A/N:

I'll be posting weekly from now on because I just started work! Thanks for the reviews.

Chapter Four: The Mayor

Lee walked around his mill. Everything was working as it should; the foremen had their workers busy, and it looked like they'd be able to make all their deadlines before winter hit. Unfortunately for Lee, that meant that he had nothing extra to do until the vote was announced at 6:30 that evening. So he had the whole day ahead of him. He was about to head back to the office to work on some paperwork when Jesse stopped him. "Lee, do you have a minute?"

"Of course." Lee stopped. "Let's go in my office; its warmer in there."

"Sure." Jesse followed Lee in.

"What is it?" Lee asked when they had gone inside.

"Some of the men are up in the forest, trying to finish up their estimates before the first snowfall. Unfortunately, they've run into some troubles. Is it okay for me to send some extra men up there to help?"

"Hmm…" Lee paused. "I really need all hands on deck to get this contract finished up, so I'd rather if everyone stays here. But I'll go up and see what I can do to help them."

"Okay." Jesse nodded.

"Where are they?"

"Up in the north sector."

"Great. Thanks Jesse." Lee turned to his desk as Jesse headed back outside. He looked over his map, then put back on his coat and gloves and headed outside. It took him a couple tries to crank up the car, but eventually he got it going and then he was on his way out of town. It wasn't a terribly long drive to the north sector, and he got there in fifteen minutes. He pulled the car off to the side and hopped out, walking towards his men. "How's it going?"

One of the men stepped towards him. "Not good, Lee. I'm afraid that we're not going to get this all done before next week."

"Well, I'm here to help, so let's see if we can get some extra work done. Where do you need me, James?"

"It'd be great if you could help us with the trees." James said. "There's a crew walking around right now."

"I'll start there." Lee followed James over to the estimation crew, and he rubbed his hands together. It was definitely cold, for him and his men. Hopefully they'd be able to get everything done before it got dark.

Rosemary paused on the steps of the schoolhouse to make sure she had everything she needed. Due to the vote, Elizabeth had let the children go at lunch, so Rosemary was coming by to talk to her friend about plans for that evening, or the after-vote party, and walk her home. She felt of a wave of dizziness wash over her, but she remembered that she hadn't eat breakfast. Yes, that would certainly do it. But she pushed through and opened the door, stepping into the warmth of the schoolhouse.

"Rosemary." Elizabeth looked up with a smile.

"Elizabeth. I came over right away, and we can start talking about plans. I thought maybe we could do some light food – I'm sure Abigail wouldn't mind cooking – and just enjoy ourselves for the evening." Rosemary said in one breath.

"I like it, and you're just in time because I'm ready to leave." Elizabeth stood up.

"Good. Make sure you grab your coat – it's cold outside." Rosemary directed.

"Have you seen Lee this morning? Is he nervous for tonight?"

"No, he got up early. Yes, he is quite nervous. I'm not though, I'm sure he'll win." Rosemary said confidently. "He's clearly the best choice."

"Well, he would make a wonderful mayor." Elizabeth agreed as she carefully closed the schoolhouse door behind her. "Brrr, do you think it'll snow soon?"

"Probably. After this, we have to start thinking about Christmas." Rosemary sighed. "Christmas always comes and leaves so fast."

"It's a wonderful time of year."

"Shall we go see what Abigail is cooking up?"

"Mmm, sure. Maybe we can taste it too." Elizabeth winked, jabbing her friend with her elbow.

"Maybe!" Rosemary's eyes lit up. That sounded great, especially because she hadn't eaten breakfast yet. And to spend some time with Elizabeth would be worth it too.

The two of them hurried inside the Café, and were able to taste some of the delicious treats that Abigail was preparing for that evening. Rosemary still didn't feel better, but she was sure it would wear off – with some more food. The day passed quickly, and it grew closer to the evening. She kept hoping that she'd see Lee, but he hadn't reappeared yet.

Later that evening, the town gathered in the saloon to hear the final vote. Nathan had been elected to announce the winner, and Ned, Jesse, and Lucas were counting the ballots.

"Do you know where Lee is?" Rosemary asked Jesse when she saw him.

"He's been up in the forest all day, helping the estimation crew finish up." Jesse answered.

"He's not back, then."

"No, but he should be back soon. It's getting dark out."

"I sure hope so." Rosemary forced a smile. "Thanks, Jesse."

"No problem." He nodded, then left to join Ned and Lucas.

Rosemary shifted uneasily. She wasn't trying to be worried, but it was the forest. And the last time he had been late – she shivered involuntarily – she had almost lost him. Please, bring him back home, she prayed softly. I need him.

It was dark in the forest, and the men were using lanterns. They were nearly done marking the final estimates when it began to rain and get windy. As soon as Lee noticed it, he stopped the men. "We can continue this later!" He shouted. "We need to go now. Get back to the wagons."

The men hurried back to the wagons, but it was raining fast and hard. They were soaked and shivering before they even reached the wagons and then they had to travel home yet. When they reached the wagons, Lee leaned over to James. "I have an idea," he said. "Take my car, take as many men as you can, and bring them back to town. Me and the rest will bring the wagons back."

James nodded. "I will." He knew how much Lee prized his car, and he would be careful. He and three other men got in the car, and Lee and the other three got into the wagons. In the rain and dark, it took the car twice as long to get back to town and the wagons three times. And yet it was still raining, soaking everyone completely through.

