Chapter 2: Serenades and Sarcasm

Nathan whistled cheerfully as he walked home from work. He had arranged everything with Cat Montgomery. Allie would be spending the night with her friends and enjoying some Valentine's Day festivities. For his part, he hoped to spend the evening steering clear of anything related to the holiday and simply enjoy a quiet meal at the café.

All hopes of evading Valentine's Day were dashed when, upon arriving at the rowhouse, Nathan found a fine assortment of prettily decorated packages and boxes. There was even another stack of envelopes, left by Ned. Only this time, there were more…

With a confused and somewhat frustrated sigh, Nathan started to gather everything off the front porch before anyone saw it. He blushed at the thought of all the people that must have already passed by.

He had just secured all of it in his arms and stood upright again when a voice sounded behind him. "Hi Nathan."

Nathan whirled around, almost dropping everything, and reddened brightly at the sight of Elizabeth, standing in the gravel street.

"Lizabeth…" he faltered awkwardly. "Hi…"

Elizabeth's eyes went from him to the armful of pink and red packages that he was trying to balance. "Happy Valentine's Day" she murmured quietly. "I can see you've got your hands full."

Nathan's mouth fell open and he glanced down at the armful that he was holding. "Oh… Um, yeah…" he stuttered, reddening even more. "I just found it all lying here on the porch…"

Of all the ways to explain himself to Elizabeth, that was probably that worse! But then again, how else did one explain that their front porch had been simply littered with Valentine's Day gifts?

"I don't know where it all came from…" he tried again, before swallowing. "I guess I should probably find out… Happy Valentine's Day Elizabeth." And with that, he escaped through the front door of the row house.

Elizabeth stood where she was for a moment, wrapping her head around what had just happened. Nathan, she knew, was quiet, and didn't have many close friends, especially female friends.

So where had all the gifts and Valentine's come from? Were there other women in town who had taken an interest in Nathan?

The thought should have pleased her, but it didn't. Nathan loved her, even if she was not in love with him. Thought of his heart being drawn to another woman… It was disconcerting to say the least.

Besides, the visible evidence of all the female attention Nathan was getting made her wonder for a moment if she were missing out. If she had thrown away something that she shouldn't have. What did these women see in Nathan that she hadn't before?

Elizabeth had known Nathan for three years now, and yet after all that time, she suddenly felt as though she didn't know him at all. At least, not in the way she thought she did. With a sigh of frustration, she moved on towards her own rowhouse, her cheeks reddening with jealousy.

Nathan felt completely overwhelmed as he set his Valentine's Day "lute" on the kitchen table and stood back cautiously to examine it.

Boxes of chocolates, Valentine's, baked goods, a little jar of heart-shaped candies. Nathan picked that last item up and eyed it wearily, handling it as if it had the ability to bite. It was covered with frills and lace and had a little pink name card attached to it with a velvet string.

With love, Violet Moore

Violet again… Nathan groaned and set it down, determined not to look at any more of the gifts in front of him. It was all so… awkward. And uncomfortable. He didn't want it to spoil his evening.

With a sigh, Nathan abandoned the pile of presents and headed upstairs to change out of his uniform and into something more comfortable for his night out.

He felt better as he made his way down the boardwalk in town later than evening, his hands shoved casually in his pockets. From what he could see, the saloon looked crowded and rowdy tonight, making him glad that he had opted for dinner at the café instead.

The warm glow and the rich scent of freshly baked muffins greeted his senses as he walked through the door. The café was a little crowded tonight, but not nearly as busy as the saloon had been.

With a sigh of relief, Nathan found an empty table in the corner and looked over the menu while he waited to be served. As the buzz of activity filled his ears, a voice suddenly demanded his attention.

"Nathan! I don't often see you with the dinner rush."

Nathan looked up and smiled to see Bill standing by with coffee. "Hey Bill" he murmured, putting the menu down. "I just thought I'd change things up for tonight."

Bill nodded and poured him a cup of coffee. "Ned Yost tells me you've been drawing some attention today…" he prodded. "I don't suppose you'd care to elaborate?"

Nathan crossed his arms and opened his mouth to answer, before simply shaking his head. "Actually" he grinned playfully. "I'd rather not. I'm sure you already have plenty to gossip about."

Bill shrugged and chuckled. "It was worth a try" he sighed, before adding. "Given that you're out on the town tonight, I'll make you something special. My treat."

"Bill…" Nathan opened his mouth to protest, but Bill turned his back on him. "I know what you like" the judge called over his shoulder, disappearing into the kitchen. Nathan watched him go and with a short laugh, shook his head. Bill was a good friend. One of the best that Nathan had ever had.

