Elizabeth and Nathan are just about to make their way to their third and final stop for the night, but there were too many fun and meaningful little moments along the way to not share. This is a relatively quick read.

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As Nathan and Elizabeth walked hand in hand down the aisle of the church, they unexpectedly caught a glimpse of their future together. Regretfully, Elizabeth suddenly remembered the brown paper sacks and the remaining uneaten items in their dinner - two apples, and three small bags of carrots. It so happened they'd just been more focused on each other than their meal.

As they neared the last pew before the doorway, Elizabeth glanced up at Nathan with an apologetic look on her face. "I forgot the dinner bags … and my journal."

"Oh, Elizabeth, I can–"

But, already, Elizabeth was off. She made quick work of gathering up the few items and stuffed them all in the largest of the brown sacks. Nathan had used those few seconds to quietly reposition himself just in front of the first pew. So, as Elizabeth looked up once again, Nathan was standing there, with his right arm outstretched.

And so they walked, hand in hand, down the aisle … again. Only this time, they both knew that the other one knew. Elizabeth let out a small giggle at the end of their walk. Having noted the lumpy brown bag in her left hand, she couldn't help but think of Rosemary's face at the horror of such an imposter to a wedding bouquet.

Nathan and Elizabeth exchanged knowing looks just as they had after the infamous fall before Hope Valley's Easter egg hunt. Deciding to keep their thoughts unspoken, they exited the schoolhouse, both looking forward to what Elizabeth promised to be a more "comfortable" final destination for their date that night. As a gentleman, Nathan took the lumpy bag from Elizabeth.

The trees of Hope Valley witnessed a different couple walking out of the schoolhouse than had earlier walked in. Time in the schoolhouse, which also happened to serve as the church, had afforded them greater depth – through both conversation and their growing intimacy.

As Nathan and Elizabeth neared the horses, they parted ways to ready Newton and Sergeant.

"So what's this 'comfortable' next stop?" Nathan asked, clearly like a little boy, anxiously wanting to know it all.

"You'll see …" Elizabeth said with a playful smile. "I saved the best for last."

"I can't wait," Nathan replied with a sparkle to his eye, excited about the dessert he and Allie had baked late last night. And he really couldn't … wait, that is … but at the same time he could. Any time with Elizabeth was golden. Nathan's mind wandered as he thought of all the little moments ahead he hoped to share …

Newton whinnied with excitement when Nathan approached, anticipating another race. But, instead, Nathan stroked his shimmery coat affectionately and whispered, "Sorry, boy, I think it's a little late for racing," guessing it was around 8pm now.

Suddenly, Nathan remembered something that might make it up to his equine friend, and to Sergeant as well, who likely was hoping for a rematch.

"'Lizabeth,'" Nathan called out as Elizabeth secured her journal in Sergeant's saddle bag. "Do you have any special plans for the apples and carrots?"

Catching on quickly to Nathan's intentions for their leftovers, she replied with a smirk, "Well, Constable, I think you need to eat at least one of the bags of carrots if you're going to have any dessert."

"Aw, really?" he teased with just a hint of a whine. "Even if I'm the one providing the dessert?" Nathan walked over by Sergeant and settled in right beside Elizabeth. His teasing eyes twinkled even in the darkened night.

Elizabeth laughed, placing a supportive hand on Nathan's shoulder. "You bring up an interesting point, I'll give you that … but I'm afraid it has no substance," she playfully shot back. "Who brings the dessert has little relevance to the benefits of vegetables, Nathan."

"All right, you win," he conceded, circling his arms around her waist. A couple of hours at most had gone by in the schoolhouse. But, it might as well have been two weeks for how much Nathan needed to feel her warmth against him.

"I often do," Elizabeth teased, her eyes drawn to Nathan's lips as he closed the gap between them. Although they'd shared several soft, meaningful kisses in the schoolhouse, this kiss, now finally wrapped up again in Nathan's arms, was on fire.

It was unexpectedly interrupted with a nudge from Sergeant, impatient for what he'd heard was a promised apple and maybe some carrots.

