite make out at first. She turned back to her friend, "Oh please, Rosemary. We're in the saloon and no one else is here and even then," she continued as she looked at the man next to her with adoring eyes, "am I not allowed to show affection for the man I love?"

Rosemary huffed, "I suppose that's true." She giggled then, her mood lightening as she turned to her own husband, who looked amused at the events unfolding in front of him. Rosemary leaned over to give him a kiss on the cheek. "I certainly don't mind showing how much I love my husband no matter where we are" she continued. Turning back to Lucas and Elizabeth, however, Rosemary grew serious once more. "Now, what was it you were saying? What are you installing?"

Suddenly Lucas realized why Elizabeth had kissed him, and the look Lee was giving him explained the rest. "Installing a…" he started, fumbling a bit and playing it off as another yawn to buy more time, "...a new light system."

Rosemary didn't look convinced, her gaze alternating between looking at him and Elizabeth and finally back at Lee, who just shrugged.

"That's right!" Elizabeth chimed in confidently a moment later, playing off of his story. "Lucas felt it was about time to get some better lighting in here, and it'll be done in just enough time for the Christmas festival, isn't that right?"

Lucas nodded, "That's correct. It was just getting a bit dim in here and with the times changing and other repairs to do, it felt like the right time."

"I see" Rosemary returned, watching them for a moment longer before jumping back into her planning with full force.

"That was a close call" Elizabeth whispered into his ear after they'd finished their meal and were standing to head their separate ways.

He simply smirked at her, holding up her jacket so she could slip her arms in. "Thank you for stopping me" he murmured, leaning in close over her shoulder.

As Elizabeth turned around to face him, intent on repeating her earlier actions, she was cut off from doing so by Rosemary as she cleared her throat.

"I assume we'll see you two later then?" she asked.

Facing her friend once more, Elizabeth bit her lip before responding, "Yes, we'll see you for dinner at your place. Seven alright?"

Rosemary nodded, "Sounds perfect." The couple turned to leave after that, but Rosemary again stopped in the open doorway. "Oh, and don't worry. I'll still act surprised when you unveil the new stage." With a flourish, she turned and headed out of the saloon.

Lee's eyes widened, but he didn't look surprised otherwise that his wife had somehow figured it out. Meanwhile, Lucas and Elizabeth sported matching shocked looks that didn't dissipate as their friends left, Lee giving them a wave as he followed Rosemary out the door.

"How Lee manages to keep anything a secret from her I'll never know" Lucas said after the door had closed.

Elizabeth bounced on her feet and turned toward him. "Maybe you should ask him for a few lessons," she kidded, eyes bright and playful.

Lucas' lips curved up in a slight smile as his gaze shifted down and then back up to her. "I assure you, Mrs. Thornton, that I am very capable of keeping a secret."

She leaned closer. "Sure you are," she whispered before lightly pressing her lips to his.

Little did she know Rosemary wouldn't be the only one surprised come Christmas, and he had no intention of letting that secret get out.