A/N: Getting closer to the end now, my hope is that you enjoy this little story that I've managed to write up, even after years of abandonment. I really hope I someday will be able to do the same with my other "forgotten" fic (a cross-over between Dr. Quinn and The Sound of Music, called "17 going on 18"... I wonder if the interest is still there for that fic? Give me a notice if you've read it and what you think about it so far.)
Again a huge thanks goes out to my beta reader who's read through this for me and fixed the grammatical errors in my writing.
Enjoy
Chapter 11:Jessica woke up the next day with her heart and head still buzzing with everything that happened yesterday. It was so surreal to think that she actually traveled back in time, she realized that it must have happened, or this was some crazy-ass dream. Then her thoughts turned to Matthew, the man she felt so connected to from the very beginning. It was crazy to think that she might have time-traveled because they were two lonely souls that somehow were connected even beyond time itself.
Shaking some sense into herself she rose and got ready for the day. Things were becoming easier for her, with all the very different ways of doing things. Getting dressed was easier now and she was getting better at doing her hair up in the styles Colleen showed her.
She said good morning to Dr. Mike and Katie in the kitchen and helped get breakfast ready. Even the small chores like this came naturally for her now and Dr. Mike seemed to like the extra help she provided.
"So you know there will be the council meeting in a few days," Dr. Mike said and when Jessica nodded she continued, "I've talked to Mrs. Morales and she will join us. You know she is married to our mayor. Mr. Slicker?"
"Yeah, she told me and she thought that it wouldn't become a big deal. So I'm just hoping that they will accept me," Jessica said and shifted a few of the plates around nervously.
"They accepted me," Dr. Mike laughed, "well, after the shock of seeing their new doctor being a lady that is."
Jessica laughed, Matthew had shared how Dr. Mike became the town doctor, it was quite a story. And how she'd met Sully was also fascinating and quite honestly very romantic. Thinking about romance her mind immediately turned to Matthew and she felt her face heat up a little. Dr. Mike walked past her with the last things for their meal and nudged her on her shoulder.
"You're a fine young woman and I and Sully are quite happy that you're courting Matthew, so don't worry about what we might think." She placed the bread basket on the table and looked straight at Jessica with a fond smile.
"Thank you." Jessica managed to whisper, while she tried to keep her face from turning even redder.
Sully walked in with Brian in tow, they'd taken care of the animals at the barn and were now ready to have breakfast.
Jessica found a seat and ate with her new family, she sort of began thinking of them as her family. While she ate she looked at them all and felt her heart leap in happiness.
"You look happy," Dr. Mike noticed.
"Hmm, I'm happy. Strangely I do feel at home here, does that even make sense?" Jessica gave them a feeble smile not knowing if they would understand her. But she could see their honest faces and genuine smiles when they looked at her.
"Hmm, it does, and from what you and Matthew told us yesterday, you belong here. And if you ever need help with anything you let us know," Sully said with fondness in his voice. Jessica smiled at the man in gratitude. It was rare that he spoke so much, but when he did, his words meant something.
"Thank you, I've come to care about you all a great deal," Jessica finally managed to get more words out.
"I love you, Jess, you're my bestest friend," Katie chimed in and ignored her mother's attempt to correct her misspoken words.
"Aw, thanks Katie girl, you're such a sweetheart," Jessica said and tapped the girl's nose. Katie grinned and started her usual chatter about what she would do at school.
Back in town Jessica walked Katie to school and wondered what she would do today, but apparently, Matthew seemed to have a plan. He was walking with two horses, one his own and another gray horse Jessica might have seen at the livery.
"Hey," she greeted and wasn't sure how she would meet him. Did she kiss him or?
"Good morning, ready to learn how to ride?" Matthew said with a grin.
"Naha NO!" Jessica shook her head vehemently and backed away from the large animals. She'd veered as far around the horses as possible. She knew she couldn't ride, it just didn't seem like a thing she did.
"Come on Jessie, you have to learn one day, living out here it's essential really." Matthew tried again and Jessica noticed a small teasing glint in his eyes.
