CHAPTER ONE

It was late-morning, and Hope Valley's main street was full of chaos.

The thundering beat of horses' hoofs rang through the air. Wagon wheels creaked as they were brought to a furious halt. The entire town seemed to be gathering as a crowd, full of questions and confused exclamations about what was happening.

Judge Avery leapt down from the Transport Wagon like a lightning bolt, shouting orders from the top of his lungs. Dr. Shepherd quickly jumped inside the back to triage his patient. Ned, Kevin, Fiona, and others ran to the center of the street, ready with bandages and other supplies, prepared to do whatever they could to help.

Dr. Shepherd finally jumped down from inside the Wagon. With sadness etched on his face, he simply announced to Bill and those standing close enough to hear, "I'm sorry. He's gone!"

It was as though the town moaned in unison, not really knowing who was in the Wagon, but surmising it must be their beloved Mountie. They had first greatly resented his presence in their town, because they had seen him as a replacement for the irreplaceable Constable Jack Thornton. But Nathan Grant had respected that, and he had gradually won the citizens of Hope Valley over one by one with his own unique, quiet, and steadfast way of doing things. To lose him now, would be unthinkable.

An air of monumental grief instantly swept over Hope Valley. No one could say a word.

Then suddenly, the townspeople looked up, almost together as one body. All eyes went directly to a lone figure. It was their Constable, slowly walking into town, leading Newton in the slowest of gaits. Or was Newton leading him? The Constable looked dazed and forlorn, more fragile than any of them had ever seen him look before. He may have been in shock, but he was physically there. And that was something they were all very grateful for.

Collectively, the crowd sighed in relief! Their relief was followed by numerous exclamations of thanks: "Thank God!" "Praise be!" "There he is!" "He's here!" "He's alright!" "I think he might be hurt!" "Is he okay?" "There's the Constable!" "Thank goodness!" "He made it!" "He's okay!" "Constable Grant!"

Conversations, full of excitement and gratitude, started back up at a fever pitch, along the Boardwalk. Then came the shouts welcoming the Constable home: "Constable Grant, welcome home!" "Constable, so good to see you're, alright!" "So glad you're back with us!" "Constable, we couldn't make it without you!" "Glad you're safe, Constable!" "Welcome back!"

But suddenly, the words stopped, and there was dead silence.

If a pin had dropped on the Boardwalk, the entire town would have heard it.

Each and every Hope Valley citizen was now focused only on one thing.

They watched their Schoolmistress, Elizabeth Thornton, turn in the middle of the street, almost as though she instinctively knew the Constable was behind her. Although she did not seem to hear the crowd's words echoing around her, they couldn't know that the only thing heard by Mrs. Thornton was "He's gone." And those two words were playing over and over, even reverberating, in her mind.

But as she turned, her eyes focused first on his red serge and then moved slowly up to take in his face and all the pain written across it. Without a second's hesitation, she launched herself straight into the Constable and held on to him for dear life, for all to see!

She clasped herself to him, encircling him in her arms, listening to his heart beat, and tenderly caressing his back. Nathan was alive and they were together. Nothing else mattered.

It took Nathan a moment to realize she was really there, and when he did, he wrapped his arms around her protectively, supporting her with his brown leather gloved hands.

Elizabeth and Nathan stood there, in the middle of the street, embracing each other tightly, as though they would never let each other go.

And truth be told, Elizabeth simply could not let go. It was as though if she loosened her grip on him in the slightest, Nathan would no longer exist.

Never in her life had she ever experienced such a visceral reaction - one where her head had no reason, or for that matter, control over her body. All she could do was cling to him tightly.

Nathan quietly continued to hold her, realizing through his fog not only her need but also his.

Could he exist without her? That's what he had done his entire life. He had needed no one except Allie, because his niece, in turn, needed him. But after their initial meeting in his office that day, when Elizabeth had come to be the first to officially welcome him to Hope Valley, his entire life had changed.

In fact, in the ensuing days, his world had turned upside down. It had become almost impossible for him to concentrate, as he was always thinking of her. Both her inner and outer beauty astounded him and had completely stolen his heart. He caught himself hoping to run into her, even when there was no reason to do so. He relished catching a meaningful glance from her. He often found himself listening in the silence for her unique rich voice, full of authority, love, humor, and wisdom. He was even content to simply watch the world be lit up by her radiant smile. It was all about his need to just be close to her.

The entire situation was all so ridiculously complicated. Elizabeth was the widow of a fellow Mountie, a great Mountie, who she loved deeply and lost so unfairly. The Mounties even shared stories about the couple's deep love for each other. The stories about Jack and Elizabeth Thornton were rapidly becoming legendary. How could he ever presume she would be willing to live that kind of treacherous life again, or even love again?

Then there was Lucas, her perfect beau, debonair, full of charm, and a master of the spoken word. He said all the right things and used them to his full advantage to take charge, especially where Elizabeth was concerned. Very wealthy and definitely interested in capturing her heart, Lucas could give Elizabeth the extravagant lifestyle and social standing he could not.

