Two days before Allie and Nathan were supposed to leave for Toronto, Nathan found Allie crying in her pillow.
"Allie? What's wrong?" Nathan asked.
"I'm not ready." Allie cried.
"Not ready for what?" Nathan asked.
"I'm not ready to say goodbye to this house or Hope Valley." Allie cried.
Nathan sat down on the edge of the bed.
"I thought you were okay with leaving before summer?" Nathan said.
"I was just trying to be brave." Allie said.
"I know the move will be difficult. But we aren't selling the house. We are going to spend our summers here. So, we aren't saying goodbye forever." Nathan said.
"I know. I'm just not ready to say goodbye, yet." Allie said.
Nathan nodded.
"How about you spend the rest of the summer in Hope Valley?" Nathan suggested.
"What?" Allie said.
"I still have to get us set up in Toronto. It will take all summer. And I'll have to get adjusted to my new job and plan out a work schedule. But when summer is over, I'll have found us a house before we start construction on our land. You'll start a new school in the fall. But I think staying here for the summer is the best thing for you." Nathan said.
Allie lifted her head from the pillow.
"I think so too." Allie said.
Allie went over to Nathan and gave him a hug.
After his conversation with Allie, Nathan worked around the yard getting everything together before he left. After doing some work, he leaned on the fence and looked at the sky.
"It's beautiful." A voice said.
Nathan turned his head. It was Frank.
"It sure is." Nathan said.
"I don't think you'll see that blue of a sky in Toronto." Frank said.
"Probably not." Nathan said.
"You're still leaving?" Frank asked.
"There is nothing keeping me here." Nathan said.
"You mean there is no one keeping me here." Frank said.
Nathan sighed.
"All she has to do is ask me to stay." Nathan said.
"After Jack died, we saw Elizabeth die a little inside too. The birth of her son helped her come back a little but the Elizabeth we knew before is gone. Now, she has to look before she leaps. Being with you scares her. She would have to take a leap of faith." Frank said.
Nathan nodded and the two men stood in silence.
"You know Frank, you are quite the philosopher." Nathan said.
Frank shrugged.
"I'm going to miss you, my friend." Nathan said.
"Same." Frank said. The two men shook hands. Frank slapped Nathan on his back and left Nathan to ponder.
Allie waited with Nathan on the stagecoach platform.
"Remember your manners with the Coulter's." Nathan said.
"I will." Allie said. Allie would be staying with the Coulter's for the summer.
Nathan bent down to Allie's level.
"I'm going to come back for you. I'm not leaving you forever." Nathan said.
"I know." Allie said with a smile. The two hugged. Nathan heard someone walking on the platform and looked up. It was Elizabeth.
Nathan stood up.
"I didn't know if you were going to see me off." Nathan said.
"I wanted to bring you this." Elizabeth said.
Elizabeth handed him a stack of papers.
"What is it?" Nathan asked.
"My book." Elizabeth said.
"You finished it?" Nathan said.
"I don't have an ending yet. I just wanted to know your thoughts on how it should end." Elizabeth said.
"I will read it on the train home." Nathan said with a smile.
Elizabeth gave Nathan a hug. Nathan hugged her back. Nathan wished it could last forever.
"There's the stagecoach." Allie said.
Nathan and Elizabeth stopped hugging.
"Right. Looks like I'm leaving." Nathan said.
"I love you, Allie girl." Allie said.
"I love you too." Allie said. The two hugged.
Nathan looked at Elizabeth. All she had to do was ask him to stay.
"Safe travels." Elizabeth croaked out.
"Thank you." Nathan said. A lump formed in his throat. He cleared his throat and put his bags into the stagecoach.
As the stagecoach rode away, Nathan waved goodbye until he couldn't see Allie or Elizabeth anymore. As the stagecoach rode away, he kept looking out to see if Elizabeth had changed her mind and was running to catch up with him. It didn't happen. When the stagecoach reached the train station, Nathan put his bags on the train and went to his cabin.
After getting settled in, he ordered food. The train started to move and Nathan took out Elizabeth's book. Nathan was entranced by Elizabeth's writing. Her deep descriptions of the town and characters made Nathan keep reading.
In the story, the woman is at a crossroads. Should she leave her wealthy life behind for love or stay where she is most comfortable. The book ends before the woman chooses. Nathan put the book down and looked outside the train window. As he watched the train move, he was getting farther away from Hope Valley.
