Chapter 13
Learning New Skills
The next morning, very early, Nathan slipped out of his row house silently to walk into town to give Gabe a private farewell. Nathan met up with him as he was saddling Apollo.
"Gabe, I can't even begin to thank you for all of this," Nathan said as he looked around the livery and gestured to himself.
"Nathan, my motivations are entirely selfish. You've been part of my family since our training. I can't let anyone else be in charge of this. Or not be involved. You're my brother. I know what I've risked by staying here-professionally and personally-but I would do it again, and for twice as long if I need to," Gabe said as he led Apollo out of his stall.
Nathan was holding back tears.
"Be safe," Nathan said.
"Like you?" Gabe teased. They clapped each other on the back.
"Well, I'm not going to be around to walk into the booby traps. I can't watch your back personally on this one," Nathan said as they left the livery.
Gabe smiled.
"It's okay. You need to heal up first. I've been hearing rumors that Sam's mining tools have been going missing," Gabe said.
Nathan sighed.
"I really don't want to test the odds that I would survive another dynamite explosion," Nathan said.
"Dynamite explosion?" Rosemary shrieked. "When was this?"
Gabe and Nathan looked up in surprise.
"You haven't told them that one?" Nathan asked in surprise.
Gabe was thinking about it.
"Nope, Bill asked, but we never got around to talking about it," Gabe admitted with an apologetic look to Bill Avery who was also standing in the street.
"I kind of expected that to be the first story," Nathan said.
Gabe shrugged.
"We were distracted by Dylan Parks coming into town," Ned said.
Nathan looked at Gabe in shock.
"Gabe! When was he here?" Nathan asked.
"Colleen's death anniversary. You know for a small town, Hope Valley is a very eventful place," Gabe said.
Nathan just glared at him.
"If you want a quiet town, Brookfield rolls up the boardwalk quite early," Gabe teased.
"Oh, I know EXACTLY how early," Nathan replied, "Hope Valley is more my pace."
"Good, because I miss my rocking chair," Gabe said.
"You sit in a rocking chair?" Bill asked with shock, one eyebrow raised.
"He does," Nathan confirmed.
Bill shook his head.
"Kinslow, you've just lost some points with me," Bill said gruffly.
Gabe smiled.
"You're just too scared to try it and find out that it would actually ease your back pain, old man," Gabe teased.
"Say that to me when you're not riding off on a mission," Bill glared once again.
"It will be my first words to you when I get back," Gabe promised.
"Rosemary has provided you with some reading material for your breaks. Be safe," Bill said softly as he handed over that day's Valley Voice. Gabe opened it and read:
Mess-Up at Mountie Headquarters? Still No Real Explanation for Real Questions
By: Rosemary Coulter
It was several months ago that the Mounties celebrated a quick and easy arrest of the Olsen gang's leader. The arrest was officially given credit to an up and coming rising star just out of the academy, Constable Croaker. According to the news articles and the Mountie publications, Constable Croaker was alone when he arrested the notorious bandit. But my questions have always been, why send a fresh new constable into such a dangerous place? Why would a new Mountie have the skills to track and arrest someone who was notoriously slippery? Why would Mountie Headquarters change their policies on these issues, when in the past they had to have a partner? But in looking even closer at those reports, it becomes fairly obvious. The Olsen gang leader was being led on another Mountie's horse. In many of the pictures it is clear that the man is riding on official Mountie gear. So, headquarters, what happened to the second Mountie? Why is his involvement being kept quiet? And why haven't you corrected your official report on Constable Croaker's involvement?
He looked at Rosemary.
"You're very brave to take this on, but you have my thanks anyway," Gabe said with administration in his voice.
"You and the others who are doing everything else on this mission of justice are the brave ones. I'm just pointing it out," Rosemary said as she stepped forward to hand him some wrapped meals.
Gabe took them with thanks.
"I don't think anyone in Brookfield would be awake to see me off so early. It seems so unreal," Gabe said as he looked around at the growing amount of people in the street.
