Elizabeth stood beside Nathan at the kitchen sink, trying to convince him to let her dry the dinner dishes he had washed. Nathan kept asking her to sit on the Lounge, but she had barely moved from there since they arrived. Lee had dropped her, Colleen and Allie home while Nathan had caught up with Gabe and Bill to discuss coverage for the Jail before joining them. Elizabeth had tried to gauge his mood when he got home, but he was closed off, his face impassive; he barely looked at her, although he had tried to pretend everything was normal around Allie.

Allie had been in bed for a while, having convinced her Mother to read her two stories before she finally succumbed to sleep. Collen had gone to wash up before bed, leaving them to clean up after dinner. Elizabeth had offered to help Colleen, but she had said no, wanting to give them some time alone.

"Are you ever going to look at me?" Elizabeth asked tentatively. He had been the one to save her, the one she had counted on to come for her. Now it was over, and she was safe; he had gone quiet and was unable to look at her, talk to her. She wanted to scream.

"I'm sorry, Elizabeth, I'm not sure what you mean?"

"Don't do that. Please don't lie to me," Elizabeth spat between clenched teeth. "Tell me I was stupid, I was wrong, but do not pretend you are not angry with me; I can stand anything but that."

"Elizabeth, I'm..." Nathan had been about to say he wasn't angry with her because he wasn't. He was mad at himself, not her. Before he could continue, he stopped, stunned, as Elizabeth threw the tea towel she was using on the ground and strode toward the front door.

"You are a liar is what you are, Nathan Grant." Elizabeth said, her lips pursing together.

"Stop, Elizabeth. Wait," he called anxiously. He couldn't let her go like this, angry and upset with him.

"For what, Nathan? So, you can ignore me some more, make sure I know exactly how stupid I was, that I put you and other people in danger." Elizabeth was breathing hard, hands on her hips, eyes flashing with anger; she faced him. "I know that."

"You?" Nathan cried. "It was me; I put you in danger by being so smug and complacent about Lisa, thinking I was smarter than her." Nathan dragged his hand through his hair and threw his arms up. "I let you down, wagered your safety against my ego, and lost. You lost." Nathan strode away and then turned abruptly, "it's my fault."

"Would you two stop it?" Colleen hissed. "You don't want to wake, Allie, do you." Colleen had come in to say goodnight and heard them arguing. Her disapproval of their behaviour was clear.

"I'm sorry, Colleen, I should go," Elizabeth said, feeling like a chastened child, as she grabbed her coat from the hook near the door. She glanced over her shoulder at Nathan, hardly daring to admit she wanted him to stop her.

"Are you going to let her leave?" Colleen asked; although she could have saved her breath, Nathan had already reached the door and stood in front of it, blocking Elizabeth's exit. Colleen watched the stand-off between them before sighing, "I'm going to bed. You two sort this out before morning."

Elizabeth paused. There was no point in walking away; they needed to solve this between themselves. Elizabeth waited, arms crossed in front of her, waiting for him to speak.

Nathan stared at Elizabeth; he knew she was upset, but so was he. He was trying to contain his emotions, not wanting to escalate the situation.

"I wasn't ignoring you; I'm not angry with you. I love you." Nathan's voice was deep and earnest. Taking Elizabeth in his arms, he said to her, "I can't stand you are hurt because of me."

"I'm fine..." she cried.

"Stop saying that; look at your face!" Nathan exclaimed, fingers gently caressing her cheek where a small cut marred her beautiful skin.

Elizabeth reached up and covered his hand with her own, holding his warm hand against her cheek, curling her face against it. She stepped forward and wrapped her other hand around his waist, holding him close to her as she looked up at him.

"I love you, Nathan Grant. You are not responsible." Elizabeth said, her voice soft instead of angry. She kissed his palm and whispered, "I don't want to fight with you."

Nathan couldn't speak past the lump in his throat, so instead, he kissed her. His kiss was hard, his lips rough against hers, desperate. He held her face between his hands, holding her close to him. He kissed her frantically, letting all his pent-up anger, frustration, fear, and desire flow through his kiss.

