Gabriel arrived into town still humming that afternoon. As he reined in Apollo in front of the Mounted Police Office, Gabriel spotted Ruth walking across the street in the direction of the Telegraph Office next door.
"Excuse me, Ruth," Gabriel called out to her. "Do you think you could give me a hand?" he asked, nodding to the flowers he hand balanced carefully in front of him.
"Of course, Constable," Ruth said with a friendly smile. She changed direction to come over to him. Reaching up, the post mistress and wife of Brookfield's telegraph operator carefully took the two flower arrangements from him. "These are lovely. Are they from Louisa's greenhouses?"
"They are," Gabriel said, as he dismounted. "Finding flowers at this time of year without riding to Clearwater is difficult around these parts. This was the first time I have been inside Mrs. McDermott's greenhouse though. I did not realize she had such a wide variety."
"Oh, it is amazing, isn't it?" Ruth gushed, handing the flowers to Gabriel after he had tied Apollo's reins to the post. Gabriel nodded in response as Ruth continued. "Let me get the door for you, Constable."
"Thank you, Ruth," Gabriel said as he walked through the door the woman held open for him. "You have a good day."
"You too," Ruth replied. "And if those are for Faith, she is going to love them," she added before disappearing from the doorway making a further reply on Gabriel's part unnecessary.
Though he felt heat rise in his cheeks, Gabriel smiled. He hoped Faith enjoyed her flowers and it was clear that townsfolk were already aware of his feelings for their new doctor. Having placed the two vases Louisa put the flowers in for him, on his desk, while he went to the back of the room and unlocked the door leading to the living apartment of the building. Pushing that door open, he then returned for the flowers. He placed them on the counter near the stove and then headed back outside for the tablecloth that Louisa had lent him.
Stepping outside again, he spotted Faith, her hair pulled back with a light blue ribbon, stepping outside of the infirmary with Annabelle Clay. Given the smile on both women's face as the waved good-bye, Gabriel assumed that whatever the visit had been about was good. Lowering her hand, Faith looked in his direction. The smile on her face got bigger, and Gabriel's breath caught. Wow, was the lady pretty. More so than even the flower arrangements that he had gotten from Louisa.
He had teased Nathan in the past for his comment that seeing Elizabeth was like seeing the dawn start a new day. Gabriel knew exactly how his friend felt now. Not that he planned on apologizing for his teasing. That just wouldn't do. At least Nathan's sunrise had stopped running from him. The way his best friend was talking, he would be asking his pretty schoolteacher a particular question soon. Having served with Jack Thornton in the Northern Territories, Gabriel had no doubt that Jack would approve of Nathan looking after Elizabeth and Little Jack in his stead.
"Are you all right?"
The simple but concerned question broke through Gabriel's thoughts. With a start, he realized that Faith was no longer in front of the infirmary but standing in front of him.
Gabriel felt his cheeks grow warm. They were probably the color of his serge right now. Faith reaching up and gently placing a hand on his forehead did not help matters.
"If you are not feeling well, we can postpone our date," Faith told him, the concern clear in her voice. She lowered her hand but before she could make further comment, Gabriel spoke.
"I am feeling fine," he assured her. Gabriel reached for her hands and took them in his. "I am just a little embarrassed to have been caught daydreaming in the middle of the day."
"Well there is a reason they call them daydreams," Faith teased lightly, not trying to pull her hand from Gabriel's gentle grasp.
"A good point. However, a Mountie really shouldn't be daydreaming on the job," Gabriel replied. "Unfortunately, there is this pretty blonde in town who has that affect on me."
It was Faith's turn to blush.
"Perhaps I need to stay inside the infirmary during the day. I wouldn't want to be responsible for distracting the town Mountie from doing his job."
"That might not be a good idea either," Gabriel countered. "I might have to come up with reasons to visit the infirmary in that case."
"While I do enjoy your company, I would rather you didn't have a reason to come see me in the infirmary," Faith countered. "Speaking of which, we should probably both get back to our jobs. I will see you this evening."
"I will be counting the minutes," Gabriel replied as he finally, reluctantly, released her hands.
