The sweetest words ever said - "I love you"

Nathan watched Newton carefully as Jack brushed his legs. Jack had always been very careful around the horses, and Newton was such a gentle one, but Nathan wouldn't take any chances with Jack. He was determined that riding would always be fun, never harmful for the boy.

The Mountie checked over Jack's work. "That looks wonderful Jack. Are you ready to go riding now?" he asked.

"Yeah! It will be great!"

Elizabeth interjected from the stall door. "Jack, listen to Mountie Nathan. And Mountie Nathan, you remember what we talked about?" She gave him a stern look, and he was glad he wasn't one of her students at that moment.

"Yes Ma'am!" he answered sincerely.

Jack tugged on Nathan's hand. "Can I get in the saddle now?"

Nathan lifted the boy into his arms. "Grab the saddlehorn, and hang on tight." Jack obeyed and swung his leg over with practiced ease. Nathan had to remember that Jack had spent several months riding Pal already. But he wasn't going to take a chance on Newton, and he followed Jack's motions with his own into the saddle.

"You two have fun," Elizabeth said as she waved them goodbye. Nathan settled for returning it with just a quick wave, making sure Jack was secure and he didn't try anything sudden with the reins. Jack gave an enthusiastic wave to his mother, and continued it with everyone they passed on their way out of town.

"Ok, I think we could try a trot now," Nathan offered when they had passed the edge of town.

"Yay! Then can we gallop?" Jack asked.

Nathan chuckled. "We'll work up to that." He had promised Elizabeth that he wasn't going to give in to Jack's begging, but he also wanted to give Jack a chance to experience real riding while safely together. Nathan gave Newton a gentle squeeze with his thighs, and the horse obeyed without hesitation.

Jack bounced happily with the horse. "He's bumpy," he said in delight.

"Yeah, trots are a bit bumpy, aren't they?"

After a few minutes, Jack settled into the motion of absorbing Newton's strides into his own body, and bouncing with rather than against him. Nathan decided to give Newt another tap, and spurred him into a canter. With the increased speed, a breeze was created and Jack began to laugh. "Is this a gallop?" he asked, clearly delighted by their speed.

"No, not quite," Nathan replied. Just before he went to tap Newton again, Jack slid slightly in the saddle, teetering precariously.

"Whoa," Nathan called to both boy and horse, and he corrected Jack's seat while Newton slowed to a walk.

"You okay Jack?" Nathan asked.

"Yeah. It's just slippery when we're going fast."

Nathan agreed, and decided to go back to the trot for a while. "You're getting to be quite the rider Jack, but I think we should save galloping for next time."

"Ahh man!" Jack whined. "I really want to gallop! Uncle Bill says there's nothing better than galloping, and when Momma rides Sargent, they gallop the WHOLE time! Why can't we gallop today?"

Nathan stopped Newton and pondered the best way to explain everything to Jack. He wanted to make sure he gave a reasonable response to this boy who was developing his sense of logic, and was clinging to it so tightly. "Just now, when we began cantering, you started to slip. Now, if that had happened while we were galloping, I may not have caught you in time. And then you could have fallen. Do you see how high up we are?"

Jack dramatically looked straight down. "You're right, that is high up! But, I won't slip!" he said confidently.

Nathan shook his head. "Slipping isn't something we can always control. It will be easier when you're taller, like Uncle Bill or your mom, which is why they can gallop. For today, I think we've gone as fast as we can go. But, can I tell you about a special surprise I want to give your mom?" Nathan asked, hoping a distraction would be enough to pull Jack's focus.

"A surprise? What's the surprise?" Jack asked, eyes wide with excitement.

"I want to ask your mom a very special question. I'm going to ask her to marry me. And if she says yes, that means we'll all be a family; you, me, Allie and Momma, all together."

With great delight, Jack whooped his approval. "I really hope Momma says yes." A ponderous look crossed his face. "Wait, would Scout be a part of our family too?"

"Yes, Scout too." Nathan chuckled.

"I really like that surprise then Mountie Nathan. Can I help you surprise Momma?"

"I was hoping you could. Let me tell you about it." Nathan gave Jack the details on what he planned to do on Saturday. He would take the four of them on a picnic to the same spot where they had their first picnic together. He had been working on a speech, something as moving as the evening Elizabeth told him she loved him, he hoped. Then Allie would present Elizabeth with a bouquet with the ring hiding in the flowers, and Jack was going to make sure Elizabeth found the ring. Jack was completely on board, excited to be included.

"But remember, it's a surprise," Nathan reiterated.

Jack mimed zipping his lips closed. "Auntie Rosie taught me to do that."

"Then you must be really good at keeping surprises," Nathan said.

"Yep!" Jack said unabashedly.

Nathan turned his attention back to Newton. The horse had been lazily grazing amongst the wildflowers while the Mountie and boy had been deep in their conversation. With a squeeze of his legs, Nathan got Newton moving and pointed towards home. They walked for several minutes, then Nathan gave Jack the reins. "I think it's your turn."

"Yay!" Jack cheered. He took to handling Newt with great ease; all his practice on Pal really paid off. The ride back into town was uneventful, but much too short for Jack as he grumbled again when they reached the stables. "I wish we could have galloped."

"Maybe next time," Nathan reassured him as he dismounted quickly and helped Jack to slide off.

"Jack! How was your ride?" Elizabeth asked as she rushed into the stables. She threw her arms around her sons, surreptitiously looking for any cuts or scrapes.

Jack gave a dramatic sigh. "We didn't get to gallop. But, Mountie Nathan told me about a surprise!"

Nathan paused his attention to Newton to give Jack a quick warning glance. "Oh yeah! I'm not supposed to tell you about the surprise yet," Jack said.

Elizabeth looked up at Nathan. "There's a surprise?" she asked.

He returned her curiosity with a sheepish shrug. "You'll just have to be patient?"

She came up close, putting her hand in his free one. With a tilt of her head, Nathan thought she was about to kiss him. They had always tried to be circumspect in front of their children, so he was shocked. Just before she pressed that final inch however, she pulled back. "I guess you'll have to be patient then too. Come on Jack, we need to go home and get dinner started." She turned with a mischievous smile and headed towards the stable doors.

Nathan was rooted to the spot, unable to think of how to respond to that teasing. Jack didn't budge however. "Wait Momma! I have to tell Mountie Nathan something!"

Jack raced to him, and Nathan crouched down to his level. Jack engulfed him in a huge hug, and whispered in his ear. "Thank you for the ride today! I hope Momma says yes so we can keep riding together. I love you!"

Nothing could hold back the tears in Nathan's eyes. "I love you too Jack."

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