After church, Elizabeth went back home to get ready for tea with Lucas. Elizabeth made Jack lunch and after he had finished eating, Elizabeth sat him on the floor to play with his toys. Elizabeth heard a knock on the door. It was pat one o'clock. Elizabeth answered the door. It was Lucas.
"Hello Elizabeth." Lucas said.
"Lucas, please come in." Elizabeth said. Lucas entered the house.
"I brought a toy train for Jack." Lucas said showing the train set. Hearing his name, Jack ran over to Lucas who gave him the train
"That's so sweet. What do you say Jack?" Elizabeth asked.
"Thank you." Jack said smiling at the train and went back to his spot to play with it.
"Please, sit." Elizabeth said. Lucas said in a chair across from the couch where Elizabeth took a seat.
"This is the first time I've been in here." Lucas said.
"What do you think?" Elizabeth asked.
"Cozy." Lucas said with a smile. Jack's picture was sitting on the table next to Lucas.
"Is this Jack?" Lucas asked.
"Yes." Elizabeth said.
Lucas smiled and examined the picture.
"He looks like an honorable man." Lucas said.
"Yes, he was." Elizabeth said.
There was an awkward silence between them.
"Elizabeth, I want to apologize for leaving after you told me that you were still grieving Jack and did not want to court anymore. It was selfish of me not to let you know that I was taking an extended leave." Lucas said.
"It was quite sudden." Elizabeth said.
"I was frustrated. I needed to get away. I needed to get away from Hope Valley and to an extent, from you. I needed to find what I wanted in life." Lucas said.
"Did you find what you were looking for?" Elizabeth asked.
"Yes. Her name is Rebecca." Lucas said.
The kettle went off.
Elizabeth went over to the stove and turned it off. She brought the tea and two cups over with her and set it down.
"You met someone?" Elizabeth said.
"Yes." Lucas said.
"How did you two meet?" Elizabeth asked.
"I traveled down to New Orleans. There was a used bookstore around the corner where I was staying. One day, I went into the bookstore and as I was grabbing a book, she grabbed the book at the same time. After debating who should have the book, we decided that we would both pay half for the book and share it. I read it first and when I dropped the book off with her, she told me that she checked the book out of the library and read it so she could talk with me about it. What started as a book discussion turned into a discussion about her life, goals and dreams." Lucas said.
Elizabeth smiled.
"What is she like?" Elizabeth asked.
"She is sweet, funny, witty, challenging and a daughter of a preacher." Lucas said.
"A preacher?!" Elizabeth exclaimed.
"Yes, a preacher." Lucas said.
"Have you gone to church with her?" Elizabeth asked.
"A couple of times." Lucas said.
"Does she know about your past?" Elizabeth asked.
Lucas smiled.
"She does. With her, I feel like I can be vulnerable with her. I feel like I can tell her anything and I won't be judged. I'm sorry Elizabeth, but it always felt like I had to put on a show with you. These grand gestures I did hid the fact that we didn't have much in common. I wanted it to work between us but I realized that with Rebecca, it doesn't feel like work with her. We just click." Lucas said.
Elizabeth thought back to her courtship with Lucas. She remembered how she wore a dress that her sister had sent her. She didn't feel like herself in the dress. But she wore it because she wanted to be the perfect fit with Lucas. Elizabeth realized that it was just a charade.
"I understand. We just weren't right for each other." Elizabeth said.
Lucas sipped his tea and nodded.
"Sometimes, it takes someone else to find out who you really belong with." Lucas said.
Elizabeth nodded.
"I'm selling the saloon to Henry and Bill. I will be leaving Hope Valley. When I go back to New Orleans, I will be asking for Rebecca's hand in marriage." Lucas said.
"How exciting." Elizabeth said.
"I wanted to come see you before I left. I wanted to explain why I left and talk to you about your book." Lucas said.
"Is something wrong with the publishing?" Elizabeth asked.
"No. But my mother sent me a final copy of your manuscript. I read it. With all due respect, I don't think you should publish the book." Lucas said.
"Why not?" Elizabeth asked.
"Because it doesn't sound like you. You are a wonderful storyteller. But you can't tell with all my mother's edits. The first copy you ever showed me was perfect. There was heart. This manuscript, well written just doesn't sound like you. I think you should write about your life. From Hamilton, you were on a mission to teach the children of Hope Valley. You gained the trust of the town and fell in love along the way. I think that is a more compelling book. And that is exactly what I told my mother." Lucas said.
"What? What did she say?" Elizabeth asked.
