Sarah was having her usual breakfast on Monday morning at Abigail's. Sitting with a copy of the Valley Voice she was getting herself updated on the town happenings. Nathan had left for Union City on Saturday needing to be there early to meet with his superior officers and go over the interview process. The lead story in the paper was the announcement that the new factory was starting production on February 15. Hope Valley had already seen an increase in population and another was expected as hiring for factory workers was beginning in the next week. It was big news in town and many were curious to see how the influx of workers and their families would continue to change the landscape of their small town.
Minnie stopped by her table to refill her coffee. "Good morning Sarah, how are you today?"
Minnie was such a bright spot in Sarah's day. She always had a smile and a kind word not just for Sarah but for anyone at Abigail's. "Good morning Minnie. It's a good day. I've a busy week coming up. Dottie is coming from Union City later this week so I'll be busy getting ready for her visit. Are Angela and Cooper glad to be back at school?"
The smile on Minnie's face waned at the mention of school. "Well, Cooper is always happy but Angela is struggling." Minnie and Sarah had talked about school before since Allie and Angela had become friends. Sarah tried to keep to discussions about the girls and their friendship but it was clear that Minnie was bothered by something.
"What's going on with Angela? She always has the brightest smile and seems to be thriving. I hope it's nothing too serious." Sarah had heard the story of the first day of school when all of the children and parents had surrounded Angela and walked her to school in support of her right to be educated along with the rest of her class. It was a story that had made its way around the county and had created some trouble for Elizabeth.
"Mr. Landis wasn't happy with the protest that occurred on the first day of school. He doesn't like to be challenged and that's what Elizabeth did. His issue wasn't just that having Angela in class would take away from the other students but also that Elizabeth isn't credentialed to teach her. She had talked about getting credentialed but then she entered a courtship with Lucas and her plan seemed to get pushed aside." Minnie didn't want to talk negatively about Elizabeth. She was a good teacher but Angela had needs that she wasn't sure were being met.
Sarah couldn't imagine being a mother trying to advocate for your child and feeling tossed between the teacher and administrators. Both assumed they knew what was best which obviously made Minnie feel as though her concerns were being overlooked. Sarah had gotten to know Minnie pretty well and she respected her love for her children and desire to provide them with the best education. "Well, I did hear that Elizabeth isn't seeing Lucas anymore so maybe she'll be able to get back to her original plan. Maybe that will help to resolve things."
"I hadn't heard about Elizabeth and Lucas. Hopefully she'll be able to concentrate on other things now. For the longest time she seemed to have no interest in anything but Lucas. I think a lot of the parents were concerned about it. Well, I'll pray that she gets herself back on track."
Minnie excused herself to go refill a few more coffees and Sarah returned to the newspaper continuing to peruse the news of the week. "Sarah Crawford?" Sarah stopped reading when she heard the distantly familiar voice. Slowly raising her head Sarah couldn't believe that standing in front of her was the man she was supposed to have married so many years ago. Tom Hastings had always been attractive but in a more casual, university student way. Standing in front of her Sarah noticed his very expensive three piece suit and shiny leather shoes. He looked every bit the successful solicitor. "Tom? What are you doing in Hope Valley?" The last conversation she'd had with Tom replayed in her head. The anger that had so readily appeared when she broke their engagement had frightened Sarah. She'd seen flashes of Tom's anger while they were courting but she blamed it on circumstances and not on Tom.
"May I sit?" Sarah hesitated still confused by the appearance of her former fiancé who she hadn't seen in almost four years. Tom didn't wait for her to answer and took a seat. "I've wondered what happened to you Sarah. You disappeared from Buxton without a word. I never would have expected to see you in a dusty little town like Hope Valley." Sarah cringed at the description Tom used for her new home.
"What are you doing here Tom?" Sarah's voice sounded shakier than what she would have liked. The look on Tom's face along with his comment about Hope Valley didn't sit well with Sarah. She realized that time had not changed her feelings toward Tom Hastings and her decision to break off their engagement was the right one.
Tom chuckled mockingly "Don't worry Sarah, I didn't come looking for you. My firm handles all legal matters for your new factory. They begin hiring workers next week and I've got to be here through that process." Tom sat across from her wearing a look that made Sarah uncomfortable. "I think the bigger question is what are you doing here?" Sarah looked around nervously wondering who in the café might see her sitting with Tom. Sarah didn't care to give Tom much information so just responded that she was managing a store in town. "I need to get to work." Rising abruptly Sarah put her money on the table and left quickly.
Sarah let herself into Dottie's and closed the door behind her sinking against the door. Seeing Tom brought up so many bad memories and the worst was the look on her father's face when she told him she'd broken off with Tom. Her father tried to be understanding but he'd come from a different time when someone like Tom was considered a "catch" and she was throwing away her opportunity for a comfortable life. Tom's description of Hope Valley as a "dusty little town" came back to her and with the shock of seeing him ebbing she felt anger at how he was so quick to cast dispersions on the town because it wasn't a big city like Buxton. Sarah tried to push the exchange between her and Tom out of her mind as she busied herself with the opening of the store. She had far more important things to focus on besides Tom Hastings. Dottie was coming tomorrow and she was anxious to get her feedback on how she was doing managing the store. She knew the ledgers looked good and hoped Dottie would agree. Sarah, Clara and Anna had been cleaning and freshening up the store making sure the window displays were updated and merchandise from the holidays had been taken down and replaced with styles suited to the winter months. Sarah was committed to her new life in Hope Valley and she wasn't going to let any comments from Tom Hastings unsettle her.
