As the sun rose over Coal Valley on the morning after Christmas, big changes were already happening.

Mike Hickam had climbed the water tower, and at first light was beginning to sketch out the word Hope on the painted-over space that used to say Coal. He'd decided to add the words Welcome to above the town name, not because the Town Council had ordered it, but because Hickam believed that was the spirit of the town.

Hickam loved Coal Valley, and had from the moment he'd arrived. He'd probably managed to do more jobs in town than anyone else, from horse-handling to carpentry and even pulling the plough that cleared the roads of snow on the many winter days when it needed it. He was used to waking early and accomplishing these tasks before anyone else was up. It was his favorite time of the day.

This morning, from his perch high above the town, Mike watched as the miners began to exit their houses, but this time they walked from their homes to a new location. Instead of trudging out to the mine road in clothes permanently blackened by coal dust, they were making their way to the new sawmill office, most of them hoping to make a good impression in their Sunday best.

He watched as the sign for "L. Coulter Enterprises" went up at 7:00 a.m., and saw the line of miners begin to form at 7:01.

Then, hearing the sound of an engine, Mike turned and saw Henry Gowen leaning back in his car with his Pinkerton driving, too fast as usual. It looked as if Gowen was simply on an outing, when in fact, Hickam knew that Gowen was meeting Inspector Bill Avery at the Mountie Office. From there, Henry would be taken into custody and he and Bill would head out to Buxton where Henry's trial would take place. The transfer wagon was already in front of the jail, waiting.

Mike smiled as he watched Abigail Stanton, kindhearted as usual, put some pillows and a blanket into the transfer wagon so that Henry might be more comfortable. He could imagine her voice in his head: "Henry is ready to pay his debt to society. No reason for him to be cold and sore on his way to doing it."

Turning back to the tower, Mike looked up and smiled. He thought he might start with the Welcome to before finishing the word Hope.

Yep. That felt right.

"Um, folks?" Lee said, standing in front of the line of men and raising his arms to get their attention. Once they quieted down, he said, "I'd like to thank you all for coming out today, and I know Mr. Ansvil has told you some of what you're here for. My name is Leland Coulter."

The men stayed in line, but began to edge closer. Most of them would say later that they liked Lee Coulter from the moment he started talking; and they would add that what they were feeling right now would be borne out in the months to come - that Lee was trustworthy and had their best interests at heart.

Lee continued. "Now that the mine is closed, the future of this town, the future of your town, is timber. And the good news is - it's everywhere." Lee smiled and spread his arms out wide as he looked up at the tree-filled mountains. "I'm starting a sawmill, right here in Hope Valley, and I'm going to need lots of men to help me build it and then run it. My goal is to find jobs for each and every one of you."

They couldn't stop themselves. One man started clapping and it simply gave permission to the rest of them. They felt hopeful for the first time in months. An honest job that could be done in the fresh air with only the clean smells of pitch and sawdust and evergreen and soil around them? It sounded like heaven.

As Lee began to speak again, he noticed that the attention of a few men was drifting to their left, and then more followed their line of sight. Finally Lee jumped down from the front porch of the sawmill office and walked among them, trying to see what they were seeing.

Lee saw the Mountie office in the distance and the prisoner wagon out front. There were two Mountie guards in red serge with Nathan, and they all stood by as Bill Avery brought Henry Gowen out of the jail. Bill shook hands with Nathan and then got up on his horse.

Lee looked around and could see that some of the miners narrowed their eyes as Gowen stepped up to the wagon and disappeared inside with the help of one of the guards. Some allowed themselves a small smile as the barred door was closed and locked. Lee stood with them as the men watched until the wagon rounded the corner. And they continued to watch as Bill, riding behind it, disappeared from sight.

There were smiles and plenty of nodding after that. A couple of men shook hands, and a few clapped each other on the back. It gave Lee time to make his way back to the steps in front of the office. As Lee reached the top step, he saw Nathan walking over on his rounds. He looked directly at him and Nathan came and leaned on the railing.

