Elizabeth stood in front of the mirror. She tried on the new dress and wanted to make sure everything was perfect for today. She added earrings that her parents had given her for her 16th birthday. Elizabeth held her hands in front of her, taking a deep breath. As she stood there, the light caught the ring on her finger. The ring that Jack had given her when he asked her to marry him. Elizabeth looked down at the ring, twisting it on her finger. She knew she wanted a future with Nathan but it would be difficult for her to express those feelings while still wearing Jack's ring. She took the ring off, expecting an amount of pain and grief. Instead she felt peace. "Thank you Jack. I will always love you," Elizabeth said as she put the ring in a box in her dresser.

Elizabeth heard the babbling of her son from the next room. She smiled as she looked in the mirror once more and headed across the hall to his room. Jack was standing up in his crib smiling at his mama. "Hello my sweet boy. Look how big you are!" Elizabeth got him ready for the day and the two of them walked downstairs. Elizabeth set him down in front of the settee. She wanted to finish preparing the picnic basket. She hoped that Nathan would agree to their talk after church. She would leave the picnic basket at home and maybe they could pick up on their way. Elizabeth didn't want to be holding the basket if Nathan decided he didn't want to go.

––––––––––

Nathan stood in his room in his henley and brown pants. His suspenders were hanging at his side and he was trying to decide what shirt to wear. After his talk with Bill yesterday, he knew that he would need to talk to Elizabeth. He needed to get everything out in the open- his concerns about asking her to love another Mountie and his guilt with her kidnapping. He was worried that she would tell her that she couldn't be with a Mountie, like Margaret had at Fort Clay. Nathan took a deep breath and saw his favorite blue plaid shirt. He took that one out of his closet and put it on.

Nathan walked down the stairs after he got dressed and saw Allie already in the kitchen. She had her back turned and Nathan could smell the coffee brewing. Allie turned and said, "Hi Uncle Nathan, breakfast is almost ready."

"Thank you Allie."

"Can I go to Opal's after church?"

"Sure, I was going to ask Mrs. Thornton if she wanted to go on a walk after church but I will be back later."

"Really?" Allie said with a smile like she was trying to figure out what was going on.

"Ok, that's enough of that," Nathan laughed and got some coffee. He had prepared the food for the picnic last night and it was in the icebox. He would ask Elizabeth if they could talk and they could stop by the house on the way. Nathan didn't want to carry the basket to church so people did not ask too many questions. He wanted to keep things private until he knew how Elizabeth felt.

––––––––

Nathan and Allie were sitting in the second row on the left side of the church. Elizabeth was sitting with Rosemary and Lee with Jack sitting on Lee's lap during the service. The four of them were on the right side of the church in the third row. Elizabeth was trying to pay attention to the service but she kept glancing over at Nathan. Elizabeth and Jack had arrived at church right before it started so she didn't have a chance to talk to Nathan beforehand.

The service ended and Nathan and Allie walked out the door. Elizabeth asked Rosemary and Lee if they could watch Jack this afternoon. Rosemary nodded and Elizabeth walked out the door as well. She saw Nathan at the bottom of the stairs with Allie and Opal. Elizabeth stood at the top of the stairs and saw Allie give Nathan a hug and the two girls walked towards the row houses. Nathan stood watching them as Elizabeth walked down the stairs.

"Nathan, hello," Elizabeth said as she walked down the stairs.

"Hello Elizabeth, you look beautiful today."

"Thank you. I was wondering if you would like to go on a picnic with me today. There are some things I think we need to talk about."

Nathan's eyes went wide as he didn't respond, surprised at her question. Elizabeth misunderstood and quickly added, "Oh. I'm sorry. I will see you another time." Elizabeth started to walk away but Nathan grabbed her hand. Elizabeth looked down at their joined hands and then back up into his eyes. Nathan was smiling.

"Elizabeth, I would love to go on a picnic with you."

"You would?"

"Yes. I didn't respond right away because I was going to ask you to go on a picnic. I packed a basket at home and everything. Where would you like to go?"

"I packed a basket too," Elizabeth said laughing. "I didn't really have a place in mind, did you?"

"I did. Why don't we stop and get your basket and then I will show you? Allie is at Opal's house this afternoon. Is someone watching Jack?"

"Yes, Rosemary and Lee agreed to watch him."

Nathan and Elizabeth walked to Elizabeth's row house. Nathan stood by the door as Elizabeth went to get the basket. She handed the basket to Nathan and grabbed the blanket off the back of the settee. Both of them walked out of her house as she pulled the door behind her. Nathan motioned for her to walk with him as they walked down the path.

––––––––

Both of them had walked for a few minutes before Elizabeth spoke. "Thank you Nathan."

He looked over at her, "For what?"

"The reading. It was wonderful. And you are wonderful for thinking of it. Rosemary and I had a great time in Union City."

"I'm glad. When I saw about the reading, I knew you would enjoy it," Nathan said. "We are almost there, right over here."