"Well, if you do decide you want to stay, Hope Valley is growing, eventually we will need a second Mountie," Florence said.
Gabe just smiled. Him and Constable Monroe all had a loud applause at 3 am as they were leaving Hope Valley.
Nathan was standing next to Bill on the Mountie Office boardwalk.
"Dylan was here?" Nathan asked.
"He was. He broke into your row house when it was empty. Gabe and I took care of him rather quickly, and he was taken out by a prisoner transfer. To be honest, I had forgotten that he had," Bill said in reply. "It seems so inconsequential now compared to the rest of what followed, but it was his arrest that caused Gabe to begin to explain about Colleen. Gabe gave most of Hope Valley the short version, but he gave a small group with Elizabeth the long, extended version, and because of that, Elizabeth chose to break up with Lucas," Bill said.
Nathan looked at him in surprise.
"I would ask why no one has said anything about it, but..."
"You've only had your memories back for a week and a lot has happened," Bill said.
Nathan nodded.
"I do have to say that I like Kinslow. He's a good Mountie, and an excellent man," Bill admitted to Nathan. "Actually, the two of you remind me of Tom Thornton Sr. and myself before Tom died."
Nathan looked at him in surprise.
"We were cadets at the same time. We were also good friends. We were at each other's celebrations when we could be. I wasn't able to help when he died, though. Still one of the things I regret as a Mountie. And also why I took a shine to Jack Sr.. I wanted to make sure I could protect him if I could. Although, that didn't work out either," Bill whispered.
Nathan didn't say anything in reply.
"I'm glad you do have someone who can see and knows that side of you. You've always been so closed off, I was worried that you didn't have a deep bond with a Mountie brother," Bill admitted, "and we need them to keep us honest and on our toes, and when to tell us to step back."
"Is that what you were doing when I first got here?" Nathan asked.
Bill nodded.
"I think it's safe to say that I wouldn't have survived without you and Gabe immediately taking up the case. I don't know how to repay you," Nathan admitted.
"Buy my land," Bill said with his half teasing voice.
Nathan looked surprised.
"I thought you would have sold it by now," Nathan commented.
Bill shook his head.
"Nope. I'm the problematic curmudgeon who refused to sell the sweet spot right dab in the middle of the developers' future factory,"' Bill said.
Nathan looked at him.
"They must have offered more than your asking price," Nathan observed.
"They were. But I'm not selling the land to make a profit. I'm selling the land in hope that someone can make it a home," Bill added, but gave Nathan a long look.
Nathan met it back.
"I was waiting for you to come back, actually. If you feel like you want to stick around again," Bill said honestly.
"Actually, I do," Nathan replied.
"Great! We'll discuss the legalities in a bit," Bill smiled.
Nathan shook his hand. Bill walked towards his office. Nathan entered his to get caught up on Hope Valley's current problems.
Rosemary had anticipated more circulation of that particular paper, since the cover article was about Nathan and the people of Hope Valley knew it. What she didn't expect was having to do a re-printing. Every single person bought two. And the second one was mailed out to friends and relatives. Fiona also made sure to buy a stack of extras and paid Robert to leave some on each train as discarded reading material for future passengers.
It was in the afternoon that Rosemary's office began being inundated with calls.
"Valley Voice? I'm Rosemary Coulter. Yes, I am the one running the story about the missing Mountie. To my knowledge the Valley Voice is the only one following it. Yes, we deliver," Rosemary had several of these types of calls all afternoon. She had gotten swamped with new subscriptions for both personal families and larger places of business. By the end of her day she had a help wanted sign in her window.
Rosemary was crawling up the Mercantile steps to post a help wanted sign on the community board. Florence and Ned were looking just as harried .
"Are ya alright, Rosemary?" Archie asked as he looked at her.
"It's been a busy day. But a good kind of busy. The story is being talked about already," Rosemary admitted.
"Good to hear," Archie said with a smile.
