Author's Note: I would first like to start with an apology that this chapter took so long to crank out, but as a wise man once said, 'You know life...things get in the way.' And, such has been the case with me as my day job has had me quite busy with normal deadlines and my manager being out on paternity leave - but it's all good. In addition, for some reason, this chapter was just difficult to write. I wanted it to have a certain tone and rewrote it three times until I struck close to what I was aiming for, so I hope you like it.

Thank you so much to Paula R Chester (Welcome back. I've done a lot of historical research with this story and thought, dang it - they're in the middle of Prohibition, why does the saloon even exist? But that's our show), Hollyelvira, Thais (I was hurrying as fast as I could), InspiredHeart, Donna Barr Krolewski, Sindie, Terry Howard, Karen Pearson, Ljd21690, nole, metacaroliner (I feel your pain on the elopement question), lynnkersting, Lillian Hazaz, wcthlcr2014, and guest (s) for your kind reviews on the last chapter.

"Oh sweet mercy!" Lucas certainly had quite the introduction to the in-laws, didn't he?! In answer to a few questions and some comments - I'm happy you all are happy with the Thatchers. I think William Thatcher didn't treat Jack very well but his treatment of Lucas would have been just as poor if not worse if it weren't for the letter. The letter and corroboration of its details showed William that Lucas is a solid choice and, unlike Jack, that his business acumen will fit in well with Northwest and Thatcher. Lucas now has the potential for becoming the richest man in town. Let's hope he doesn't get in over his head!

With all that said, again, thank you all for your patience and support and for the wonderful reviews. They are vitamin pills for me every time I get one and help keep me writing even in very busy times. Would love to hear more! But, until then, lets check in and see what's happening in the Mercantile.
Janine

"What do you mean you can't reverse the order?! You couldn't have already sent it in!" Nathan Grant shouted into the receiver to the Administrator, returning his call at Hope Valley's Mercantile. "Listen. I can't go there! What? Because! She's coming here! I can't be in Montreal and have her be in Ho-Huh? Nevermind who she is. We need to get this turned around now!... I don't want to go there; I want to stay here. What? Listen. I don't care! Try!"

Nathan slammed the receiver back onto the hook switch and grumbled something unintelligible under his breath. Then, turning, he looked up and saw Florence, Molly, Ned, and Abigail all standing there, eyes like ovals and mouths agape.

"What's everyone staring at?" he snapped, and in a flash, they simultaneously returned to what they were doing. It was bad enough that he and Emily had somehow crossed wires to where they were still going to be on opposite ends of the country; he didn't need an audience to witness his folly.

Nathan shook his head in frustration and picked up the first thing he could find off the shelf to pay the Yost's back for the inconvenience of having him answer the call in their store. Slapping down a pound of coffee beans on the counter, he looked up at Florence. "I'll take these."

"That'll be forty-seven cents," she said, taking the Mountie's change and watching as he walked out the door. Florence raised an eyebrow and turned to Ned. "Sweetheart, where do you get our coffee from?"

"We have it shipped from South America. Why?"

Her mind drifted back to the eligible young bachelors who had purchased the blend over the last year, and she titled her head. "No reason." She looked to make sure he wasn't watching, then slipped a bag of the brew into her satchel to take home with them after work.

Nathan was halfway back to his office when Abigail Gowen called his name. He turned and watched as she approached.

"Nathan! Do you have a minute?"

"Sure. Something wrong?"

"No. Nothing like that. It's just…I couldn't help but overhear you talking on the phone at Yost's and wanted to offer my services, perhaps."

Nathan paused. "Your services?"

"Yes. When I was mayor, I had to deal quite a bit with the administrators at the Mounted Police. In that time, I met a couple of ladies that worked there and became friends with them. They always had a way of making things happen.

From what Bill said, and from what I just overheard, I presume that you were going to transfer out to wherever your friend Emily is at but have just found out she's coming here?"

"Yeah. She's bringing Lucas's former roommate Cy from Baltimore in a week or two. She'll be here through August." Nathan nodded.

"Well, with your permission, I would like to reach out to Amy Taylor and Inez Pettinger and see if perhaps they could intervene."