"She agreed. Her offer still stands to publish any book you write. She said just to send it to her when you have written it." Lucas said.
Elizabeth smiled. Elizabeth realized that even though Lucas had shades of gray in him, he was a good man deep inside. But he just wasn't the man for her.
Lucas finished his tea and stood up.
"I apologize to cut this short but I have to go meet Bill and Henry to sign the saloon over to them." Lucas said.
"I understand." Elizabeth said. Elizabeth walked Lucas over to the door.
"Please keep in touch." Elizabeth said.
"I will. But there was one more thing wrong with your final manuscript." Lucas said.
"What?" Elizabeth asked.
"The female protagonist picked the Tavern Owner when she should have picked the honorable Mountie." Lucas said. He winked at Elizabeth. They said their goodbyes.
As Elizabeth was cleaning the tea cups, she thought about Lucas and Rebecca. There was no jealousy. Elizabeth was happy for Lucas. But when Elizabeth thought about Nathan and Cora, her stomach turned into knots.
xxx
Later that evening, Nathan was in the Mountie office finishing a report when he heard a knock on the door.
"Come in." Nathan said.
It was Lucas.
"Hello Nathan." Lucas said.
"Lucas." Nathan said.
"I brought you bourbon all the way from New Orleans." Lucas said.
Nathan sighed.
"Is this a bribe or something?" Nathan asked.
"I was hoping it would be more of a truce." Lucas said.
Nathan stared at Lucas. Nathan went into the drawer and brought out two glasses.
"Truce." Nathan said.
Lucas smiled and walked over to a chair across from Nathan. Lucas opened the bourbon and poured some in Nathan's glass and poured some in his glass.
"To new beginnings." Lucas said with a raised glass.
"New beginnings." Nathan said with a raised glass. The two took a sip of the bourbon.
"That's good." Nathan said.
Lucas nodded his head.
"What brings you back to town?" Nathan asked.
Lucas explained he was selling the saloon to Bill and Henry.
"Did Hope Valley get too boring for you?" Nathan asked.
"No. But New Orleans has new opportunities for me." Lucas said.
"Like what?" Nathan asked.
"The woman I love being one of them." Lucas said.
Nathan almost choked on his bourbon.
"You are involved with someone?" Nathan asked.
"It's a little more than just involved. I'm going to ask her to marry me." Lucas said.
Nathan smiled.
"Congratulations." Nathan said raising his glass to him.
"Thank you." Lucas said.
"Speaking of love, I thought when I came back, you and Elizabeth would have been married." Lucas said.
Nathan scoffed.
"She broke Allie's heart and my heart. I don't think I could be with someone who does that. She said that she was trying to find Jack in me." Nathan said.
"Ouch." Lucas said.
"I'm courting someone in Maple Creek. It's a fresh start. No broken hearts." Nathan said.
Lucas was silent for a minute.
"You always had Elizabeth's heart." Lucas said.
"What?" Nathan asked.
"You always had her heart. Anyone could see that. The digs, the competition, that was just me being jealous." Lucas said.
Nathan smirked.
"You were jealous?" Nathan asked.
"Yes." Lucas said.
Nathan smiled at that.
"I don't think it matters anymore if I always had her heart. She admitted to me that she is still hurt from keeping Fort Clay from her and she is scared of loving me because she might lose me like she lost Jack." Nathan said.
"She is just protecting her heart." Lucas said.
"I know." Nathan said.
Looking at his watch, Lucas stood up from the table.
"I better get going. The stagecoach leaves early. But before I go, I wanted to give this to you." Lucas said. He put a couple stacks of cash on Nathan's desk.
"What is this?" Nathan asked.
"I heard that the students need a new school in Maple Creek. I think that should be enough to build a school for them. If it's not, then I'll send more." Lucas asked.
"That's generous of you. But I don't know how the Bouchard School will sound in a place like Maple Creek." Nathan said.
Lucas laughed.
"Please, do not name it after me. I don't think a place of learning should be named after me." Lucas said with a smirk.
"This isn't dirty money, is it?" Nathan asked.
"No, Nathan. It is some of the money from the sale of the saloon. This is part of Bill's half and I can assure you that Bill would never have dirty money." Lucas said.
Nathan smiled.
As Lucas was leaving, he looked back at Nathan.
"Nathan, think about 30 years from now. Who do you see sitting across from you at the breakfast table?" Lucas said.
Nathan didn't say anything and Lucas left. Nathan put the cash away in the safe. After putting the money away, Nathan sat at his desk and closed his eyes. Who did he want to see every day until his eyes closed for good?