Archie had updated his family of how busy the phones were in the afternoon and Rosemary's need for a secretary in her office now. Everyone was happily cheering at the news. Elizabeth and Jack were walking home from having dinner with Bill as they had been celebrating.
Allie saw them through the window and waved her to come over.
Elizabeth waved back and walked to the steps slowly.
"Hello, everyone!" Elizabeth said happily.
Allie and Nathan had opened their door.
"Have you heard?" Allie asked with happiness.
"We did. The story is the talk of the town, and Rosemary needing more help in her office shows just how wide this is spreading," Elizabeth said with a bright smile.
Everyone was smiling.
"Elizabeth, do you mind if I stop by later?" Nathan asked, knowing he would need to talk with her in semi-private.
"No, of course not," Elizabeth said fondly.
"Why don't you talk now?" Allie asked in curiosity.
"Because we have other obligations. I'm not making the Coulter's have to watch Jack after Rosemary's day," Nathan reprimanded her.
Elizabeth smiled at Nathan taking the Coulters' exhaustion into account.
"We can watch Jack," Allie suggested.
"Don't volunteer other people for something without their knowing," Nathan reprimanded again.
"Dad, Grandma and Grandpa won't mind. They love Jack," Allie said.
Archie had helped Ruth to the doorway once they heard them being mentioned.
"What's going on?" Archie asked.
"Dad and Mrs. Thornton need time to talk alone, but Jack has no sitters. I offered that we could watch him," Allie said.
Archie smiled. Ruth was also looking down at Jack sweetly.
"R'chee. Roof! R'chee! Roof!" Jack began to walk straight towards them both.
"We'll be happy to watch him while you go on a walk," Archie said.
"Are you sure? I'm sure it can wait until Jack is in bed," Elizabeth said.
Nathan nodded in agreement.
"We're sure. Go on a walk. Talk where you won't be overheard," Ruth said before surprising everyone and bending down and picking up Jack herself. She held him closely and shooed Nathan out the door, and then shut it behind him.
Nathan and Elizabeth were both staring at the closed door in shock.
"What just happened?" Elizabeth asked.
"I think Ma is warming up to you," Nathan said as he put out his arm.
Elizabeth took it.
"I think she is warming up to Jack and realizes that we're a package deal," Elizabeth whispered in his ear.
Nathan couldn't help the laugh that escaped him.
They walked in companionable silence to the dock.
"So, what's on your mind?" Elizabeth asked as she looked up at Nathan.
Nathan sighed.
"Bill asked me if I still want to buy his land," Nathan said.
"Really? Are you?" Elizabeth asked, afraid of his answer.
"Initially, I agreed. But in thinking about it more, I'm not sure," Nathan admitted.
"Why not?" Elizabeth said.
"Because...because, what if we don't make it that far, Elizabeth? We've only just started to tentatively date. We've had two kisses, and a lot of time spent together with other people around, but we haven't even gone on a real date, yet. And we're starting this just as I'm about to be put in more of the public eye than I want to be. That's a lot of stress for a brand new relationship. It could break under the amount of pressure," Nathan said.
"And if we break up you would leave Hope Valley," Elizabeth concluded.
"I couldn't watch you be with someone else," Nathan said. "And this is where you're supposed to be."
"For the record, I couldn't watch you with someone else either. Bill made me realize that," Elizabeth said.
Nathan looked at her.
"Actually, he interrogated it out of me. It was quite painful," Elizabeth said. "But also worth it, because it led me to realizing who was meant for me."
Nathan smiled.
"Nathan, I'm sorry it took me so long to be honest about what was in my heart, but you have to know that I want us to dream of our future together. I know we are starting this at a poor time, and yes this could break us. But it could also bring us together and make us stronger, and really, I think we've already been through your amnesia, and my own stupidity about us, I think this is just going to be a bump in our long road together," Elizabeth said.
Nathan nodded.
She caressed his face.
"So, what kind of house do you want?" Elizabeth teased.
"The house is simple. It's the barn that's a bit more complicated," Nathan teased back.
"Well, it would have to be, every single one of us rides a horse. Our future kids will obviously have their own," Elizabeth said with a smirk.