"You would do that?" Nathan asked.

She smiled. "It would be my pleasure. After all, that's what we do here in Hope Valley, help each other out.."

Nathan smiled. "Well, if you think you can get them to budge, I'm certainly not going to argue. But, honestly, they seem pretty set in their ways."

"Just leave it to me." Abigail winked.

Nathan tipped his hat.

In Hamilton, Lucas adjusted in his chair, straightening the cuff of his sleeve for what was the third time since he and his future father-in-law went to the solarium to meet Hugh de Lacy. In truth, being in that room waiting for de Lacy's arrival was one of the last places he would have chosen to be, but he was doing it for Elizabeth and her family so that they could start their relationship with a clean slate.

"Cigar?" William asked, looking to his future son-in-law with amusement as the young man twisted in his seat. Lucas glanced Thatcher's way, then toward a box of what he knew were some of the priciest cigars in the world.

"No, thank you." He replied. "I don't smoke."

"Perhaps you should start." Thatcher chuckled.

"I'm sorry, sir?"

William looked at him with kindness. "It's just - you seem a little nervous."

"Oh." Lucas nodded in recognition, wiping his hands on his trousers. "I guess I am, a little. It's just…it's been nearly twenty years since I've spoken to the man and…well…there's a lot that has transpired since then."

"And there's the little thing about them causing great harm to your name and reputation," William said.

Lucas contemplated that statement. "Mr. Thatcher, what they did to me, I've long since forgiven. It was unpleasant and painful, but I moved on and have lived quite a full life without them. It's just, I'm a peaceable man, and I have no desire to be pulled back into all of the drama."

"Fair enough, and you don't have to be. You're no longer some teenager whom they can run roughshod over, but an accomplished young man, and you have backing from me. So, don't be nervous. We've got this covered."

Lucas nodded, taking a deep breath and turning his eyes toward the door. "Thank you, Mr. Thatcher."

"William," Thatcher stated.

Lucas looked at Elizabeth's father. "Thank you, William." He immediately returned to fidgeting, brushing imaginary lint off his trouser leg and straightening its fabric.

Thatcher shook his head. "Perhaps some Brandy?" he asked.

Lucas's eyes crinkled, then he looked at William with raised brows. "Elizabeth's father is offering me contraband? Am I that bad?"

"It's either that or chewing gum." William laughed. "Of course, it's not contraband if it's prescribed. They say there were over five-hundred thousand 'prescriptions' for strong drink in Ontario last year. So, I figure, what's a nip between family?"

"I'm not family yet."

"You're my daughter's fiancé. Good enough for me." Thatcher replied.

Lucas smiled, looking at the bottle and then up to William. "Thank you for your kind offer, William, but as tempting as it is, I still need to say no. I need to keep my wits about me."

"Okay, maybe later," Thatcher replied, observing with pleasure Lucas's aptitude for self-control and musing within himself what a good CEO of Northwest Shipping that Lucas would one day be. He was just about to articulate those thoughts when Hugh de Lacy entered the room.

"Hello, William. I'm sorry I'm late, but…why on earth is that blaggard still here? I believe I made my feelings clear on having him around, did I not?"

William looked at Hugh calmly, remaining in his seat with his hands clasped loosely in front of his chest.

"Lucas is here at my request and pleasure, as are you. He's representing Northwest and the Thatcher Foundation, two entities that he will one day lead, so I would appreciate if you would treat him with the professional courtesy that the role is due."

"Lucas lead Northwest? Surely, you jest. He can't even take care of his own life. Are you aware of the embarrassment that my family went through after he left my daughter for no good cause, two hours after they said their vows?" Hugh asked.

"Mr. de Lacy, I assure you that I did not leave Daphne for no good cause," Lucas said. "The truth is…well, I caught your daughter and Louis Wentworth in a compromised situation..."

"In the parking lot. Yes, I know all about it. A minor dalliance." He said dismissively.

"A minor dalliance?!" Lucas repeated. "Sir, I don't think you understand. She and Mr. Wentworth were…well, I can't repeat what they were doing in front of Elizabeth's father but…."

