"Ally are you ready yet?" Nathan called up the stairs.

The girl had started coming downstairs and had then retreated back to her room. They were suppose to be at Elizabeth's house shortly to walk her and Little Jack to the café for dinner.

"I can't go," Ally called back, in a shaky voice.

Taking the steps two at a time, Nathan was soon stepping into the doorway of Ally's room. Expecting to find her crying on the bed, Nathan's gaze went there first. However, other than a pile of discarded outfits, the bed was empty. Looking from the bed, his gaze found Ally standing in front of the mirror on top of her dresser. Looking at Ally's reflection, Nathan saw tears falling down her cheeks and her hair was a tangled mess.

"I was going to wear it down but then I decided I wanted it up. I wanted it to look special for tonight and now it is just a mess."

Nathan stepped into the room.

"Go without me," Ally said.

"That is not going to happen," Nathan told her, coming to a stop behind her. He held his hand out for the brush in her hand. Ally surrendered it as Nathan eyed the mess before him. Somehow, Ally had managed to tangle a hair ribbon in her hair. "I will try to be gentle but there might be a pull or two," he told her honestly as he began to work on the tangled hair.

"All right," Ally replied even as she reached for a handkerchief to wipe the tears from her face.

Nathan worked on untangling the ribbon from the hair. He saw Ally wince twice and he murmured a sorry to her. Eventually though, he had the ribbon out and the hair lying smooth. Without asking for direction from Ally, he separated the top layer of her hair. Reaching for a light peach bow, that would match the peach dress she had chosen to wear. Fastening the bow, he braided the hair he had separated and secured the end.

"That always has been my favorite look on you," Nathan told her, placing a kiss on the top of her head. "Can we go now?"

Ally nodded. "Thank you," she told him softly.

Nathan and Ally went downstairs. They put on jackets as the day had been cool and then left the house. They walked down the path to Elizabeth's house. With Ally standing in front of him, Nathan reached out to knock on the door.

The door opened quickly. Elizabeth was standing, coat already on, with Jack in her arms. The little boy had on a jacket and a cap.

"Sorry, we were late. We had a minor hair crisis," Nathan told her.

Ally smiled sheepishly but did not scold her uncle.

Elizabeth smiled. "I know exactly how those feel," she told Ally.

"Na'tan," Jack said, reaching out his arms toward him.

"Hey there, Little Man," Nathan said, reaching out for the boy.

Elizabeth relinquished son. She was beaming as Nathan settled Jack against him."Are you ready?" Nathan asked her.

"Yes," Elizabeth replied easily.

As Ally and Nathan went down the steps, Elizabeth stepped out of her home, pulling the door shut behind her. Coming down the steps, Elizabeth reached for Ally's hand. The girl took her teacher's hand easily as the two started into town. As Ally and Elizabeth chatted, Nathan followed behind them, Jack playing with the collar of his coat as they walked.

Nathan remembered feeling this happy the last time they had attempted a family dinner.

Family?

Yes. Nathan decided. It might be premature, but he already thought of Elizabeth and Jack as family. All he needed was Elizabeth's acceptance of the idea to make it official. He prayed she was getting there and he hoped this dinner would help her see what he already saw.

Just to be sure they actually made it to the café this time, Nathan had asked Lucas to remain indoors this evening between five and five thirty. Lucas had laughed but had promised to do so. Even with the delay, Nathan knew he should be able to get Elizabeth and the children safely into the café before five thirty.

Maybe he was being ridiculous, but Nathan had not wanted to chance a repeat of the last attempt at this dinner.