It was dark, yet peaceful as Elizabeth walked out of the cafe with Allie and Little Jack. Because Allie was laughing at something Jack had said, Elizabeth almost didn't hear the footsteps. But when she looked up, there was no mistaking the sight of a Mountie riding on top of his horse. But the Mountie wasn't Nathan.

"Kids, come here for a minute," Elizabeth somehow managed to say, as she stopped in the middle of the road. Following her gaze, Allie's laughter died on her lips and she put a hand on Jack's back to guide him back to their mom. The Mountie dismounted and removed his hat. His face was somber.

"Mrs. Grant?" the Mountie asked, his voice holding a question.

"Yes," Elizabeth answered, a chill going through her at the sound of her name, Nathan's name, coming from the Mountie's lips. Allie and Jack scooted closer to her as they stared at the unfamiliar Mountie.

"It's your husband." The Mountie said those dreaded words. "I'm sorry." Elizabeth didn't need to ask any questions. She knew what that meant.

"No," Elizabeth breathed. She'd been here before. It couldn't be happening again. Could it? "No, no, no!" Elizabeth collapsed into sobs as Allie and Little Jack clung to her. Not Nathan. She couldn't lose him too.

"Hey, hey." A calm voice said, but Elizabeth could barely hear it as tears flowed down her cheeks. She brought her hands up to cover her face as she sobbed, her wedding ring feeling heavy against her finger. Her vision tunneled and she suddenly felt like she was falling.

"Elizabeth," the voice said again. "Sweetheart. Wake up."

With a gasp, Elizabeth's eyes flew open and it felt as if her body had just come crashing down to earth. It took her brain only a second longer to catch up. She was lying on the couch with a blanket over her legs, the same way she had fallen asleep after dinner that night. The house was quiet, the kids were asleep, and the only sound to be heard was the chirping of the crickets by the pond.

"Hey," the calm voice spoke again. Elizabeth knew that voice. Of course she did. Turning her head to the right, she saw him. Nathan, crouching down next to the couch, his blue eyes boring into hers. "You OK, Sweetheart?" he asked, smiling softly as he gazed at her. Slowly, he brought his hand up to gently cup her face. "You were crying," Nathan said, as he lightly brushed his thumb over Elizabeth's wet cheek.

"Nathan!" Elizabeth cried out in pure relief, as reality came screaming back to life.

"Oof," Nathan muttered when Elizabeth threw her arms around his neck and hugged him close. Elizabeth pressed her face against Nathan's shoulder, feeling the soft fabric of his shirt on her wet cheek. Squeezing her eyes shut, Elizabeth hugged Nathan for another minute, as if reassuring herself that he was actually there.

"Elizabeth," came Nathan's voice, when she had been clinging to him and silently crying for several minutes. "What happened? Is everything OK?" Hearing his obvious concern, Elizabeth slowly eased back and her eyes took in her husband's face.

"I'm sorry," she managed to choke out. "I guess I was just dreaming, but it felt really real." A few more tears trailed down Elizabeth's cheeks.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Nathan asked softly. After only a second of hesitation, Elizabeth nodded. She didn't think she would be able to sleep otherwise.

Nathan stood from his kneeling position and then turned to sit on the couch as Elizabeth pulled her knees close to her chest to make room for him. Nathan pivoted slightly so that he could see her face and then gently took one of Elizabeth's hands.

"Take your time," he said gently, his voice full of love and compassion. Elizabeth took a deep breath and then shakily let it back out.

"You were out of town on a mission" she started. "Allie, Jack, and I were coming out of the cafe one night, and then…" Elizabeth's voice cracked. Nathan gave her hand a squeeze, but Elizabeth stared at the carpet as if seeing something that wasn't really there. "Then, I saw the Mountie. And it was just like that night all over again." It took a second, but once Nathan understood Elizabeth's implication, he blanched.

"Elizabeth…" Nathan started to say, but it was like she didn't even hear him. Instead, Elizabeth turned to look at him, unshed tears flooding her eyes.

"He-" Elizabeth's voice broke. "He called me 'Mrs. Grant'." And then, Elizabeth just started crying, unable to hold back the waves of tears. She pulled her knees closer to her chest and then buried her face in her hands as she let the tears fall.

