The next day, Lucas woke up as the sun was just beginning to rise. It was still a little weird waking up in his old room, in the house that used to be his permanent home, but Lucas found that he actually enjoyed it. It was familiar and that gave Lucas a sense of peace.

The morning was a bit crisp, but not uncomfortably so. Lucas made himself a quick breakfast before was on his way to the saloon. Lucas needed to call Henry today to update him on his meetings with the surrounding mayors. He had met with the mayor of Rock Creek yesterday afternoon and it had gone better than expected, which gave Lucas a much needed sense of accomplishment.

Speaking of yesterday afternoon, Lucas's mind wandered back to his lunch date with Faith. Had it been a date or just two friends catching up? Lucas wasn't really sure, but whatever it was, it had been nice. They'd talked about their jobs, his work in Capital City and her work here in Hope Valley. They talked about Lily and how she had started school this fall. It had all been…well, nice. It had been normal. For an hour, Lucas hadn't felt like he was the governor. He hadn't been worrying about all the decisions he had to make and he hadn't been wondering what the next issue was going to be. For an hour, he had simply been Lucas. And that was something that hadn't happened in a long time.

He and Faith probably could have talked for longer, but once they'd both finished eating, Lily had run in, wanting Faith's help finding a library book she needed for school.

"Mrs. Thornton says that we can pick whichever book we want!" Lily had exclaimed, almost overflowing with excitement. "Will you help me, Mom?"

"She started calling me 'Mom' after I officially adopted her," Faith explained, when she saw Lucas's questioning look.

"I think that's great," he had replied, smiling at the sweet relationship that the two of them obviously had.

"So, will you help me?" Lily asked again, jumping up and down. Faith had glanced over at Lucas apologetically.

"Go," he told her with a smile. "I have a meeting to get to anyway."

"Thanks." Faith had smiled at him before standing to take Lily's hand. "I had a really nice time," she said, looking down at him. "Maybe we could do it again?"

"That would be nice," Lucas agreed with a nod and Faith's eyes had lit.

"I guess I'll see you around then." Faith leaned down to Lily and whispered in the girl's ear, "Say 'goodbye' to Governor Bouchard."

"Bye Governor Bouchard," Lily repeated, saying his name slowly, just to make sure she said it right.

Lucas chuckled and smiled at the little girl. "Bye Lily." And then Lily and Faith waved before walking out of the saloon hand in hand.

Lucas smiled to himself. Whether it had been a date or not, Lucas thought that there might be something there. Something he suddenly realized he wouldn't mind pursuing.

"Penny for your thoughts?" someone called out, jerking Lucas out of his introspection. Glancing to his left, Lucas saw that he was walking by the Nichols and Dimes barber shop. Fiona was sitting on the bench near the door, papers on her lap and spread out all around her. She was looking at him, one questioning eyebrow raised.

"Good morning, Fiona," Lucas answered, smiling a little as he walked closer. "You're sure up early."

"Just trying to get some work done before I open the barber shop," she replied, gesturing to the collection of papers surrounding her. Lucas opened his mouth to ask what she was working on, but before he could get a word out, the morning breeze blew through, disrupting all of Fiona's papers.

"Oh gosh!" Fiona burst out, as papers fluttered off the bench and into the street. She started scrambling to grab them, but there were so many that they kept moving out of her reach.

"Here, let me help you." Lucas bent down and started to gather the stray papers.

"I think that's the last of them," Fiona said after a few minutes, when the wind died down. Lucas straightened out the papers in his hands and climbed the steps of the shop.

"Oh wait, here's one more," Lucas said, spotting a piece of paper that had gotten stuck on the railing. He bent down to grab it, but at the same time, Fiona reached for it. When Lucas's fingers brushed hers, he froze as a shock vibrated all the way up his arm. Glancing up, he found himself staring right into Fiona's wide, chocolate brown eyes. He didn't even think to move until he saw a faint blush coloring Fiona's cheeks.

