There was sunlight peeking around the blinds of the bedroom by the time that Gabriel finally opened his eyes the next morning. He had laid awake for a long time after his nightmare. Apparently though, when he finally had fallen asleep, he had slept soundly. He had not even been aware of Lillian slipping from the bed that morning. However, Lillian had already left the room. Placing his hand on the sheets where she had been laying, Gabriel found them cool. That told him that Lillian had been up for a while now. The smell of brewed coffee and cooking eggs and bacon reached him, telling Gabriel that Lillian had started breakfast.

Deciding that it wasn't a good thing to leave his new bride alone while he slept the day away, Gabriel began to climb out from the blankets. He didn't get far when the door open.

"You don't need to get up just yet," Lillian said, hurriedly as she appeared in the doorway. She seemed more relaxed and chipper than she had the day before. "I found a tray and I thought I would bring you breakfast in bed."

Settling the blankets back over him, Gabriel put his pillow against the head board and scooted back so he was sitting against it. "I will not argue with that idea," he told her, noting that though Lillian had pinned up her hair, she still wore her robe.

"I will be right back," Lillian said.

As she left the room, Gabriel caught sight of the white material peeking out from underneath the robe. It did not look like her night gown, but if Lillian had gotten dressed already, why was she wearing her robe?

Gabriel pushed the thought aside. He was on a honeymoon trip with his new bride. Just once, he was going to leave mysteries, even ones as simple as what Lillian was wearing under her robe, aside. It did not matter. He simply wanted to enjoy this short time he had alone with Lillian.

It wasn't long before Lillian was returning with a tray laden with two mugs of coffee, two plates of eggs, bacon, and toast, and two corn muffins. Gabriel wondered briefly who had been responsible for the fresh baking for while they were here.

"This looks delicious, Lillian. Thank you," Gabriel told her as he took the tray from her.

"You are welcome," Lillian replied, climbing back into bed beside him. "You looked so peaceful sleeping this morning that I did not want to wake you. I was hoping the smell of breakfast would eventually do so."

"I think your plan worked."

The two newlyweds set themselves to enjoying the warm food. They found themselves remembering things from yesterday. Remembering the conversation he had with his father before the ceremony, Gabriel told Lillian about it. He had to blink away tears of joy as he admitted too wanting to hear his father was proud of him for so many years. Lillian did not comment about the tears in his eyes, just simply found his hand and gave it a slight squeeze.

Gabriel found both the meal and the company of his new bride satisfying. It was nice to be able to talk to Lillian and know that he would not need to say good-bye to her any time soon.

When they were done eating, Gabriel placed the tray at the foot of the bed and stood up. "How about I do the breakfast dishes since you cooked for us," he suggested as he reached for his robe.

"There is really no rush for the breakfast dishes," Lillian said, getting out of the bed on the other side and hurrying around it.

Gabriel paused in putting on his robe, as Lillian picked up the tray and placed it on the top of the dresser.

"I had something else in mind," Lillian said, turning from the dresser to face Gabriel.

"What is that?" Gabriel asked. He could see the desire in Lillian's eyes. The look made his heart beat faster as he felt a sudden desire to take her in his arms and press his lips against hers.

As Lillian pulled the ends of the sash holding her robe closed, Gabriel felt desire start to build up in another part of his body. As the robe opened, he saw that Lillian had put her wedding dress back on.

"I thought you might like the opportunity to help me out of my wedding dress," Lillian replied, letting the robe fall to the floor as she walked toward Gabriel.

"That does sound like a better plan than dishes," Gabriel teased as he reached out to put his hands on the small of her back, pulling her close to him. His own desire increased as he felt her body against his, despite the layers of material between them. "Are you sure you are ready?" Gabriel asked her, wanting to be sure.

Lillian's reply was to place her hands on the back of his head, her fingers slipping through the strands of his hair even as she pressed her lips against his. The kiss was pure passion and Gabriel felt a tingling in his stomach even as his knees felt a little shaky. Despite the weak knees though, Gabriel returned the kiss. While doing so, he ran his fingers up the back of the dress, feeling for the buttons that Lillian had managed to button on her own. His fingers deftly undid them. Reaching the top, he slid the material part way down her arms, his lips only then leaving hers as he placed a kiss against the side of her neck. Lillian's hands slipped from his hair and down his neck. He felt them on his bare skin as they went beneath the collar of his night shirt. He heard a moan of pleasure escape Lillian's lips even his kisses went lower.