Nathan nearly choked when she mentioned more kids.
"How many kids?" Nathan asked with curiosity.
"How many do you want?" Elizabeth asked.
"That is completely up to you. You're the one who has to go through pregnancy and childbirth. I'm not asking you to do any more than you want to give me," Nathan replied honestly.
"Well, I want a lot," Elizabeth said.
"And we're already ahead with two," Nathan teased.
"That's absolutely true," Elizabeth said a little breathless.
Nathan smiled at her before holding out his arm to take them back home.
"So, I feel like our first date, sans everyone else, should be before my name gets dropped in the Valley Voice. It will be harder to find time alone once it does," Nathan said as they were approaching the edge of the row houses.
Elizabeth nodded.
"Is there a time that works best for you?" Nathan asked.
"How about this Thursday? Dinner?" Elizabeth said.
Nathan nodded as he walked them back towards his house. They could hear Jack laughing loudly at something the Grants were doing with him.
Nathan walked up the steps to get Jack, but Archie opened the door before he got to the top step. He was holding up a bundled up Jack. Both were smiling brightly.
Jack had a new hat and mittens.
"How was he?" Elizabeth asked.
"We had no fun at all, can't ya tell?" Archie winked.
Jack giggled again.
"Thank you for watching him," Elizabeth said as she reached out for Jack.
"It's no trouble at all. In fact, if you ever need a moment, and we're still here, please don't hesitate to drop him by," Archie said as he waved goodbye to Jack.
Nathan walked them both back home.
"Jack, where did you get your new hat and mittens?" Elizabeth asked as she took in the knitted items.
"Granma Roof," Jack said loudly.
This was the first time Nathan had heard this and watched the look of peevishness on Elizabeth's face. He couldn't help but laugh. Elizabeth turned her glare to him.
"Archie at least lasted more than a minute the first time Jack said that," Elizabeth said.
"When did he say it?" Nathan asked once he had caught his breath.
"When they had returned to let us know about you being missing. I was discussing school with Allie. It was dinner. They said to bring Jack," Elizabeth explained.
"And Ma and Jack feel in love at first sight, I'm guessing," Nathan said.
"It did remind me of the two of you at his christening reception," Elizabeth said.
Nathan nodded, but his smile was still there.
"Why hasn't anyone told me this story before now?" Nathan asked with a glint of humor.
"Because I'm embarrassed about it still. I apologized, but Jack has never been able to call her Mrs. Grant. He's been sticking to Ruth, so I thought he had gone past that," Elizabeth admitted.
"Well, I doubt he sees her much," Nathan said.
Elizabeth nodded.
"Still. I'm surprised she had something that fits so well," Elizabeth said as she played with the hat.
"Oh, she knitted them while he was there," Nathan said with a look at Jack who was smiling back.
Elizabeth was stunned.
"She's that fast?" Elizabeth said in surprise. "We weren't gone that long."
"If she's having a good day, yes, she can. Sometimes her arthritis flares, and she can't do much," Nathan said as he helped her to her door. "So, Thursday, then?"
"For our date, yes. But I'm definitely counting on seeing you multiple times a day between now and then," Elizabeth confirmed.
Nathan smiled slightly. "You can count on it."
Elizabeth and Jack were both waving goodbye before shutting the door. Nathan couldn't wipe the smile off of his face his entire walk back.
Rosemary, despite her exhaustion, had to check in on her friend.
"Hello, Rosemary, is everything alright," Elizabeth looked surprised to see her.
"I heard Jack call Ruth 'Grandma.' Is there something you're not telling me?" Rosemary gave a long look to Elizabeth's bare left hand.
"Rosemary, we've only been courting for two days. We haven't even had a real date yet. Nathan wouldn't ask me to marry him that quickly," Elizabeth said.
"But your answer would be yes if he did," Rosemary stated.
Elizabeth gave her a look of warning.
Rosemary returned a knowing look back.