Elizabeth looked through the trees and there it was, a stream with a waterfall over to the left. In front of them was a field with wildflowers all around. "Oh Nathan…"

"Let's set up the blanket over here. We can talk for a little bit and enjoy the view."

Nathan set out the blanket and put the picnic basket on top of it. He walked over with Elizabeth to look at the water. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Why don't you go first?" Elizabeth said.

Nathan looked out at the water deciding where to start. "I wanted to explain some things. I hope that it will help you understand why I act a certain way. Why I worry about you and what is happening between us."

"Ok," Elizabeth responded, curious about where this was going.

"Did I ever tell you about where I was stationed prior to Hope Valley?" Nathan asked. Elizabeth shook her head. "I was stationed at Fort Clay. Allie and I were there for about a year. There was a woman who worked in the mercantile in town. Her name was Margaret and I asked her on a date after we had known each other for about six months. When I decided to come to Hope Valley, I asked Margaret if she would come with me and she said she could never love a Mountie."

"Nathan, I am so sorry. That wasn't about you though."

Nathan smiled, "I know. I have talked it through will Gabe and Bill. They helped me understand that I am not my job. But I know my job does pose some challenges. You probably know that better than anyone. Elizabeth, I can never promise you that nothing won't happen to me. I can't promise that I will never have to go away on a mission."

"Nathan, I know. But…"

"There's more. When you were kidnapped, it was my fault."

"What are you talking about? You saved me!" Elizabeth said turning Nathan towards her, and putting her hands on his arms.

Nathan looked down. "I knew that there were dangerous men who were looking for Lucas. I never should have asked you to go over to the cafe, alone, to get Bill. I wanted to call headquarters but that could have waited until I walked over there with you. Because of that, you were kidnapped and went through that."

Elizabeth reached out and took Nathan's hands. "Nathan, listen to me. You were not at fault for the kidnapping. I chose to go get Bill. I knew that time was of the essence and I probably would have suggested you stay behind anyway. If they didn't kidnap me, they would have found another way to get to Lucas. What if someone else would have gotten hurt?"

"That's what Bill said."

"He's right. I am stronger than I look. Now it's my turn. When I first came to Coal Valley, I came here to teach. I had no interest in looking for love in this town. I met Jack and he had no interest in me either. Things changed and we courted for five years before we were married. We were married for a couple weeks before he died. I was devastated. Then I learned I was pregnant and I had to put that all aside to take care of my son."

"That is why I can't ask you to take this risk again, Elizabeth."

"You don't understand. I was starting to deal with that grief when you came to town. When we met, it was like the sun came out when all I had known was a cloudy day. I went to the cemetery to talk to Jack and I realized something. The Mounties were always the most important thing to Jack. He would have always gone on the next mission or seeking the next promotion. He loved me, I know that. But I never could imagine our future beyond the wedding. Jack had bought land for a house, but that's all it ever was- plans."

Nathan was looking down, as he rubbed her hands. Then he stopped and Elizabeth saw him looking at her left hand where she had removed her ring earlier that morning. He looked up at her as she continued.

"Nathan, with you I can see the future. I can see us together, getting married, building a house, having a family. I want those things. This morning as I was getting ready, I removed my ring. I felt a peace as I put it away for Jack one day. I want us to move forward and I wanted to you know that I was ready. You being a Mountie will worry me, but I am willing to face that with you. I know that Allie is your priority and I hope that one day our family will be a priority as well."

Nathan lifted his hands, putting them on either side of Elizabeth's face. He looked in her eyes as the two of them stood close to each other. He looked down at her lips and then back in her eyes to ask permission. Elizabeth nodded and moved closer to Nathan, pressing her lips against his. The kiss started off sweet and soft as Elizabeth pulled back looking into Nathan's eyes smiling back at him. Nathan leaned down for a second kiss, deepening the kiss more than the first one. Elizabeth put her arms around Nathan's back pulling him against her. Nathan pulled back to catch his breath and put his forehead against hers.

"Elizabeth, can I ask to court you?"

"You better." Elizabeth said giggling as she looked in his eyes.

"Elizabeth Thatcher Thornton, will you do me the honor of allowing me to court you and go on a date with me next weekend?"

"Yes, Nathan Grant. I will."

Nathan kissed her softly and led her to the blanket. The two of them finished their picnic, talking about their childhoods and the past before each came to town. They both wanted to know everything about the other. They planned to have a date night on the weekend so Nathan had time to prepare for it. Elizabeth also asked if they could have a family dinner this week and talk to Allie about them courting. They would try to keep it between them before talking to Allie.

Nathan walked Elizabeth home but stopped in front of the Coulters home since they were watching Jack. Nathan kissed Elizabeth's hand as he said goodnight. Elizabeth walked up the stairs and knocked on the door. As Rosemary opened the door, Nathan said goodnight to Rosemary and walked towards his row house for dinner with Allie. Rosemary looked at Elizabeth and saw the smile on her friend's face. Rosemary knew that something had happened between them and she was thrilled.