"Alliebeck!"

Elizabeth felt Allie's hand slip from hers as the little girl ran across the train station toward her grandmother.

"Grandma!" Allie called joyfully, and she nearly jumped into Rebecca's arms.

"Oh, you're getting so big!" Rebecca said, kissing her and looking into her bright face. Even from a distance, Elizabeth could see that Nathan had inherited his mother's mountain lake blue eyes.

Though most women of her age would wear their hair held back in a tight bun, Rebecca's was long and flowing, steel-gray with streaks of dark brown the color of Nathan's, secured at the sides with barrettes of mother-of-pearl, almost like abalone shells. She had a bohemian, country style about her that was accessible and warm, and combined with a very familiar crooked smile, Elizabeth found she liked her immediately.

As they got closer, Elizabeth could see how very tall Rebecca was. She put Allie down and threw her arms around Nathan and she was only a few inches shorter than her son.

"Hi, Mom," Nathan said, kissing her on the cheek and accepting his mother's usual bone-crushing hug with a knowing laugh.

Elizabeth stood back just a bit, allowing the family their homecoming, but Rebecca was having none of it. She looked over Nathan's shoulder and put one long arm out to fold Elizabeth into the family hug. Elizabeth laughed, suddenly encased in a tall, warm, ebullient embrace with the Grants.

Realizing that Allie was trying to get up, Elizabeth bent down and raised her so she could be at eye-level with the adults, and Allie was glad because she had things to say. And she said them all in one long sentence.

"Grandma this is 'Lizabeth but she's Miss Thatcher at school and Emily says she's going to be my mom."

Elizabeth saw a number of emotions cross Rebecca's face, and it was so like Nathan that Elizabeth felt herself taking a deep breath. Happiness, grief, joy, sadness, and finally Rebecca settled into what looked like deep gratitude at the way Allie had described Elizabeth as a new member of the family.

Rebecca's eyes glistened suddenly as she put her hand on Elizabeth's cheek. "Very happy to meet you finally, Elizabeth who is going to be Alliebeck's mom." She smiled warmly. "Which means you will also be my daughter."

Elizabeth was overwhelmed with the suddenness of the acceptance she felt from Rebecca. Any horror stories she'd heard of mothers-in-law quickly evaporated, and she felt her own eyes filling. "Thank you," she said, feeling the inadequacy of those two words.

Looking over at Nathan, Elizabeth saw his eyes go very soft and blue as he gazed at his mother, then the woman he was going to marry, and then the niece he loved so dearly. She could clearly see his wonder in the moment, a kind of disbelief at the twists and turns of life. She felt his arm pull her even closer, and he kissed the curl at her forehead.

From the look in Rebecca's eyes, it was something she'd never seen Nathan do before. She laughed, a wonderful, light bubble of a laugh as she raised her eyebrows at her son before turning to Elizabeth. "Oh, honey," she said, squeezing her arm, "My boy is head over heels."

"Mom..." Nathan said, in the time-honored tone of sons being embarrassed by their mothers.

"Just callin' 'em the way I see 'em, Nathan," Rebecca said, putting her arm around Elizabeth's shoulders and leaving her bag for Nathan to pick up. He laughed and shook his head as his mother walked off with his fiancée without saying another word.

In truth, he'd expected nothing less. Nathan had known that his mother would love Elizabeth immediately, and that it would be mutual. He looked down at Allie, who was trying without success to pick up Rebecca's bag. Nathan leaned down and smiled at her, "Here, sweetie, let's get it together." He lifted Allie up into his arms at the same time he picked up the bag, and they followed Rebecca and Elizabeth toward the town center.

"You ready to see the Christmas tree? They should be putting it up right now." Nathan said to Allie, and he watched her eyes light up.

"It's going to be really big," Allie said excitedly. "Emily says so!

Nathan laughed. "Well, if Emily says so..."

Lee Coulter had walked his new land with a great sense of pride early this morning. He'd slogged through the deep snow in snowshoes and had done something he hadn't imagined for himself in a long time. He'd searched for the perfect Christmas tree.