"If he asked, probably. But only because I feel like we've lost so much time together, due to my own insecurities," Elizabeth admitted.
Rosemary shrieked in delight.
"And what exactly were the two of you discussing on this impromptu romantic stroll?"
"Bill offered to sell Nathan his land. Nathan needed to know if it was wise to buy it," Elizabeth said.
"Oh," Rosemary replied flatly, knowing that it had been Elizabeth fleeing his confession of love the first time that made him second guess his need to have the land in the first place. "Well, that's not romantic."
Elizabeth nodded.
"So, what did you tell him?" Rosemary asked.
"That I want us to have dreams of the future together," Elizabeth said.
"And?" Rosemary encouraged.
"Then I asked him what his dream house looked like. And he replied that it was the barn that was giving him trouble. And then we talked about potential future kids and how many," Elizabeth said.
Rosemary choked on her own gasp of air.
Elizabeth looked at her.
"Wow, the two of you went from about a stop to a full gallop in about 30 seconds," Rosemary said. "Are you sure he's not going to propose on your date? No wonder Jack is calling Ruth 'Grandma.'"
Elizabeth just shook her head.
"I was surprised to hear it again actually," Elizabeth said.
"Again? He's said it before?" Rosemary asked.
"Yes, at a time when Ruth would not have been very receptive towards it," Elizabeth explained.
"How is she warming up to you?" Rosemary asked.
"I think I've slowly warmed her up. But I also feel like at this pace, I will be dead before she gives me her blessing," Elizabeth replied honestly.
"She just needs to see you continue to choose Nathan. I think, once everything is out in the open with Nathan's story, she will see how powerful your support is to him. And that is what will make her like you," Rosemary said.
Elizabeth nodded.
"How are you holding up with Nathan's news?" Rosemary asked softly.
"Why do you ask?" Elizabeth said.
Rosemary finally looked like she'd had a rough day.
"Because hearing about what happened to him was hard for me. Hearing about the others involved and what they noticed, when they noticed. I have no doubt that it was just divine providence that brought Nathan back to us, and relatively free from injury. It could have been so much worse! Hearing this-interviewing everyone-all of it-has made me respect the man so much more. And it had to be hard for you to realize just how close you were to losing him again," Rosemary said.
Elizabeth nodded.
"That is also another reason why I would say yes without hesitation. I want to know what our lives could feel like together. I realized that with Jack, despite it being cut short, I didn't have many regrets with the time we did spend together. With Nathan, the entire time he was telling us, I became more aware that I would regret not having those memories with him, if he did die," Elizabeth said.
Rosemary patted her hand.
Nathan and Allie were walking towards the school house just as Elizabeth left hers. They slowed down so that she could catch up and then they walked together.
"So, since you don't have your horse rounds yet, I was thinking we could start the Irish lessons when you normally do them," Elizabeth said in greeting.
Allie was looking between them and started to bounce.
"Irish lessons?" Allie asked, looking at her father.
Nathan sighed.
"Yeah, that sounds good enough for a start," Nathan said hesitantly.
Allie was beaming.
"Who is all getting the lessons?" Allie asked.
"You, Jack, me," Elizabeth answered.
Allie hugged them both.
"I'm so excited!" Allie said as she dashed away to tell her friends.
"We couldn't tell," Nathan said sarcastically to her retreating back.
Elizabeth laughed.
"I have no idea how to teach," Nathan said in a worried whisper.
"Sure you do. Allie didn't learn how to fish on her own," Elizabeth said.
"A foreign language is a lot more complex than fishing," Nathan pointed out.
"And yet small children learn them all the time," Elizabeth said.
Nathan didn't look encouraged.
"Start with the basics," Elizabeth said.
"That depends on if you want to read and write it or just speak it," Nathan said.
"You can read in it, too?" Elizabeth protested. "Constable Grant! You are a waisted fountain of knowledge!"
Nathan just shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck nervously as he waited for Elizabeth to stop glaring at him.
"How did Archie teach you?" Elizabeth asked.
"I don't remember much. We learned from a young age," Nathan replied.