"My daughter had an affair on her wedding day," Hugh said matter-of-factly. "No need to describe it because I don't care. It happens all of the time and with Daphne -well, let's just say that we hoped that in marrying you, it would tame some of her, shall we say, wilder inclinations."

"T-tame her…excuse me, but let me get this straight. Are you saying you knew?!" Bouchard asked, genuinely shocked due to the complicit implications in what was being said.

"Yes. I knew. And, I might add, just for your information, Wentworth wasn't the only one. What can I say? Daphne's a spirited woman."

Lucas became slack-jawed, and he was genuinely speechless. He looked at his future father-in-law with desperation in his eyes.

"Cabinet on the right," William said calmly. "Glasses are above the bar."

Lucas nodded once and walked away, leaving William to discuss matters with de Lacy.

"So, what you're telling us is that you knew about your daughter's affair and then attacked this good man's reputation despite what she had done?"

"For what she had done? He is the one who left her – after I spent thousands, I might add, on that wedding of theirs with all of that cut crystal and imported satin. Why the meals at the reception alone cost me several thousand dollars."

"I couldn't care less about what the wedding cost – I care very much about what your family did to Lucas Bouchard – after what was clearly, by your own admission, your daughter's transgression."

"William…don't act so surprised. In our world, it is not at all uncommon for a married man or woman to take a paramour to help cope with life's pressures. It helps to relieve the stress. Being married as long as you have been, I'm sure you are quite familiar with what I mean."

"Excuse me?"

"Well, you know, one spends time traveling away from home…."

Thatcher's eyes went flat.

Lucas carried two empty glasses and a brandy decanter over to where they were meeting and sat it on William's desk, passing Thatcher one of the glasses as he sat.

"I'm fine, but you might want to see if de Lacy would like a glass. He may need one after what I have to say." William responded.

Elizabeth strolled silently through her mother's garden taking in the vibrant golden hue of Grace Thatcher's award-winning roses and enjoying the luxurious scent with which they perfumed the air. As a child, she had walked through this same heavenly landscape, often sitting on the stone bench in the middle of the yard, allowing her imagination to take her to places far away. She dreamt of a life of wealth and success and marrying some sweet prince. And as she visited the familiar terrain of her family's property on this day, she realized that all of her dreams had come true. Oh, the definitions of what counted for wealth and success had changed substantially since then, and the things the younger Elizabeth thought would make her happy no longer had a place in her world. But Elizabeth knew that all of her desires and needs were being supplied, and she had her Lucas. So, she felt very blessed.

While she was thinking on these things, she sat on that same bench she'd taken repose on in her youth and looked around. Noting the greenery and the columns, the landing that led to her house, and her favorite set of stairs which laid hidden between some branches, her lips curled upward as she considered possibly making use of the grand estate very soon. But as soon as the thought arose in her head, it was interrupted by an unexpected voice.

"Elizabeth, isn't it?"

The voice was softer than it had sounded when first they met the night before, and yet it startled Elizabeth when she heard it. She turned toward the speaker and couldn't help but become mesmerized. With gleaming brown hair, emerald eyes, and skin that was flawless and white, Daphne Beaumont resembled one of the porcelain dolls that Elizabeth's father had imported when she and her sisters were children. And yet, there was something about how the woman looked that didn't seem quite right. Something was off. At first, Elizabeth wasn't sure of what it was, but it captured her attention just the same.

"Good afternoon, Daphne," she said politely, looking around in the hope that Julie or her aunt Agatha might be lurking around and might join them. No such luck.

Daphne helped herself to the space on the bench next to Elizabeth, then clasped her hands over her knees, pivoting toward Lucas's fiancée. "This is just stellar! I was so hoping to get a chance to talk to you alone before we traveled back to England. I simply couldn't get on the ship without meeting the woman who wound up with Lucas Bouchard. I thought that man would never marry."

There was an awkward pause in which Elizabeth got a quizzical look on her face, waiting for Daphne's point.

Daphne looked off to her left and engaged in an imaginary conversation to direct the conversation where she wanted it to go.

"Why would you say that, Daphne?" Lucas's former wife asked herself. "Well, I'll tell you, Elizabeth. In all of the years that I knew Lucas Bouchard, I knew him to be this meek, shy little mouse of a boy who never knew how to speak up for himself and was just always so- nice - to everyone."

