Chapter 8:

At the end of the evening, when it was time to go home, Abigail was chatting with Florence and Molly on the landing of the saloon. When the two women slipped away to go home, Abigail found herself alone waiting for Cody, who was chatting with his friends for a few more minutes.

"Abigail."

Abigail turned to the voice that had called her and saw Henry.

"Henry?"

"I wanted to tell you that…that this party was a success. I know you didn't organize it, but you supervised it." Henry stammered.

Abigail smiled at him.

"Thank you, Henry, that's nice."

"It's the truth."

Henry moved closer and faced Abigail. He stared at her face for a few seconds, then, on impulse, he reached out with his right hand to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear.

At that exact moment, Abigail felt a sensation of butterflies in her stomach. She had never felt like this in her life. Her heart had skipped a beat and time had slowed down. Henry had never touched her. Not once in all the years they had known each other had they had physical contact. The only times it happened was when he went to prison and when he brought Becky home for Christmas.

But, at this precise moment, the contact came from him, and it was not a respectful or cordial touch. I was not nothing.

For his part, Henry could not believe what he had just done. He had dared to touch her. He had felt a strange sensation in the pit of his stomach. He wanted to go further. To caress her cheek, or something like that. He had never felt such a thing. He had known Abigail for so long now, he had seen her sad, happy, crying, smiling, blushing. But in front of him she had always displayed only a hurt, sad, disgusted head. Now that they were close, she looked at him friendly. But right now, she was looking at him like she had never looked at him before. He could see that she had tears in her eyes. As if the fact that we take care of her, not necessarily with words, but just with looks that mean everything, touched her.

Since Theodore Richardson had arrived in town, Henry seemed to have woken up. He did not like knowing that Abigail was in a relationship and always had been. But he still preferred to hurt her and be gruff than try to do something. Especially since he did not admit he had a thing for Abigail. Besides, now, seeing her with this man, who on top of that was Abigail's childhood "friend", was driving him crazy. He only thought about that.

In addition, the inhabitants spoke in town. He had heard Clara and Jesse talking at the Mercantile. Clara confided in Jesse about her worries about Abigail. To which he replied that she was an adult, and she most certainly knew what she was doing. It was then that Clara confessed to her fiancé that there was a rumor in town that Mr. Richardson and Abigail were not just having an innocent relationship. Jesse rolled his eyes but did not comment. At least not in the store.

Hearing this, Henry did not feel well. He had never imagined such a thing. He did not even dare to put that thought in his mind. He felt angry, confused, but also jealous. He was really starting to lose his footing. Abigail was truly his mainstay in this life and ultimately, he would not be in Hope Valley without her. Not only in relation to his trial, but also because he would have had no reason to return or stay. He wanted to cherish her, he wanted to give her the world. He had never really felt anything like this. With no women.

Henry lowered his hand and then gently took Abigail's left hand in his hand and stroked it gently with his thumb. Their hearts were pounding in unison.

"Abigail." Henry hesitated. "I…I find you lovely…beautiful."

"Henry." whispered Abigail moved to hear such a compliment from Henry Gowen.

Henry kissed her softly and slowly on the cheek near the mouth, then gently pulled away backwards. Henry could see Abigail blushing and he was delighted. His heart was beating so fast, he wanted to stay close to her, but he felt like it would be too much for her in one evening. She was so confused. It wrung his heart. So, he let go of her hand gently and said goodnight before turning to go home, not without a last look. He was happy and satisfied. This way, she would know that he was not indifferent to her. She would know he had feelings for her. Well, those were lies. He was completely crazy about her and completely in love. He had always felt that towards her, but he hid it deep in his heart. He did not want to let it show. He was a man of fear and power. He did not want people to see and know that only one woman – only THAT woman – could play with his heart in any way she wanted. But today it was over. Seeing Mr. Richardson around Abigail made him want to stop hiding the love he felt for her.

Note: A little bit of Henrigail haha! It was a short chapter but the last one was long so... :)