"Perhaps you should ask him for some pointers," Elizabeth said as they approached the schoolhouse. It soon became time for her to start school, but Nathan had waited until the door was completely shut before turning back to go into town.
Nathan went about his morning in town rounds checking in with the businesses and standing outside the Mountie Office. Everyone was waving and making sure to come and say how happy they were about him being able to come home safely despite everything else.
After the school day ended, Nathan went to grab Archie and Allie to go fishing again.
"Dad, Elizabeth has asked to learn how to read, write, and speak in Irish and she asked Allie and Jack to be part of the lessons. I don't know how to go about that, though. How did you teach us?" Nathan asked once they had all settled into their spots.
Archie gave him a long look.
"The same way you teach any language, Nathan. While you were learning how to say your words in English, I pointed to them and said them in Irish," Archie said. "Just do what you did with Allie, but in Irish."
"Allie knew her letters and numbers because of Colleen," Nathan protested.
"That girl did NOT become an advanced reader without yer help!" Archie protested as he had pointed down to Allie who was fishing a bit of a distance away. "Math was Colleen's subject, Reading was yours. You know just what to do."
Nathan sighed heavily. Still at a loss in how to go about teaching it.
But Allie then antagonized them both for not catching anything, which led to another Grant family competition. Which made them over fish by a lot. Archie took his catch to Bill in the café. Allie took hers home. Nathan went to the saloon again.
"This is becoming a habit, Constable," Lucas teased as Nathan came in carrying his catch.
"Well, our reputations as fishermen were at stake, and this way some people don't go hungry," Nathan replied as he handed over the catch.
Lucas agreed.
"Do you still want the payment to go to someone's tab?" Lucas asked.
Nathan nodded.
"Nothing's changed with that agreement," Nathan said.
Lucas smiled.
"I will pass them off to Gustav," Lucas said.
Nathan tipped his head and walked back out into the street. He went back into his office to work on some paperwork when Bill entered from his rounds.
"How did they go?" Nathan asked.
"Nothing unusual," Bill said.
Nathan nodded.
"How are things with you?" Bill asked.
Nathan sat and pondered how to answer the question.
"Elizabeth wants me to teach her and the children Irish," Nathan said.
"Your children, or the school children?" Bill asked.
"Yes," Nathan said.
Bill smirked.
"To start off with, it would be just Jack and Allie. But teaching in general isn't something I'm good at," Nathan said.
"Did you talk with your father about it?" Bill asked.
Nathan nodded.
"He gave me the same advice Elizabeth did, and I'm not sure how to start," Nathan said.
Bill looked at Nathan, trying to determine what he was really worried about. But he let it go this time.
"I heard that Jack called Ruth 'Grandma,'" he transitioned.
Nathan smiled.
"He did. Apparently, more than once," Nathan said.
Bill smiled.
"How is your mother taking Elizabeth and her forgiveness?" Bill asked.
Nathan shrugged.
"She's not entirely happy yet," Nathan said.
"I don't blame her. Any parent would have had that problem," Bill said.
Nathan nodded, thinking how he would have reacted if it had been Allie.
"Also know that we will help bury any bodies you need if a boy disrespects Allie," Bill whispered, sensing the direction of Nathan's thoughts.
Nathan just laughed.
"We have a very conveniently placed, closed up mine, not too far away, you know," Bill added.
Nathan laughed harder.
"Lee, I need your help," Nathan asked as he entered the Mill's Office after Bill had left him alone.
"With what?" Lee asked.
Nathan looked around and was assessing if anyone could overhear.
"Elizabeth agreed to go on a date on Thursday," Nathan started.
"Oh?" Lee asked.
"I don't want us to go out into too much of the public eye around here, and I don't want to accidentally recreate or overthrow any of her dates with Jack," Nathan said quietly.
"That severally limits your options, my friend," Lee pointed out.
"Yes. When I had been planning on going on a date with her, I had planned on riding to Brookfield with her," Nathan admitted.
