Rosemary woke in Florence Blakely's spare bedroom, hardly able to believe she had already been in Coal Valley for a week, and what a week. So many things had happened, the trial, the revelation of Clara and Peter's marriage, and meeting the intriguing Mr Lee Coulter. With so many positive things happening, it saddened her to think about Nathan and Elizabeth.

Elizabeth had returned from her riding lesson alone and angry. Something had happened on their ride the Saturday after the trial. Rosemary had tried to find out what it was, but all Elizabeth would say was that Nathan had betrayed her, and he wasn't the person she thought he was.

Nathan was also quiet, she had tried to get out of him what had happened, and all he would say was that Elizabeth was right to be disappointed in him. Rosemary had begged Lee to see if he could find out more, but he refused, saying they were entitled to their privacy.

Elizabeth was hurting, that was evident, and so was Nathan; in fact, he seemed more miserable than she was. Rosemary wished she could do something to mend the rift between her friends, but it seemed hopeless. Abigail would know what to do, she thought. Yes, she would talk to Abigail about it today. Maybe after she spoke to Abigail, she could invite Elizabeth to have lunch with her; it was the weekend, so she would be free.

Thinking of Abigail naturally led her to think of Clara. Rosemary had felt that once Clara got to Coal Valley and discovered how wonderful Abigail was, she would want to stay. That hadn't happened. Clara was still determined to return to Benson Hills to waitress at the Hill's Cafe while staying in touch with Abigail.

Clara had been happy to meet Abigail, delighted even, but there was something she wasn't telling them. Abigail had asked Rosemary if she knew what was drawing Clara back to Benson Hills, but she couldn't help. As close as she and Clara had gotten, there was still mysteriousness about Clara, a wall she had around her that Rosemary hadn't been able to breach.

Rosemary didn't know how she felt about returning to Benson Hills. Living in Benson Hills was a means to an end, a steppingstone for her to realise her dream of being on the stage. Being there gave her hope that there was still time to recover from what Lucas Bouchard had done to her and be a star. Rosemary didn't see herself in a small town like Coal Valley; she saw her name up in lights, living a fabulous, exciting life.

Rosemary had always said no man would ever make her stop chasing her dreams, but then she had never met a man like Leeland Coulter. The moment she saw Lee Coulter, he captivated her. He was intelligent, handsome, successful, and kind, the sweetest man she had ever met. Her heart raced when he looked at her, and she got butterflies in her stomach. He would be the perfect man if only he lived somewhere other than Coal Valley.

She wasn't sure what she would do about Lee. Rosemary wondered if she could convince him to establish his Timber Mill in Coal Valley and live somewhere more exotic. Of course, she couldn't have that conversation with him until they were officially courting, and he hadn't asked her on their first date yet, but it was only a matter of time.

Elizabeth rolled over in bed and punched her pillow, trying to find a way to get comfortable.

"Are you alright, Elizabeth? You tossed and turned all night."

"Oh, Clara, I am so sorry. Did I keep you awake?"

'I don't sleep much anyway; it wasn't your fault. I am worried about you; you and Nathan have obviously fought and are miserable about it. Do you want to talk about what happened?"

Elizabeth had refused to talk to anyone about what had happened between her and Nathan. She didn't want to admit what her Father had done, and that Nathan hadn't told her. Something about Clara made Elizabeth willing to confide in her; maybe it was knowing how much she had been through herself.

"My family didn't support my desire to come to Coal Valley, I am from Hamilton, and they wanted me to stay and take a cushy teaching job. They thought I would eventually tire of teaching, meet someone appropriate and take my place in society." Elizabeth sat up in bed as she spoke, unable to lie down as she was getting more agitated as she told her story.

"My Father promised me that he would allow me to stand on my own two feet here, that he trusted me to know my mind and make it without his help. It turns out that isn't true." Elizabeth blew out a frustrated breath, "Nathan told me the only reason he is here, the only reason Coal Valley has a Mountie, is because my Father is paying for it. My Father is paying Nathan to watch over me, spend time with me."

Elizabeth bit her lip, trying to hold back her tears of anger and misery, "how could he do that to me?"

"Your Father or Nathan?"

"Both," Elizabeth cried, I feel like they both betrayed me." She lost the battle with her tears and put her head down, letting them fall.

Clara jumped up and went to her, putting an arm around her shoulders. "Oh, Elizabeth, don't be upset with your Father. He loves you and doesn't want to see anything happen to you."

