Chapter 23
Elizabeth stood in front of the stagecoach as Nathan handed the driver her suitcase and then he stood off to the side watching Elizabeth as she chatted with each person. His emotions were flying high and were a mixed baggage of excitement for her, but also worry for her safety and a bit jealous that Lucas was traveling with her and Little Jack. He had tried very hard to shake that emotion off, but it had proven to be hard. For Elizabeth's sake though he tried to at least be civil on the outside even if it was tearing at him on the inside. The ring he had been waiting for had finally arrived that morning and he had contemplated asking her to marry him before she left, but being the private person that he was he just couldn't bring himself to do it in front of the town. The ring now sat safely in the pocket of his red serge coat against his heart, the same heart he felt was about to leave town with Elizabeth.
Everyone was there to see her off. Rosemary and Lee held Little Jack as she made her rounds to tell everyone goodbye starting with Fiona and then moving on to Carson and Faith, Jesse and Clara, Henry, Bill, and then finally Rosemary and Lee. She hugged each one of them as they wished her well and congratulated her on this huge opportunity. They were almost just as excited as she was to have an author of a book in their town.
"Take care of yourself," Rosemary said, "and don't worry about Nathan too much, we will all make sure he stays out of trouble."
Elizabeth gave Nathan a sideways glance and a small grin and then turned her attention back to Rosemary, "That might be a bigger task than anyone could imagine."
"We will manage," added Bill. "I can guarantee you I will make sure he doesn't go crazy waiting for you to get back. I have a feeling that it won't be easy keeping his mind off of things, but I can assure you we are up to the task."
She could see Nathan roll his eyes and smirk out of the corner of her eyes. It had taken a while for the people of Hope Valley to warm up to a new Mountie when he had first arrived. Many people had a hard time accepting him as Jack's replacement, but it hadn't taken long for them to realize that he was far from being a replacement for Jack and he had gone to great lengths to make sure that people understood that he was not there to replace their beloved former Mountie. If anything, he had a high respect for Jack. Elizabeth never in a million years would have thought that he would eventually win her heart as well.
She stopped at Allie next and hugged her, "Take care of your Uncle for me, Allie. I'm counting on you to keep him smiling while I'm gone."
"Yes, Mrs. Thornton. We will miss you."
"I'll miss you too, but it will go by fast, I promise."
She finally came to Nathan and he stepped forward, his heart pounding in his chest and she could see a look of sadness in his eyes. She wished she could just take that from him, but knew it wasn't just going to go away that easily. She wanted to make this easier for him and her heart hurt, but she just didn't know what to say to make it better.
He sighed heavily and she could see the unshed tears welling up in his eyes, but also knew that they would remain unshed. He wouldn't let that show in front of everyone else. "Elizabeth," he stood up straight, took both of her hands in his, and looked her straight in the eyes, "I want you to be safe and call me if you get the chance when you first get there."
"Oh, Nathan," she responded back, "I plan on calling you every day. I don't think that I could go one day without hearing your voice."
He smiled at her, "I would like that so much. I will look forward to it. It would be the best part of my day."
"Mine too."
The stagecoach driver yelled down from his seat, "All right we are ready to go. We need to get a move on to stay on time."
Nathan breathed heavily and tried to catch his breath while swallowing the forming lump in his throat down, but it was useless, "I love you, Elizabeth and I'm going to miss you so much. Remember that I'm waiting for you, please."
She looked up at him with tears of her own glossing over eyes, one started to fall and he reached up wiping it away with his thumb. "No tears, Elizabeth. I don't want you to leave like that. I want to see you smiling."
She smiled up at him and then he leaned down and kissed her, slowly, showing his full desire for her so she wouldn't forget and then slowly released her.
Breathless she replied back to him, "I love you too, Nathan."
Nathan turned and grabbed the small envelope Carson had been holding for him. "I want you to take this," he handed it to Elizabeth, "Don't open it until the stagecoach pulls away."
She nodded at him and with that he opened up the stagecoach door for her and she stepped in after taking Little Jack from Rosemary, sitting across from Lucas.
She leaned her head out the door one more time and gave Nathan one last kiss and then Nathan backed away and the stagecoach started to roll away. Everyone else dispersed and Allie ran off to go find her friends, but Nathan just stood there to the spot watching his heart leave.
As the stagecoach started to move down the street of Hope Valley, Elizabeth pulled out the envelope that Nathan had handed her. She examined the front of it and saw her neatly handwritten name, crafted in almost perfect cursive writing. Nathan had amazing penmanship. Lucas stared at her from across the other seat as she turned the envelope over and broke it open, pulling out a carefully folded piece of paper. Almost instantly another object jumped from the note and rattled its way out into her lap. She held the note in one hand and picked up the photo with the other, grasping onto it she stared at it with a sharp intake of breath. It was the photo of her and Nathan that Carson had taken at Clara and Jesse's wedding. She carefully read the note that accompanied it.
Dear Elizabeth,
I thought you might like to have this photo of us as you travel to look at and to be reminded of how much I truly do love you. I know that I often have a hard time putting into words what I'm really feeling, but I have loved you from the moment that I first met you and I know that it has not been smooth sailing for us this whole time. We have already had so many ups and downs, but I wanted you to know that I'm not going anywhere. I'll be here when you get back because quite frankly I just can't picture my life without you in it. Whenever I think about the future you are always standing beside me. I pray for your safety and for success with your book. As hard as it was for me to stand in front of that stagecoach and watch you get in it, I really do want you to fulfill your dreams. I love you Elizabeth and you will always be what's in my heart no matter where you go.
Love,
Nathan
PS – turn the photo over
With tears in her eyes she looked at the photo again and turned it over to the back. Written across the photo were the words: You're a keeper and you will always matter to me. Love always, Nathan. One tear slid down her face as she looked up at Lucas, "I can't do this. I can't go."
"Elizabeth, this has been your dream to get published," Lucas responded.
"The book has been a dream of mine for a long time, but Nathan is more than a dream, he is my world and without him this dream means nothing. The book will still get published, but my future is here in Hope Valley and I can't leave it for this long a time, I can't leave him."
Lucas studied her for a minute, sighing he made a quick decision and then stuck his head out the window of the stagecoach and yelled, "Driver, stop, please!"
The stagecoach came to a screeching halt and the driver yelled back, "What's going on?"
"Sorry, but the lady needs to get out. She has decided not to go," Lucas shouted back.
"There better be a good reason for this, you're going to have my time schedule all off."
Lucas turned back to Elizabeth, "Go. We will figure something else out. Maybe we can have your book unveiling here in front of all of your friends and family and we will advertise it like we did the Christmas festival."
Elizabeth's eyes lit up, "Really? You think that we could?"
Lucas shook his head, "Absolutely, now go. I think someone out there might be waiting for you."
Elizabeth wasted no time, "Thank you, Lucas." She then opened the door to the carriage and looked up the street at Nathan and met his eyes with hers. With one step forward she began to run, closing the distance between them.
To Be Continued…