"But you can't ride," Lee pointed out.
"Hence my problem and the favor?" Nathan said.
Lee looked up at him in surprise.
"Can you teach me how to drive?" Nathan asked.
"By Thursday?" Lee asked in surprise.
Nathan nodded.
"I can teach you, but I don't know if you will be ready for such a long trip in such a short amount of time," Lee said.
Nathan deflated, but nodded knowing that they were under a severe time constraint.
"I will think of something else, thanks anyway, Lee," Nathan said as he left the office.
Lee sighed as he watched Nathan walk to the livery to brush and take care of Newton.
'He must be so frustrated with only being able to walk places,' Lee thought as he watched his friend's retreating back. The man had spent most of his time on the back of a horse. To be suddenly foot bound had to be hard on him. Lee was struggling with himself.
"Oh. I must be going crazy," Lee mumbled under his breath just as Rosemary entered.
"Oh? And what exactly is your crazy idea?" Rosemary asked as she came over to give him a kiss.
"To teach Nathan how to drive by Thursday," Lee answered.
Rosemary looked at him wide eyed.
"Nathan hasn't ever driven an automobile before," she pointed out.
"I know."
"Thursday is three days away, two if you don't count today," Rosemary added.
"I know."
"So, why are you giving yourselves such a short turn around?" Rosemary asked.
"Because that is his first official date with Elizabeth, and he doesn't want everyone to be watching them," Lee said.
"Oh."
Rosemary got that look on her face as she was working out the problem.
"I really don't think Carson would approve of Nathan driving so far by himself, even if he is a fast study," Rosemary added.
Lee nodded.
"But you should have seen his face, Rosie. I think Nathan is struggling with being foot bound."
Rosemary nodded.
"Start his lessons. But if they don't go as well as either of you hope, we will go with them," Rosemary said.
Lee looked at her in surprise.
"We can't invite ourselves to their first date. The whole point of this is for them to be alone!" Lee protested.
"We will leave them alone. We're just driving them to the location. And I'm sure Grace and Lillian will have a lot to catch up on," Rosemary said.
Lee and Rosemary had a silent conversation.
"Alright, I will offer our chauffeuring services if he's not ready. But we only go if he agrees," Lee said.
Rosemary nodded with a smile.
Lee went to find Nathan. Nathan was just finishing up in the livery and was about to walk home.
"Nathan!" Lee shouted to get his attention.
Nathan turned and looked confused about him being the one who needed him.
"Is everything alright?" Nathan asked.
"Yes, everything's fine. But I want to discuss that matter you brought up earlier. Can we talk?" Lee gestured to his office.
Nathan looked surprised but followed him inside. Rosemary was there now and beaming at him.
"I've changed my mind. I would like to get you driving ready before Thursday. But if you aren't," Lee said.
Nathan interrupted, "It's okay. It was a silly request. There's no way that either of us have the time for that. I can think of something else. Carson wouldn't let me go so far anyway. But thanks for the change of mind."
"Nathan, we were also discussing the idea of having us drive you there instead," Rosemary said
Nathan looked at both of them in confusion.
"We could drive you and Elizabeth to Brookfield and back. We can catch up with Grace and Lillian while the two of you have time to be alone," Rosemary said.
Nathan looked between the two of them in surprise.
"Are you sure?" Nathan asked.
Both nodded.
"We're happy to help," Lee said.
"That will be the plan then. Thank you!" Nathan said with feeling as he stuck out his hand.
Lee shook it.
"You're very welcome! And we will get you automobile ready in no time," Lee promised.
Nathan nodded in thanks before leaving the office to go home.
After Allie had gone to bed, and they were settling into their night routines, did Nathan bring up his next question to his parents.
"Ma? Dad?" Nathan began before either of them started their night projects.
Both looked at him.
"Would you mind watching Jack and Allie on Thursday evening?" Nathan asked.
Archie beamed. Ruth just gave him a long look.
"I take it you have plans with Elizabeth?" Ruth asked flatly.
Nathan nodded.
