Hello readers!

I hope you are enjoying the story so far, some surprises coming your way soon. ;)

I wanted to address the Lucas/LJ storyline. I've written two other fics where their relationship got off on the right foot and they bonded almost instantly. This time around, I wanted to take a different approach, wondering how a 4-year-old boy might react if he saw a man kissing his widowed mother. Yes, LJ knows who Lucas is, but they don't have a bond on the show yet, so his angry reaction is a possibility. (Most likely it won't happen that way since time will have passed since the finale- and it's Hallmark.)

Anyway, stick with me, you might like where I'm going with it.

ps~I have to apologize to my readers. I had my sections mixed up and the times of the day didn't flow correctly, so I fixed it. Nothing was changed other than moving them into the correct order. :)

Chapter 3—

Lee sat at his desk rubbing his temples. The conversation with his wife last night has lasted until after midnight and he was tired. Mentally and physically. Boy, am I glad she isn't coming in today, he thought with Walden's appointment just minutes away.

That wasn't the only thing they talked about. Before dinner, Rosemary had sat down with him on the sofa.

"Lee, I know we haven't spoken in a while because of how busy we both have been but, I've been pondering something," Rosemary had begun.

The serious look on her face concerned him. "Tell me, honey," he said uneasily, not knowing exactly what she might say.

Rosemary saw the apprehension and smiled, reaching over to take his hand, "I'm sorry, Lee. I shouldn't have started our chat that way. I know you want a child as much as I do, and I just don't think it is going to happen for us. At least not in the normal way."

Puzzled, Lee responded, "So, what are you thinking about?"

Patting his hand, Rosemary cleared her throat, "I think we should adopt."

Lee raised both eyebrows at the statement. A few weeks back he had suggested this very thing, but his wife wouldn't even discuss it.

"Adoption? What made you change your mind?"

"I'm not getting any younger- and before you say anything, neither are you Lee Coulter. If we want a child before we are old and decrepit, we need to look at other options. There are several children at the Brookfield orphanage that need a loving home. As much as I want a baby, I think we should go and talk to Lillian and see what she suggests."

Lee stood and pulled Rosemary to her feet, bringing her into an embrace. "I think that is a great idea. Can we leave the day after tomorrow?"

"Day after tomorrow? I had no idea you would want to leave so soon…well, I guess I can be ready."

Lee laughed as he stepped back, "I'll be honest, I want to get away for a bit and this is perfect timing."

"You have made me so happy. I can't wait to be able to raise a little Lee."

"Or a little Rosemary," he said, hugging her again before they sat down to dinner.

That exchange had been much easier than the one they had into the night. A knock on the door brought Lee out of his reverie.

"Mr. Coulter. I presume you have made a decision," Walden said as he entered.

Gesturing towards a chair, Lee spoke, "Uh...yes, Mr. Walden. Please have a seat."

Looking down at his desk, Lee tried to decide how to begin, but Walden relieved him of any pressure by speaking first.

"May I guess by your posture that you have decided not to take my employer up on his offer?"

Lee nodded his head. "You may. I spent many hours thinking this over and as generous as your proposal was, I have to decline."

The stare coming from Walden's smug eyes made it obvious he was annoyed. Finally, he spoke. "May I ask why? I must assume you are much too busy because any intelligent businessman would quickly sign on the dotted line."

"The truth is, I just don't want to do business with you, ever. If that makes me unwise, so be it. Now, if you will excuse me, I have other pressing matters to attend to," Lee said, rising to his feet.

Walden took his time standing up and once he did, his glare was enough to cut a hole in the wall. "I'm very sorry to hear that, Mr. Coulter. I don't believe you will be pleased with the outcome of that choice."

"Is that a threat, Walden?" Lee asked, his ire just below the surface.

"No. It's just business. Good day to you, Mr. Coulter," Walden said as he left.

Lee plopped down in his chair and exhaled then spoke aloud. "I have a feeling I'm not going to like the consequences of crossing that man."

###

The blackboard was getting the brunt of Elizabeth's frustration as she wrote down the assignments, breaking the chalk twice. She was thankful that Robert had come by a little early today so she was able to leave the house and do some thinking.

Her little chat with Jack hadn't gone very well and as of now, she wasn't sure what to do about it.

"I wouldn't want to be that chalk this morning," a voice sounded behind her, bringing a smile to her face as she spun around.