Elizabeth and Nathan pulled apart reluctantly, both laughing, but at the same time, both entirely caught off guard by the passion that had so quickly erupted outside the schoolhouse, where for the last two hours not much more than a simple kiss or hand hold had been possible inside.

It took a moment for Nathan to remember why he'd ended up by Sergeant and not Newton in the first place, but eventually Nathan returned from his saddlebag with the two apples in one hand and two small bags of carrots in the other. As he lowered an apple beneath Sergeant's mouth, he whispered, "How about you help me out a little next time, huh?"

"And just what are you saying to my horse?" Elizabeth interjected. "I know you already had a little chat with Newton in the forest."

Nathan shrugged. "I think you'll have to ask him," he suggested with a coy smile as he intentionally filled Sergeant's mouth with one bags' worth of carrots.

Elizabeth only shook her head and sighed, thoroughly amused by Nathan's "conversations."

Newton pawed at the ground and nickered, clearly making his two cents known. "I'm not going to forget about you, Newt," Nathan said impatiently as he pivoted to bring the second apple to his best bud. Watching Newton happily chew, Nathan lightly scratched his withers, the ridge just above where a horse's back and neck meet.

"You've had a great day today, haven't you?" he whispered. Newton chomped a few more times before swallowing as a clear answer.

"So have I," Nathan responded quietly, confiding to his friend. "The best."

As Elizabeth led Sergeant around beside Nathan, she asked in her best teacher voice, "Am I interrupting anything?"

"Not at all," Nathan responded, holding out a carrot-filled hand to Newton. "We'd just finished," he added matter of factly. Elizabeth rolled her eyes, though she couldn't possibly express how adorable she thought Nathan's connection was to the animals in his life.

As Elizabeth gracefully mounted Sergeant, Nathan kicked himself for missing this repeated moment throughout the night. When he'd first met Elizabeth at the stables that afternoon, he immediately noticed a difference in the layering of her mauve skirt. Observing the way it flowed when she walked, he soon realized the skirt was split beneath the outer layer, allowing Elizabeth's legs to individually fit in long, loose pants that generally hung like a skirt. At the time, Nathan appreciated the genius idea simply from a practicality standpoint. But having just witnessed the alluring length of Elizabeth's leg swinging up and over Sergeant's saddle, he almost considered coming up with an excuse for her to dismount, so he could enjoy a double feature of the show she'd just unknowingly provided.

Feeling equally enticed with "comfortable," Elizabeth's description of their third and final stop for the night, Nathan quickly decided against it, guessing a few more viewing opportunities of mounting or dismounting Sergeant lay ahead. "Comfortable" certainly didn't suggest staying on a horse the rest of the night!

"Ready?" Elizabeth asked, beckoning him with a knowing smile.

With a guilty grin and his characteristic head tilt, Nathan gestured toward her with his hand and said, "I'll follow you."

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Although Newton and Sergeant were quite disappointed to only be sauntering along rather than engaging in another spirited race, both Nathan and Elizabeth appreciated the special bond of their side by side proximity. Nathan didn't feel compelled to be first and Elizabeth wasn't forced to debate within herself whether or not to burst ahead, knowing in doing so she'd lose sight of Nathan. The pacing of the horses' hooves perfectly positioned the two to be entirely appreciated by one another.

At Nathan's audibly deep sigh, Elizabeth glanced over at him. "It feels like there's a whole story hidden behind that sigh."

Reverenced and reflective in the still night air, Nathan responded, "They say 'God works in mysterious ways.' But, I'm beginning to think that's the only way he works with me."

"How so?" she asked with curiosity.

"Well," Nathan started, "for one, Colleen passing away was the worst loss I hadn't even thought to imagine. But by necessity, that brought me Allie." As a flash of Allie's face, from four to fifteen, crossed his mind, he said with a grateful smile, "And she's been the greatest joy in my life."

"Mmmmm …" Elizabeth responded. "I see your point. His ways are mysterious." She could definitely relate with her own son.

"Then, there's the obvious," Nathan continued, "my connection to Jack … the irony of how that tragedy led me to Hope Valley … to you."

Even in the cool darkness of the night, Elizabeth felt enveloped in the warmth of the loving smile Nathan sent her way.