He watched as Faith crossed the road. It was only after she had disappeared inside the infirmary that Gabriel took his eyes off that direction and went about the task of retrieving the tablecloth. As off kilter as he felt right then, it would probably be best to settle Apollo in his stall for a little while and keep to the office. Other than a possible paper cut, he didn't think there were any real dangers there.
Faith sighed as she fidgeted with bottles of ointments and tinctures that really didn't need to be moved. Missed appointments were always a hard call in a small town. While in the city, a simple phone call, either from the patient or to them, would ascertain what the issue was. In a place like Brookfield it wasn't quite so simple. A missed appointment could be as simple as someone forgot or perhaps something had happened to keep the person from coming into town. She glanced at the door and then over at the clock on a shelf. The infirmary was supposed to be open for another half hour. Should she go out to the Clay farm to check on Scott Langley? If she did that she would probably be late for her date though given the circumstances, she was sure Gabriel would understand.
Truth be told though, she didn't want to delay spending an evening with Gabriel.
"I would worry too much about Scott missing the appointment. He probably either got busy and forgot or decided the cut looked fine and he didn't need people to fuss over it," Maggie said, catching Faith's glance at the clock.
"Do people skip appointments a lot here?" Faith asked, looking at the blonde nurse who sat in a chair perusing a magazine to pass the time.
"People in general, no? Single ranch hands who are trying to be tough cowboys and not look weak in front of the others, all the time," Maggie told her. "Scott lives in the bunk house on the Clay ranch so I will stop by on my way home this evening and take a peak at the hand. That will be of course after we get you ready for your date."
Faith paused. Back in Hope Valley she probably would have had one of the ladies, most likely Fiona, helping her get ready. Here in Brookfield, she had just assumed she would be on her own. Maggie and Lillian had already done quite enough with making it possible for her to have a new dress, for the occasion.
"I can get ready for tonight myself," Faith ventured. "In fact, if you would prefer, you could go make the call to the Clay ranch now."
Maggie shook her head. "It will be better if I catch him around supper time on the ranch. He won't be able to claim he has work to do, though London Clay wouldn't make a fuss over any of his ranch hands taking time away from work to get medical attention. In fact, if he had known about the appointment, he would have made sure Scott came in."
Faith simply nodded. Maggie knew the town and the people better than she did. What she was learning though, was that the cowboy's and families who worked the ranches were a different breed from the farmers around Hope Valley.
"As for you getting ready, of course you can do it yourself, but what is the fun of that," Maggie continued.
Faith smiled. Maggie did have a point. "So what do you think I should do with my hair?" she asked turning her back on the shelves to face the nurse.
After changing out of his uniform and into black slacks, a dark green shirt, with a black vest over it, and the black and green striped tie, which Allie had given him this past Christmas, Gabriel stepped out into the main room of his living quarters. He had already spread the borrowed tablecloth over the table and placed the arrangement Louisa had made him in the center. Two taper candles stood in candle holders that were his maternal grandmother's, on either side of the arrangement. He would light them when they sat down for supper. He had borrowed some pretty dishes, wine glasses, and silverware from Pearl. Two places were already set at the table. Dark-green cloth napkins folded in a fan at the top of the plate. Faith's bouquet sat in a vase to the side in water to keep them fresh.
Deciding that all looked ready, Gabriel grabbed the large black apron hanging on a hook near the stove. His plan was to cook a filet of steak, smothered in white gravy, mushroom sauce, a recipe from his mother. To go with it, he would have seasoned baked potatoes sliced thinly, biscuits and a green salad. Though he had some recipes for dressing, Gabriel had chosen to buy two different kinds of dressing for this occasion. He hoped Faith would like one of the two he selected.
Gabriel got to work on the sauce for the steak first, so it would be ready to finish cooking the steaks in when he got to that point. As he went about dinner preparations, Gabriel found himself humming, a habit he had picked up while cooking with his mother while growing up. His first memories were of his mother humming in the kitchen.