Elizabeth met his wild emotions with hers. When Nathan picked her up and carried her to the settee, she went without protest wrapping her arms around his neck. When he sat with her on his lap, she went willingly, leaning into him, pressing herself against him. She groaned against his mouth and threaded her fingers through his hair, holding him close. Elizabeth deepened their kiss, unable to satisfy her craving for him. She felt his hands sliding over her back, running up and down her spine before tangling in her hair.

Nathan felt Elizabeth's lips trailing across his cheek. He felt her breath hot on his neck and moaned soft and low in his throat. "Marry me, Elizabeth," he begged.

Elizabeth paused, confused. "Yes. I already said yes," she whispered in his ear as her lips continued to explore.

"Now. Tonight. Tomorrow. I want you here with me, us. I want us to be together."

"Yes."


"I can do that, yes, but are you sure that's what you want?" Abigail asked.

"Without a doubt," Elizabeth responded, smiling broadly. "We want you to marry us now."

Abigail glanced between Elizabeth and Nathan, then at Bill and Gabe. Nathan and Elizabeth had collected them from the Jail on the way to see her. Everyone was smiling, "but it's such short notice. Why don't you wait a few weeks, invite your family and friends, and let them be there?"

"She has a point, Elizabeth," Gabe said, studying her face, worried that she may regret their hasty decision. "it's only a couple of weeks."

"No," she said, reaching for Nathan's hand. "Time is short. I am not wasting it waiting for people to get here."

"What about a dress, and reception, a cake?" Abigail questioned.

"I don't need any of that." She glanced at Nathan for confirmation, "we don't need any of that."

"Well, when Rosemary finds out, at least tell her I tried to talk you out of this," Abigail said as the others laughed. "Meet me at the Mayor's office at 1:00 pm tomorrow.


Elizabeth burst through the front door, "Rosemary, I'm home!"

Nathan followed behind her, amusement on his face as he watched Elizabeth run to Rosemary, who had jumped up from the Lounge where she sat in Lee's arms. Glancing at Lee, he smiled as his friend rose and stood near him, the two of them listening as the women talked excitedly.

"I'm getting married!" Elizabeth exclaimed.

"I'm getting married!" Rosemary exclaimed.

"Wait, what?" Rosemary said, confused, "I already knew that. Why is that news?"

"You're engaged; Congratulations, when did that happen?" Elizabeth asked. Their words tumbled over each other, neither having a chance to respond to the other.

"Why don't you both slow down? It seems like there's a lot of information to share," Lee suggested, calm as always.

"You go first, Rosemary," Elizabeth offered.

"Lee asked me to marry him, and I said yes," she squealed, holding out her left hand to show her the ring.

Elizabeth gasped when she saw the ring, and ignoring Rosemary's hand; she threw her arms around her friend. Elizabeth and Rosemary hugged each other, exclaiming in delight at the fantastic news. Finally, they broke apart, and Elizabeth reached for Rosie's hand, admiring her beautiful engagement ring.

"Well, that answers our question about whether Elizabeth would be upset at our timing," Lee said to Nathan, laughing at the two women who were laughing and talking a mile a minute.

"Congratulations, Lee," Nathan said, clapping his friend on the back.

"So, tell me what you meant about getting married?" Rosemary said when they stopped admiring her ring.

"We are getting married tomorrow afternoon," Elizabeth announced her smile wide. She would never get tired of saying those words out loud, even if it was for a short time. Ever since they had decided to marry immediately, it felt as though she was walking on a cloud; all her angst at what had occurred with the Bouchard's had disappeared. She knew the memories might return, and there was much more to come, but she was determined to keep it at bay until after her wedding to Nathan.

"No, you're not!" Rosemary burst out. "Who is going to marry you? What are you going to wear? What am I going to wear?" Shaking her head in dissatisfaction, she continued, "this won't do at all."

"I don't care about a fancy wedding; I want to be married. Abigail can do it as Mayor, and she agreed to do it tomorrow." Elizabeth was still beaming at her friend, convinced her decision was right for her. "Life's too short to worry about those things."