"... And to Little Jack," he said, just as full of love toward his energetic, half-pint mini Mountie.

With wonder, Elizabeth murmured, "So many mysteries …" contemplating one of life's greatest enigmas she had yet to vocalize to anyone. With all they'd already shared, Elizabeth took the plunge. "Where I also see God's hand is how you managed to stay single all this time, while I spent far too long figuring out my own heart."

At Nathan's puzzled look, Elizabeth laughed, completely enamored by his humility. "Nathan, besides having the most beautiful heart, you are absolutely stunning to the eyes … and not just mine, I know."

Unable to respond yet in word to Elizabeth's bold compliment, Nathan shyly diverted his eyes, though he couldn't prevent the corners of his mouth from turning up in an appreciative smile. How could he not love hearing Elizabeth so openly express her feelings? She made him feel seen and cherished in a way he'd never experienced before.

As Elizabeth gazed at Nathan, her heart swelled at all of the little things that made him uniquely Nathan – from the way he brushed his thumb across her hand to the way he shortened her name to make it his own.

With an extra dose of gratitude, she said definitively, "It really is only by the grace of God you were still available" and then, she vulnerably added, "and still willing to still love me, once I ended things with Lucas."

Lucas. As Nathan reflected on the unexpected turn Elizabeth took years back with the saloon owner, he said thoughtfully. "It's taken a long time for the stars to align for us … to finally be together." Settling into his new pattern of sharing, he added without a filtering thought, "But the prayer I never knew to offer during all those years of waiting was a prayer of thanks."

Elizabeth looked startled by his response, but Nathan was crystal clear in his understanding. "As incredible as I believed our love might be, and as much as I loved you even then, I'm grateful I was shielded from knowing what I was truly missing."

Struggling to find the right words, Nathan tried to explain. "You bring light into my life in ways I never thought possible, 'Lizbeth. If I'd known this, then," he said, gesturing between them, "how deep our feelings would grow, and then found myself in darkness without you? Well, it would've …" Nathan blew out a frustrated sigh. How do you express the inexpressible? "I just feel grateful for where we are, and can't help but feel humbled by it all."

A teacher isn't often speechless, but that is where Elizabeth undoubtedly settled. She definitely felt tugged to offer another apology for the darker years. Yet, in knowing that wasn't Nathan's intention, she withheld her expression of regret.

In fact, the only response to match the overwhelming love and wonder of their journey required more than words. Through their deepening intimacy, she felt increasingly able to express the enormity of what was overflowing from her heart. But, if Elizabeth thought the unforgiving church benches were a problem, certainly riding atop horses more than a few feet apart was a barrier of its own.

And so, in response to the mysteries of God that had seemingly orchestrated where they were that very night, Elizabeth merely offered a simple but encompassing phrase, known well to them both, "Here we are." Then, she extended her hand across the gap between their horses until Nathan firmly grasped it in his.

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As they rode toward town in contented silence, sharing the last bag of carrots, Nathan wondered where Elizabeth had picked to finish out their evening together. Since she'd linked the past two stops to journal entries, he filtered through Hope Valley's buildings in his mind, trying to think back to what connections they might have in each. Allie had arranged with Rosemary to drop his dessert at this unspecified third location, effectively keeping two secrets under wraps—the whereabouts and the dessert itself.

Lost in thought, Nathan hadn't registered the rich, earthy scents of hay, cedar, and well … the last one became a clear indicator of where they'd arrived – the livery. As Elizabeth angled Sergeant toward his stall, and shifted to dismount, Nathan all too readily hopped down from Newton. He wasn't sure what was happening here at the livery, but his instincts had readied him for a closer view of Elizabeth's split skirt.

Confused by Nathan's abrupt dismount, Elizabeth's mind started to formulate a question until she noticed his focused eyes and eager smile positioned right beneath her.

"You want to help me down, do you?" she asked, unable to stop her affected smile.

Again, Nathan's characteristic head tilt told her all she needed to know, which was helpful since all this frugal man offered in words was a "Maybe."

"All right, then," Elizabeth laughed, flushing at the extra attention he paid as she swung her leg back and around toward him. As she slid from the saddle to reach the ground, Nathan intervened, slowing her descent until their blue eyes perfectly aligned. Tightening his grip, Nathan held her closely in his arms.

