Chapter 163- A Mountie's Heart
We have a little morning after/carryover love here to start this chapter and because of that- slight steam warning ahead… (although personally- I think it also has some pretty freakin' adorable Nate and Charlie moments sprinkled in there too).
Charlotte's eyes fluttered open and it took her a few moments to place where she was. When she remembered the sequence of the events from the night before, that led to her and Nathan being curled in each other's arms in the hayloft of their barn, she felt a flush of heat move through her body.
She watched Nathan's chest rise and fall rhythmically beneath her. The action moved her own body with each breath he took. The storm from the night before had long since moved on, replaced now with the gentle noises of dawn and life awakening. Charlotte listened to the horses below them, moving slowly in their stalls. She even caught the distant hint of the morning breeze stirring her handmade windchimes on the porch across the yard. The ever-changing melodies were soothing.
The new hay smelled sweet beneath them. A few weeks ago, Jed Campbell brought his sickle bar and wagons to the ranch and helped them mow and transport the grass they cut and dried from the open field by the river up to the barn to be stored. Ensuring the horses would have hay throughout the cold winter months, and Nathan and Charlotte a comfortable mattress for the night.
Charlotte's gaze moved over Nathan. His body was spent like hers, but she still found it radiant in the early morning glow of dawn. Everything seemed right in the world whenever she was in her husband's arms. Even in his sleep he had a peaceful, happy expression on his face, and she prayed that she was at least a small part in bringing him this joy.
She reached up to touch his face, her thumb tracing his brow, then down his nose and over his cheek. His lips were full and inviting and she shifted slightly to taste them with her own.
"Mmmm…" He stirred, but his eyes stubbornly remained shut.
"Nathan…" Charlotte said, drawing his name out slowly. Peeking from under her lashes as she trailed her kisses along his stubbled jaw. He still didn't open his eyes, but the smirk on his face and his fingers tightening around her waist told Charlotte he was no longer asleep. She chuckled softly, nibbling along his neck and shoulder, trying to rouse him further. The action caused Nathan to take in an unsteady breath. Charlotte returned then to his face and placed a playful kiss on his nose. "Sarge. Why do I get the feeling you are just pretending to sleep so I give you more kisses?"
"Ssshhh…" His mouth tipped ruefully. "I think it's working."
Charlotte saw his teasing smile and laughed. She then proceeded to pepper a flurry of kisses all over his face accompanied by playful smacking noises that he occasionally did to her. Nathan joined in her laughter, threading both his hands in her hair, he held her face close and then started giving her kisses in return. His eyes still held closed as he tucked her body into his and rolled them together so her back lay against the blanket covered hay. The air instantly left Charlotte's lungs with her husband's movement. She felt her hips raise instinctively against his.
"Nate…" Charlotte smoothed back the unruly hair from his face. "Look at me. Please."
Nathan drew back slightly and complied with his wife's wish. His blue gaze- deep and full of emotion- captured hers with raw intensity. Renewed heat crept up Charlotte's neck, and her skin tingled all over as he caressed her with his smoldering stare.
They made love again, connected in every way possible. Watching one another through it all. Seeing how they responded to each other's touch. It was relentless, a powerful confirmation of what they shared the evening before. Their minds, bodies, and hearts brought together as one. Stronger as husband and wife then they could ever be apart.
When the final tidal waves of sensations ebbed, they held each other close, and their breaths fell into unison. Exhausted, sleep again came easily.
They woke a short while later. Excited for the rest of the day ahead of them. Charlotte was just finishing getting dressed in her slightly damp clothes from the night before when she heard a car pull up outside followed by Rosemary Coulter's sing-song voice calling.
"Oh, my goodness. What are they doing here so early?" Charlotte's eyes were big.
Nathan laughed at his wife's reaction. "Probably bringing our son back to his parents."
He had his trousers on but nothing else and looking at his bare torso made Charlotte's mouth go dry.
"Don't worry. I'm sure they will go straight to the house." Nathan gave her a devilishly delicious smile and caught Charlotte around the waist, throwing her playfully back into the hay beside him. "I bet we have time for some more of this." He captured her mouth again in a deep and passionate kiss. Blurring Charlotte's senses with expert precision.
When they came up for air, Charlotte struggled to swallow with the look her husband was giving. His confidence in who he was with her, and maybe more so, the confidence in who they were together clearly radiated from within him. It was an attractiveness that wasn't often written about in the stories Charlotte read, but one of those discoveries she found, and loved, in married life. Finally, she was able to string together some coherent thoughts. "What would Rosemary think if she saw us both up here in the same clothes we had on from yesterday?"
"Maybe she'll think we're pitching hay?"
"She's a married woman. A Mountie's daughter. And a reporter. I think she will be able to piece together the evidence."
"And what if she does?" A roguish grin filled his face. "Don't you think that was her reason for watching Liam last night. So that we could. You know."