Gabriel knew that this would be worth the wait as he continued the slow process of two becoming one.

The Grants did not often skip church but this Sunday they did. The Kinslows' train was due to pull out of the station during church hours and Nathan had promised to see them off in Gabriel's place.

To keep Gabriella out of the cold some, Lucas came to pick up Nathan and his family. As Ally wanted to go to church and be with her friends for a bit, she had gone to church with the Coulters. That left the rest of them to find places in Lucas' car. Elizabeth sat in the back with Gabriella and the two older boys. Nathan sat in the passenger seat, Jack held securely on his lap.

"As much as I have been asking people to give my family or myself rides places, Elizabeth and I may need to talk about getting an automobile of our own," Nathan commented as Lucas headed the car in the direction of the train station.

"Though I do not mind helping out," Lucas said, "a car might be a good investment for you."

"What do you think, Elizabeth?" Nathan asked, looking back over his shoulder at his wife.

Elizabeth nodded. "We still have that money from my father that we have not done anything with," she reminded him.

Nathan nodded. So far the trust fund money that Mr. Thatcher had released when Elizabeth and Nathan got married was sitting in a bank account. There had been casual discussions about taking a family trip with it, but as of yet those talks had remained casual.

"We should discuss it at some point," Nathan replied.

"Me learn to drive," Jack commented from Nathan's lap.

"First you need to learn to ride a horse," Nathan told his son, looking down at him.

"In spring!" Jack said excitedly.

"That is right. I will teach you this spring to ride your pony," Nathan said. "That will not be long now," he added.

Nathan had bought a pony off of Laura's father for Jack's Christmas present. Though the pony had not quite been old enough to part with its mother at Christmas time, Nathan had taken Jack over for him to meet his new pony. As he and Elizabeth had agreed not to start riding lessons until the weather got warmer the fact that it could not leave its mother right away did not matter.

"Does your pony have a name, Jack?" Lucas asked.

In the back seat Elizabeth bit her lip to keep from laughing at her son's answer. Nathan simply wore a huge grin. The name Jack picked for the pony always got a perplexed look from whomever asked the question.

"Scrooge," Jack replied without hesitation. The smile on his face said that he thought the name clever.

"That is a different name for a horse," Lucas commented.

"Says the man who has a horse named Rosewater," Nathan commented.

Lucas shrugged in response.

"I was reading the Christmas Carol to the kids before Christmas. Jack decided he liked the name Scrooge," Elizabeth replied.

Lucas nodded. "I guess that makes sense."

The conversation continued. As Lucas pulled the automobile to a stop in front of the train station, they spotted Jesse helping Arthur Kinslow and his son-in-law, Jake, unloading the wagon with the luggage. Nathan and Lucas pitched in while Elizabeth went into the station with the children.

Good-byes were said. Billy, who had hung back when meeting Gabriel's family, had a hug for Victoria and her daughters. Other than that time, Billy and Matthew were side by side, clearly making the most of the time they had left.

"I have a feeling we are going to need to find a way for those two to spend time together," Victoria commented to Nathan watching Billy and Matthew.

"Perhaps now that Matthew has admitted to not having any interest in the Mounties, Arthur might allow Matthew to visit Gabriel and Lillian over the summer."

Victoria laughed. "He might be but I am not sure I could stand letting Matthew leave home," she admitted looking at the two boys. She looked to Nathan. "You'll know exactly how I feel when Ally is old enough to go out into the world."

"I am sure I will," Nathan admitted.

Taking a step toward Nathan, Victoria gave him a motherly hug. "Thank you for being such a good friend to Gabriel. It makes me feel a little better knowing he has a friend like you that will be at his side at a moment's notice."

"He does the same for me," Nathan assured her, hugging Victoria back.

The call came for the Kinslow's train to board. Arthur handed Jack over to Nathan and then held out an arm to his wife. With final calls of goodbye to Billy and the Grants, the Kinslows boarded the train to head back home.

It was late Monday afternoon when Gabriel and Lillian put their bags in the car and made the drive into Hope Valley. The plan was to return the car to Henry who would then drive them out to the Grants. They had made the most of their short time alone but they were also both ready to get back to Billy and then back to the three children that were waiting for them at the orphanage.