"I know, Clara. I love my Father, but I am so angry with him." Elizabeth sniffed back her tears; she knew she couldn't stay mad at her Father forever, and she understood why he had done it, but it didn't help her right now.

"And Nathan? Did he accept the post knowing your Father was paying?"

"No, he didn't know, but he had his suspicions; Bill confirmed it when he came to Town."

"So, he wasn't lying to you; he wasn't sure."

"Yes, but how can he expect me to trust him now? He should have told me his suspicions. When he found out, he should have told me straight away?"

"Maybe he didn't tell you before because he didn't want to cause trouble if there wasn't any. Imagine if he told you his suspicions about why he was in Town, and it wasn't true."

Elizabeth knew Clara was right, but in her heart, she was still hurt he hadn't told her the truth earlier. Even now, how could she not be angry knowing he was there because of her Father? His presence was a constant reminder of her Father's lack of faith in her.

"What did Nathan actually say to you about the whole mess, Elizabeth?"

Elizabeth thought back to the day he told her; she had been so excited to go riding with him. It was their first chance to be alone since Rosemary and Clara arrived. They had ridden to the Meadow, where they always had their breaks during riding lessons. Nathan had been quiet all morning, and Elizabeth hoped it wasn't something to do with Colleen and Allie; she would talk to him about it when they stopped.

She never got the chance. When she dismounted, Nathan took her hand, led her to their tree and urged her to sit on the blanket he laid down.

"Elizabeth, being posted to Coal Valley wasn't a lucky coincidence. Your Father is paying for a Mountie to be here. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time to be allocated to this post."

"My Father is paying you to be here, and have you watch over me? Spend time with me?" Elizabeth had been stunned, surprised she could get the words out. His statement hit her like a blow to the stomach; she felt sick.

"No, he is paying for a Mountie to be assigned to Coal Valley. I care about you, Elizabeth; I want to spend time with you. Me spending time with you is nothing to do with your Father. I hated knowing this might be the case and not telling you."

"How long have you known? How did you find out?" Her voice was quiet, the pain she was feeling evident in her soft tone.

"I had suspicions when they changed my travel plans and when Gabe and I got upgraded. I met Bill Avery at my graduation; he was the one who made the arrangements, and something seemed off when we discussed Coal Valley. When Bill arrived in Coal Valley, I asked him, and he finally confirmed it." Nathan paused, reaching out to take her hand, his disappointment clear when she pulled it away from him.

"How could you not tell me?" Elizabeth's tears had spilled over her cheeks, and her lips were trembling.

"I'm sorry, Elizabeth, but I needed to be sure; I needed confirmation before I said something against your Father. Then with the trial and Rosemary and Clara coming to Town, there wasn't a chance to tell you."

"You should have told me before...before you kissed me. You shouldn't have kissed me." Elizabeth knew she was being unfair, she had instigated their first kiss, but at that moment, she didn't care.

"I know." Nathan tipped her head up so he could look into her eyes, "please, Elizabeth, will you forgive me for not telling you? I should have told you before anything happened, but I couldn't stop myself; I care about you. Elizabeth, I'm in love with you. "

Elizabeth gasped when she heard the words, her heart breaking all over again, her tears becoming sobs. She sat with her head down for a long while. Nathan let her cry, a hand on her shoulder. Composing herself, she looked at him bleakly, "I need time to think, Nathan; I can't do that here with you. I want to go home." Elizabeth stood, ignoring the hand he held out to assist her. "Don't come with me; I will be fine to get back to Town on my own."

"No, Elizabeth, let me come with you," he called after her as she walked away.

Without a word to him, she continued walking to her horse, Sugar, mounted and trotted away. It turns out she had learned to trot after all.

"You look like you lost your best friend."

Nathan saw Lee approaching him, where he stood outside the Mountie office. He told himself he was keeping an eye on the Town, but he knew he was keeping an eye out for Elizabeth.

"Actually, now I am up close; you look worse than that," Lee said with a grim smile. "Elizabeth still not talking to you?"

Nathan thought about Elizabeth and realised Lee was right; he had lost his best friend, and without her, there was an empty spot inside his heart.

Nathan thought back to the day he told her about her Father and why he was in Coal Valley, she had been so upset. He wished he could turn back the clock; he would tell her straight away.

Nathan's heart ached at the pain in her eyes, hurt he knew he helped put there. He loved her and hated being the cause of her tears.