"I know. But that doesn't mean she needs to find us like this." Charlotte scolded as she shook her head and playfully pushed against his chest. Rolling him to the side so she could straighten her blouse. She jumped up and tossed him his shirt that had been deposited the night before on the floor of the loft. It gave her a small bit of satisfaction when it hit him square in the face. "Get dressed, Sarge. Before…"
"Before what?"
"Before… I don't know… Before you keep looking at me like that…" Charlotte waved her hands at him in exasperation. A strong flush stung her cheeks.
"Whatever you say… Mrs. Nathan." Nathan winked at her before putting his arms in his shirt and pulling it over his head. The action caused his hair to become even more disheveled.
Charlotte bit her bottom lip and held her hands together to avoid reaching out and fixing his bedhead herself.
"Do you think they are in the barn?" Lee's voice sounded from outside.
"Maybe. I'll go check." Rosemary responded to her husband. "You stay here with the kids."
Nathan chuckled at how mortified Charlotte looked at that moment with the realization that they may be discovered in a state of unkempt by the Coulters.
"Don't move." Charlotte said to him.
He got up and walked towards her. "What are you going to tell her? That I'm out for a walk and that you were up here taking a nap." His eyes looked Charlotte over from head to toe. He plucked a piece of hay from her hair and kissed the nape of her neck.
Charlotte blushed and pushed him back into the dark corner of the loft right as Rosemary came into the barn. "Oh, there you are."
Charlotte quickly descended the ladder. "I was just… napping… after feeding the horses," Charlotte said, flustered and pushing wisps of hair back, finding more pieces of hay embedded in her curls.
Rosemary's eyes twinkled. "You fed the horses already?"
Charlotte cleared her throat. "Yes."
Rosemary leaned over the stall nearest where she stood. "Bandit sure eats his oats and hay quickly then."
"Uh… yes." Charlotte's face flushed. "He does." She walked up to Rosemary's side. "Shall we go to the house? I'll fix some coffee."
"That sounds nice."
Charlotte gestured towards the barn door. Rosemary took a few steps forward and then stopped. Smiling at Charlotte she called up to the loft. "Nathan- Lee and I want you, Charlotte, and the kids to come for dinner next week when Allie gets back to town."
Nathan's answering laughter drifted down from the loft. "We'd love to!"
Rosemary took Charlotte's arm as they left the barn. "Seems as though you and Nathan had a nice evening. Just the two of you." She giggled at the success of her plotting. "You look a little flushed this morning."
Charlotte's hand went up to her cheeks and felt the heat on them. "I… Ah…" She stammered, her brain in a lingering fog from her time with Nathan.
Rosemary pulled Charlotte to a stop and hugged her hard. "I'm happy for you. And Nathan. Sometimes as parents it's important for us to find this time to be together."
"Thank you for watching Liam last night so Nathan and I could…"
"Oh, don't mention it. We were happy to help." Rosemary pulled a piece of hay from Charlotte's hair. "But… Maybe you want to go in through the back door and get freshened up a bit? I'm not saying Lee Coulter is the most observant man in the world, but seeing you dressed in the same clothes you had on yesterday and your hair like this… I think he can even put two and two together. I'll go to the front porch and keep him occupied in the meantime."
"You're the best, Rosemary." Charlotte gave the other woman another quick hug and a peck on the cheek before scurrying off to do as was suggested.
Charlotte changed and quickly fixed her hair before coming back downstairs and starting a pot of coffee. She was anxious to see Liam and quickly found her son in Nathan's arms as he chatted with the Coulters on the front porch. Her baby saw his mother and gave Charlotte a sweet smile in recognition.
They ate a simple breakfast together before the Coulters returned to town with their own children who had come along with them to the ranch. Nathan and Charlotte were still basking in the effects of their shared night before, so Nathan suggested that they pack a lunch and take their son on a hike around the ranch.
"We could spend the whole day together-" Nathan said, his voice cheerful and happy with the idea. "Take Remi, a few sandwiches and snacks, and make a whole day of it."
And they did make a whole day of it. A wonderful day. They walked along to the far west end of their property. Following the riverbank, through the open field and the aspen grove to the denser pines. Nathan carried Liam on his back in the cradleboard from Warren. The parents enjoyed watching their son experience everything new around him. He loved the outdoors, especially when they were here- away from anything man made. Nothing but God's nature. Charlotte already sensed it would become a very important part of Liam's life as he grew and became a man. He studied it all with big, serious eyes. Pointing his finger and chattering about all the things that caught his attention or giggling at Remi barking at any critter or leaf that crossed their path.
They stopped at a spot by the river they visited in the past, including the day last summer to celebrate the end of the school year. When Nathan and Charlotte watched the clouds and shared their hearts on wishing to expand their family. Now here they were. With the baby they prayed for and trusted God and His timing.