"It's hard to do something special when so much of a place reminds you of someone else. Rosemary and Lee agreed to drive us to Brookfield," Nathan explained.
Archie nodded his understanding.
"Having a chaperone is a good thing. We'll watch Jack as well," Ruth agreed.
Nathan smiled in thanks.
The next day, Nathan met Allie, Elizabeth, and Jack inside the school house after Allie's math session.
"Are you sure you're not tired and want to rest?" Nathan asked as he watched Elizbeth erase the lesson she had been working on with Allie.
Both gave him offended looks.
"I'm always excited to learn something new," Elizabeth said with a wide smile.
Allie nodded her agreement. Then Laura showed up with Jack. Elizabeth went to pay her and thank her and Allie went with her to take Jack.
Nathan turned towards the chalkboard and started writing out the Irish letters.
"I'm not good at this, so, this may be a struggle," Nathan said as he looked at them all.
Allie, Elizabeth, and Jack all sat down at a desk.
Nathan went over each letter and how to pronounce it. He repeated himself. Then had them repeat. Surprisingly, Jack struggled the least.
"This is hard," Elizabeth admitted as she struggled with some of the letters and sound combinations.
"Do you want to stop?" Nathan asked.
"I said it was hard. Not that I want to quit. Anything that you struggle with is worth overcoming. Our success will be that much more wonderful," Elizabeth said.
Nathan continued. They worked on the alphabet and it's letters for an hour.
"Thank you for taking the time to teach us. I'm going to go over it again with Jack later," Elizabeth said as they walked towards their home.
Allie and Nathan smiled as they walked home.
The next day they were once again in the schoolhouse at the same time. Everyone was struggling again. Bill knocked on the door as they were about half way into the session, and saw the looks of frustration on everyone's faces. He was holding Nathan's guitar.
"Archie said you needed this," Bill said as he was looking at the chalkboard.
Nathan sucked in a breath and shook his head.
Everyone saw his reaction. Tears were welling up in his eyes.
"You're very good at this, and singing, and apparently speaking in another language. Why did you stop all three?" Bill asked.
Nathan turned to face a window.
"Colleen died," Nathan answered simply.
Everyone looked at each other.
Bill was about to ask more questions, but Nathan, for once, didn't feel like holding this part back.
"Colleen was having trouble with teaching Allie Irish. For one, she wasn't that strong in it herself, for another Allie had the attention span of a squirrel. When Dad taught us growing up, it was part of our everyday conversations, but Dad was also playing his guitar and singing folk songs in Irish and in English. Colleen had borrowed my guitar to try and get Allie to focus on the Irish. The day that Colleen was going to the courthouse to finalize her divorce, was a day after than she had normally planned. Because Allie had broken my guitar strings, and Colleen had spent the day in the music shop getting it repaired. She knew how much I loved that guitar that she felt that it was more important to repair it than finalize her divorce," Nathan explained softly.
The school house was silent as they processed what he had said.
"I blamed that stupid guitar and myself for a long time. That if she hadn't felt the need so desperately, she wouldn't have been on that part of the sidewalk at that part of the day," Nathan whispered.
Bill, Elizabeth, and Allie all shared a look.
"She did it because she loved you and wanted to make sure you were happy," Elizabeth said.
"I know that on some level. And I also know that there's no way we could have known what was going to happen. We all thought we had more time. But that doesn't stop the feelings of guilt," Nathan added. "I couldn't bring myself to do any of those things anymore. It hurt too much."
"But they brought you such joy when you couldn't remember much. Nathan, would Colleen really want you to give them up completely?" Bill asked.
Nathan shook his head.
"Perhaps, you should try it again?" Elizabeth said softly.
Nathan breathed in deeply, before taking the guitar from Bill. He put it around in front and started thumbing the strings. Then he played some chords as he tuned.
"Alright. Let's try this again," Nathan said emotionally as he turned back to his small class. They went through the alphabet again and pronunciation. Then he taught them a song in Irish, which Allie and Jack sang to each other as they walked home.