Hearing a knock on the door, Gabriel glanced at his clock on the shelf on a wall. It was twenty minutes to six, which meant that Faith had taken him up on the invitation to show up early. While he felt flattered that she was anxious enough to want to show up early, he was also a bit nervous. It had been a long time since he had cooked for anyone other than friends or family. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea for a first date.
"Too late to worry about that now, Kinslow," he muttered softly as he made sure nothing was in danger of burning before going to the door.
On his way toward the door, he retrieved the bouquet from the vase, dabbing off the excess water with a towel left nearby for the purpose. Reaching it, he opened the door. He had been prepared to say hello but was rendered speechless by the sight in front of him. Faith had pulled the sides of her hair back but let the back tendrils hang loose. The navy clip in her hair matched the color of her dress. The dark blue of her clothing made her blue eyes look even lighter than usual. The pearl teardrop earrings were the only jewelry she wore but Faith didn't need anything else. She was already beautiful.
"Hello?" Faith asked tentatively, an amused smile on her face.
Gabriel's face felt warm and it had nothing to do with the cooking he had been doing. "Good evening," he replied, giving himself a mental shake. "These are for you," he added holding out the bouquet to her. "They don't look quite as pretty next to you."
Faith's cheeks took on a rosy hue as she accepted the bouquet of flowers. "Thank you," she murmured, taking advantage of the pretense of smelling the flowers to hide her face and regain her composure.
"Step on inside," Gabriel instructed, stepping aside. "Let me take your shawl."
With the bouquet in one hand, Faith reached up with the hand to lift the shawl from her shoulder. Gabriel carefully slipped the shawl from around her shoulders and hung it up. Excusing himself to check on the food, he did so quickly before turning back to faith.
"Sorry, about that," Gabriel said, returning to where Faith stood looking around the one-room, sparsely furnished living area. Other than an afghan on the back of the wingback chair and another on the rocking chair, the table was the only thing decorated in the room. Dark, plain, heavy curtains hung in the two windows on either end of the room. Tied back right now, the world outside grew greyer as night chased the day away. The pots, pans, cooking utensils and dishes were ether on hooks on the wall or open shelves as were the food items. The broom, washtub, and dust pan were in one corner of the room. The two photographs he carried, one of his family and another of Nathan and Allie, were in his bedroom as was a handful of books. Having served in areas with more cramped living quarters, the little apartment had always seemed cozy and adequate to him. Now, he wondered just how stark and uninviting Faith thought it was. "At least the place is easy to keep clean," Gabriel said lightly, trying to gloss over the appearance of his home.
Faith smiled. "It is neat, and clean. You have nothing to be embarrassed about," she told him. "You probably wouldn't want many personal effects to have to pack up and take with you to another posting."
"I've never had a reason to need a place to look cozy and comfortable," Gabriel admitted, as he crossed to her. He offered her his arm. "Come have a seat at the table," he invited her. "Supper should be ready on time."
"The table looks pretty," Faith commented.
"All borrowed," Gabriel told her. "However, I wanted the table to look pretty for our supper together."
"Makes it even more special in my opinion," Faith assured him as he held a chair for her to sit down. "It took more effort to search things out then just unpack it."
"Thank you," Gabriel said, accepting the compliment graciously as he made sure Faith was seated. He inquired about putting the bouquet back in the vase for the time being. Faith thanked him and then turning back to her he asked, "Can I get you a drink while I finish supper? I have sun tea in the ice box, or I bought sparkling cider for the meal." Though he had contemplated buying a bottle of wine he decided against it, not knowing if Faith like wine nor did he want to give the wrong impression during their first date.
"Just water for now, though the sparkling cider will be a nice change for the meal," Faith replied. "What are you cooking? It smells delicious!"
Gabriel gave the cooking food the attention that it needed, flipping the steaks one last time and smothering it with the sauce, explaining to Faith the meal he was preparing as he did so. He got her a glass of water and then returned to the counter stove, checking on the potatoes and biscuits. As the latter looked nice and golden, he removed those and placed them on an area on the stove to remain warm as he went to the counter to finish putting the salad together.
