Chapter Nine

The weather stayed fine and sunny for the weekend, and Quinn took full advantage of it to explore Hope Valley on foot, and horseback, on Saturday.

Quinn felt she had used the day well, visiting the Church and School; she had been interested to see how the two worked together. The pond and dock were beautiful, and she knew she would come back when she needed some quiet. Quinn created accounts at the Mercantile, one for work and a personal one. Grinning, she remembered Bill's outrage when she told him the changes she had made in the office, simple things like cleaning off a desk to use and finding a chair to sit on. Not unreasonable, she thought, but not Bill, who was very territorial about his office space.

She had met Rosemary Coulter as she left the Mercantile; after a few minutes in her company, she understood why Bill hadn't tried to describe her. Quinn was in awe of her energy, although she wondered how Leland Coulter coped with her in the office every day. She decided she liked Rosemary very much and looked forward to knowing her better.

She called in to see Fiona's Barbershop, learning about Ladies' and Men's days, locking that into her memory for the time she needed a haircut. Fiona was as lovely as ever and invited Quinn to have dinner with her that evening at the Saloon, to which she readily agreed. She didn't want to sit in her room or eat at the café every meal. She hoped she was making friends in Town.

She wandered around the various businesses, introducing herself and familiarising herself with what was available in Town. She found the library and happily selected several titles to keep her company. Quinn was an avid reader and loved nothing more than curling up and getting lost in a novel.

She met Pastor Joseph Canfield and his wife Minnie of the famous chocolate cake, promising to be at services on Sunday, where she hoped to meet many other community members. Quinn's heart did a little skip when she thought of the plans she had with Nathan after Church on Sunday.

Quinn was glad to run into Allie as she left school and made her way to the mercantile for a shift on the switchboard. Allie was a dynamo, whirling around, introducing her to the group of friends she was with, talking a mile a minute. Quinn laughed along with her knowing she would never remember everyone's name.

The one person she didn't see was Nathan. Quinn missed him when she saddled and unsaddled Misty, and he wasn't at any of the places she visited. The one place he may have been, the Mountie office, Quinn refused to visit. When she thought about entering the Mountie office and seeing the jail cell, she went cold all over, taking her back to the worst time in her life.

She could admit she was sorry not to have seen Nathan; tomorrow seemed a long time to wait to see him again. Shaking her head at her silliness, she turned to walk back to Abigail's and get ready for the evening with Fiona.

Nerves settled in Quinn's stomach as she approached the Saloon that evening. She wasn't a shy person, but she felt so that night. Quinn felt tonight was a turning point for her, a way of establishing herself as someone other than Bill's assistant; she wanted to make friends in her own right so she could truly build a life in Hope Valley.

Taking a deep breath, she opened the doors to the Saloon and stepped inside. She was pleasantly surprised to see that it resembled more of a restaurant than she had pictured. She laughed to herself, No Saloon girls anywhere.

Hearing her name called, Quinn looked over to see a smiling Fiona waving at her from a table against the room's back wall. Smiling, Quinn waved back and threaded her way through the tables to join her friend. As she got closer to the table, she saw the others with Fiona and recognised Mike and Faith, but not the fourth person, a man with dark hair.

"I am so glad you could join us, Quinn; please let me introduce you to Kevin; he is the Blacksmith here in Hope Valley," Fiona said, drawing her gently into the group.

Quinn smiled broadly and introduced herself to Kevin. Sitting down at the table, she realised they were a table of five. She hoped she wasn't interrupting a date night for the couples; how embarrassing she thought feeling awkward.

Mike and Kevin went to the bar to get a round of drinks, and Quinn hurriedly asked Fiona and Faith, "am I imposing on a double date for you two?" Looking confused as they both burst out laughing.

Fiona stopped laughing first and explained to Quinn there were no couples at the table, just a group of friends who got together to share a meal and maybe play some darts. Before Jesse and Clara left, she explained they had often joined them too.

Quinn wanted to ask if Nathan ever joined them, but the men returned from the bar, and she lost the opportunity. Thanking Mike for her drink, she smiled, determined to enjoy her night and not think of Nathan again. Stop thinking about him; she told herself and hoped she wasn't blushing.

Just as Quinn had resolved to put Nathan out of her mind, Fiona said, "Oh, hey, there's Nathan." Raising her hand and her voice, she called out, "Nathan over here!" Her eyes followed the direction Fiona was looking, and she saw him, standing just inside the doorway, smiling his crooked smile at Fiona. She quickly looked away. He gave a small wave and then nodded toward the bar, letting Fiona know he would get a drink and then join them.

"Scoot over, Mike, and make room for another chair for Nathan," Fiona said. Quinn frowned; that would put Nathan between herself and Mike; the table wasn't that large, and adding one more would be very cosy. Quinn felt the blush rising in her cheeks and stood up, using the excuse of rearranging her chair to hide her reddening face. She wasn't sure how she felt about being that close to Nathan in this setting, considering how he affected her. Gabe had taken one look at her face and known what was happening; she wasn't sure she wanted this group to learn of her feelings toward their Constable.

Determined not to look at Nathan, Quinn continued to chat to the others at the table. Stop it, Quinn, she told herself, he is the Constable in Town, you will be working with him. Stop making a spectacle of yourself. If only it were that easy, she thought. Nathan was again in Civilian clothes, and Quinn couldn't decide which was her favourite look, Nathan in Uniform or Nathan in casual trousers, buttoned-down shirt and suspenders. Unable to choose, she thought, they were equally as good.