One man moved forward in the crowd. "With all due respect for what you're trying to do, Mr. Coulter, my trade is mining. I don't know the first thing about timber."

Lee nodded. "Thank you for saying that, Mister...?"

"Palmer," the man said. "Franklin Palmer."

"We'll train you, Mr. Palmer. As soon as the mill is up and running, you can have a crack at any job my foreman can teach you to do. Alright? But first, we have to have a sawmill."

Lee looked over at Nathan and grinned. "Now, I have it on good authority that you men know how to build things." Nathan smiled and nodded. "The first thing we need to do is build the mill. Then we'll get you trained to be loggers."

Lee took a deep breath. "I know you've been through a lot, and from everything I've heard, you've done your jobs in some pretty terrible conditions." Lee chuckled. "I'm not saying I can stop the rain and the snow and the wind up there," he inclined his head toward the mountains, "but I'll listen to your foremen if they tell me it's too much. And I won't ever put you in unnecessary danger."

Again, the men nodded and clapped. A few called out, "Thank you, Mr. Coulter."

Lee made a face and looked down, a little embarrassed. "Okay, okay, thank you. I came to Hope Valley to make a profit, but if I can? I'd like to make a difference too."

Lee reached his arm out and motioned to the first one in the line. "Let's go, young man," he said enthusiastically, showing the way through the door to the sawmill office.

Before turning, Lee nodded to Nathan, who tipped his hat and started back up the street. Smiling, Nathan thought that if this was the way Lee Coulter was going to do business and treat his men, his job just got a whole lot easier. Nathan was pretty sure that all of the complaints and bar fights and bad feelings that had been brought on by the conditions and management at the mine had suddenly left town in the back of that wagon with Henry Gowen.

Elizabeth stood at the front door to the café and shaded her eyes from the sun as she looked up the road toward the row houses. She was watching for Rebecca and Allie to come around the corner. Elizabeth and Nathan had waxed poetic about the food at Abigail's so often that Rebecca decided she had to find out what all the fuss was about.

Nathan had risen early to stand by Bill as he read Henry his rights and took him into custody, and now he was out on his rounds. He would be meeting them here at the café for breakfast.

Elizabeth loved the look of Coal Valley in winter. There was still snow on the ground in patches in town, and it still covered the meadow, but the warm sunshine of the last few days had melted much of it. The road to the church was completely clear, and as Elizabeth gazed up, she could see Mike Hickam on the water tower platform as he repainted the town sign. She smiled as she saw the word Welcome.

Elizabeth was remembering writing in her journal when she'd first arrived in Coal Valley. It seemed a long time ago now, but she had written about not only looking for a job and a place that fulfilled her, but that she was also looking for her life here in the west. As she watched Mike with her hand at her forehead shading her eyes, she knew she'd found it.

"Standing guard?"

Elizabeth turned quickly to see Nathan behind her, and she laughed.

"Kind of," she said, leaning up to kiss him on the cheek.

"With your hand up like that, it looked like you were saluting the water tower," Nathan said, putting his arms around her waist and pulling her toward him gently. He walked her slowly around to the side of the café where they could be a little further from the main road.

Elizabeth smiled and reached her arms up around his neck. "I suppose I was, in a way. I was remembering when I first arrived here, and I was reading the word Welcome," she said, raising her eyebrows.

Nathan reached around and held her hand with the charm bracelet between them. "Not much of a welcome, I'm afraid. All alone in a stagecoach..." He held the charm between his fingers and watched as the sunlight played on the tiny wheels.

Elizabeth moved forward just an inch and touched her lips to his hand. "But it brought you to me," she said softly.

"I rescued you," Nathan said, grinning and moving his lips closer to hers.

"Well," Elizabeth said, so close that she needed only to whisper, "I wouldn't call it a rescue. It might have been a rescue if you'd arrived the day before while those terrible men were throwing my clothes all over the roadway..."

"Semantics..." Nathan said, finally touching his lips to hers. He moved her further into the shadows, remembering how the red serge tended to act as a beacon, drawing eyes toward him.

