A Love Worth Waiting For
Chapter 1
Constable Nathan Grant finished the last of his paperwork, stood up with a stretch and headed out the front door of his office to take a look at his town - making sure all was well out on Main Street. He stopped short as he watched his horse, Newton, flirting with a young blonde woman - whom he didn't think he'd ever seen before - and darned if he wasn't nuzzling her neck! This continued for a moment, with the woman speaking to Newton in a low voice and chuckling at his actions. He was pretty sure he heard 'handsome boy' at least once as the woman stroked Newton's mane. Her voice did funny things to his insides, so he cleared his throat to put a stop to it all. Leaning against the porch post, he waited for the two to realize they were being watched. After a bit more chuckling, and snorting from Newton, the woman stepped back and glanced up at him. Later, he might reflect on this as the moment something in his life changed - but right then, he was struck by how lovely she was and by the most beautiful, large hazel eyes he'd ever seen set in a fine boned, heart shaped face. Then she smiled up at him. Whew. That smile - it really reached her eyes.
"You must be Constable Grant" she said, then nodded towards Newton "And this handsome fella must be your partner."
His partner. She must know a Mountie very well to refer to his horse as 'his partner'. He realized that she was waiting patiently for him to respond. "Um, yes. He is. This is Newton, who is apparently a shameless flirt."
With a laugh, she stepped forward and held out her hand "Well, Constable Grant, I'm Willa Hardin" as they shook hands, she nodded towards his office. "Can we talk in private, please?"
Nathan stepped back and opened the door, waving Willa in ahead of him. "Please take a seat" he said as he moved past her to the other side of his desk. "How can I help you, Miss Hardin?" he asked.
"Thank you. It's actually Mrs Hardin. Or it was Mrs. My husband, Theo, passed away a couple of years ago. He was also a Mountie and died in the line of duty." She offered.
Nathan had noted the rings on her right hand. He'd figured them for a wedding set - but he didn't want to assume so. "I'm so sorry for your loss." 'Another beautiful Mountie widow...' he thought with an inward groan. "But now I know why you referred to Newton as my partner. Only those who are close to a Mountie seem to make that connection."
Willa gave a small smile. "So many people don't understand the true roles that horses play in our lives. They take them for granted. I don't and Theo didn't either. His partner is still with us today." She cleared her throat before continuing on. "Constable, the reason I needed to speak to you - well, my grandpa is terminally ill and came to Hope Valley with my daughters and me for the remainder of his days. For a reason he did not share with me, he asked if I would please request that you come to see him as soon as possible. I don't believe that he wants to report a crime, so I'm not really sure what it's about. He is in his right mind – I know that. Would you mind?"
"Of course, no problem at all. Wait, you said your last name is Hardin. Would you happen to be the new owner of Enoch Hardin's place?" Nathan was surprised he hadn't yet met her, as the Hardin ranch wasn't too far outside of Hope Valley's center. He'd known only that the man was a recluse and had passed away recently. The legalities on the property had been handled outside of town.
"Yes, I am. Well, my daughters are. The land and estate passes to them when they come of age. Enoch was Theo's great uncle. I was shocked to learn about the inheritance as Theo hadn't had contact with the man since he was a child."
Nathan offered "I know exactly where it is. I can come by this afternoon, if that's alright with you and your grandfather."
Willa smiled wide, and for a moment - if he was willing to admit it to himself - he was struck by that smile. But he wasn't admitting anything about anymore Mountie widows just now. She stood and reached out her hand, offering a firm shake. "Thank you so much. It's been a pleasure to meet you, Constable Grant, and your partner as well."
Nathan walked her to the door and watched as she stopped to shower his partner with some more attention. If she kept coming into town, he was sure Newton would be impossible to live with! She turned to wave as she headed towards the Mercantile. He told himself he was just ensuring her safety, not admiring her beautiful golden hair and trim figure...just then, Newton snorted at him. Nathan glared and pointed "Enough out of you!" and he turned back inside to make sure he'd finished that last report and lock up. He had a few stops to make before he visited the Hardin place. He also didn't want to admit that he was hoping to run into Willa – er - Mrs Hardin while he was there.
When he finally walked out of the Mountie office to be on his way, Bill approached. Avery stopped short, but seemed to be watching the Mercantile very carefully. "Hey, Bill. You alright? You kind of look like you've just seen a ghost."
Bill started, as if he hadn't realized that Nathan was there. Pointing, Bill asked, "Do you know that woman?"