Nathan stood at the bar, waiting to order a drink, trying to buy himself time before he had to go and face Quinn and the others. He had come to the Saloon tonight deliberately. Nathan had heard Fiona telling Mike that Quinn had agreed to meet them there that evening. Allie had already arranged a sleepover at Opal's, so his night was free, and he realised he wanted to spend it with Quinn, not alone as he would have done in the past. Spending time with the others was a bonus.

He had noticed Quinn as soon as he walked into the Saloon. She hadn't seen him as she had her back to the door. He saw her body stiffen when Fiona called his name, she had given him a quick glance, but that was all. He frowned lightly, hoping that was because she was surprised, not upset.

Nathan had spent the afternoon trying to understand the feelings he had for Quinn. Everyone thought he was still pining after Elizabeth; he had too, but meeting Quinn had made him rethink this. Nathan removed his guilt over Jack's death, ignored his anger at the hurt she had caused Allie and thought about how he felt about Elizabeth now. He realised that his reaction to her was not what it used to be. Nathan had loved her, but when he thought about whether he still loved her, the answer was no, he didn't. Was he ready to move on, he wondered? Yes, but not with just anyone; Quinn was the one who he wanted to get to know.

Getting his drink, he took a nervous sip before walking toward the table where his friends sat. He was pleased to see they had made space for him, which placed him next to Quinn, and he noted that she avoided looking at him and blushing.

As he got closer to the table, everyone called out greetings, and there was general chit chat as he sat down. Quinn joined in these hellos, managing not to look at him the entire time.

Nathan knew he had to do something to make her look at him, so he leaned forward to put his drink on the table, bending closer than necessary to Quinn. He also managed to slide his chair a little closer to her. He felt her stiffen, but she still didn't say anything, nor would she look at him directly.

What was he doing, moving his chair so close to her! Quinn thought to herself, not believing it was an accident. She looked at Nathan from the corner of her eye; he was watching her. As she finally made eye contact, he smiled at her. Quinn wished he would stop smiling at her like that; it gave her butterflies. Trying to ignore him, she focused on the others at the table and joined in the lively conversation.

As the night went on, Quinn felt herself relaxing, laughing with the others and allowing herself to join in the stories and jokes. She was delighted to hear Nathan join in as well; although she was still trying her best not to look at him, she couldn't stop herself laughing at his jokes and the stories he was telling. Quinn was curious about the reaction of the others to Nathan, they seemed surprised, not only to see him there but there was something else. Quinn noticed Fiona and Faith sharing an occasional look, communicating something but couldn't understand what they saw or heard that she didn't.

Eventually, they decided to call it a night. As the group stood, gathering their things together and getting ready to leave, Quinn heard her name spoken softly. Looking up, she saw Nathan staring at her intensely. "What is it, Nathan?' She asked just as quietly.

Nathan swallowed, looking nervous and asked her, "would you allow me to walk you home, Quinn?"

Quinn smiled, "Thank you, Nathan, but it is only across the road; I am sure I will be fine. I don't need anyone to walk me home."

"I am sure you would be fine, but I can't let you walk home alone; I would feel better if you would let me see you to your door."

Shaking her head, Quinn thought about the best way to deter Nathan, but as Fiona and Faith walked toward the door, leaving them alone, Fiona called out, "there is no point in arguing Quinn; Nathan is a Mountie. It's his job to protect the citizens of Hope Valley; you may as well give up and say yes." Laughing, she and Faith quickly left the Saloon.

Sighing, Quinn looked around and realised that all the others had left; only she and Nathan remained at their table; she hadn't noticed Mike and Kevin leave. "Well, Constable, it looks like you are going to get your way and walk me home," she said with a small smile.

Without speaking, Nathan held out his arm to escort her, and Quinn took it. Quinn felt the jolt from the contact with Nathan all the way to her toes. She could feel the warmth from his body and smell the scent that was uniquely Nathan, a fresh, clean smell, leather, and something else, hard to describe but wonderful. Quinn realised neither of them had said a word to each other on the walk from Abigails; it was his nearness that had taken her breath away, and she wondered what was causing Nathan's silence. Turning to face him, she waited, curious to see if he would say anything at all.

Nathan looked at Quinn; he thought it would be easier to talk to her once she had let go of his arm, and he wasn't distracted by her closeness, but looking into her eyes, he still didn't know where to start. Swallowing his nerves, he said, "Quinn, I wanted to say how much I enjoyed spending time with you tonight. I, ...I have to tell you that I heard Fiona and Mike talking and, I knew they were going to be at the Saloon" he admitted and then stopped speaking.

"So you decided to join them?" She asked quietly.

"No," he replied honestly. "I knew they had asked you to go and, I wanted to spend time with you". Raking his hand through his unruly, wavy hair, he said, " I didn't want to wait until Sunday."

Quinn was stunned at his revelation; she certainly hadn't expected him to say that. Not that she was complaining, she felt the same way about Nathan.

Nathan closed his eyes; he couldn't believe he had just blurted that out. He was afraid to look at Quinn, scared of what she would say; there was still a part of him that doubted she would feel anything at all for him other than friendship. Standing there, hardly daring to breathe, Nathan felt a soft touch on his hand. His eyes shot open; looking down, he saw Quinn's hand slipping inside his larger one.

Daring to look at Quinn then, seeing the shy smile on her face and the softness in her eyes, he was able to draw in his first deep breath since they left the Saloon. He felt her squeeze his hand and gently squeezed back; her hand, so small and soft in his, was a perfect fit.