Charlotte spread their quilt on the soft floor of the forest, cushioned by years of pine needles. Nathan took Liam out of his carrier and set him on the blanket, giving him a large pinecone to play with while he helped Charlotte arrange their picnic lunch. As usual, the newfound toy went into the little boy's mouth.
When everyone was fed, Nathan and Charlotte took Liam down to the river's edge to a place that was a protected cove, and the waters were calm and shallow. Nathan held their son so the boy could splash his legs and hands back and forth in the cool water. His eyes brightened and he splashed so hard that even Nathan was getting wet, causing Charlotte to laugh at the scene.
After the refreshing bath, they returned to the blankets and laid down to rest and look at the clouds. Enjoying the warmth of the late summer day. The sun was in the west and beginning its descent when they packed up and turned towards home. They hadn't gone far when Charlotte noticed that Liam, on his father's back, was sound asleep. His little head bobbing with each step Nathan took.
"We've worn him out," she said sympathetically. Feeling the exhaustion herself from the day's activities. And the night before.
"I think he's enjoyed every minute of it." Nathan chuckled. "As have I."
"I think so too. I'm so glad you thought of it, Nathan. It was fun, wasn't it?"
"I just wish that Allie was here. Then I'd have everything that I hold special in my heart with me."
"We're always right here with you."
Nathan reached for her hand, and they walked home together. Remi ran ahead, searching out rabbit burrows, or squirrel hide-outs. Liam slept on. Perhaps his dreams were of his sister too. Or other wild things. Either way he looked content and happy, which is all a parent could ask for their child.
The sun still carried plenty of warmth during the afternoons, but Charlotte was beginning to see and feel the early signs of fall in the foothills.
Just in time for school to start. She thought to herself.
Allie's train from Edmonton was set to arrive the next morning and Charlotte was busy cleaning and baking in preparation for her daughter's return. After their day at the river, Liam began cutting his first teeth. He carried a small fever and was uncomfortable the past few nights, unable to fall asleep, so Charlotte was thankful when her son went down easily for an afternoon nap. He now rested peacefully in the cradle in the dining room while she worked around the house.
Sunshine spilled through a nearby window, drawing Charlotte's attention to look out at their ranch. Admiring the straight fence posts around their lush garden and the well-kept rose buses that were full of blooms, their delicious scents carried through the house on a gentle breeze through the open windows.
Suddenly, Remi darted upright from her place on the rug in the hallway. She barked once. Looked at Charlotte and then barked again, walking towards the front door.
Charlotte tried to see what caught the dog's attention. At first, there was nothing out front, nor along the long driveway leading towards the main road. Then she saw it. A rider. Guiding his horse onto the property with slow easy steps. Her racing heart skipped a beat seeing her husband ride towards their home on Newton, and a smile pulled at the corners of her mouth at the thought of an unexpected afternoon spent in his company.
She watched as he continued past the path leading to the barn and instead directed Newton towards the house. Charlotte glanced at Liam and seeing he was still fast asleep, quietly slipped out the front door to welcome Nathan home.
"Well, well, well," she said, wrapping her hand around the porch post. Using it as a fulcrum point to swing her body back and forth in slow, easy motions. "To what do I owe the pleasure, Sarge?" She watched Nathan slide down from his horse, admiring the way the material of his uniform pulled taut across his back muscles. "I wasn't expecting you home until later, so this is a nice surprise."
There was no flirtatious reply. No crooked smile. Instead, Charlotte saw the muscle in the side of Nathan's jaw twitch ever so slightly a moment before he reached up and removed his campaign hat, running his long fingers through his hair as he finally turned to face her.
She saw it then. In the bewilderment of the silence. The red-rimmed, slightly swollen eyes that no matter how hard they tried, were unable to make full contact with her own, choosing instead to focus their attention on the brim of Nathan's Stetson he now twirled and tugged on in his hands. Charlotte could see that Nathan's face was pale and the lines on it were deepened with the weight of sorrow he so clearly felt.
The birds still chirped, and the breeze continued to blow, yet time seemed to stand still in those moments. "What… What's wrong, Nathan?" She whispered through trembling lips. Movement down the path caught her eye and she turned to see Bill's car coming along the driveway towards them with Joseph sitting in the passenger seat. A second car driven by Lee and accompanied by Rosemary and Minnie followed in the stir of dust.
"No." Charlotte's hand pressed to her mouth, her other against her stomach. She backed away from the steps as they seemed to pitch to and fro. The world around her swirled in colorful symmetry like images through a kaleidoscope. Yellows. Blues. Greens. They all churned together as Charlotte's knees began to buckle.
But before her world could go black, it was consumed with red. Two strong arms cradled her as she crumpled to the ground. Sagging against her husband as sobs wrecked them both. Her face buried against the fabric of his serge while Nathan's hands smoothed her hair. He held her close, and they prayed through their tears for the strength to carry on while their hearts seemed to break in a single moment.