AN: This is set after eight though events of the season 8 finale are slightly different as you'll see. Hope you enjoy it.
As the children filed out of the schoolroom, Elizabeth looked to her desk where Jack sat working on his own project. With Laura away at school, Robert delivering mail, and Rosemary off with Lee on a business trip she hadn't been able to find someone to watch the almost three years old. Elizabeth knew she couldn't make bringing him to school a routine. She needed to find someone to be a back-up to Rosemary. There was a time she could have asked Bill, but the older gentleman who had once been like a father to her, had of late been coolly civil to her. She had a feeling that Nathan had told him about the conversation in the jail a couple of weeks ago.
Well, maybe conversation wasn't the best word. She hadn't exactly given Nathan a chance to say anything. She had gone in there, had her say and left. She could still remember the hurt and shock on the kind man's face.
She regretted what she had said now. She hadn't been looking for Jack in Nathan, she had been scared to lose Nathan just like she had Jack. It wasn't the same thing.
Lucas' selling of the saloon and disappearance had kept her from making the mistake of running to him. Yes, he was the safe choice. She had enjoyed his flattery and feeling like she was back in Hamilton for a short time.
That wasn't who she was now though. She had simply been trying to find the naive safety she had felt before coming west.
After the initial shock of finding out that Lucas had disappeared, Elizabeth found that she wasn't overly upset about it. In fact, in hindsight, he had given her a warning that it would happen that night at her house. Lucas had told her he could see who her heart was with and was letting her go. He had known her better than she had herself. Her heart was Nathan's. It had been for a while now.
Too bad she hadn't realized that before she had said those awful words to him and hurt Allie's feelings as well.
Shaking herself from her thoughts, Elizabeth realized that Jack was no longer at her desk.
"Jack!" Elizabeth called, rushing for the door leading to the office that Joseph had taken over. He couldn't have gotten far. Surely he was just playing hide and seek.
Reaching the door, she found it locked like it normally was. Turning she looked around the room. Where could he hide? Jack had developed a liking for hide and seek. He was just playing the game now, right?
"Jack, this is not the time to play games," Elizabeth said, rushing forward to check between each set of seats.
Suddenly the thought of the pond came to her. He liked throwing things in the water. What if he had gone out there alone.
Giving up her search of the seats, Elizabeth rushed toward the door. If he was hiding in the schoolhouse, he was safer than if he had wandered outside. As she reached the door, she ran into something solid. If a strong hand hadn't reached out to steady her, Elizabeth had a feeling she would have fallen backwards.
"It's all right, Elizabeth," Nathan said, his voice empathetic. "Jack saw me out the window and came out. He said he told you."
"He didn't," Elizabeth replied, her heart beating twice its usual pace. "Well, perhaps he did. I was lost in thought."
"It happens," Nathan replied.
"Sorry, Mama," Jack said, having come in with Allie. He held the girls hand and looked sheepish.
Feeling a rush of relief, Elizabeth knew she couldn't be mad at the boy. He was safe. That was what was important.
"It's, okay. Make sure I acknowledge you leaving though, all right."
Jack nodded. "I made picture for Mountie Nat," he told her.
"It is a lovely picture," Nathan said, holding up the sheet of paper. Though it was all stick figures, it was clearly a picture of a horse, a man and a boy. The man stick figure had a hat on their head. A heart was between the letters 'I' and 'U', just like Elizabeth had taught her son to express 'I love you'.
The picture made her realize just how attached her son already was to Nathan. She also shared the sentiment.
"Let us walk you home, Elizabeth," Nathan said, breaking through her thoughts once again. "You are clearly flustered and I can understand it. I thought I lost Allie two weeks after taking her. Turns out she had simply crawled under the bed with her mother's picture but I had the neighbors out looking for her."
"Bet that was embarrassing for a Mountie."
"I considered requesting a posting change rather than keep showing my face," Nathan said lightly.
Elizabeth gave a nervous laugh. The admission made her feel better, but she still felt shaken. Company home would be appreciated.
"Thank you. Let me get my things," Elizabeth said, turning to head back to her desk. The idea of walking home with Nathan felt right. Something she would like to be a regular thing. First though, she knew she had some apologizing to do. Still, he cared enough to offer to walk her home so perhaps despite her careless words, he still felt something for her.