"I've never been on a horse before." Jessica nearly stomped her foot in determination.
"Not that you know of." Matthew steered his horse to a nearby tree and secured the reins, then returned with the gray one. "This is old Gray. And yes, she is old and the calmest and nicest horse Robert E. has in his livery."
"I'm not liking this very much, Matthew," Jessica said wearily, eying the horse, though it did look quite calm.
"Come on, say hello at least." Matthew held out his hand toward her and when she finally grasped his, he smiled.
Gingerly she walked to the large animal. The horse snorted, making Jessica jump and Matthew chuckle. She fired him a stern look and he held up his hand in surrender, yet his eyes were still smiling.
"Well hello there Gray," Jessica said in the calmest voice she could muster, she reached out her hand letting the horse sniff her skin. When the animal didn't seem to mind her being close to her Jessica grew a little bolder and gently touched the horse's soft muzzle. Gray moved her head a little but didn't seem to mind Jessica petting her.
"Nice horsie, soooo nice," Jessica said in a strange whispering sound. But her calm voice seemed to ease the horse and she felt more confident touching the beast.
"You're doing great, see she likes you," Matthew whispered and patted her arm in reassurance.
"Thanks, but I'm not sure I'm ready to get up there," she looked down at her skirt, "and can I even ride in this dress?"
Matthew looked her over and shrugged, then explained, "I know Dr. Mike rides with her dress on."
"Because I'm not doing any lady-side saddle thing, that would scare me even more," Jessica said firmly and Matthew nodded in understanding.
"Okay, let's try." Matthew took her elbow and led her to the side of the horse.
Jessica looked around, they were out in the middle of the meadow so no one else was around and she wouldn't make a fool of herself too much.
"Don't laugh!" she said with a firm voice before she reached up and gripped the saddle horn. Yeah, she'd seen how people did it here, now she only hoped she would at least get up on the damn horse.
She looked down and managed to get her boot into the stirrup and when she suddenly felt Matthew's hands on her waist she gasped in surprise.
"Sorry." Matthew removed his hands and when she turned to look at him he smiled sheepishly at her.
"It's fine, I might need the help." She nodded, making him understand that it was okay if he helped her. Matthew understood and walked up to her and gave her a lift on the count of three.
Jessica ran over the moves in her head, getting up high, swinging over her leg, place butt in the saddle. Don't fall off the steed. With a small laugh she managed to place herself in the saddle, her grip on the saddle horn was the only evidence that she wasn't really in her right element here. She looked down at Matthew who grinned at her, his brilliant blue eyes shimmered with pride, and something stirred in the pit of her stomach.
Suddenly she was very much aware of his hand still lingering on her knee and they both looked at the hand at the same time. She took a deep breath trying to calm her nerves, she knew that horses would spook easily and notice if their rider was scared shitless.
"Sorry." Matthew removed his hand and let it run soothingly over Gray's neck. "Be a good girl and don't throw off your rider, hmm?" He shot Jessica a grin and swung the reins to her.
Jessica grabbed the leather and tried to figure out how to hold them. Matthew reached up and wrapped his fingers around hers, showing her how to place her hands. A shiver ran over her when their fingers touched. She tried to focus on his words and what he told her, it was all so new and foreign to her. She wasn't even sure she'd ever sat on a horse before. Biting her lip she nodded.
"Do you want me to lead the horse around for a bit so you get the feel for her movements?" Matthew asked and looked up at her. Jessica nodded.
For the next several minutes Jessica went from sitting rigidly on the horse to actually relaxing and quite enjoying herself. When Matthew beamed a smile up at her she felt her face heat up a little though she did smile back and said, "Thank you, I couldn't believe you wanted me to be up on a horse. But this is quite fun actually."
"I'm happy you like it, you will find it easier to get around if you know how to ride." He clapped Gray on her neck and asked, "So, are you ready to take over on your own? Just remember what I told you about using your legs and holding the reins loose so she won't buck on you."
