Having bedded the horses down for the night, Heath bounded across the yard and up the steps of the veranda two by two so eager was he to say hello to the family and then join his wife upstairs. He opened the door and was surprised to see Mercy standing only four to five steps up the grand staircase.

"Hey, whatcha doing there? I thought you were going to go up and get the bed warm," he said in a loud whisper, unable to resist teasing her.

Not waiting for her reaction, he busied himself by quickly taking off his hat and gloves, pulling the right one off with his teeth and then throwing it casually down on the center table. Then he took off his jacket, finally glad to be in the warmth of the house.

"Heath!"

"Yea, I know, look it won't take a few minutes for me to pop in and say hello to the family then I'll join you upstairs. I'll get a bath first, I got two days dirt and dust to wash off," he patted the dust off him to emphasize the point and gave her a lop-sided smile. At any other time she would have gone weak at the knees on receiving it.

"HEATH!"

"Yea, I know, I can't smell too good either." he joked. Don't worry the bath will fix everything. I thought you'd been in there before me. I'll give you 15 minutes and then it's my bath whether you're out of it or not." This time he afforded himself an inward smile, the prospect of an intimate bath shared with Mercy appealed to him but he didn't want to overplay his teasing and scare her off. He wanted tonight to be perfect.

"HEEEAAATTTH!"

He turned suddenly, surprised at the way she had shouted his name across the hall thereby giving away their arrival to everyone in the house. As he looked up he saw her outstretched arm pointing in the direction of the dining room. His view obscured from where he stood he moved over to see what she was pointing at. When he did so he gulped and Jarrod would swear forever afterward that he turned the color of beetroot. The whole family were gathered at the table through the usually closed doors and seated center and left was..... her PA!

Heath was too shocked to say anything and Mercy didn't know where to put herself. She made to go up the stairs and escape the immediate embarrassment and then found she couldn't go upstairs because of the embarrassment that being up there would cause, the couple's destination and purpose made only too clear to anyone who had cared to listen. And she thought she had married the quiet one!

It was Jarrod who stepped forward to break the awkward silence that fell.

"Hmm, welcome back Mercy, Heath." He turned to Heath, "We're not interrupting anything, are we? Not keeping you two from anything?"

As he said the last statement he winked at Heath and Mercy seeing the wink put her hand to her brow and said "Oh, dear God," in shame. Heath went to comfort her but it was too late. Yep, for a man who didn't talk much, he'd surely shouted his mouth off tonight. And boy howdy had everyone heard.

"Hmm.." Jarrod continued "Before you and Mercy plan on retiring for the evening, do you think you can come and join us?"

Heath gave out an embarrassed cough and looked at Mercy, he noticed that this time she had taken a step up the stairs and he feared that having taken one she would have the courage to bolt up the rest of them. Before he could reach her she had done just that.

"Mercy?" Heath shouted and then set off to run after her, as he did so he passed Jarrod, turned momentarily and said: "Just give us a moment Jarrod, we'll be right down."

"A minute huh little brother?" And then leaning in closer he whispered in his brother's ear. "Married life sure seems to have taken an upward turn since I last saw you. I take it my legal services will not be required in the future?"

Heath gave his brother a fixed glare and then hastily ran up the rest of the stairs after Mercy.

Closing the door of the bedroom behind him, Heath found Mercy crying into her pillow. It was his pillow and his bed and shortly he hoped it would become theirs. He went over to comfort her. Sitting on the edge of the bed he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and encouraged her to turn round and face him. She continued to sob.

"Hey, c'mon now, it ain't the end of the world," he said stroking her hair, wishing for all the world that he could take his caresses much further and show her she had nothing to fear or be embarrassed about from people knowing that they were a young couple in love. She turned around and glared her violet eyes at him, her eyes red from crying still. She was embarrassed and he felt guilty that he was the cause of it.

"Heath how can you say that? Everybody heard, everybody knows what we... what we were going to.... Oh, I just can't face them... not now... not ever..."

Heath knew that eventually her embarrassment would pass but in the meantime he could see the genuine hurt in her eyes. He wondered if she was beginning to feel rushed and if her overreaction meant that she was feeling pressured. It had been a long day and their relationship had changed in the small space of a couple of days, he had talked of wanting to court her and yet things had moved on so much faster. Was she now having doubts?

He took her in his arms and brought her head to rest on his chest, continuing to stroke her hair in slow circling movements.

"Mercy we're going to have face them sometime, we can't stay up here forever. Much as I'd like too," he added.

"Heath, I can't... it's Pa! I'll just die."