"I am in total awe," Faith commented, as she watched him."You make that look so easy. My culinary skills are limited to peeling, cutting, and boiling water. Much more than that, smoke is usually involved."
Gabriel smiled. "Who did the cooking while you were growing up? For that matter, where are you from?" he asked realizing that he didn't even know that.
"I grew up in Hamilton," Faith replied.
"How did a city girl like you, end up all the way out in the wild west?" Gabriel asked lightly as he sliced radishes.
"That is a long story," Faith replied. "One to save for during our meal."
"Fair enough."
"To answer the original question though, my father kept books for a law office and my mother was a nurse. Though both were usually home in the evening, my brother's and I were looked after by my dad's older sister who live nearby during the day unless we were in school. My mother always made breakfast but our evening meals and midday meals on the weekend were prepared by a hired cook. Edith was nice enough, and enjoyed cooking and baking treats for us, but she never wanted anyone in the kitchen with her while cooking. My mother was often so hurried getting breakfast for us and us kids ready before she left for work that she just didn't have much time for childish helpers."
Gabriel nodded. "I get it. Life had a way of getting us so focused on what needs to be done that people forget the pleasures of the journey," he commented picking up a previously peeled carrot. He skimmed thin layers of the orange flesh from the carrot to lie on top of the salad. "Some of my favorite childhood memories were of helping my mother and sisters in the kitchen. As I got older and helped my dad more with tasks around the ranch, my time in the kitchen got less but I would still mind times to spend with my mother in the kitchen. I got teased a lot by my schoolmates and even some while at Depot but I tried not to let it bother me. At least at Depot, after our first overnight and I cooked for my fellow trainees over the campfire, my peers were so thankful for the tasty meal that the teasing stopped."
"I could definitely see how knowing how to cook would come in handy for a Mountie," Faith said. "Living in Hamilton, I never thought not being able to cook was a big deal. After my mother passed, Edith took over cooking for the family. If I wasn't eating at home, I was with my friends or at a café. It wasn't until I came to Hope Valley that my lack of culinary skills became an issue."
"It is never too late to learn," Gabriel said. "If you managed the classes needed to become a doctor, learning to cook should be a piece of cake," he told her, glancing her direction and grinning to see if she caught his food pun.
Faith laughed. The sound seemed like music to Gabriel. "The neighbors I have scared with the burnt attempts of my early culinary efforts would beg to differ. I could never figure out what I did wrong. I thought I was following the recipe."
"The recipe is simply instructions," Gabriel replied, now at the stove checking on the steaks and the potatoes. He was quiet for a few moments he moved the pan with the steaks off the stove and brought the potatoes out to sit next to the biscuits. "There is more to cooking than just the instructions. Just medicine is more than just diagnosing and treating according to a textbook. Each patient is an individual and if you don't show them some compassion then your patients are probably not coming back to you."
"You make a very good point," Faith said, before taking a sip of the water.
"I would be happy to give you some instruction on cooking," Gabriel told her. "Though it would be best if you didn't wear that lovely dress. Even with an apron, accidents can happen."
"I would like that," Faith replied. "Is there anything I can help with?"
Gabriel shook his head. "Tonight I am cooking for you," he told her. "Just sit back and relax while I get our plates ready."
Gabriel was very aware of Faith's eyes on him as he quickly put the finishing touches on the salad, adding the chopped up hard-boiled eggs to the bowl and tossing the contents to mix it up. Use to working under pressure, he continued about his tasks smoothly. He put the biscuits in a basket and retrieved the sparkling cider from the icebox. Turning to the table, he placed the basket and butter on the table and then opened the cider.
"Cider, miss?" Gabriel asked, trying to sound formal but knowing his lips was revealing his amusement.
"Yes, please, sir," Faith replied politely, the smile on her face reaching her eyes and making them sparkle.
Gabriel forced himself to look away from her eyes and pay attention to the glass he was filling. Finishing with Faith's he filled his own glass and placed the bottle on the table.
Turning back to the stove, he removed his apron, not wanting to forget it and sit down wearing it. He then carefully went about preparing two plates, looking forward to the time with Faith and getting to know her better.