"What is all of this?" Lucas forced himself to ask, as he moved his hand, breaking contact with hers. He stood and tried to collect his thoughts as he flexed his hand behind his back. What just happened? Is that what a spark feels like? Lucas couldn't help but wonder. He'd always heard about it, but had never experienced one before. Not with Elizabeth and certainly not with Jeanette. His fingertips tingled and for a minute, all Lucas could think of was the soulful color of Fiona's eyes.

"Oh, it's all suffragette paperwork," Fiona finally answered. She picked up that last stray paper and added it to her stack. "It never seems to end." She looked up at him and reached for his stack of papers. When he handed it to her, Lucas watched as Fiona took it and was careful not to brush her hand against his. That was all the confirmation Lucas needed. She had felt it too. He wasn't sure if that was good or bad.

"Well, uh, it seems like you could use a better place to work," Lucas stammered out. He clasped his hands tightly behind his back, trying to settle the sudden nerves that were radiating through him.

"I wish," Fiona replied. "But this is the best I can do right now."

"Well, you're always welcome to work at the saloon," Lucas found himself offering, before he could even think twice.

"Oh." Fiona looked surprised. "That's very generous of you, Lucas, but I wouldn't want to take up a table during the breakfast rush."

"You could sit on the patio," Lucas insisted, his words coming out faster than usual in his attempt to convince her. "There's usually plenty of room. I like to sit there and drink a cup of tea in the morning." Then, he smiled and winked before adding, "Or coffee. If you prefer." Fiona laughed and Lucas couldn't help staring as her beautiful smile lit up her face.

"Well, if you're offering…" Fiona glanced at him out of the corner of her eye.

"I am," Lucas put in, unable to resist a smile of his own.

"That sounds perfect," Fiona said. "Thank you."

"Of course." Sweeping his arm out wide, Lucas gestured to her. "Shall we?" he asked. Again, Fiona graced him with another stunning smile.

"Thank you." And then she hopped down the steps with Lucas right behind her. A few minutes later, the two of them were settled at a table at the front of the saloon, each with their respective morning beverages.

"So, what is all of this?" Lucas asked after a moment, gesturing to the paperwork that Fiona had spread out in front of her.

"Oh, it's a little bit of everything," she replied. "Speeches, drafts of newspaper articles, letters, people complaining," Fiona held up stacks of papers as she spoke. "And you should see my office in Nashville," she added, raising both eyebrows at him. "I don't think I could find a pen in there if I wanted to." Lucas chuckled.

"It sounds like the movement is growing."

"Rapidly," Fiona agreed, with a nod. "It also doesn't help that my sister keeps promoting me," she added. "My job description should include paper wrangling." Lucas laughed again and this time Fiona joined him.

"It sounds like your sister knows what she's doing," Lucas replied, with a smile and a raised eyebrow. "You're good at what you do, Fiona."

"Well, I don't know about that…" Fiona trailed off, ducking her head at the compliment.

"Really, Fiona. I mean it." Lucas almost reached out and put a hand on her arm, but caught himself just in time. That would be weird, right? What was going on with him this morning? Fiona looked back up at him, her eyes holding a vulnerability that Lucas had never seen.

"I sometimes wonder if I made the right choice," she finally admitted, her voice so quiet it was almost a whisper. "I mean, I love it here in Hope Valley and sometimes I wonder if I should have stayed." Fiona turned her eyes to gaze at the awakening town around them. She looked back after a second. "Sometimes I wonder if what I'm doing really matters."

"Fiona," Lucas breathed out. He set down his cup and leaned forward. "Believe me, it matters. Just look at all of this." He spread his hands over the table that was littered with papers. "You are empowering women. People trust you. They look to you to lead them." Lucas didn't tear his gaze from Fiona's. He wanted her to see the truth of what he was saying in his eyes. "You are one of the smartest people I have ever met. Your courage is changing the world. You are making a difference. Don't ever think that it doesn't matter because it does." At his words, a spark of hope seemed to ignite in Fiona's eyes.

"You really think so?" she asked, biting her lip as she looked up at him. Lucas smiled softly.

"I really do." The look in Fiona's eyes told Lucas that she believed him.