He remembered how Mercy had cowered in front of her father on the morning after their wedding when the old man had come into their room unannounced.

Tentatively he said, "Mercy, ya gotta deal with your father someday. Ya gotta to learn to stand up to him. Y'a grown woman now, my wife and God willing a mother some day, with equal say in what goes on in our house and with our kids, but ya'll never be totally free unless you learn to deal with your father."

Mercy raised her head to look up at her husband. "Equal say? In our house? Our children?"

Heath smiled and cradled her head. "Yea Mercy, equal say. I want a wife and partner in life, someone with whom I can share everything, the highs and the lows."

"I want that too, I want to be a good wife to you Heath, I want to share your life with you," she said brushing the tears away from her eyes. Heath took his thumb and helped her brush them away and then kissed her gently.

"And all I want is to be a good husband too Mercy but.... "

"But?" her tone grew worried. What was her husband going to say? Was he having second thoughts?

Heath's tone grew more serious. "Mercy, if tonight is too soon, we can wait ya know. Wait until you feel absolutely sure."

Relieved that he still wanted her and that her foolishness hadn't put him off, she went to reassure him. "Tonight isn't too soon Heath. I am ready. I was just acting like a silly school girl before."

He put a finger to her lips. "No silliness at all. You weren't the only one embarrassed ya know and remember it was me who was doing all the talking."

She laughed. "I kept trying to shut you up but you weren't listening."

He smiled back, "I know but I was just too caught up in my own happiness. I couldn't wait to get upstairs and be with you."

"Well we're upstairs now," she said teasingly, surprised by her emboldened words and fast replacing her tears with an even more unfamiliar wicked smile.

"Aren't you forgetting we've got the family downstairs?" he reminded her. He took her hand and encouraged her to come down.

She pulled him back and kissed him. Within moments the kiss had grown deeper and more passionate and they both found themselves falling back on the bed where the need to be with each other consumed them and threatened to spill over into a full expression of their love. It was Heath who pulled back. He saw instantly the hurt and look of rejection in Mercy's eyes and sought hastily to reassure her with his soft words. He placed a finger on her still questioning lips and whispered, "later my love, I want you so much, believe me I've thought of nothing else, but we must go down and face the family first. We got a whole lifetime together you and me. A whole lifetime of sharing and expressing our love."

Reluctantly she got up from the bed with him. She hadn't wanted him to stop. Fastening the buttons on her blouse and seeing him fixing his shirt and tucking it back in his pants, she harbored no doubts that she wanted to be with the man that she loved more than anything and that this was a marriage that would last. She would thank God everyday for the rest of her life that Heath Barkley had been forced to walk into her life and decided to stay.

Heath led his wife downstairs and into the dining room. He saw her to an empty chair and then sat down next to her. Silas came forward to serve them but Heath thanked him and waved the food away with a grateful smile. "Thanks Silas but we've already eaten."

Jarrod nearly choked on his soup. Millicent saw the signs but was too late to stop him. "How about dessert, or has that too been taken care of too?" Jarrod offered unhelpfully, his face breaking into a broad grin. Heath gave him a fixed stare back and Millicent whacked him on his lap with her napkin.

"Jarrod, that will be quite enough," his mother added.

Heath desperately wanted to deflect the conversation away from him and Mercy.

"Prescott, whatcha doing here? I thought I told you a visit here would be by invitation only."

"Heath, don't be rude," censored his mother. "Mr Prescott is a guest in my house and you will treat him as such."

"Pa, ya can't be staying, are ya?" Mercy grew genuinely worried.

"I come to see how my new son-in-laws were treating their wives." He stood up from the table. "And I don't like what I see. Where's Emmie? What's that brother of yours done to ma daughter?"

"He ain't done anything." Heath replied back.

"She ran off, didn't she? He must have done something."

"Pa's she fine, we saw her only this morning, they were both heading back to the ranch. They should be here real soon." Mercy replied.

"Why did she run off in the first place?"

"Ain't that between her and Nick," Heath volunteered back.

"Not if I'm a thinking of taking Mercy and Emmie both back with me, it ain't. Maybees I changed ma mind about you two young Barkleys. Maybees I was wrong to force my daughters into marriage. I tell ya, I've been mulling it over in my head. I reckon I was hasty in allowing ma daughters to hitch up with ya two."

"Pa, ya can't be thinking?"

Prescott's tone and face grew angry. "Don't question me daughter. Looks like my visit came just at the right time, I come heres to find one daughter has run away and another ........"

"Pa!" Mercy was desperate for her father not to continue the rest of the conversation.