"Okay," Jessica managed to say and took a deep breath when Gray shifted to the side as she felt Jessica's anticipation. On instinct, Jessica leaned down, patted the horse on her neck, and whispered, "It's okay sweetie, just don't throw me off here, and we will have so much fun." Then she nodded to Matthew letting him know she was ready.
Matthew let go of the reins and walked to his horse. Jessica tried to hide the admiring look she knew was on her face. He made the damn thing look so easy getting up there on his horse. Her own clumsy attempt to mount her horse had been less than stellar. Matthew rode over and aligned his horse with Gray.
"So let's just start easy and walk and see how it goes."
Jessica nodded mutely, running over every information Matthew had given her the past few minutes. When Matthew clicked his tongue and set his mount in motion Gray lifted her ears as if she waited for Jessica to give her command. Clicking her tongue too she felt elated that the large beast was doing her bidding. She tried to steer the horse in a different direction and then back on track following Matthew who rode ahead of her. They headed for the trees and the next several minutes she focused on moving her horse in the right direction. It was quite fun and she was happy that things moved so smoothly for her.
When they reached the edge of the forest Matthew jumped down and tied his horse to a tree, then he turned and watched Jessica ride in next to him. Jessica beamed at him and said, "I love this, amazing. Wow." Then she looked a little unsure of herself and grimaced, "Now how the heck do I get down from this thing?"
"Let me help you," Matthew stepped up next to her and reached up his hands placing them around her waist. She leaned down and placed her hands on his shoulders. Then she let her legs swing behind her and made a clumsy attempt to jump down from the horse. Luckily Matthew had her in a firm grip.
Jessica slid her hands to his chest and looked up at him with a sheepish grin. "Thank you," she breathed and kept her hands on his body. Biting her lips she raised herself on her toes and found his lips with hers. She heard him gasp in surprise and then he finally relented and let his lips open up to her. When she dared to sneak out her tongue and let it slide over his lower lip he mumbled something incoherent before he let her explore his mouth. They'd kissed before and she was well aware of the fact that he was from a different time and a different place, but she couldn't help herself when finally being alone with him.
His hands clutched her side, digging into her flesh through the fabric of her dress. When he did pull away he looked at her with wide eyes and while he bit down on the corner of his mouth he looked like he wanted to speak.
Jessica looked at him curiously, "What's wrong? Don't you like kissing me?"
"Oh it's nothing like that, Jessie, damn it, I'm just a little blown away by all of this, you and me, this, it's a bit intense and I don't want to… well you know tarnish your reputation by dragging you out here on our own, people might talk." Matthew shrugged and looked down a little sheepishly.
"Hey, I'm not complaining, am I?" Jessica smiled and placed her hand on his cheek, when he suddenly flinched at her touch she pulled away, feeling a little hurt by his actions. "What's wrong I can't even touch you, are we courting or not?" She crossed her arms over her chest and looked at him.
Matthew sighed and pulled off his hat and ran a frustrated hand through his hair. God she wanted to do that, she loved his hair. She knew it was slightly longer than socially accepted so she'd assumed he wasn't so worried about what everyone thought about his look. Guess she was wrong.
She wasn't sure if she should just wait for him to reply or start talking, then he finally looked up at her and sighed, "Look Jessie, I do know that something is happening between us, something big. Heck, after our visit with Cloud Dancing it's more evident than ever." He reached out and tugged a stray hair behind her ear, she felt a shiver run down her spine at his touch.
"I know and I want to explore that, but it seems as if I'm doing this all wrong since you're pulling back from me." She looked at him curiously, trying to figure out what was going on behind those blue eyes of his.
"I don't want to pull back from you, Jessie, believe me, I want to do so much more," he smirked and reached for her hand. He looked down at their clasped hands and shrugged, "I guess we just look at the whole courting thing differently. I don't know how you do it in your time, I only know how it's done here."
Jessica nodded in understanding and took a deep breath. It made sense that they would act a bit out of sync in this case.