"Oh, Elizabeth," she heard Nathan whisper and then she felt his arms around her. For a second, she stiffened, not believing she deserved his comfort. He had dealt with her fear for so, so long. She felt selfish. I am selfish, she thought.

"It's OK, sweetheart," Nathan said, when she didn't relax. It was almost as if he could read her mind. "I'm here." And knowing that he meant it, Elizabeth finally let the tension flow out of her as she squeezed her eyes shut. She put her arms around Nathan and leaned against his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat. The two of them just stayed like that for a minute, until both their heartbeats matched the same rhythm.

Slowly, Elizabeth eased back, her blue eyes shining from the tears that she'd shed.

"I'm so sorry, Nathan," she whispered as she looked up at the man she loved. She didn't exactly know why she was apologizing, just that she needed to say it.

"No, Elizabeth, I'm sorry," Nathan said, his eyes darting away for a second. "That sounds like an awful dream."

"But that's all that it was," Elizabeth replied. Now that the terror of the dream was over, she felt herself slowly returning to normal. "A dream." She put her hand on Nathan's cheek as she started to smile. "This…this is real." And then Elizabeth closed her eyes and kissed him. Once they pulled back, Elizabeth put her arms around Nathan's neck and leaned her forehead against his.

"I love you," she whispered, staring into his ocean blue eyes as she smiled. "Thank you for being here for me." At this, Nathan leaned forward and softly brought his lips to hers.

"Always," he whispered back when they separated. Elizabeth just smiled and then hugged him again, resting her head on his strong shoulder.

"It's late," she said, once she eased back. "We should probably head to bed."

"You go," Nathan said, as Elizabeth sat up. He glanced up over her shoulder for a minute before meeting her eyes again. "I'll be up in a minute."

"OK," Elizabeth agreed, but she couldn't help but feel puzzled. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah." Nathan smiled at her, but Elizabeth could tell that it was forced. "I just want to clean up down here first." Nathan stood and reached for his wife's hands. Once Elizabeth placed her hands in his, Nathan pulled her up until they were standing face to face. Nathan reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind Elizabeth's ear.

"In case you're already asleep when I get up there." And then he cupped her face with both his hands and kissed her tenderly on the lips. Elizabeth closed her eyes, savoring the moment.

"Goodnight," she whispered, once the kiss ended. "Love you."

"I love you." Nathan squeezed her hand one more time and then let go. Elizabeth smiled and Nathan returned it, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. Still puzzled, Elizabeth turned and headed towards the stairs. But she paused halfway up and glanced back down at her husband.

Nathan had his back to her and he was holding the blanket that had been covering her legs. He wasn't folding it. He was just standing there, staring at the family pictures that were hanging on the wall across from him. There were ones of just Nathan and Allie and ones of Elizabeth and Little Jack. There were ones of Nathan and Elizabeth and then ones of just the kids. But Elizabeth knew which one Nathan was looking at.

It was the picture of all four of them, taken last Christmas. There had been a Christmas Ball at the Queen of Hearts and Rosemary and Lee had brought the newspaper camera over to take pictures of everyone. Nathan had almost missed the ball because he had been called away to Union City for a trial that was taking place there. They didn't know if he was going to make it back in time for the holiday. It was a pure Christmas miracle that Nathan had returned home mere hours before the event. That was why, in the picture, Nathan was wearing his serge. It was the only picture on the whole wall that showed Nathan in his uniform and while Elizabeth didn't know exactly what had prompted Nathan to stare at that particular print, she had a pretty good idea.

Not wanting Nathan to catch her watching him, Elizabeth silently slipped up the rest of the stairs. After checking in on both of the children, Elizabeth slowly entered her own bedroom. Once she had changed into her nightgown, Elizabeth buried under the covers and laid her head back against the pillow. For a moment, she just laid there, staring up at the ceiling in the darkness.

Elizabeth tried to stay awake until Nathan came upstairs, but she was worn out from the dream and from crying. Slowly, her eyelids got heavy and sleep started to overtake her. Before long, Elizabeth had fallen hard into a deep, dreamless sleep.