But none of these thoughts were in Nathan's mind or heart now - he had just lost a comrade, and it was on his watch. That had never happened before, and the pain was searing into his being.

He was aware she was with him and grateful beyond measure, but numb with grief and the realization that Elizabeth had thought he, also, had been the one she would never see again.

Back on that road, Nathan had thought the same thing - he was holding the rifle as he heard and felt the heat of the bullet thundering toward him.

For an instant, Nathan had clearly thought he would never see Elizabeth again, and instead, she would be reading the letter he had given Bill in case the worst occurred. He had known he couldn't leave this world without telling her what she had meant to him, if only as a friend. And more than anything, he wanted, he needed, to encourage her to truly live her life again, with a heart that both he and Jack would wish to be open.

But miraculously, he was alive and securing the assailant before he turned and realized with awful dread that the Mountie, who was driving the Transport Wagon had been shot directly in the chest. The rush of flowing red blood combined with the red of his Serge and Nathan was sickened, feeling it should have been him to have taken the bullet instead. Not this young officer.

Now standing in the middle of the street with Elizabeth in his arms, he felt Bill's arm directing them toward his Office, but Nathan couldn't loosen the grip Elizabeth had on him, nor did he want to do so. Bill was trying to tell him Kevin and Jessie had taken the horses, along with Newton, to the Livery, and that it was probably better for him and Elizabeth to go inside, where they could have some privacy.

Unknown to the two of them, the entire town was intently watching.

But Elizabeth didn't even hear or see Bill. Nathan realized he had to do something, anything to get her safely inside.

"Darling," he whispered into her ear, and as gently as he could, "Come with me."

Somehow Nathan led her into his office, both of them still in a daze. Bill quickly shut the door behind them.

Nathan carefully removed her arms from his waist and literally sat her down in the chair across from his desk. She was shaking. He knelt in front of her, with his face etched in concern for her. He removed his gloves and took her small hands in his much larger ones, rubbing them to warm her, and looked deeply into her eyes.

"Please don't cry. It's going to be alright, Elizabeth," and though his voice was shaky and he didn't quite believe it himself, he thoughtfully added, "I promise you Elizabeth, we will get through this. Everything's going to be alright."

"Nathan, are you alright? Wh…what happened?" But as soon as she uttered those words, she knew he was in no shape to answer them.

The color had drained from him. Between his concern for Elizabeth and clearly the shock of whatever he had just experienced out there, it had taken a massive toll on him, almost as though he himself had been in shock.

"Allie...Bill, can you send someone to tell Allie I'm okay? I don't want her hearing gossip. Please, make sure she knows I'm okay."

"Consider it done, I'll send one of the ladies, so she won't think the worst has happened."

"In the meantime, you two take all the time you need. I've got a lot to do and better get started." Bill glanced at them, worriedly, before he headed to the door.

"Nathan, one last thing, and you listen to me good. None of this was your fault. You had everything under control. Jenny was ready to hand that rifle to you when that young Mountie made his ridiculous Rookie move, trying to play the hero."

Nathan rose from his kneeling position and shot an anguished searching look, "What did happen, Bill?"

"Constable Crawford, the Mountie who was driving the Wagon, picked up his rifle, aimed it right at Jenny, and then Elias yelled to warn her. That's when everything went south. Nathan, it could have been you, or even me, that took that bullet. I thought for sure it was going to be one of us. But it was all caused by that one stupid move Crawford made. So, don't you dare play the blame game! You hear me? I've seen this same thing happen before, and it never gets any easier, but you're needed right here, right now, and there's no time for blaming yourself or playing 'what if' a thousand times in your mind. You got that? We're going to have enough to do cleaning this mess up. Now you all talk it out." He said sternly, but as he reached the door, Bill turned around and his face had softened, "The two of you are both strong, tough, even - you'll get through this, together."

The door closed softly behind the Judge.

Nathan leaned back against his desk, directly in front of Elizabeth.

His deep concern for her was still written all over his face.

Softly, Elizabeth said, "Nathan, you do know you matter to me, too? More than I could ever say!"

He looked down at the broad, mottled floorboards below him.

How could he ever allow her to go through something like this again?

"Nathan, I just told you what's in my heart. Please don't look away! Please, Nathan, please look at me…"

"Elizabeth, that fills my heart with joy, more joy than I've ever known," he said, looking directly at her, with a deep sadness. He said it with an earnest yearning in his piercing blue eyes she had never seen before. Then there was an awkward silence, as he turned those striking eyes back to the floorboards, and then slowly back up to her face.

"But Elizabeth, I can't allow you to go through this. Loving me comes with all sorts of problems, you know them better than anyone. We've both been through something very horrible today. I know this has to bring everything back to you that you experienced with Jack, and it pains me to know that I'm the one that has brought all that back to your memory. I can't put you through this again, I just can't. And I won't."