"Okay, I can see what you mean Matthew I really do, I'm sorry if I'm overstepping some invisible rules when I'm with you, I'm still trying to figure out how this place works." She waved her hand toward the town behind them. "It has been so crazy to land in the middle of the friggin last century. I'm like a fish out of water here, so I do apologize for making you uncomfortable."
Matthew stepped up closer to her, and said in a firm voice, "I know it's hard but I also know that things won't always go as planned, but right now I hold on to the fact that we're together and it seems that some fate or whatever wanted you to come here." He looked at her with a beaming smile, saying, "And looking into your eyes right now does give me peace inside and I know it sounds awful and strange. But I do feel that you're somehow connected or related to Ingrid."
Jessica gasped when he mentioned his dead fiancé. Sure, they did talk about her yesterday when she said her last name is Bergman, but from there to actually believing in spirits having something to do with her time jumping thing was still a big step. That was completely and utterly crazy.
"You honestly believe I'm some sort of long-lost ancestor to your Ingrid," she shook her head in wonder, it didn't make any sense. "You do know that it sounds like a boatload of humbug, but yeah, with my last name it might actually be real." She rubbed her temple, she was beginning to feel a headache rolling in. It came from time to time, ever since she'd bumped her head. Dr. Mike told her it would be normal to have these headaches for some time after head trauma.
"In my heart I know it's real and I won't force you to believe it too, but all I ask is if you give us a chance to be together and talk, I won't be opposed to more kisses." He grinned cheekily, something that Jessica rarely had seen from him.
She grinned and let her hands run up his chest and circle his neck, "Would you now." Her voice was low and breathless. When he merely nodded she pulled him down for another kiss.
When they pulled away they both looked a little hot and slightly mused, Jessica had let her hands run through his hair several times while they kissed.
"Why don't we ride back into town and get Gray home to Robert E and maybe we can have a late lunch or something?" Matthew finally pulled back and looked at her.
Jessica nodded and agreed, "I would love to. So you don't have any work today?"
"I might need to look at something a little later but it can wait until after lunch." Matthew shrugged, reached over, and placed a small kiss on her lips. She sighed and nodded in understanding.
Then Matthew helped her mount Gray again and now it felt more natural for her to get the horse moving and she grinned when she managed to move forward before Matthew got in his saddle.
"I love this riding thing, next must be more speed," Jessica said with a smile.
Matthew grinned when she said she felt ready to move at a faster pace on the horse. "Yeah? Let's save that for our next riding lesson."
Jessica nodded in agreement and returned her focus to steering her horse toward town. When they got to the livery Matthew greeted Robert E.
"Hello there Matthew, did the lesson go well?" The blacksmith walked out of his workshop wiping his hands with a rag.
"It sure did, Miss Jessica here is a natural it seems." Matthew beamed proudly and jumped from his horse and was only slightly disappointed when he saw Jessica get down on her own. It might be for the better because after their heartfelt talk by the woods he was still trying to process how this relationship was progressing.
"Here Miss Jessica, let me take Gray inside, she behaved okay for ya?" Robbert E looked at Jessica.
Grinning Jessica said elated, "Sure she did Mr. E, she was a sweetheart. Wasn't even scared at all."
"Awe, do call me Robert E., everyone else does. All that 'mister' is not necessary." Robert E waved his hand in the air and took the reins from Jessica who nodded in understanding.
Matthew could tell that she was slowly gaining the trust and admiration of everyone around town. It was a nice thing to see; these past few weeks where she lived with them, she'd just fit right into the whole mix. He did hope she would get that teaching job at the school, it would give her something to do, made her feel like she belonged right here with them, with him.
When they'd taken care of the horses they walked to Grace's Café and found a table. They ordered lunch from the ever-smiling Grace.
"So you're not opposed to riding now?" she asked when she came back with their meal. Apparently, she'd talked to her husband while they'd been riding.
"Nope not at all, I had the best teacher," Jessica said with a proud smile and grinned at Matthew.