Rosemary paused at Elizabeth's words; they mirrored her thoughts earlier that night. "Alright, Elizabeth, if you mean it, I will go along...But I insist on taking charge of the arrangements." Rosemary stated. "This will be a wedding to remember despite the limited time you have given me."

Rosemary grabbed Elizabeth by the hand and started to drag her toward the stairs to their bedrooms, "we must look for something suitable to wear."

Nathan and Lee stood watching, in awe of Rosemary taking charge.

"Wait, Rosemary, I need to say goodnight to Nathan!"

"Oh, of course, sorry," Rosemary said, not looking sorry at all. "Well, hurry!" she exclaimed.

Elizabeth laughed as she rushed toward Nathan, and he wrapped her in his arms, lifting her off her feet. "It looks like I am about to be very, very busy," she said, grinning. Rosemary's enthusiasm was catching.

Nathan kissed her quickly and whispered, "I will see you tomorrow morning at the Mayor's office. I can't wait to become your husband."

"I can't wait to be your wife; there's nothing else I want more than that," Elizabeth murmured before kissing him soundly.

"I can give you a lift back to your place if you like." Lee offered. "I think my visit with Rosie is over for the evening."

"I'm sorry if we ruined your special night, Lee; I had no idea you were ready to propose." Elizabeth felt awful for stealing Rosemary's special moment.

"You didn't ruin anything, Elizabeth; seeing the two of you so happy after everything that happened is ... it's the perfect ending to a perfect night," Lee said, shrugging, his face breaking into a wide smile, his eyes sparkling with delight.

"Elizabeth, we have to go, we need to find you an outfit, plus you are going to need your beauty sleep." Rosemary insisted, having said good night to Lee.

Nathan kissed Elizabeth on the forehead and said, "you don't need beauty sleep; you will never be less than beautiful to me."

She wrinkled her nose at him and placed a quick kiss on his lips, "See you tomorrow, Nathan. Sweet dreams." Elizabeth smiled at Lee and said, "see you tomorrow, Lee and Congratulations."

Rosemary stood before her wardrobe, examining and discarding dress after dress, throwing them onto her bed before continuing her search. "There must be something you can wear that is suitable for a wedding." Rosemary stared at her intently, "do you have anything in your closet?"

"Nothing resembling a wedding dress, although I have some nice dresses I brought."

"Let's take a look, shall we."

As Rosemary led Elizabeth from her bedroom across to hers, they were startled by a knock on the door. Frowning, she looked at Elizabeth, and they both headed to see who it was.

"Clara, what are you doing here? Come in, please," Elizabeth held the door wider so her friend could enter.

"What do you have there?" Rosemary asked as she noticed the package she held.

"Abigail told me the news, Elizabeth. I came to offer you this," she said, handing her the wrapped package.

Elizabeth sat on the Lounge, the package before her on the low table and unwrapped it carefully. Despite not knowing what was inside, she sensed this was something important.

"Oh, Clara, it's beautiful," she whispered, leaning back to allow Rosemary to see what was in the package.

"It's some material and lace I sewed; it's a hobby of mine," Clara explained. "I was wondering if you could use any of it for the wedding tomorrow?"

Rosemary reached for the material and held it up to see it better. "Oh, this is beautiful. I can work with this to create something if you are sure, Clara."

"I'm sure. Please let this be your something new," Clara implored her. "You have been so kind to me since I arrived; everyone has. I want to gift this to you."

"Thank you, Clara, it's beautiful, and I will treasure it." Elizabeth hugged Clara tightly.

"Clara, do you have some time to stay and help? We have a lot to do before morning."

The three women went upstairs, talking excitedly about what they could do with the material in the short time they had.


Nathan snuck into the house, not wanting to disturb Colleen. Morning would be plenty of time to tell her his news; he needed her to get as much rest as possible. He knew she put on a brave face for him and Allie, but he worried she was in pain most of the time.

"Did the two of you make up?" Colleen asked from the Lounge, laughing when he jumped.

"You scared me half to death," Nathan said, clutching at his chest. "I was trying not to wake you."

"So did you?" Colleen persisted. "I don't think I could take another dinner like tonight. You're lucky Allie talked enough for everybody."