"You say that as if it's a bad thing," Elizabeth said.

"I guess it's okay for some people. Apparently, it's okay for you. But after he took off, I imagined him ending up a lonely old bookworm somewhere out in Nowhereville, USA, wiling away his days in some corner like he used to do when we'd meet at some social event. I never saw him as being the fiancé of one of Canada's most prominent families. So tell me, how did he do it? Was it the Bouchard wealth? With you being one of three and him being an only child, I'm sure Lucas will inherit more wealth once his parents expire."

"Excuse me?" Elizabeth said, aghast.

"Or, maybe his mommy arranged another marriage? Perhaps that's it. There has to be a good explanation as to how some pathetic poltroon that's been shunned by society winds up marrying a Thatcher. So, what is it?"

"Listen, Daphne. I don't know who you think you are coming up to me at my father's house and insulting my future husband, but I can assure you I'm not going to stand here and listen. The details of my relationship with Lucas are frankly none of your business."

"Really, now? Let me guess, he wooed you with one of those little sleight-of-hand tricks that my friends always used to make fun of, and now he follows you around like a poor little lap dog wherever you go?"

Elizabeth glared at her, folding her arms in front of her.

"That's okay. You don't have to answer. I know Lukie Bouchard like I know the back of my hand, and I can pretty much tell you that he's the same boring adolescent that he was back then. Though I will say, he has improved incredibly in the looks department. Very handsome. I never expected that."

Elizabeth began to stand, but Daphne put a hand on her shoulder and pushed her back down. "You know, when we were together, Lucas looked so much younger than his actual age that when we went to get our marriage license, we were denied. We had to come back with proof that he was old enough to marry me. He was so embarrassed that I thought he was going to cry! Silly little Ninnyhammer! Of course, I had a good laugh over it all, but it delayed us a few days in getting married because we had to send away to Montreal to the church he grew up in to get a record of his birth before we could schedule the wedding! Mother about had a heart attack because she'd already sent the invitations out, and we almost missed the date. What a nightmare!"

"Daphne, I…"

"I'm curious. Is Lukie still so sensitive? I'll bet he is. You know, I used to play a game where I'd make him think he did something wrong to get him to come groveling to me with an apology. Of course, Lucas the Holy never actually did anything wrong, but it was fun to get him worked up. Such a little naif. And to think, he abandoned me!"

Elizabeth felt her stomach tighten. "You cheated on him!"

Daphne rolled her eyes. "Oh, he has been talking about me. But tell me, what was I supposed to do? Become the nun-wife of Lucas?"

"You were supposed to love your husband."

"Love him?" she laughed. "What does love have to do with marriage?"

Elizabeth bolted up from her seat and began to move toward the house. "This conversation is over."

"Why? Did I strike a chord? Still the same old Lukie?" Daphne said, getting into her space and grabbing onto Elizabeth's arm. "There's still time to back out, you know. Leave him - before he leaves you. Don't make the same mistake I did."

"Get out of my way," Elizabeth stated tersely, breaking free from her grip and walking toward the house.

"Fine, but you know I am right!" Daphne said triumphantly. "People don't change. Lucas Bouchard was a coward and a bore and never knew the first thing about pleasing a woman, and that's a fact. Marry him, and you'll regret it the rest of your life."

Elizabeth spun toward Daphne with anger flashing in her eyes. "You know, I genuinely feel sorry for you."

"For me? Well, this ought to be good." Daphne replied.

"To think you had the temerity to come to my family home and attack the kindest, most honest, thoughtful, giving, loving, and compassionate man alive in front of his future wife? What exactly did you hope to gain? Were you hoping to discover that Lucas is as miserable with his life choices as you are with yours? Because if you were, you set yourself up to be bitterly disappointed.

My darling fiancé has made wise choices, not foolish ones, and it's made him into a man worthy of honor and respect and love. I adore him and am going to marry him and show him what it's like to be married to a real woman- not some brazen trollop who doesn't have sense enough to know what a horrendous mistake it was for her to have ever let him go."