As the car came to a stop in front of the Grant's home, Gabriel got out of the car. He started to walk around the car to get Lillian's door, but never got the chance as Billy came out of the house at a run. As Billy threw his arms around him, Gabriel embraced the boy as well.

"I guess I do not need to ask if you missed me," Gabriel said with a laugh as hugged the boy close.

"The Grants are nice but I am glad you are back," Billy told him, still holding on tight.

Henry had come around the car and opened the door for Lillian. The older gentleman even offered her his hand as she stepped out.

"Thank you, Henry," Lillian said, as she got out of the car.

"You are welcome, ma'am," Henry told her, before he moved to get their few belongings.

"Do I get a hug, Billy?" Lillian asked.

The boy finally let go of Gabriel so that he could hug Lillian.

"I hope he wasn't too much trouble," Gabriel said as he spotted Nathan coming out of the house.

"Not at all," Nathan replied. "In fact, Elizabeth said he was a lot of help to her today while I put in a few hours of work," he added. With his week leave up, Nathan had gone into the office to start catching up on things. Bill had shooed him home early after promising to join them all for dinner this evening. "There is something that Billy wanted me to bring up to you and Lillian," he added.

"All right," Gabriel replied, wondering what it was that Billy had confided in Nathan about.

Before anything else could be said though, Nathan took the belongings Gabriel and Lillian had taken with them from Henry. Nathan extended an invitation to stay for dinner to the man but Henry politely refused. As Henry drove off, Nathan led the others into the house. Billy once again was close to Gabriel's side as they walked into the house.

After putting their belongings in the room Lillian had been staying in, and which she and Gabriel would share for their last night here, Gabriel and Lillian joined Nathan and Billy in the sitting room. Elizabeth was also present, as she rocked Gabriella in the rocking chair by the fire. Voices drifting in from the kitchen indicated that Bill was cooking dinner with the help of Jack and Ally. Gabriel couldn't help but wonder just how much help Jack was actually being.

However, Gabriel did not ponder on that subject long as he remembered what Nathan had said. He glanced over at the boy who was sitting between him and Lillian on the settee. Billy was sitting on his hands and looking at the floor. It was clear that he was nervous about something.

Reaching out, Gabriel placed a hand on the boy's back. He could feel the tension in the boy's body.

Nathan did not hesitate to get to the point. As soon as they were all seated, his friend started talking.

"So, Billy and I had a conversation very early Sunday morning," Nathan began. "He shared with me that he would like to have a more conventional family. As much as he wanted to tell you that himself, he is having a little trouble believing that what he already has isn't too good to be true."

Gabriel moved his hand to Billy's far shoulder and hugged the boy close to his side.

"As long as I have something to say about it, you are not going anywhere Billy."Gabriel told the boy, wanting to be reassuring rather than have the boy think there was something wrong with his doubts.

"I meant what I said about wanting you with us, Billy," Lillian told him. "You are a part of this family. I do not know how I would have gotten through the ceremony on Saturday without you."

"All I did was pick up a ring. Everybody drops things from time to time," Billy replied.

"It wasn't just your actions, Billy. It was the words too. As nervous as I was, having you by my side helped."

"Your welcome," Billy said, color rising slightly in his cheeks. The boy took a deep breath as he focused on a point in the floor in front of him. "Does that mean it would be okay if I call you Mom and Dad?"

The question was quietly and quickly spoken. Gabriel felt like the world had stopped. He felt honored that Billy wanted to bestow upon him that title.

It was Lillian that got over her surprise first. Reaching out, she took one of Billy's hands. "I think that is the best wedding present Gabriel and I could receive," Lillian told him.

Gabriel knew he could not have put it better even if he could find his voice. Instead of saying anything, he leaned over and wrapped his other arm around Billy as well. Holding the boy tightly against him, Gabriel kissed the top of his head.

In the short time he had been with him, Billy had become a son to him. The fact that Billy was ready to call him Dad told him just how far the boy had come.

"Bill has all the paperwork that will need to be filled out with him," Nathan told them. "It can be filled out after dinner if you want?"

"The sooner the better as far as I am concerned," Gabriel replied, finally able to find his voice.