"You won't have to, but you will have to see Elizabeth more often." Unable to contain his smile, he said, "Elizabeth's moving in tomorrow." Laughing at her expression, he said, "after our wedding."

"Wedding. Tomorrow? Have you lost your mind? You can't organise a wedding overnight." Collen exclaimed, her mouth hanging open.

"Abigail has agreed to marry us; she can do that as Mayor. Elizabeth and I don't care about the rest; we want to be together. Besides, Rosemary has taken charge."

"Are you sure Elizabeth doesn't want the rest? She is from Hamilton. She is expected to have a big wedding. What are her parents going to think?"

"Colleen, we don't need that; she doesn't need that. Not after today. Not after living in Coal Valley. This place, your illness, those people today...it's taught us what matters in life. It's with the people you love."

Tears filled Colleen's eyes, "you're right, Nathan, and I am happy for you both." Laughing through her tears, she said, "Allie is going to be so excited!"

"I don't think I will get much sleep, but I need you to go back to bed. I want you to be able to enjoy tomorrow; I want you with me."

Colleen chose not to argue with Nathan; he was right; she needed to prepare for and make it through tomorrow well-rested. After insisting he leave his dress uniform for her to get ready, she went to bed, pensive as she lay down, head on her pillow.

She shouldn't be crying; this was happy news, and she was pleased for Nathan. Elizabeth was the perfect partner for her brother. When she was gone, Elizabeth would be the perfect person to look after her daughter. In her heart, she knew it was true, but when she thought about everything she would miss in her daughter's life, like Allie's wedding and knowing Elizabeth would be the one there for her, she got a dull ache in her chest. As she tried to sleep, tears trickled from her eyes and ran down her cheeks as she wept silently.


Elizabeth woke early, despite her late night. Excitement coursed through her as she thought about today, her wedding day. Today she would stand beside Nathan, the love of her life, and before her friends and Community, they would pledge themselves to each other. She couldn't wait.

Leaping out of bed, she ran to Rosemary's room and cried, "wake up, Rosemary, I'm getting married today."

Rosemary laughed at her friend, pleased to see her old energy had returned.

The morning was hectic; Rosemary, Clara and Abigail gathered at the row house, helping Elizabeth prepare. Elizabeth bathed and washed her hair, allowing Rosemary to style it in a fancy updo, a few long tendrils curled and falling around her face and neck.

Clara did her makeup, and Elizabeth was pleased with the results. Clara had enhanced her features while making sure Elizabeth looked like herself. Her eyes seemed bluer, her lips fuller, but she knew the colour in her cheeks was all her, all due to her excitement.

Wearing only her robe, she started downstairs to eat the Brunch Abigail had prepared, and even though she wasn't sure she could eat, Abigail had insisted she try at least. Elizabeth paused on the stairs when she heard a knock at the door, wondering who it could be and not wanting to be seen dressed as she was.

Hearing Colleen's voice, she hurried down the remaining stairs, eager to see her, despite her attire. Elizabeth had asked Nathan to send Colleen and Allie to see her, but only if she felt up to it.

"Colleen, how are you? Is Allie with you?" Elizabeth asked, looking around for the young girl.

"I left her helping Nathan to dress," Colleen smiled. "For some reason, he is a little nervous today; he couldn't get his hair just right."

Elizabeth laughed at the image of little Allie helping her uncle dress and do his hair.

"Well, I'm glad you came. I wanted to speak to you before...before this afternoon," Elizabeth explained tentatively. "I would have liked to talk to you before it was all arranged, but it all happened so quickly."

Colleen smiled, "Elizabeth, I am so pleased the two of you decided not to wait, and I think you know everything I would have said. I just came here to see if there was anything I could do for you and to offer you this."

Elizabeth took the package from Colleen, and as the others looked on, she lifted the lid on the box she held. Inside was a beautiful hair comb with silver and blue stones set into it.

"I don't think it's valuable, but my mother gave it to me to wear on my wedding day. "Colleen paused, "something stopped me that day. I never wore it, so there is no bad luck" she shrugged, a faint smile on her face, "maybe that was a sign I shouldn't have ignored, but… anyway. I wanted to offer it to you to wear today; if you don't think it will spoil your hair or outfit."