As he sipped his coffee and thoughtfully looked around the room at the different faces, he suddenly heard a little gasp directly behind him.

"Constable Grant? Is that you?"

Nathan turned around and felt his heart stop at the sight of Violet Moore standing there, her pink and gold dress frillier than should have been allowed. Her blue eyes sparkled at the sight of him as he struggled to his feet.

"Violet Moore, right?" he asked, unsure if they had formally been introduced. Before he could say more, she hands his hand in hers.

"You remembered!" she cried excitedly. "You must have received my letter early this morning. And the candies… I must say, I hardly recognized you out of uniform! You are a sight for sore eyes, I must say!"

Nathan gulped uncomfortably at the bold compliment and forced a smile. "Thanks" he murmured. "And thank you… for the gifts."

Violet smiled and waved her gloved hand. "Merely a trifle" she deflected. "It was the least I could do after all the help you gave to me."

Nathan frowned faintly and swallowed. "About that…" he started but was promptly interrupted again by another two more female voices saying his name behind Violet.

One of them belonged to Celia Brookes, a young woman who had just moved to Hope Valley to act as the school tutor, since the number of students had grown exponentially. She and Nathan had run into each other a few times when he had come to pick up Allie.

The other belonged to a friend of hers, Margaret Smith, whose husband had died, leaving her a widow and childless. Nathan barely knew her. He only remembered that she had offered him coffee on his rounds… Once.

Before he knew what was happening, the three of them all had seated themselves at his table and were talking over one another, trying to be heard, while Nathan ate his meal and drank his coffee in silence. Not that it wasn't nice to have company. This, however, was very overwhelming.

He sat and listened to them chattering away until he could feel his ears ringing with their high-pitched voices. "So much for a quiet evening…" he thought grimly, as he began to wish he had stayed at home instead.

He could see Bill peak his head out from the kitchen every once in awhile and smirk merrily. "At least someone is enjoying this!" Nathan thought, inwardly groaning as the three women in front of him continued their jabber.

"I do hope you'll enjoy the cookies I made for you and you're darling niece" Margaret was saying, eyeing him intently to make certain that she had his attention.

"And my muffins…" Celia added, not wishing to be left out.

Nathan opened his mouth to assure them both that they would, but was cut off by Violet, who raised her nose at the two others.

"Ladies" she said, more condescendingly than Nathan would have liked. "Let's not hound Constable Grant hear. I'm sure he has many gifts and Valentines to sort through. You can hardly expect him to remember what was given to him, never mind by who. Isn't that right Constable?"

Nathan gulped at her attempt to make eye contact and looked down at his empty plate. "I still haven't gone through everything yet…" he admitted shyly. "But I'm sure Allie and I will love everything you all gave us."

Violet gave him a sugary smile. "You are too kind" she crooned, slowly and deliberately reaching out and laying a hand over his.

Nathan felt his face blush bright red and instinctively, he pulled his hand away. "I should…" he stood up from his place and drew in a deep breath. "I should probably be going. Happy Valentine's Day to you ladies."

All three of them responded in unison as he headed for the front counter to pay. There was a young lady ahead of him, also waiting. She had lovely, brown hair, which Nathan noticed, had been done up in a way that none of the other Hope Valley styled their hair. She was simply dressed, unlike Violet, and a clean, white apron told him that she must be a hard worker. Over before his trained mind had had time to make a further assessment, she turned and gave him a slight nod.

"Good evening Constable" she murmured in greeting, her voice low and rich.

Nathan, half expecting her to ask him if he had received her valentine or if her liked the gift that she had left for he and Allie, shifted uncomfortably.

"Listen Ma'am" he said in a low, semi-desperate voice. "I'm still going through all of the gifts and the cards, but I'm sure whatever you left me is lovely…"

The woman looked at him in shock, causing Nathan to instantly regret his assumption. She turned to face him fully, her hands on her hips, her brown eyes snapping.

"And what makes you think that I left you something?" she asked with slow sarcasm.

Nathan swallowed and blushed again, this time with complete and utter embarrassment. "I'm sorry" he stammered. "It's just that…" "Constable" she cut him off. "If, for some reason, you think that I am vying for your attention, don't flatter yourself!"

Nathan shook his head helplessly and sighed. Why should he even bother defending himself. "I'm sorry Ma'am" he answered sincerely. "Very sorry…"

"It's Stephanie" the woman answered seriously, though her dark eyes had softened somewhat.

Nathan smiled again. "Well then, Stephanie…" he repeated. "I think I owe you an apology. And it's Nathan. Not Constable…"

"I would say that you do indeed" Stephanie agreed, though she was smiling now. "Nathan."