Nathan sat in a conference room at a large table reviewing training reports of potential hires for the second Mountie position for Hope Valley. He'd been reviewing them since he'd arrived and had earmarked several that he thought looked like good candidates based on reviews by their training officers. Until he met them in person he wasn't sure who would be a good fit with his style. He would be spending most of the day in interviews and meetings. He hoped he would have a break at some point and he could call home. It had been a couple of days since he'd left home and he was already feeling disconnected from Hope Valley.
Shortly after Sarah opened the store Clara arrived. She had taken on the glow of a woman happily expecting her first child. Clara had become an invaluable resource for Sarah given her history with the store and her expertise in dress making. The two had been speculating what Dottie had in mind for the dress shop. Clara recalled that at one point Dottie had considered selling the store but when the potential sale fell through she'd not heard anything else about it. Sarah knew they had discussed expanding their clothing line to be inclusive of men's wear but she'd not heard much beyond it being an idea. The two put aside their guessing and continued to prepare for tomorrow's visit.
Sarah heard the bell on the front door and looking at the time thought it might be Allie coming from school hoping Nathan would call. When she came out from the back room she saw Tom Hastings standing in front of the counter. Sarah tried to hide her surprise at seeing him in her store. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction. Tom looked around the shop Sarah was so proud of with a judgmental eye "Well, this is certainly different from a bookstore but it does explain your improved style." The hidden meaning in Tom's comment was not lost on Sarah. When they'd first met she was much more interested in books than fashion and Tom often pushed her to update her style. She wasn't really surprised by his comment. He'd always been concerned with looks.
Not wanting to buy into Tom's veiled insult Sarah straightened her back determined to show Tom she was not going to let him get to her. "What do you want Tom?" To her surprise Tom asked if she would have dinner with him that evening. Allie walked into the store just as the words came out of his mouth. Sarah wasn't sure how much Allie had heard but judging by the look on her face she'd heard enough.
Sarah quickly replied "No, thank you, tonight doesn't work for me." Looking past him Sarah put a smile on her face. "Hi Allie, did you have a good day?" Allie was still eyeing Sarah anxiously wondering who this strange man was and what was he doing in the store.
Tom, oblivious to Allie, persisted. "Then how about tomorrow evening?"
Sarah shot back at him that she wasn't available at all as she had several meetings with the store owner that week. Thankfully the phone rang and Sarah had an excuse to remove herself from the room. "Allie, come back with me." Allie came around the counter and followed Sarah. Answering the phone Sarah was relieved to hear Nathan's voice on the other end. Trying to sound upbeat Sarah asked how the interviews were going. Nathan told her he'd not been impressed with anyone yet though they'd pulled a few aside for second interviews. He asked whether Dottie had arrived yet and she told him they expected her tomorrow. "Allie's here and she is anxious to talk to you. Let me put her on."
Allie took the phone and Sarah went back out front giving Allie some privacy and hoping to get Tom to leave the store. "Hi dad, how's Union City? Have you gotten to do anything but work?" Nathan told her that he'd spent most of his time at headquarters but he'd gotten to walk around the city after dinner at night. "What's it like?" Allie had always been curious about big cities. Nathan told her it was much louder than Hope Valley and you couldn't see the stars in the sky at night because there were too many streetlamps. Allie peeked out front to see if Sarah was listening. Whispering, and barely audible to Nathan, Allie told him "Dad, there was a man in the store when I came in after school and he was asking Miss Sarah about having dinner with him. She didn't look very happy about it and when she told him she couldn't tonight he asked her about tomorrow night." On the other end of the line Nathan was concerned. He asked Allie if she had ever seen him around Hope Valley. "No, I've never seen him here. He gave me a weird feeling."
Nathan asked Allie if she could get Sarah so he could talk to her again. Allie went to get Sarah and noticed the man was gone. Sarah picked up the phone and heard Nathan "Sarah, is everything okay? Allie said someone at the store seemed to be bothering you."
Sarah realized Allie had heard Tom's invitation to dinner. "Everything is fine Nathan. It was just someone I knew in Buxton. It's nothing to worry about." Sarah tried to sound convincing but wasn't sure she was succeeding.
"You would tell me if anything was wrong wouldn't you?" Nathan had heard the hesitancy in Sarah's voice and wished he could be there instead of sitting in a conference room interviewing a bunch of wet behind the ears rookie Mounties. He'd heard her tone enough when questioning suspects and knew she wasn't telling him the whole story. Needing to get back to his meetings Nathan regrettably had to say goodbye. "I love you Sarah."
"I love you too Nathan." Sarah hung up feeling unsettled. Why did Tom Hastings have to show up now just when her life was better than she could have imagined?