Rosemary saw Nathan walk up to the front of the crowd, and she looked around. Lee still wasn't back yet. Where was he? She half-debated asking Nathan to go search for him, but she'd wait until at least after he announced the winner. "Ladies and gentlemen," he said, waving a hand. The room quieted down, waiting in anticipation for him to continue. "The newest mayor of Hope Valley is…Lee Coulter."

Cheers and clapping erupted as everyone looked for Lee to step up to Nathan. When he didn't, they began looking around. Nathan looked around in confusion, then went to find Rosemary, who looked a little less pleased than she should have. "Where's Lee?" He asked.

"I don't know. He went up to the forest to help his men, and he's not back yet." Rosemary said worriedly.

"I'll go see if I can find them." Nathan promised.

Elizabeth was at his side in a moment. "Where's Lee?"

"We don't know, I'm going to go see." Nathan said quickly.

"Be safe." She replied. "I think it's raining."

Nathan nodded and turned. "Everyone, stay here. I'll be back in a moment." Then he turned towards the doors. Just as he began to walk forward to them, they opened as a bunch of very wet and cold men stumbled in. Nathan jumped forward. "Get inside!" He pulled them in.

Rosemary moved forward, looking for Lee. "Where's Lee?" She asked James.

"He was behind us, driving the wagons. He should be here soon." James answered.

Rosemary said nothing, but grabbed her jacket.

"Where are you going?" Elizabeth asked.

"Outside."

"It's raining, and it's cold." Elizabeth protested.

"I don't care. I'm going to wait for Lee." Rosemary said stubbornly. She had to be the first one to see him.

"Get yourselves warm." Nathan said to the men, then turned to Elizabeth. Rosemary walked past them, going outside. Elizabeth was right, it was cold. But at least on the boardwalk she'd be dry. She sat down, looking down the road for signs of the wagons. First she saw the lantern light slowly coming closer in the rain, and then she heard them clacking along. Finally, they stopped in front of the sawmill and she ran across the street, ignoring the rain.

"Lee!" She called, looking impatiently for him. "Lee!" As soon as she saw his familiar face, her heart began to beat again in relief. He looked tired, cold, and wet, but he was here and that was all that mattered.

He looked up. "Rosie! What are you doing outside? It's raining."

"I was waiting for you." She said breathlessly. She didn't even care that he was soaking, she gave him a big hug. "You scared me half to death."

"I'm sorry. I planned to be back, but we really needed to get this estimate done. Did I miss the vote?"

She led him out of the rain. "Yes, you missed it. But you won it! You're the newest mayor!"

"That's great."

"You've got to come to the saloon." Rosemary pleaded.

"Rosie, I'm wet and cold." Lee protested.

"Just for a moment."

"Alright." He relented, and they ducked back across the street, now both half-wet. They entered the saloon to cheers and clapping. Lee got many handshakes, so many he couldn't properly remember. He was so tired, and cold, and wet. If Rosie hadn't been there to hold him up, he might have fallen over. "Rosie, I need to go home." He finally said.

"Oh Lee, I'm so sorry. I totally forgot." She turned to him. "Come on, let's go."

They slipped away from the party and back to Lee's car. Lee couldn't stop shivering, so Rosemary drove. She helped him out and up the front steps of the rowhouse, and then inside. He could hardly stand by himself, he was shaking so much, so she helped him upstairs, got him out of his wet clothes, and did her best to get him warm. She wasn't sure how late it was, but she had been sitting next to him for a while. Eventually her head started to nod and then she fell asleep.

It was in the middle of the night when she woke up, and she stretched her hand out to feel Lee's head. She realized it was burning up, and she sat up, now fully awake. Something was definitely wrong. "I'll be right back," she murmured quietly. She slipped down the stairs and headed for the phone. But before she reached it, her head swam and she fell forwards onto the settee, hitting her head on the back. Even that didn't wake her up.

Elizabeth stood on the front steps of Rosemary's rowhouse, waiting. Rosemary had promised to help her this morning, and she wondered what was taking her friend so long. She knocked on the door, but there was no answer. Frowning, she decided to go ahead and open the door. She opened it and walked in. Right away, she saw Rosemary on the couch. Elizabeth might have thought that her friend was just sleeping, except for the fact that Rosemary was laying funny. She walked over and gently shook Rosemary's shoulder. "Rosemary, Rosemary."

Rosemary slightly shifted. Elizabeth felt her forehead, which was cool. Then Rosemary opened her eyes. "Go…" she said softly. "Help Lee. I have to help Lee." She tried to sit up, but she fell back over again.

Elizabeth was worried. She went upstairs, and found Lee lying on the bed. A quick check told her that he was burning up. She hurried back downstairs and called Faith. "Faith, I need you to come to the Coulters. Rosemary and Lee are sick. Hurry!" Then she called Abigail. "Can you fill in for me?"

Rosemary was now sitting up, but her head still swam. Lee wasn't there, was he at work? No, she remembered that she had to help him. She had to call Faith because Lee was sick. She looked around her. Elizabeth was there. When did Elizabeth come? Then she felt her stomach tip and knew she had to get up. She didn't even notice Elizabeth in the corner as she got up and dashed outside. When she came back, she only felt worse. What was wrong with her?

Just then, Faith entered the rowhouse and saw Rosemary. "Where's Lee?" She asked Elizabeth.

"Upstairs." Elizabeth replied.

"Okay. I'll check on him first." Faith replied, hurrying up. In a few minutes, she came back down. "Lee has a really high fever, probably from getting a soaking last night." She quickly checked over Rosemary, who had fallen asleep again. "I'm not sure what's wrong with Rosemary, but I'm going to need your help."

"Of course." Elizabeth nodded. "I'll do anything I can."