Here it is…my FIRST LucaBeth story!! Hope you like it! It was fun to imagine what Lucas & Elizabeth might have talked about on their walk back to E's row house. (S8, E7) I'm sure there are grammatical errors, but thanks for bearing with me.

Part 1

"Can this really be happening?" Lucas thought to himself as he walked with Elizabeth back to her house…her delicate hand gently enfolded in his larger, stronger hand. The warmth of her lovely hand in his confirmed to Lucas that this moment was no dream. It was a beautiful memory in the making. A soft chuckle escaped as he exhaled.

"What is it?" Elizabeth asked. Her serene face looking up into his steady countenance.

Lucas took a moment before he replied, "I thought a drive would be lovely, but this is far better." He gave a meaningful look down at their joined hands. "Though the car might have been a faster way to get you home to Jack."

"This is perfect." Elizabeth smiled. "Jack is down for a nap and Laura is studying for an exam." Her eyes cut over to Lucas's. "I do enjoy spending time with you, Lucas." She continued on. "It's just that Jack is growing up so fast. It seems like just yesterday that he was a baby that fit perfectly in my arms. Now he has so much energy that he'd rather be playing or exploring instead of spending time with his mother." She chuckled softly, "Unless there's a book or a story involved."

Lucas smiled as he remembered the times he'd witnessed how intently Jack would "read" the different children's books in the library. Several times he'd had the unexpected pleasure of running into Elizabeth and Jack at the library.

Sometimes it had been when Elizabeth was taking care of some brief library business. Other times she was simply being available to her students when an important book review was coming up. No matter the official reason, Elizabeth usually brought Jack with her…often the adorable 3 year old rolling his wooden puppy toy along for the adventure.

"Jack appears to love books. Already a lover of language. Just like his mother perhaps?" Lucas teased.

"Well hopefully it'll turn into a love of language, but for now, I think he's mostly fascinated by the pictures." Elizabeth responded, her tone conveying loving pride for her little son.

Lucas reflected on how similar his childhood was to young Jack's, each of them having a mother who loved the written word. However, Lucas could not remember a time when his mother had actually stopped with her work to read and cuddle with him when he was a little boy. Something he'd witnessed Elizabeth do many times with her precious son. The scene was etched in his mind: Elizabeth seated on the library settee, one arm cuddling Jack close while her other hand held the book she was reading aloud to him. Jack mimicked her, one arm clutched his mother's arm and the other clutched his beloved library bear. "LucaBear" as Jack referred to his fluffy reading companion.

The feel of Elizabeth's soft hand brought Lucas's focus back to the present. Elizabeth had actually initiated a public display of affection towards him! She never ceased to surprise him. Just when he started to lose hope that Elizabeth could ever, would ever, see him as more than a trusted friend…she'd go do or say something that took his breath away. And every time, he fell even more deeply in love with Elizabeth Thatcher Thornton.

Lucas looked at Elizabeth in awe. "Sometimes I forget just how strong you really are."

Elizabeth blushed, but held Lucas's gaze. "No I'm not. How so?"

"You've found your calling as an excellent teacher, a devoted mother, and now as a talented writer. And you're doing it away from family's sway or influence. Somewhere different. Somewhere to call your own."

"I can't imagine being anywhere else other than Hope Valley." Elizabeth quietly admitted.

"Me neither." His warm brown eyes bridging the distance to her sparkling blue eyes.

Elizabeth couldn't imagine Hope Valley without Lucas in it. For all of her not being sure what to make of him when he first arrived, she knew now that she didn't want to go back to a time before before she met Lucas Bouchard. As she felt his steady hand holding hers with endearing tenderness, she allowed her memories to take her back to the day she and Lucas met.

"Just another ordinary day that started out the same old way…" Elizabeth silently thought to herself. She suddenly remembered that she'd made an unexpected detour in town that morning over two and a half years ago.

"We almost didn't meet that day on the street in front of the saloon." Elizabeth revealed to Lucas. At his open and inquisitive look, she continued. "I was running late that morning from being up late with Jack. Laura had already taken Jack for a morning ride in his buggy and I was about to head straight to the schoolhouse. But soon I remembered I'd completely forgotten breakfast, so a trip to the café was necessary. Turns out I'd thought I was running late, but I was right on time."

"Interesting," Lucas pondered. "The wagon of supplies was scheduled to arrive later that same day. I pitched in to help unload it due to it's unexpected timing." He would never forget that morning in Hope Valley…when his life had changed forever.

Elizabeth delighted in Lucas's strong, warm presence beside her. She'd be lying if she'd said she wasn't thoroughly enjoying the way her hand fit in his. Was that a callus she felt on Lucas's palm? It reminded her of their initial meeting and how he'd lifted those crates off the wagon like it was something he did every day. That one memory set off a fuse that led to many other memories Elizabeth had of observing and interacting with Lucas…usually while he had been hefting crates from either the mercantile or to the library. For being a gentleman entrepreneur, Lucas actually did a surprisingly large amount of physical labor around Hope Valley. Was it getting warmer all of a sudden? Elizabeth wished she had a hand fan to cool her rising blush; even a piece of paper would suffice!

Seeing her row house come into view and seeking to control her overactive memory, Elizabeth attempted some levity with Lucas. "So a few minutes and one or two different circumstances and you and I would not have met at that precise moment. You think it was luck or chance?" She asked him with a conspiratorial wink.

Lucas looked over at Elizabeth, knowing full well what she was trying to do. As much as he wanted to give her the light, charming answer she wanted, he'd promised he would never be anything other than honest with her. Whether it was about her writing or her life. In this case it was both of their lives. He had to tell her the one word that came to mind whenever he thought of their initial meeting. About so many moments between them.

"Neither," he softly uttered. "It was destiny."

A feather could have knocked Elizabeth over at that moment. All she could do was smile at his honest response.

It had been so long since she'd enjoyed a walk with someone this much. If this was just a peek into how it felt to share Lucas's joys…then she couldn't wait for more!