After he told her why he was in Town, after he begged forgiveness and told her he loved her, she had ridden away. Nathan had waited a few moments, then Mounted Newton, following her from a distance, close enough to be there if she needed him. He wasn't sure if Elizabeth would ever forgive him; gaining back her trust would not be easy. All he could do was be there if she needed to talk and maybe try and get Abigail on his side.

Elizabeth hadn't spoken to him since that day; she had avoided looking at him if their paths crossed. He had heard from Bill that she had sent a Telegram to her Father. William Thatcher had contacted Bill after receiving her follow-up letter, telling him he was surprised the pages hadn't caught fire from the white-hot anger of her words.

Bill had talked to William about the posting of the Mountie in Coal Valley, advising him to withdraw funding. If William withdrew funding, he could honestly say he had nothing to do with the Mountie presence in Town. Bill had already contacted Mountie headquarters and convinced them to continue the posting, and they agreed. Nathan's position in Coal Valley was secure and would be separate from any dependence on William Thatcher. Nathan wasn't sure if Elizabeth knew that yet.

"Hey Lee, settling in okay?" Nathan asked, snapping out of his musing, and avoiding Lee's question. It was evident that everyone in Town knew about their falling out, but he wasn't up to talking about it.

"Everything is going smoothly, so smoothly I have decided to take some time out for lunch. Care to you join me?"

"I am not sure I want to eat at the Cafe," ever since the trouble with Elizabeth, he had avoided the place, not wanting to make her uncomfortable if she was there. It was easier to avoid her on a school day.

"We can eat at the Saloon even though the food isn't nearly as good."

"Okay, that sounds good. I will join you. Let me lock up here." Nathan turned and walked inside the Mountie office to hang up his hat. He knew he could have taken off the Serge, it being Saturday, but sometimes it was an excellent shield to hide behind.

Elizabeth looked out the window of the Cafe and saw Lee and Nathan walking toward the Saloon. She was surprised to see Nathan heading there; he usually avoided the place if he could. The Cafe was off limits to him, she supposed, while she was avoiding him. Part of her was grateful to Nathan for giving her the space she had asked for, while the other part wished he would ignore her request. She missed him so badly it hurt.

Rosemary walked into the dining area of the Café with her and Elizabeth's lunch. Putting their food down Rosemary went to look over Elizabeth's shoulder, curious to see what had her attention. Elizabeth had finally opened up to her about their argument and Rosemary wished they could move on from it, they were perfect for each other. Grinning, Rosemary said, "fancy a drink at the Saloon, Elizabeth."

Elizabeth jumped, startled, she hadn't heard Rosemary approach. "No, I do not; you know I don't like going there unless it is for School."

"Mmmh, well, how else are you going to run into him? He won't come here unless you're somewhere else."

"I am not hoping to run into him, Rosemary. I asked for space to think."

"How long do you need to think about admitting you're in love with Nathan Grant? Anyone who has seen you two together could answer for you."

"Rosemary!" Elizabeth exclaimed, blushing. "I...I, I could not be in love with Nathan Grant. He deceived me, and I am angry with him."

"Of course, you could be, and you are. Being angry doesn't stop you from being in love. And while I disagree with lying, Nathan didn't lie to you; he waited to tell you something he knew would hurt you until he had proof. Nathan did not want to cause you pain unnecessarily, which I think is quite admirable."

Rosemary placed her hands on Elizabeth's shoulders, turning her, so they faced each other, staring at her intensely, "I know you want to be angry with him, but if you think about it, he did the right thing. He risked you being mad at him to tell you the truth. Nathan didn't have to tell you anything at all."

Smiling tightly, she said, "Yes, he should have told you sooner, but at least he did tell you. He loves you, Elizabeth; it's clear he does. You need to decide how you feel about him and how long you plan to punish him for something your Father did."

Her smile turned sympathetic as she said, "come and eat your lunch, and then for dessert, you can have one of Abigail's scones; it might help you decide what to do." Shrugging she laughed, "and if not, at least it will make you feel better."

Elizabeth allowed Rosemary to lead her toward their table, glad her friend was there to help her look at things differently. Rosemary was telling the truth; she blamed Nathan for the whole situation, which wasn't fair to him. Rosemary was right; she loved him. Now all she had to do was work on how to make it right between them.

"Can I get you anything else? Anything at all?"

Nathan glared at Lee, who had choked on his drink at the question. Looking up at the waitress, he flashed a smile and said, "just the chilli, thank you."

"I could make you something special to eat, even if it isn't on the Menu. It's no trouble. I am happy to help you."

