Author's note: This is meant to be a story based after the season 7 Christmas episode. It'll be relatively short and will end before season 7 begins (at least in theory). It wasn't initially in my plans for a fanfic, but it started bouncing around in my head, so I thought I'd share it. I hope you enjoy it!

Nathan Grant strode down the street, lost in his thoughts. He was dressed in his civilian clothes, being off duty for the day. People called out to him in greeting as he passed, and he acknowledged them with smiles. He was headed for the schoolhouse to pick up Allie. On his rare days off, he liked to walk home with her.

As he approached the school, he could hear a booming voice coming from the inside. He frowned. That certainly wasn't Elizabeth. It took him a moment to place it, and when he did, his stomach dropped.

Lucas.

What was he doing there? Nathan listened for a few moments. Lucas had on his magician voice, and Nathan guessed he had been invited there to teach the students magic tricks. Within a few minutes, his guess was confirmed. He heard the school bell ring out, and the doors opened. The children of Hope Valley came swarming out, laughing happily. Allie's face lit up when she saw him.

"Hi, Uncle Nathan! Guess what?"

"What?" he asked, smiling at his precious niece.

Her eyes were sparkling. "Mr. Bouchard came to teach us about magic tricks! It was so cool!"

"I'll bet it was," Nathan said rather dryly. He looked up to see Lucas and Elizabeth laughing and talking in the doorway. Neither seemed to notice him.

A sharp pain went through him at the sight of them together. Nathan knew Lucas liked Elizabeth, and it seemed to him that the feeling was mutual. There had been too many indications to point that way. Each time Nathan thought he might be gaining some ground with Elizabeth, Lucas showed up again and seemed to prove him wrong.

Ever since Christmas, and even going back to that blasted Ladies' Choice dance, Nathan's mind was convinced that Elizabeth wasn't interested in him. She seemed interested in Lucas.

Now if he could just convince his heart to move on. He had developed intense feelings for the sweet, gentle-natured Elizabeth to a depth that surprised him. He'd never been good with feelings, though, and he did his best to push them down when they showed no signs of being reciprocated.

Once again, he pushed his feelings aside and put a hand on Allie's shoulder, swallowing the pain of seeing the ease and flow of the interactions between Elizabeth and Lucas. "Come on, Allie, let's go home," he said.

Allie turned and waved at Elizabeth. "Bye, Mrs. Thornton!" she called out. Nathan's stomach dropped again as she looked their way.

"Bye, Allie!" she called back, waving. Her eyes momentarily locked with Nathan's, and she paused as if searching for something. He did his best to maintain a neutral expression. After a moment, she smiled slightly at him. "Bye, Nathan."

He nodded at her, then at Lucas, and turned away. The suppressed feelings tried to resurface, but he shoved them deeper down. He had to get over this, for Elizabeth's sake. She deserved happiness, whether that included him or not. Hearing her laughter mingling with Lucas', he figured it was likely it didn't include him. He sighed inwardly, falling into step with Allie. At least he had her. He was so thankful for his niece. He didn't know where he would be without her.

"Thanks again for coming today, Lucas," Elizabeth said as Lucas walked down the steps.

"My pleasure," he returned with a little bow. "I'm glad your students enjoyed the tricks." He paused for a moment, a hesitant look on his normally confident face. "Elizabeth, I was wondering if maybe you would like to have dinner with me tonight at the saloon."

Elizabeth blinked, surprised. She thought about it for a moment before responding. "Thank you for the kind offer, Lucas, but I need to get home to my son and spend some time with him. It's spaghetti night, a tradition we have with Lee and Rosemary."

Lucas smiled. "Of course. Maybe some other time, then."

"Maybe."

Lucas tipped his hat to her and headed back to town. Elizabeth's eyes followed him. She knew he was interested in her, but she simply wasn't sure how she felt about him. They had an easy friendship and camaraderie that she enjoyed, but she wasn't sure if there was a spark. Lucas was a good man; she just wasn't sure he was the right man for her. And she still missed Jack everyday. She twisted the wedding ring on her left finger, a tangible reminder of the man she had loved and lost. A pang went through her, and she closed the doors of the school, walking quickly back home to keep her mind from the thoughts trying to envelop her.

As she passed the rowhouses before hers, she saw Nathan on his front porch, hanging something on the door. She watched for a moment without him seeing her, smiling as she realized what he had done. Allie had made a winter wreath to replace the Christmas one, and Nathan was placing the new one on their front door for everyone to see. It was clear that he loved his niece, and Elizabeth was glad Allie had such a good man in her life to raise her.

A good man…

Nathan truly was good. A little reserved and shy, perhaps, but he was fiercely loyal and protective of those he loved and cared about. Lately she had noticed her stomach doing little flips when she saw him unexpectedly. She hadn't tried to analyze those feelings; she had simply acknowledged them and decided to inspect them later. She wasn't sure she was ready to accept what her mind was trying to tell her about this man.

For the second time in five minutes, she started walking rapidly, trying to escape the thoughts that were coming over her. She barely noticed the man on horseback passing her, nor did she pause to wonder why a stranger was riding into Hope Valley. She simply wanted to get home to her son and spend some quality time with him, away from the confusing feelings coursing through her.

Nathan turned at the sound of hooves approaching. He saw Elizabeth walking towards her rowhouse and wondered why he hadn't heard her pass. His thoughts were interrupted as a man on horseback stopped in front of his house.