Matthew felt heat in his neck when Grace looked at him with a knowing smirk. He grinned sheepishly, he knew the café owner wanted to know more but he said "Thanks for the food, Grace." Giving her a big smile he returned his attention to his meal. When Grace walked away he did look at his lunch partner, he smiled when she caught him looking.
"What?" she asked and cut into the pie she ordered.
"Nothing, I'm just happy that everyone around here seems to be accepting you so easily. It is amazing and it must be making it a bit easier for you, I imagine?" He raised a curious eyebrow.
Jessica chewed her food while she thought, then she swallowed and nodded, "Yup it is very nice, and friendly people do make it more pain-free to settle into a new place. Everyone is so nice really, even the rude Hank from the saloon." She chuckled and shook her head.
"Yeah well, if you've come to like someone like Hank I guess you're a full-blown citizen of Colorado Springs." Matthew laughed with her.
Then her expression turned a little serious, "Well the git did attempt to hire me as one of his 'ladies', but I ignored him and when Sully walked with me later in the day, he didn't pressure me any further."
"No, he didn't. Damn, that man is relentless when it comes to the damn salon," Matthew mumbled and rubbed his neck. He remembered his own gambling 'adventure' not so long ago. "I nearly lost the engagement ring I was meant to give to Ingrid." When Jessica raised her eyebrows he explained, "Got a tiny bit addicted to gambling at one point, not really my finest moments, I'm afraid." He watched her warily, hoping she would not look down on him after hearing this.
When he finally dared to look up at her he didn't find pity or even anger, only understanding and compassion.
"I'm sorry you had to go through all of that." Her voice was low and she reached over and placed her hand on his, letting her fingers gently caress his knuckles.
"Yeah well, it's in the past now so…" He shrugged and kept his eyes on her the whole time, he wanted her to understand that he would want to share things like this with her.
"Yeah it is, and since I'm a bit foggy on what shite I've been doing in my life I can't really share a story of a similar caliber." She grinned and shrugged then she smiled.
"Well, the past is in the past so no need to dwell on those things," Matthew said with an encouraging smile and turned his hand around so he could grasp her fingers in his. He watched her look at their hands and a knowing smile spread over her lips.
"Yup and right now we're having lunch and hanging out, getting to know each other." Jessica looked at him with a smile. Matthew was happy to be able to spend time with her like this.
"So, are you nervous about the council meeting?" Matthew asked and looked at her while he finished his lunch.
Jessica tilted her head to the side thinking this over, then she shook her head and said, "No not really, I mean I've been talking with Mrs. Morales and she will give them her input and I know Dr. Mike will do the same."
"You already got people covering your back here. How are you feeling about starting this job?" He took a sip of his drink and shifted the cup from side to side while he kept his eyes on her.
"It will be fun, and very nice to do something other than doing small odd jobs for Dr. Mike and picking up your sister. That's good and all but I sort of want to be able to do this on my own. Have my own money," she finished with a shrug.
"Yeah, I can understand that," Matthew said and finished, "I want you to know that I'm behind you too on this." When she raised a curious eyebrow at him he added, "Well, most women don't work, apart from Dr. Mike and Mrs. Jennings, the newspaper lady, and Grace here."
"Ah, I see. Yeah, as I remember from my history classes, women did the housework and the man brought in the gold." She grinned ruefully at this and shrugged, "To me, it sounds old-fashioned, but I guess that is how it is in this place. I don't care what other people think about this."
"That's good, I'm glad you feel like this. I guess my mother is also to blame for my rather open-minded view on this, she was the midwife in this town and ran a small boarding home. She was a strong woman," Matthew said with a sad smile on his lips.
"Would you tell me more about your mother?" Jessica asked and while they had a small dessert, Matthew ended up telling her the whole tale of his childhood and how he and his brother and sister ended up living with Dr. Mike, the female doctor of this town. Whenever he shared something funny she would laugh, but she would also show compassion and understanding when he shared the hard times.
Later he walked to his office and did his work for the day while feeling so much lighter having shared all of this with Jessica. She really did bring out the best in him.