"We should ride horses more often," he whispered, his warm breath brushing against her cheeks.

Unintentionally, Elizabeth released a shuddery breath, causing her to giggle. "I would like that."

At the sound of voices in the distance, Nathan suddenly remembered they were in a widely used public space, and reluctantly lowered Elizabeth to the ground. She lingered for a moment, her eyes darting back and forth between his eyes and his lips. But as the voices drew nearer, she separated and busied herself with Sergeant's reins.

As she led Sergeant toward his stall, Nathan suddenly realized they were done with the horses for the night. He reached for the reins and said, "I'd like to do that." Then hoping he wasn't overstepping, since he knew she was fully capable of unsaddling a horse, he added, "If that's okay."

"Of course," she answered, giving him an appreciative smile. "Thank you, Nathan." Elizabeth's heart warmed, remembering how he'd stepped in to help her with Sergeant years ago, as he tried to muster the courage to ask her to dinner.

Nathan made quick work of Sergeant and then moved on to Newton. Elizabeth felt truly grateful for the opportunity to stand back and simply watch Nathan as he moved through their world, experiencing his life and all of its little moments, even down to the care of their horses. She'd at times secretly tried to do the same in the past, out a window, across a field, behind a pillar, from the schoolhouse, even through binoculars, once. She'd been caught by Nathan, himself, on that last one, though she'd pretended not to notice.

Now, Elizabeth relished in openly allowing her admiring eyes to wander. Oddly enough, where they naturally landed based on movement was an area she'd spent very little time observing. She watched as Nathan's hands worked in a rhythm, confident and steady, a silent testament to his familiarity with the task. His long fingers effortlessly unlatched the buckles with skilled precision. After he easily lifted the saddle off Newton's back, she noted how Nathan reassuringly ran his hand along the entire distance of his horse's side. With each graceful stroke, Nathan's hands showed a blend of tenderness and …

"Well, that should do it," Nathan announced.

Startled by the broken silence, Elizabeth blinked a few times and shook her head lightly, trying to reorient herself.

Nathan was quick to Elizabeth's side, a look of concern on his face. "Are you all right?"

As she shifted her attention to Nathan's ocean blue eyes actively searching her own, Elizabeth breathed in deeply with a new appreciation for the hands tenderly cradling her shoulders. "Yes, yes, of course."

"Are you sure? Because we can–"

Elizabeth lifted her own hand to rest on his. "I'm fine, Nathan, really. I just got a little …" tucking her lips in with a playful smile teasing at the corner of her mouth. "... distracted."

Not entirely sure what she was inferring, Nathan pressed on. "Okay, then. Well," he said, gesturing around at the mix of dirt and newly placed hay beyond the stalls, "where would you like to sit?"

Elizabeth shot him a confused look. "Sit?"

Now it was Nathan who was puzzled. "Right, well aren't we going to–"

As realization dawned on Elizabeth, she chuckled and said, "You thought the place I saved for last was the livery?"

"Well, you said it was going to be comfortable …" Glancing down at the fresh hay, he offered, "… it could be comfortable …" Elizabeth raised one eyebrow. Wearing his most innocent expression, Nathan said, "What? I didn't know what you had in mind!"

"No, Nathan," she said, slapping his chest playfully, the heat rising in her cheeks. "We're not going to finish our date in the stables." Offering nothing more, she turned toward the open doors and blew out a sigh, releasing the tension built from what she believed he was lightly inferring.

A range of expressions passed over Nathan's face as he shrugged. What was he supposed to think? He wasn't the one planning the date.

"Well," Nathan began, reaching ahead for her hand, "I'm looking forward to "comfortable" wherever it is. I'll follow your lead."

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Author's Notes:

After the heavy conversations at the schoolhouse, I hope you enjoyed some lighter moments between Nathan and Elizabeth. As they head towards their final stop for the night, it's clear they're both feeling in awe at how the stars finally aligned for them to be together. I'd love to hear your thoughts on Nathan and Elizabeth's journey or on the chapter itself. Thanks for reading!