And what was making him smile now was the fact that he'd found it.

While he walked he was trying to remember back to his childhood with his brother and sister, and how excited he'd been when the family went out into the snow to cut down their tree. It had been a long time since he'd felt this way, and now, as he watched the tree being raised by his men in the center of Coal Valley, his heart was full of bittersweet memories.

Because now his parents were gone, as was Patrick, and he and Susanna hadn't talked for years. That family of his memory had faded, but for the first time in a long while, Lee felt an inkling of joy beginning in his Christmas heart.

It must be this town, Lee thought, as he directed the men pulling the ropes. Bill Avery told me it would get hold of me, and he wasn't wrong.

"Keep that rope taut," he called out, as the huge tree began listing a bit to the left. The men tightened it up, and Lee watched as the tree began to rise into the place where it would stand until after the New Year.

1911. Lee shook his head just at the thought. Time seemed to be flying by.

A crowd was starting to gather, and since Lee seemed to be in charge, they were beginning to whisper amongst themselves. Lee had been in enough small towns to know that newcomers stuck out like sore thumbs. The only people he knew in Coal Valley were Bill, Abigail, Elizabeth, Nathan and Rosemary. He supposed he also knew Henry Gowen, but that hadn't really been the most pleasant of meetings.

Herbert Ansvil was the foreman in the coal mine, and though he hadn't been privy to any of the meetings behind the scenes, gossip had been an unavoidable side-effect of the turmoil surrounding the mine since the explosion last June. Herbert felt it was his duty to get to the truth, and he thought this was the right time.

"Mr. Coulter?" he said, walking up to Lee and putting out his hand. "Herbert Ansvil. I'm foreman of the coal mine. I don't mean to bother you..."

Lee put out his hand and shook Herbert's, while still keeping one eye on the tree raising. "Mr. Ansvil. I'm very glad to meet you. I've been meaning to come out to the mine housing and say hello, but as you can see..." Lee looked up at the tree and laughed, "I've been given priorities..."

Herbert liked Lee right away. He'd heard he was a straight shooter, and that information seemed to have some truth to it.

"Fine looking tree," Herbert said, craning his neck to see all the way to the top. "Should give the town some Christmas cheer. God knows we need it."

Lee turned and looked at Herbert, his face somber. "You've all been through a lot, Mr. Ansvil. And yet..." he watched as the tree began tilting, and called out, "Harry, pull that end tighter!" The men had almost secured the tree to the wooden frame they'd built to hold it perfectly upright and stable.

Lee turned again to Herbert. "I was going to say, you've been through a lot, but this town seems to have a good strong center, you know?"

Herbert had his hat in his hands, and he turned it on its brim in long, lazy circles. He looked directly at Lee. "Only if we have jobs, Mr. Coulter. If we don't, we won't be so strong."

Lee paused for a moment and nodded. This wasn't something he was expecting to do today, but right now, with this man, seemed suddenly to be the right time. Lee looked over at the tree and saw that it was standing tall. "Harry, make sure that's secure and then get those ropes off, please. Can you bring out the ladders? Then we're done for the day." Harry gave him a short salute and Lee turned to Herbert.

"Let's go have a seat, Mr. Ansvil."

They fell into an easy pace as they walked toward the bench outside of the saloon. Lee waited until they were both sitting before speaking. When he did, his voice was quiet. As he looked around, he could see there were a number of men and their families who were very interested in the fact that Herbert Ansvil and the new owner of the sawmill were talking, and they simply stood and watched.

Lee thought he might as well cut to the chase. "I'm opening a sawmill in Coal Valley on the day after Christmas. I'll need men. And since you're Henry Gowen's foreman, but he hasn't seen fit to share with you what's happening, I will. The mine is closing because it's not safe anymore, and I think you all know that better than any of us. I'm hoping that all the miners will come over and work with me." Lee let that sink in for a moment, and he could see that none of it was a surprise to Herbert.