Daphne glared at Elizabeth, and angry tears filled her eyes. And, as she returned her gaze, Elizabeth saw in an instant everything she needed to know. She saw what was inside of her, a soul in ruin trapped in a beautiful but fading façade.

"You think you're better than me?" Daphne said from out of nowhere. "You think you're better than me because you, like Lucas, hold to some antiquated beliefs about life and love and things that only happen in storybooks? Well, your not. Lucas may have rejected me and accepted you, but you'll never experience the excitement that I've felt in having men from all over fall in love with me and want to be with me. To have men literally eating out of my hand, why they'd give me anything I'd ever ask for and always leave me feeling so-"

"Dead inside?" Lucas said, walking up from behind them.

Both women turned toward him in surprise as he calmly walked up to Daphne and looked her in the eye.

"The runner has returned." she said.

"Only to tell you that your father wants to see you. It seems you're going back to England. No deal."

Elizabeth smiled and proudly took hold of his arm. He glanced at her and flashed a single dimple her way.

"No deal? Are you trying to tell me we came all of the way to Canada only to walk away with nothing? What kind of a fool is this William Thatcher?"

Lucas felt Elizabeth flinch but immediately stepped in. "William Thatcher is no man's fool and prefers to do business with people who are honest."

"Are you saying my father is a liar?"

"Precisely – as are you, my former spouse. You lied to me, and you've lied to yourself for as long as you've been alive. And it's time that you received a little dose of reality."

"And I suppose you're going to give it to me?" Daphne asked.

"I'm only going tell you the truth. It's up to you if you accept it." He replied.

"Fine. Give me what you've got, Lukie dear. I'm sure you're just dying to tell me how much grief I caused and much I ruined your life."

"Actually, Daphne, what I have to say is just the opposite. In truth, I wanted to thank you for what you did because your actions freed me to become the man I am today – free from the shackles of other's expectations and able to find the true love that I always longed for – the kind of love I think you've always longed for but have never known how to pursue.

You see, when I left London after our wedding, I didn't know where I would go or what I would do, or what would become of me. I had a little cash on me, but I took with me the treasure of my father's advice he gave to me when he put me on that ship bound for America. He hugged me goodbye and said that while what happened between you and me was terrible and should never have happened, I should view it as an opportunity. He told me that bad things happen in life, and that when they do, that I should strive to keep it from making me bitter, take instruction from what happened, and use it to make me better.

That's precisely what I did. I moved from place to place and was exposed to pretty much anything you'd like to imagine. For the first few months, I lived in a poor immigrant village near New York harbor where I worked in a restaurant near the water, and there, I learned to watch people. You can get quite an education watching people. In no time, I began to recognize patterns of behavior, mannerisms, and ways in which people carry themselves. And, I could tell who was being truthful and who was hiding behind a mask. Then I moved to Boston where I took a job in a tavern. It was amazing to me that even though I was in a different city with a completely different group of clientele, people are the same wherever you go. Whether it's the poor vagrant on the street or the finest gentleman in the most expensive country club they all want the same things – and it's in how they deal with those wants and desires that determines the quality of the person you're dealing with.

Take, for instance, the women who worked in the brothel I lived above for a year and a half in New Orleans -"

Elizabeth raised her eyebrows as she listened, but she nearly choked when he said his next words.

"I found that they aren't entirely unlike you." He said, boldly.

Daphne's eyes grew wide. "Of all of the…"

"Let me finish. You've had seventeen years to tell your story, it's my turn, Mrs. Beaumont." Lucas said strongly.

Daphne clamped her mouth shut and glared at him.

"Often, they'd invite me to go visit with the ladies, whose cover story was that they were dancing girls, but I knew better from my upbringing than to do so. I never went. But, from where my apartment was, I could see much of what was going on. I'd sit on the windowsill on certain evenings listening to the music coming from inside the 'club,' and I'd observe the revelry that would transpire outside in the street and the manner with which men and women would comport themselves. On the surface, one might think that all was joyous. But, the next day, I'd run into some of those same women and see the look in their eyes. It's the same one I see in yours, Daphne, and it represents emptiness, loneliness, and years of having bits and pieces of your soul chipped away with each new encounter, all of which promise goodness but bring about ruin."