"Lucas," she said, rushing into his arms, then quickly making sure he had shut the door behind him when he came in. Laying her head against his chest, she closed her eyes and took in the feel of him and his manly scent. His hands softly rubbed her back as he lay his chin on the top of her head. "I'm so happy you came by," she whispered.

As much as he wanted to just stand there in her arms, Lucas forced himself to step back. Looking into her eyes made him realize he couldn't go another minute without a kiss. When their lips met, they both melted into each other before he remembered where they were and moved away.

"I couldn't bear wondering how Jack was doing after what occurred last night," Lucas said, worry showing on his face.

Elizabeth's smiling eyes turned gloomy as she paced before repeating what transpired when she walked into Jack's room.

"Hi, son. Can we talk?"

"Sure Mama," Jack said, never looking up from the toys he was playing with.

Sitting down on the edge of his big boy bed, Elizabeth spoke again. "Jack, please tell Mama why you are upset."

Fighting the urge to smile when she saw her small boy shrug, she waited to see if he would answer. When he didn't, she asked again. "Jack, I want to know why you are upset."

Jack's bottom lip began to quiver as he looked up, "Mr. Bousard take Mama away from me."

Elizabeth's heart clenched in her chest- she hadn't handled this well at all. Reaching down, she lifted her son onto her lap and wrapped her arms around him. "Jack, you are my son. No one is taking me away from you. But I do I like Mr. Bouchard."

"More than me?"

Taking his chin in her hand, she lifted his face up to look him in the eyes. "I like him in a different way. It's a little hard to explain, but you are my son and I love you more than my own life."

Jack held her gaze for a moment, then threw his arms around her neck. "I love you, Mama. Don't want you to like Mr. Bousard. Can we eat now?"

Elizabeth realized that this situation was going to require some time to work out and she needed some advice on how to approach it. Food might be the best thing for now and another talk later.

"Let's go eat that food that I made…there is a lot of it…"

Lucas nodded his head after Elizabeth recounted the events from last night. "Looks like this isn't going to be as easy as we thought," he said, taking her hands in his.

"Oh, Lucas. I feel terrible that I didn't try to talk to him sooner about this. The poor thing just doesn't comprehend. I'm so sorry."

Smiling down at her, he spoke again. "My love, you forget that I am a patient man. And I kind of understand where he is coming from because of something in my childhood. Jack and I will work it out, you'll see. But I guess, for now, we have to sneak around to do this…" His kiss was powerful and passionate but ended much too soon. Elizabeth swayed when he pulled back.

"I'll see you soon, my love," he said walking backwards to the door.

Waving as he walked through, she turned back to the blackboard fanning herself with her hand.

"He may be the most perfect man alive."

###

"Why are we in town again?"

It had already been a long tiring day before Allie insisted that she needed something from the mercantile just as he walked in the door. Nathan was daydreaming of sitting in his comfortable chair with his feet up and finishing off the newest book in a historical series he was reading as they strode down the street.

"I told you, Uncle Nathan, I need some new ribbons for my hair. These are getting a little old and ratty," Allie replied, lifting the end of what looked like a perfectly good hair ribbon and shaking it around. "You don't expect me to go around looking shabby, do you?"

"Of course not," was the only reply he could come up with, wondering what was really going on and prepared for subterfuge. Several times over the last week, Allie had made comments about Nathan needing a girlfriend, and he observed her writing down things that he was sure wasn't homework, since she hid her paper when he came in.

Something was definitely up.

"I think I need some blue ones, and pink ones, and…ow! Ouch!" Nathan quickly looked over to see Allie sprawled on the ground holding her foot dramatically. "Did you hurt your foot?" he asked, bending down to see how bad the damage was. As he touched her ankle, she screamed out, a noise that sounded less like pain than it did a plan.

"That really hurts! I think you should help me to the infirmary, look, it's right here," she said as she pointed unnecessarily towards the building they were in front of.

"Yes, I'm quite aware of where the infirmary is. Come on, let's get you in to see Dr. Carter right away," he replied, helping her to her feet, then picking her up and carrying her through the door.

Nathan sat Allie down in the chair just as Faith came out of the back smiling, then frowning. "It's good to see you two but I have a feeling this isn't a social call."

"That remains to be seen," Nathan quietly said bringing a "huh" from Allie and a "what?" from Faith. "Oh, nothing...

"Faith, Allie seems to have hurt her ankle just outside. I mean, seriously, right on the other side of the door. She couldn't have planned an injury any better," he stated, his obvious point being unnoticed by both as Faith walked over to the girl, concerned.