"Well, that was the scuttlebutt," Herbert said, sighing. "Guess this time it was true." He sat up straighter and looked at Lee. "We're not loggers, Mr. Coulter, we're miners. We're hard workers and we'll give you our best, but we won't know how."

Lee smiled and nodded, putting his hand on Herbert's shoulder. "That's all I can expect. And you'll get plenty of training. I've brought some men with me who can help you with all you need to know." Lee looked out at the men getting the ropes down from the thick trunk of the tree. "Harry is my foreman and has been for a long time, but I'd like you to lead the miners just the way you have been, if you're willing. It'll make it easier for them to make the change. And of course, you'll be compensated for the extra responsibility."

Herbert exhaled and smiled for the first time. He nodded enthusiastically. "That will be just fine, Mr. Coulter. You just tell me what you need."

"You talk to the men and have them come to the sawmill office day after tomorrow. We'll be taking over Henry Gowen's office, so it should be easy to find," Lee said, smiling.

Herbert nodded and then looked down at his hat, still in his hands. "May I ask... only if you're able to say..." He looked up. "What's going to happen to Mr. Gowen?"

Lee narrowed his eyes slightly. "He's going to jail, Mr. Ansvil. Leaving the day after Christmas. He put you all in danger in order to fill his pockets, and the law doesn't look kindly on that. Not when it takes the lives of forty-seven men." Lee saw the pain wash across Herbert's face and was aware that every one of those who were lost were known well by the man sitting next to him. Friends, probably, most of them.

Lee sighed and looked Herbert directly in the eyes. "Logging isn't easy work, and it's dangerous, I can't pretend it's not. But I won't ever put you or your men into unnecessary danger just to make a dollar, Mr. Ansvil. You have my word on that."

Herbert let out a long shuddering sigh. "That's all we can ask, Mr. Coulter." He gave Lee a small smile and said, "I have a feeling it will be an honor working for you, sir."

Lee laughed. "Ah, none of that sir with me. In fact, when you and I talk privately, I'd like it if you'd call me Lee. Probably best to keep it at Mr. Coulter in front of the men, but you call me Lee and I'll call you Herbert. How's that?"

Herbert put out his hand. "That's just fine..." He looked around and saw there was no one nearby, "...Lee."

Lee shook his hand firmly and stood up. "Then we'll see you and your men day after tomorrow. Eight sharp. We'll get you all signed up and start your training."

Herbert Ansvil broke into a large grin and raised his eyebrows. "Making a living in the open air. Almost too much to think about," he said, letting loose with a small laugh. "Thank you," he said fervently.

"Thank you, Herbert," Lee said. As Herbert started to walk away, Lee called out, "Oh, and... Merry Christmas!"

Herbert turned and laughed. "And to you!"

Lee stood on the boardwalk and looked up at the Christmas tree in the middle of town. There were already people walking around it, and some of the children had brought out the ornaments they'd made in Elizabeth's schoolroom and were beginning to hang them on the lowest branches.

Abigail and Rosemary came out of the café and laughed in wonder at what they were seeing as Lee walked over to them.

Rosemary gave Lee the gift of a huge smile. "Why, Mr. Coulter, what have you done?"

Lee laughed and shook his head. "I'm not telling you until you start calling me Lee, Rosemary."

She laughed too, and said, "If you're the one responsible for this tree, I think I should call you Father Christmas," she said, raising an eyebrow.

Lee shrugged and grinned at her. "Just a little tree. I'm a logger. I cut down trees."

Rosemary looked over at Lee, feeling something strange in her chest. "I have a feeling you're much more than that, Mr... Lee," she said quickly, seeing his warning look before calling him Mr. Coulter again.

Rosemary wasn't sure what was happening, but she knew she had an overwhelming desire to be friends with this man. She knew that she was a married woman, and she also knew that if she'd met Lee Coulter in New York, before she'd come to find Jack, she would have felt an attraction to him.