"And, I suppose there's a moral to this story?" she asked, unable to quite look him in the eye.

Lucas took a deep breath. "Daphne, I cared about you when we were slated to get married, and I had hoped that someday that care would turn to love. But, at this point in time, I know that this hope would never have worked out the way that I'd planned – still, it doesn't mean that I wish you harm. If you are human, you make mistakes in your life, and I've come to believe that there is room for redemption as long as you're alive. While you can't undo the past, you can choose a better way and in the end, find true happiness. That's what I wish for you." He said.

Daphne was silent for a long moment and then a smirk appeared on her face. "Lucas the Holy strikes again. Are we done with the sermonizing?" she responded. "Because if we are, then I'd like to find my father. If there is truly no deal, I'm ready to leave."

Lucas looked at her sadly and nodded and Daphne looked at both Lucas and Elizabeth.

"Best wishes on your marriage." she said before turning away.

Once Daphne had reentered the house, Elizabeth wrapped her arms around Lucas's waist and the two embraced one another in the garden. Tenderly stroking her back as she laid her head against his chest, Lucas kissed the top of her head and squeezed her tightly.

"I hope that she didn't upset you." He said, softly.

Elizabeth looked up into his eyes and gently stroked his face. "Only for what she did to you. She has no idea the wonderful treasure that she tossed away."

"Still a diamond in the rough, I'm afraid." he replied.

"You're far too humble, Lucas Bouchard." She said. "And I can't wait to spend the rest of my life telling you how special you are."

He smiled. "Elizabeth Thatcher Thornton, you are the love of my life and going back to that place has helped me to see what a blessed man I am."

"Oh, Lucas, I love you." She said.

He smiled and brought his lips to hers, first tenderly and then with passion as a stone-faced Daphne watched on through a window adjoining the veranda.

With the de Lacys gone, and William Thatcher's blessing obtained, Lucas and Elizabeth were soon back on a train on their way home. Given Lucas's new position with the company, Thatcher arranged for an upgrade for his future son-in-law in a cabin next to Elizabeth's, and the two lovebirds gleefully spent the bulk of their time laughing together or playing with Jack. Any quietude that they had was interrupted about a quarter of the way into their trip when a familiar voice rang out to them from the end of the dining car.

"Lucas! Is that you?"

Lucas was holding Jack in his arms and turned to see who had called his name. He appeared shocked when his roommate from Baltimore came lumbering down the aisleway using arm crutches, Maggie Fay in tow.

"Dang it if you don't look like a sight for sore eyes!" Cy said, with a pat on Lucas's shoulder. "And, I see you have Elizabeth with you. You folks hitched yet?"

Lucas smiled with a confused look in his eyes until he looked up and saw Emily, then he nodded. "Not yet." He replied.

Emily came to join them.

"Miss Reardon. What a surprise to see you here." Elizabeth said, hooking her arm through Lucas's.

"I'm here to help Cyrus. He's decided to move to Hope Valley and I'm coming along to get him set up. Nathan doesn't know I'm coming." She said.

Elizabeth smiled at her but Lucas was too focused on the first part to care about the second. "Moving. To Hope Valley."

"You've got it!" Cyrus said. "We're gonna be neighbors, my friend! How'd ya like that? Thought maybe you could help me get a job?"

Lucas swallowed and looked at Elizabeth with the same half-surprised/half-uncomfortable look on his face.

"He'd be happy to." She said. "Lucas is starting a new company in Hope Valley as a matter of fact. We're going to need plenty of people to work the jobs there. Perhaps there's a good fit for you there."

Lucas stood there for seconds, not knowing what to say. Finally he nodded. "I'm sure we can find someplace for you to work, where you won't get hurt or injure anyone else."

"Yee-ha! See, things are lookin' up already! I'll do you proud, Lucas! I promise." Cyrus said, patting Lucas on the back again before losing his balance and nearly falling into a waiter as he passed through the aisle.

Lucas winced, waiting for the sound of the crash but breathed a relieved sigh as Cy recovered. "I can't wait!" he said, before taking Elizabeth by the arm and walking quite stiffly toward their table for three.