"Thanks Lucas," she said, her shoulders relaxing. When Lucas met her rich brown eyes again, a thrill went through him and he tried not to shiver. There was something about her eyes. They were so open, honest, yet determined and courageous all at once. Even though he knew he was staring at her, Lucas didn't look away.

"Good morning you two!" The sudden voice startled Lucas and he jerked his gaze towards the sound. Faith was walking towards the table, smiling at both of them, but her gaze was focused on Lucas.

"Good morning, Faith," Lucas said in greeting as he stood. He glanced back down at Fiona, but she wasn't looking at him anymore. Was it on purpose? Lucas couldn't tell. "How are you?"

"I'm good. It's really pleasant this morning," Faith responded. Then, she turned to Fiona. "You must have gotten an early start," she commented to her friend.

"Yep," Fiona replied, focusing on Faith before glancing back at Lucas. When no one said anything else, Lucas felt his face heat up and he instinctively reached to fiddle with his cufflinks. Both Fiona and Faith were staring at him, like they were expecting him to do or say something. But for the life of him, Lucas couldn't seem to form a coherent sentence. So this is what this feels like, he couldn't help thinking, having flashbacks to when he and Nathan were both vying for Elizabeth's affections. Lucas had sudden empathy for Elizabeth. He usually didn't mind being the center of attention, but this? This was horrid! He had to turn this situation around. Luckily, Fiona took care of that for him.

"Well, I have a lot of work to do," she said, breaking the stagnant silence. "Speaking of which…" Now, Fiona stood as she started to gather up the papers on the table. "I should go open the barber shop." Piling her papers into a neat stack, Fiona held them tightly to her chest as she pushed in the chair she had been sitting in. She looked over at Lucas and seemed to force her lips into a smile.

"Thanks for letting me sit here," she said.

"You're welcome to work here anytime," Lucas replied, thankful that he was actually able to get the words out, but Fiona was already slowly walking backwards.

"Thanks," Fiona said with a quick smile before turning to Faith. "I'll see you later." And then she waved quickly and was gone. After watching her friend head towards the shop on the other side of the street, Faith turned back to Lucas.

"So, are you doing anything for breakfast this morning?" she asked, stepping closer as she smiled up at him.

"Actually, I was planning to place a few calls back to Capital City," Lucas replied, trying to reorient his head. It was still spinning from his whole deja vu moment. "But, I'm free for lunch. Does that work?" At his offer, Faith's expression brightened.

"That would be great," she agreed, smiling. "Would it be OK if Lily came too? She's been begging me ever since last night to have lunch with the governor," Faith said with a chuckle. Lucas laughed with her for a second before replying.

"That would be fun," he replied, instantly thinking of Little Jack. Lucas wouldn't deny that he still missed his buddy. "I'll grab us a booth and you two can meet me whenever Lily gets out of school for lunch."

"Sounds perfect," Faith beamed. "I guess I'll see you then," she said, as she slowly started backing away.

"Yes, you will," Lucas replied, with a smile and a nod. "Have a good morning, Faith."

"You too, Lucas." And then with a quick wave, Faith turned away and headed across the street, just like Fiona had only moments earlier. Lucas shook his head as he made his way over to one of the posts at the front of the saloon. His gaze wandered over towards the barber shop, but Fiona was nowhere in sight. Lucas's gaze involuntarily went to his right hand.

What had happened that morning? Was it something? Was it nothing? Lucas couldn't be sure. But it was best to just put it out of his mind, he reasoned. He was having lunch with Faith and Lily after all and Fiona hadn't given him any indication that she had feelings for him beyond friendship. What had happened at the barber shop this morning must have just been a one time occurrence. It had to be. That's the only thing that made sense. Right?

Get your head in the game, Bouchard, Lucas reprimanded himself. He didn't have time to be preoccupied like this. He had a job to do and he couldn't afford to let anything get in the way. Especially something as subjective and fickle as a spark.

Squaring his shoulders, Lucas looked out over the town. He had to get it together. He had to be the governor that everyone in Hope Valley believed he could be when they helped vote him into office. He had to give them their best. He owed this town at least that much.