As it was, she was a wife without a man in her life, and Rosemary had always needed to have male energy around her. She'd had plenty of male friends in the theatre, and Lee could be just like them. By the time she'd turned back to look at the tree in the center of town, she had it all worked out in her mind.

Rosemary Thornton and Lee Coulter would be good friends. In fact, she felt they already were.

Elizabeth and Rebecca had been walking together locked arm-in-arm from the moment they'd left the train station. Nathan was walking behind them carrying Allie and talking to her about their Christmas plans. He was fully engaged with Allie while also watching in wonder as the two women, strangers until just minutes ago, managed to look as if they'd known each other all their lives.

He couldn't hear what they were talking about, but occasionally one of them would look back, so Nathan imagined he might be at least one of their topics of conversation. He wasn't overly worried, but he did raise an eyebrow when his mother laughed a little too loudly and turned to shake her head at him. Nathan thought he might have heard the word stagecoach.

This was a ritual Nathan had never experienced. He thought the last time he'd introduced a girl to his mother was for a school dance when he was sixteen, and that relationship couldn't even be described as short-lived. He'd danced with her twice and then she'd gone off with another boy and that had been that. From that point on, he thought he'd best keep his love life, what there was of it, away from his mother.

So as Nathan watched them, he assumed Rebecca had ten years' worth of questions saved up, and poor Elizabeth was the lucky recipient. He smiled to himself, thinking it was a good thing Elizabeth had a strong constitution.

The conversation had centered primarily on Nathan, but right now Elizabeth was telling Rebecca about her Christmas gift to Allie. "I realized that I had these beautiful dolls that I'd played with as a child, and they were all just sitting in the window seat of my room in Hamilton, and had been for years," Elizabeth said. "So I wrote to Julie and asked her to pack up the best of them and ship them to me. They arrived last week."

Rebecca smiled. "And I'll bet you spent a little time with them before wrapping them up for Allie?" she said, patting Elizabeth's hand on her arm.

Elizabeth laughed and felt herself blushing a little. "How did you know?"

Rebecca moved her head closer. "I would have," she whispered. "You may not be a child anymore, but that child is still inside you."

"It's true," Elizabeth said, laughing softly. "I even remembered all of their names."

Nodding, Rebecca said, "And Allie will give them new ones."

Elizabeth smiled. "If I may say, you seem to be very good at the process of letting go and moving on, Rebecca."

Laughing softly, Rebecca said, "Oh, I wouldn't say I'm good at it. I would say that I've learned that change is inevitable, and the faster you simply agree to it, the sooner it will become your new normal."

Elizabeth laughed. "I can see that I'll need to be carrying my journal around when I'm with you. You've already said five things that I want to write down!"

Rebecca grinned. "And you can rest assured that I'll repeat myself, so no need to worry."

Elizabeth laughed and this time even Nathan heard it from behind them. He picked up his pace and caught up to them, even carrying Rebecca's large carpetbag in one hand and Allie on his other arm.

"Okay, now I need to know. What are you two talking about?"

Rebecca raised an eyebrow. "Well, of course we're talking about you, but we've managed to fit in a few other things." She leaned over and snuggled Allie's neck, making her laugh. "Are you excited about Christmas, Alliebeck?"

Just then, they came around the corner and the tree came into view. Allie's eyes went wide as she saw how tall it was. When they'd left for the train station, it had been on its side in the middle of the road. Now it was towering over them and Mike Hickam and a couple of the other men were stringing electric lights while standing on the ladders that Lee's workers had positioned around the tree.

"TREE!" Allie said at the top of her lungs, causing a few of the onlookers to turn around and smile at the joy they heard in her voice.

Rebecca laughed. "Yes, Alliebeck, that is most certainly a tree."

Nathan put his arm around her. "Glad you're here, Mom."

Rebecca took a deep breath. She looked at Allie and Elizabeth and then back to the tree in front of them which was now beginning the sparkle with light. She squeezed her son's arm.

"Nathan, I can honestly say there is no place I would rather be."