Following Bill's gaze, he noticed Willa putting her purchases into the back of an automobile. "Oh yeah, that's Willa Hardin, the new owner of the Hardin place. Seems as if her late husband was the Enoch's great nephew and left the place to their daughters. I'm heading by there this afternoon. Why, do you know her?"
Bill shook his head, not taking his eyes off of her. Then he glanced at Nathan, "Nah. She just reminds me of someone I used to know a long time ago. I'm heading to the cafe. See you later." Then, in his typically brusque way, Bill was off. By the time he'd reached the Mercantile, Willa was driving away and Nathan found it interesting that Bill had stopped and watched until she was out of sight. He'd ponder that one while he checked in with a couple of residents. He turned and scanned the street before he and Newton headed towards their first stop.
About an hour later, after looking into what might have been a stolen (or more likely lost) chicken and checking in on a widow who'd experienced some recent storm damage, Nathan and Newton arrived at the Hardin ranch. He'd always admired the stone house that Enoch had built. A story and a half and plenty of square footage. Enoch seemed to have an almost unhealthy fear of fire - so the home was mostly built from stone. There was a sad story there, for sure, but Nathan never got to know the man well enough to be privy to the details.
As he dismounted and tethered Newton to the post out front, he noticed a paddock off to the side where Willa, who had donned a cowboy hat, appeared to be working with a horse and two, clearly identical, tow-headed little girls in pigtails watched from the fence. The girls appeared to be about the same age as Jack Thornton Jr. At that moment, Willa caught sight of Nathan and waved, the girls turning and waving - in tandem - as well. He waved back and headed for the front door - firmly putting – or attempting to put - Willa Hardin from his mind.
After a quick knock, the door was opened by a lovely, silver haired woman of indeterminate age. She had the kindest gray eyes he'd ever seen. "You must be Constable Grant" she said as she stepped back and waved him in. "Please, come in. I'm Zerelda Graham, Willa's great aunt. You're here to see, Josiah, my brother." She led him back into what appeared to be a study, where an older man rested on a chaise lounge. "Siah, the constable is here to see you. Constable, can I offer you some coffee or tea?"
"Coffee would be welcome, thank you, Mrs Graham." Nathan replied.
"Please, call me Zee. Siah, would you like something?" she asked. When he just shook his head, she retreated.
"Constable, please have a seat." He waved towards the desk chair. Nathan pulled it closer to the chaise and sat down. Just then, Zee bustled in with Nathan's coffee and retreated silently, closing the door behind her.
"Mr Barclay, what can I do for you?" Nathan asked after taking a sip of coffee.
"First, you can call me Josiah. Next, you can answer a few questions for me before I say anything else." The man said in a gruff drawl. After a brief pause and a nod from Nathan, he continued. "How well do you know Judge Bill Avery?"
Of all the questions Nathan might have imagined, this wasn't even close to one of them – but then he recalled his friend's strange behavior earlier in town and, well, he now realized that there was likely way more to this story. "Yes, I do know him, very well. And before you even ask another question, I can tell you that he is a very honorable man. He's had my back in more ways than I can count since I came to Hope Valley to replace a much beloved fallen Mountie."
Josiah chuckled, at least it sounded like a chuckle – a very rusty chuckle. "Well, Constable, you just answered my second question. You see, the Judge and I have a very long and difficult history. The difficulty is all on me. I don't have much time left and I have some things that I need to make right with a few folks, starting with Avery." He turned his head and looked square in Nathan's eyes "He'll need a friend after I've spoken to him. Also, I need you to make sure he comes here. So far, he doesn't know it's to see me and it would be best to get him out here without disclosing that information." He continued to stare at Nathan, waiting for a response.
Nathan's mind was racing. He nodded mutely and bit his tongue from starting to ask the many questions he had. He didn't want Bill to be blindsided, but this family seemed to be good people and it would probably be good for Bill to put whatever this was to rest.
"And Willa has no idea what this is about, but it will affect her. I'd like for her to think that this visit with the judge is nothing more or less than regarding my last will and testament. At least until I've spoken with him." Josiah paused to catch his breath, easing his head back as he did.
A few moments passed before the man spoke again "I suspect this is a lot to ask of you from someone you don't know. I'd like to tell you the whole story, but I think that I need to speak to Bill first, and then Willa."
After they'd conversed for a few more minutes, Nathan agreed to get Bill out to the ranch the next afternoon. As he turned Newton towards town, he began to pray that the Lord would cover that conversation and that he would be able to be there for his friend – however he was needed. He also uttered a prayer for Willa Hardin, though he had no idea for exactly what – but knew the Lord did.