Nathan had spent much of his rounds this morning with his mind wandering back to the Christmas they'd shared together. There were three women Nathan loved above all others in the world, and they were Elizabeth, Allie and Rebecca. He'd been able to spend the day with all three, and was feeling particularly blessed on this day after Christmas. And as he'd walked through the town, he'd known without a doubt that this was his home in a way he'd not felt since Airdrie.

He'd stopped for a moment at the edge of town and had looked up at the blue peaks of the mountains, covered thickly in snow. Nathan seldom called it praying, but he knew that he did it, and today he thanked God for all he'd been given. He also talked to Colleen as he gazed up at the mountains, and he'd never been more sure that she was there, watching, smiling, just like Allie's angel in the sky in her picture.

"I won't worry about you anymore," he said softly. "And since you know my heart, you know that I'm going to stop blaming myself. It's time I got on with my life, because I know that's what you want." Nathan felt the familiar emotion welling up and looked around. He was alone, and he took a deep breath, feeling himself filled with nothing but joy. And then he turned back toward the town and finished his rounds.

Now, with the warmth of Elizabeth's lips on his, Nathan pulled her even closer. He remembered that first day as he'd taken hold of her and helped her up on Newton. He'd felt her strength then, and he felt it now, coupled with the fiery passion that always surprised him. They belonged completely to each other, and as they kissed, he felt his entire body melting into hers. They were hidden in the shadows, but there was one set of eyes that they couldn't hide from.

Hickam stood with his paintbrush hanging in mid-air. He knew that he should turn away, but he couldn't seem to. The whole town reveled in the happiness of their Mountie and their Schoolteacher, and Mike knew better than anyone else how things had changed from the moment they'd come to Coal Valley. Henry Gowen was gone, the mine was closed down, and a new day was dawning. Mike looked back up at the water tower. Even a new name.

As he finished painting the word Welcome, Hickam stole one last glance at the man in red serge holding tightly to the woman in the white blouse and peach-colored skirt.

He smiled again and turned back to his work.

"Nathan," Elizabeth said breathlessly, moving her head down to his shoulder. "I think your mother may be right." She laughed softly, feeling Nathan's heart hammering under her ear. "I'm not sure we should wait until spring."

A voice came from behind them. "Smart girl, Elizabeth."

Nathan and Elizabeth both turned and saw Rebecca's head peek around the corner. She was holding Allie's hand, and as soon as Allie saw them, she ran to hug their legs. "Kisses!" she squealed, and Nathan scooped her up to hold between them. Both Elizabeth and Nathan covered Allie with kisses while she giggled uncontrollably.

"Winter weddings are nice," Rebecca said, walking around to take Nathan's arm in hers. "Your father and I were married in January and it was lovely." She looked at the three of them, her eyes shining. "Come home with me to Airdrie. We'll clear the pergola and get Pastor Grady to meet us out there. Charlie can probably warm up the Summer Cabin for you..."

Elizabeth laughed. "Pergola? Summer Cabin?" She looked at Nathan with her eyebrows raised. I obviously need to ask you more questions about where you grew up."

"Oh, just come see it. That'll be faster than trying to get it out of my tight-lipped son," Rebecca said, threading her arm through Elizabeth's. "Now, I'm hungry. I'm ready for some of this famous Abigail's food I've been hearing so much about."

Nathan followed, holding Allie. He laughed softly and kissed her cheek again. "You don't think I'm tight-lipped, do you, sweetie?" When she simply looked at him with her wise eyes, Nathan grinned. He nuzzled her neck and blew air into it, and Allie giggled again as he followed Elizabeth and Rebecca into the café.

Hickam turned at the faint sound of the laughter that wafted up on the wind from down below. What it also carried with it, the tantalizing aroma of Abigail's blueberry scones and the smell of frying bacon, had him dropping his paintbrush into the turpentine can until later. Hope could wait another hour while he had breakfast.

As he wiped his hands on the paint rag, Mike turned back and watched Nathan, Elizabeth, Allie and Rebecca a little wistfully for a moment. They looked so happy together.

Someday, Mike thought. That's what I want someday.