'It's beautiful, Colleen; I will wear it proudly." Elizabeth said as tears welled in her eyes. "Would you put it in for me?" she asked, handing it back to her and turning so Colleen could fix it in her hair.

"No tears, Elizabeth; you will ruin all Clara's good work on your makeup," Rosemary said practically; the laughter that followed stopped the flow of tears.

"Well, Elizabeth, now you have your something new, your something borrowed, and I would like to supply your something old," Abigail said, smiling at the young woman before her. "My husband Noah gave these to me on our wedding day, they were his mother's, and I want you to wear them today."

"Oh, Abigail, thank you so much," Elizabeth said as she stared at the pearl earrings Abigail held out to her. "You cannot imagine what this means to me." Elizabeth hugged Abigail tight before fastening the earrings.

"I hope that is the last gift, Ladies; I'm not sure how much more Elizabeth's makeup will survive," Rosemary said, waving her hands in front of Elizabeth's face to dry her eyes.

"There is just one more gift, I promise," Colleen said, laughing. She went back outside to the Verandah and returned with three bunches of flowers, one for Elizabeth, one for Rosemary and a spare. "Bill and Gabe sent these for you.

"Who is the other one for?" Elizabeth asked, confused.

"It's for Allie, but she doesn't know it. I know you didn't plan on a flower girl, so..."

"I would love for her to be my flower girl; nothing would make me happier," she said, gesturing to Rosemary. "Last night, Clara brought material for me to use for a dress, and there was some left over."

Rosemary held up the little dress they had made for Allie to wear, pleased when Colleen gasped.

"It's perfect, Elizabeth."

Abigail and Clara left to prepare for the ceremony and small reception they had organised that morning. In the short time they had, they had gotten word of the wedding to the people who mattered most to Nathan and Elizabeth. Colleen left to take the flowers and dress to Allie, promising to have her ready for the ceremony.

Finally, it was time for Elizabeth to dress, and she stood while Rosemary lifted the gown over her head, allowing the material to slide down over her body to the ground. The dress was a simple A-line, with the lace supplied by Clara draped and sewn to cover the bodice and form short sleeves. The long skirt was simple and unadorned, but this enhanced the beauty of the lace. The dress was nothing like she had imagined when she had thought of her wedding day, but to her, it was perfect. As Elizabeth looked at herself in the mirror, her breath caught. Rosemary had worked miracles with what she had in the limited timeframe.

As Rosemary adjusted the lace veil, she studied her friend; she was stunning. Her eyes were bright, her cheeks flushed with healthy colour, and she was glowing. Rosemary hoped she would look as beautiful on her wedding day.


Colleen brushed an imaginary speck of Nathan's shoulder, smoothing invisible wrinkles from his dress uniform. A lump formed in her throat as she looked at her little brother, so handsome, tall, and strong on his wedding day. Their mother would have been so proud of the man he had become. Her Father: he didn't count. He contributed nothing to the man Nathan had become except that he had become the opposite of him.

"So, it was lucky Gabe was around to stand up for you as your best man," Colleen said, then wished she could take her words back. There was nothing lucky about why Gabe was there. "Sorry."

"It's okay; I know what you meant. Is Allie ready to go?"

"Yes, she is, and before you ask me again, I am not telling you anything about Elizabeth or her dress."

"As long as you tell me she hasn't changed her mind, I don't need anything else."

Their conversation was interrupted by Allie running downstairs, and Gabe and Lee entering the house.

"Wow, look at you, Allie. You look beautiful," Gabe exclaimed, taking her arm and twirling her around, "like a princess."

"Thank you, Uncle Gabe," Allie said, giggling at his antics.

"All set, Nathan?" Lee asked, not expecting an answer. "If Allie is ready, I can drive her to the row house now."

"That sounds good, Lee. Thank you."

Colleen took one last look at Nathan before checking Gabe and Lee and deciding they were ready. She checked her dress in the mirror, pleased to see she didn't look pale or ill, the excitement of the day putting colour in her cheeks; she had declined Clara's makeup offer and was glad she didn't need it.

"All right, everyone, let's go get Nathan married."