For the first time, the color was coming back to her cheeks. and she raised to her full height in front of Nathan's tall frame.

"Nathan, I wasn't thinking of Jack in that moment. I was thinking only of you. I thought I had lost you. In an odd way, I'm thankful for at least part of today, of course not the death, but because almost losing you made me see so clearly what's truly in my heart. It's you, Nathan. Someone in this room, very dear to me, once told me I should face my fears, and after today, I know I can do just that. It isn't your place to 'allow' me. It's my place to know that I can, and if you want me, I will."

"But Elizabeth, there have been three of us in this. As much as it pains me to say, your other choice would…would not be so…so…so very complicated. I care for you enough to step aside and let you have that life…if you could be happy."

"Happy?" without realizing she raised her voice slightly, and she knew she sounded incredulous because she was…absolutely incredulous! She knew exactly what he meant, and it filled her with fury inside. She had to calm herself. Taking a deep breath, she continued carefully.

"Nathan, listen to me, Lucas is just a friend…he...he isn't the one in my…my heart." Now she was the one stammering. "He's never, never been the one in my heart. And never will be."

His right eyebrow shot up, "Are you sure Lucas knows that? I know for a fact he thinks it's a lot more! Elizabeth, he could give you so much more than I ever could." His blue eyes, shining with hurt, pierced through her heart.

Had she been that thoughtless? Had she caused Nathan this much pain?

Sitting him down in her chair and pulling another one toward him, she sat down on the chair's edge, facing him directly. Elizabeth's face was also pained, and she had to think quickly of the right words to say. It was critical. And she knew it.

"Nathan," she began slowly, "I am so very sorry. I never meant to cause you pain. In my mind, Lucas and I have only been friends. And I didn't realize till recently that I only allowed that friendship to develop to the extent it did because it protected my heart from you. Nathan, I have never treated Lucas as anything other than a friend, not even when we went to Union City. And I have made that very clear to him on more than one occasion. It's you that I was afraid to open my heart to. It wasn't your fault. It was just that I needed time to adjust to the idea of a real relationship. I knew that's what it would be with you and me. And I know Jack wanted that for me, but I never expected it so...so quickly. And I certainly didn't expect it to be as amazing, as beautiful as us. You are the perfect one for me, Nathan, the only one. I think somewhere deep in my heart, I've known it from that first day. You are in my heart, not because you are a Mountie like Jack, but because you are you - this wonderful, strong man who's not afraid to question me, yet understands me like no other sometimes without even saying a word. You're the one who makes me happy, makes me feel protected, and gives me joy and hope for the future. I haven't had any of that at all since Jack. Not till you came along. Lucas could never give me what you have already given me."

She paused and chose her next words even more carefully and began softly.

"I know you are in my heart, and you are there to stay, no matter what. I pray with all my being that I am in yours. What is in your heart, Nathan? Who is in your heart? Because if it's me, we can get through anything together."

He let out a strangled sound, almost a sob and looked directly into her eyes searchingly, "Even this?'"

"Even this," she whispered resolutely.

He stood, lifting her from the edge of her chair. He brought her to him and wrapped his arms around her tightly, holding her as if he would never let her go. He waited a few moments then whispered to her gruffly, with a slight catch in his voice.

"Then you must know that you also have been in my heart since that first day. No matter how hard I try, and I've really tried, but only because I wanted to protect you. There is no way to possibly change that!"

They turned as the door flew open and they watched a frightened Allie come running toward her Uncle Nathan, grabbing him in a bear hug. He knelt and held her. "It's alright, Allie, it's alright, Sweetheart. I'm fine. I just didn't want you to hear rumors."

Allie smiled gratefully, gave him a loving kiss on his cheek, and then glanced up, "Mrs. Thornton, are you alright? Are you crying?"

"Just happy tears Allie, just happy tears," as Nathan gave her a knowing look.

Glancing back at Nathan, she moved closer to Allie and smiled, "Allie, why don't we head out to school and let everyone know your Uncle is okay? …Nathan, I know you have a million things to do. Will you be alright if we go on to the Schoolhouse together for the afternoon classes?"

For the first time today, Nathan felt a deep inner peace, at least about one thing, one person. And that was the most important thing, the most important person in the world to him. And here she stood with Allie, the other most important person in the world to him. He knew that Elizabeth and Allie needed each other, especially today. Being together would be the very best thing for both of them. They would help each other get through all this more easily. And he would somehow concentrate on what had to be done.

Nathan nodded and walked Allie and Elizabeth, to the door. He bent to kiss Allie on the top of her head, and then placed his arm gently next to Elizabeth's arm and clasped her hand in his, hidden between them.

With a myriad of emotions and endless love reflected in his eyes, Nathan whispered, "Darling, I promise everything is going to be alright."

But his sparkling eyes definitely told her something much more. They told her everything was going to be much better than just alright and that the two of them were about to embark on a most exceptional and remarkable journey together!

And she couldn't wait for that journey to begin.