"Constable Nathan Grant?" the man asked.

"Yes?" Nathan said.

The man handed him a rolled-up document, not even bothering to get off his horse. "This is for you. If you have any questions, there's a number to call on the document." Without any other explanation, the man took off down the road again. Nathan stared after him in confusion. What in the world? He glanced at the paper in his hand for a moment, then untied the small piece of rope holding it shut. Unrolling it, he read the brief lines and froze. He could feel the blood draining from his face, and he had to grab onto the porch railing to keep himself upright.

"No, no, this can't be happening," he said, panic mounting. Turmoil clouded his mind. For a moment he couldn't think. Then an idea sprang to mind. He ran the short distance to town, bursting into Bill Avery's office without knocking. Bill looked up in exasperation at the interruption, but his face relaxed when he saw who it was.

"It's unlike you to come rushing into this office so suddenly," Bill observed dryly. His expression changed when he saw the ashen look on Nathan's face. Standing abruptly, he came around his desk. "What's wrong, Nathan?"

"This," Nathan said, shoving the paper at Bill. Bill read it, then looked up sharply.

"Is this for real?"

Nathan shook his head, slumping at the shoulders. "I sure hope not, Bill, but it looks to be so." Rare tears threatened to fall. "I didn't know where else to turn. You're the judge. Is this even possible?"

Bill examined the document more closely, but the more he studied it, the more he feared it was legitimate. He went back to his desk, motioning to the chair across from him. "Sit down, Nathan. You look like you're going to pass out."

Nathan took a seat without argument. He spread his hands out, anger starting to build inside of him. "How can he do this?" he demanded, his voice rising with each word. "Allie's father abandoned her when my sister died, and now he thinks he can just waltz back into her life and take custody? He has no right!"

"I agree with you," Bill said. "But the law might not be on our side. Can I keep this for today?" he asked, holding up the paper. Nathan nodded, the anger vanishing as quickly as it had come, dismay and fear taking its place. Bill smiled grimly. "I'll look through the law books and see what I can find. If there's a way out of this, I'll find it, Nathan."

Nathan stood. "Thanks, Bill." He reached out to shake Bill's hand. "I appreciate it."

The next day, Bill hesitated outside the Mountie office, knowing Nathan wasn't going to like the news he brought. It looked like there was only one way for Nathan to keep Allie in his custody, and he doubted Nathan was going to be happy about it. Pushing open the door, he entered the room.

Nathan stood when he saw him, hope lighting his eyes momentarily. "Did you find anything?" he asked eagerly.

Bill nodded slowly. "Yes, but…"

"Oh, thank God!" Nathan said, breathing out a sigh of relief. He collapsed back into his chair. "You don't know how grateful I am to hear that!"

"Don't be too grateful yet," Bill warned. Something in his voice made Nathan sit up straight and study Bill.

"What is it, Bill?"

Bill placed the document on Nathan's desk. "It looks like Allie's father can take custody of her unless you can prove you can provide her with a more stable home life."

Nathan frowned. "I've been doing that for years. What's the problem?"

Bill cleared his throat. "A stable home life, according to the laws, includes you having a wife."

Nathan stared. "A wife?" He laughed. "You've got to be joking!" The look on Bill's face told him he wasn't joking. He stood and began pacing the room. "Did Allie's father remarry?"

"No," Bill said. "I contacted some of my friends at Mountie headquarters, and they confirmed that her father, one Lance Thigpen, is unmarried but looking to reclaim his daughter. They couldn't say why, and this document shows us no reason why either. If you were to be married, they'd be inclined to let you keep Allie because she would have a mother figure as well as a father figure."

"So you're saying that unless I get married, I can't keep Allie? Even though she's been with me for over seven years? How is that just?" Nathan asked, desperation in his voice. His tone turned slightly sarcastic. "And how long would they give me to find a wife?"

"Um, a week," Bill said.

Nathan's mouth dropped. "A week?" he practically shouted. "How am I supposed to get married in a week? I can barely talk to women, much less simply go up to one and ask her to marry me so that I can keep custody of my niece! No one would go for that!" He shoved his hands through his hair, desperation building inside. "What am I supposed to do?"

Bill hated seeing his friend so distressed, but he couldn't blame him. He supposed he would feel the same way if the child he loved like a daughter were taken from him against his will. "You could send for a mail-order bride," he suggested.

Nathan stared at him. "That's still a thing?"

Bill shrugged. "I think so."

Nathan sank into his chair again, shoulders slumped, face in his hands. He thought for a moment, a slight hope rising at Bill's suggestion, but just as quickly it vanished. "Even if that were possible," he said, "no one could get here in a week. It's impossible."

Bill nodded. "You could ask someone in Hope Valley to marry you," he said, knowing as he said it that was even less likely than his first suggestion.

Nathan gave a short laugh. "Right. Just walk up to one of the women in this town and say, 'Hey, want to enter a marriage of convenience?' She'd take one look at me and run in the opposite direction. No one wants to do something that drastic." He dropped his face back into his hands. "Thanks for trying, Bill," he mumbled through his hands. "I need to think."

Bill rose. "I hope you get a miracle, Nathan," he said, clapping him on the shoulder. Nathan nodded. He heard Bill leave and silence descend on his office. In the privacy of the empty room, he let the tears fall. Allie meant everything to him, and he was going to lose her. How was he going to face life without the girl who had brought so much light to it?