"Can you bring her into the examining room, Nathan?" Faith asked, walking ahead of them as Nathan picked Allie up again and carried her into the next room.

"Uncle Nathan you are so strong! You must be the strongest man in town, don't you think so Dr. Carter?" Allie said loudly as Nathan placed her on a table and rolled his eyes.

"Let's have a look at that ankle, sweetie," Faith said, gently removing her shoe and sock. Probing around for a bit and then moving her foot around, she watched as Allie grimaced. "Does that hurt?" she asked.

"Yes, it's terrible!" Allie responded forcefully.

"Hmm," Faith said.

"How bad is it?" Nathan asked, certain he already knew the answer.

"There isn't any swelling and doesn't seem to be any bruising, so I don't think it's broken. But that doesn't mean it isn't a sprain. I need to wrap it and she will have to stay off it for at least a week…"

"A week!?" Allie cried out. "But I can't be off it for a week! I have a presentation at school on Monday! It's already starting to feel better, I don't think it's sprained at all."

"Now Allie, you heard what Dr. Carter said," Nathan said just before Allie jumped off the table.

"See!? It's much better already," she said, grabbing her shoe and sock. "I think I just need to walk it off. Thank you, Dr. Carter! See you at home, Uncle Nathan!" Allie exclaimed just before running out the door.

Faith looked confused and met Nathan's eyes as she pointed towards Allie's back and spoke, "Wh…what was that all about?"

Nathan nervously laughed and ran his hand through his hair. "I think she must be going through a phase. I'm sorry we took up your time. What do I owe you?"

"Well…nothing," Faith answered and then laughed. "Hard to charge someone that didn't really need my help."

"Thank you, Faith. See you later," Nathan replied as he turned and walked into the waiting area shaking his head. As he walked outside, he stopped to take a deep breath, then began laughing. He knew he needed to talk to Allie, but he was kind of curious what her next move would be, so decided to wait.

This could be fun.

###

The drive was quiet as they made their way towards Hope Valley. It would only take a couple of days to get there, and Henry was anxious to get them both settled into their new routine.

Abigail had hesitated at first, but as she grasped Henry's plan was a good one, she gave in. The thought of not overseeing her son's welfare was her only objection, but she soon realized that he would have more supervision with Henry. And Elizabeth. So, she relented. Cody had immediately balked at the idea but surprisingly agreed to go when the time came to leave. He allowed his mom to hug him goodbye but stood there like a stone and didn't return the embrace.

This was new territory for Henry. Christopher was a grown man when he came to town, so he hadn't gotten the chance at the rebellious teenage years with him. He was hoping once Cody saw his friends again that things would calm down a bit.

Henry was sad that he didn't get more time with Abigail, but he understood the importance of what she had to do. Maybe soon they would be able to be together.

"Cody, you hungry?" Henry asked as they slowed down in front of a diner.

A slight nod was the only answer he received as they both exited the car.

Well, it's a start...

###

"Minnie, that was quite a dinner you made us. I'm a blessed man," Joseph said, wiping the dishes as his wife washed them.

"You just like my apple pie," Minnie said with a smile, looking around to make sure they were alone. "I wanted to talk to you about Angela."

"What's going on with our girl?"

"I just think we need to find a way for her to fit in. I'm glad she is able to go to school with the rest of the children, but it's harder for her to make friends than it is for Cooper."

"I know it is. It's just been a short time. Let's talk with Mrs. Thornton soon and see if she has any ideas to get Angela more involved. She is such a sweet girl, the other kids would have to see that," he replied.

"Yes, but you know how children are. They shy away from anyone different than them. But you are correct. We should talk to her teacher and hear what she says. I'm glad I mentioned it to you."

Joseph placed the last plate in the cupboard and leaned in to kiss his wife. "No worries. All will be alright," he said as he left the kitchen.

###

"I anticipated we might have some problems," the man on the phone said.

"What are your plans, sir?" Walden enquired.

"I'm actually on my way to you, I'm calling from a hotel on the road. I'll be there in a couple of days," was the reply.

"Very good sir."

"It seems the men of Hope Valley don't know who they are dealing with," was the response just before the call ended.

How fun was that segment with Nathan and Allie!? I wonder what else that girl has up her sleeve? And how does Lucas plan to fix the problem with LJ?

Looks like we will get to meet the boss man soon, that should be interesting...

Stay tuned.