"Oh no, please, don't go to any trouble; we would be happy with two bowls of chilli, isn't that right, Lee?" Nathan glanced at Lee for help, nudging him in the chin with his boot none too gently. Lee was enjoying his discomfort far too much.

"Yes, that's right, Lisa, thank you anyway."

Lisa smiled broadly at Nathan, ignoring Lee before turning and sashaying back to the kitchen to fill their order.

"Well, someone seems to be taken with you," Lee said, laughing as Nathan blushed.

"Please don't encourage her; ever since she heard Elizabeth and I weren't speaking, she has been..." Nathan paused, trying to think of a polite way to say what he was thinking.

"Eager to please?"

"What am I going to do? I don't want to hurt her feelings, but whether Elizabeth is talking to me or not doesn't change the way I feel about her."

"Well, you could stop smiling at her like that."

Nathan was puzzled; he smiled to be polite; what was Lee talking about?

"The first time I laid eyes on Grant, I thought he would be popular with the Ladies."

Nathan groaned at Bill's comments, not having heard him come up behind them; obviously, he had seen and heard enough to join in Lee's teasing.

"Grab a seat, Bill. I am sure Nathan could convince Lisa to get you a bowl of Chilli."

"I don't have to convince her to do anything," Nathan said, then realised his mistake when Lee raised his eyebrows and Bill chuckled. "You know what I mean; it's her job to bring you food when you order it. I don't need to convince her."

"Alright, enough teasing Bill; we are supposed to cheer Nathan up."

Bill grimaced, "still not talking to you? Me either." He didn't need to mention who, Elizabeth had been frosty toward him since finding out he was aware of her Father's plans and helped carry them out.

Nathan didn't reply, just shook his head.

"She will come around, I am sure of it," Bill said with much more conviction than he felt. According to William Thatcher, Elizabeth could be pretty headstrong.

Nathan sat in front of the fire that evening, again unable to sleep and not wanting to go to bed and toss and turn. He was wearing only his Henley and a pair of trousers, suspenders hanging at his waist. He nursed a cup of coffee, thinking of ways he could have done things differently with Elizabeth. How could he make it up to her, get her to forgive him?

'Click'.

Nathan heard the main door of the Mountie office open behind him and turned to see who was there.

"What are you doing here? You shouldn't be here." He rose to his feet, staring in shock at the visitor.

"I wanted to see you without anyone else around so we could talk," she said, ignoring what he had said, walking toward him.

He stared, wide-eyed, as Lisa stopped in front of him, close enough so he could feel the heat from her body. He knew he had to get her out of there, but he didn't know how to. She had trapped him between her and the fireplace.

"Lisa, you need to leave; you cannot be here; it wouldn't do either of our reputations any good for someone to see you." Nathan flinched as he felt her arms slide around his waist; he grabbed her arms and gently pulled them away. "Lisa, you can't do that; it's not right, and if Elizabeth found out..."

"I thought you two weren't together anymore."

"It's temporary; we are still together; this is just a bump."

"I could help you get over the bump," she whispered, licking her lips.

"Lisa, No. I am sorry. You need to leave, please."

She stared at him for a moment, and when she understood he was serious, she started to cry. With a sob, Lisa ran from the Mountie office, slamming the door behind her. Nathan thought of going after her but decided against it, leaving it like that was better. Lisa might hate him, but this way, no one needed to know about what had just happened.

After the Café closed for the evening, Elizabeth tried to do some baking with terrible results. She and Rosemary had to open the front door to let the smell of smoke escape. They were waving their tea towels to encourage the smoke outside when a slamming door got their attention.

Looking up the road toward the sound, toward the Mountie office, they saw Lisa, the waitress from the Saloon, hurrying down the road.

Elizabeth looked at Rosemary and found her friend staring back at her, stunned; it was clear Lisa had just left the Mountie office. It was far too late for official Mountie business.

"Elizabeth, don't jump to conclusions," Rosemary cautioned.

"It's fine, Rosemary; I'm fine."

"Really?" Rosemary said, her shock evident in her voice.

"Yes," Elizabeth said, smiling at her friend, "that doesn't look like a visit that ended well." Elizabeth knew it was cruel to be happy about someone else's misery, but Lisa had been obvious about her feelings for Nathan. Elizabeth was pleased that whatever had happened between Lisa and Nathan, hadn't made her happy. It meant making it right with Nathan would be easier than she thought. It also gave her pause, she needed to make this right sooner rather than later.