"I've been thinking ya should both come home with me."

"Pa, ya can't."

"Yes I can daughter. I'm not having my daughters living in a place they're not welcome or by husbands who can't appreciate them. Maybees I was wrong to force ya to marry them. Well I've seen the error of my ways and as soon as Emmie gets here I'm taking ya both home."

Heath stood up. No one in the family noticed Nick and Emmie had come in and were watching from the doorway to the dining room.

"Why you cantankerous, penny pinching, gun tooting excuse of a man. Mercy is no longer just ya daughter, she's my wife too. More importantly she has always been her own person and can make up her own mind in things."

Mercy stood up and grabbed on to his arm. "Please Heath, don't anger Pa."

Heath turned to Mercy, remembering their conversation upstairs.

"Mercy it's up to you now, ya Mercy Barkley now but I won't force you on this. Ya gotta make up ya own mind. Ya have to make up ya mind as to whether you want to stay or go with ya father."

"I want to stay with you, ya know I do," she whispered into his ear so no one could hear. "I told ya that upstairs."

"Then you'll have to tell him now, you'll have to stand up to him, it must come from you. If you want to stay I'll be waiting upstairs."

Heath patted her hand and exited the dining room. Seeing Nick and Emmie he nodded in acknowledgment. Mercy's eyes followed him out of the room and she then stared back at her Pa.

"Mercy don't defy me now. I made ma mind up, I'm taking you and Emmie home.""Oh and when was this decided?" Nick shouted up, ushering Emmie into the room and seeing her to a chair.

Mercy looked up to Heath who had now reached the top of the stairs.

"I ain't going Pa," she said in a soft voice.

"And neither am I," shouted up Emmie.

"Whatcha say there?"

"I ain't going Pa, I'm staying here. I'm staying with my husband, " Mercy added her tone growing in the new found confidence Heath had given her.

Before her nerves left her she ran out of the room and up the stairs to join Heath who quickly took her in his arms. Prescott followed them out and made to go up the stairs.

"Mercy do ya hear me?" he shouted up after her. "Come down these stairs this minute, I'm taking ya home."

"Prescott," Heath shouted back. "Mercy's made up her mind or didn't ya hear. She's staying with me."

"Mercy get down here girl."

Heath pushed his wife behind him and stepped up to the top of the stairs. "Prescott y'ain't calling the shots anymore. This is Barkley land not Prescott land ya on now and Mercy is a Barkley too. If an ya choosing to talk to my wife, you'll be doing it respectfully from now on."

Heath turned to his wife and told her to walk on down the corridor, she made to protest but he reassured her that he would be right along. Turning back to Prescott he said. "Now if ya don't mind my wife and I will be saying goodnight."

"Goodnight? But it's?"

"Like I said we'll be saying goodnight, it's been a long day" Heath gave the old man an arched look. "And if you're here in the morning Prescott, just remember one thing the bedroom doors in this house are locked."

Prescott made his way down the stairs. "Emmie, get ya coat and things, we'll stay in town tonight and head back to the ranch in the morning."

"I told ya Pa, I ain't going either."

Prescott was putting on his coat and telling Bob to get the horses ready.

"I ain't asking ya Emmie. I'm tellin' ya. Get ya coat girl. Ya comin with me and ya brother. Nick Barkley doesn't deserve ya girl."

It was Nick who stepped forward and removed Prescott's hand which was now pulling at Emmie.

"Ya right Prescott, I don't deserve Emmie. I done everything to make her believe that, but I love her now, even enough to let her go if she truly wants that. But y'aint taking her by force. She's gotta make her up her own mind, just like Mercy. Ya pushed us all into these marriages but ya don't have any control over their fates. That's down to us, Heath and Mercy have made their decision, now Emmie and I should be left alone to decide ours."

Nick turned to Emmie. "I know I've made up my mind, it's up to Emmie now to make up hers."

Emmie wanted to sing out that she wanted to stay with her husband, to finally accept the love he now offered openly and which she had wanted so much to be given freely, but something held her back, Isn't this what she wanted? Nick to declare his love and to do it openly in front of everybody, why couldn't she accept it? Why wasn't it enough? Not knowing the answer and confused by her emotions she picked up her skirts and ran up the stairs. Half-way up she stopped:

"I ain't coming home with you Pa, ya and Bobby best go home at first light tomorrow. I don't know whether I'm staying or if my future's with Nick but I won't be coming home to the Lazy D, I know that for sure."

"Ya defying me girl?" bellowed Prescott. "Ya know what that means?"

"I'm not defying ya Pa. Like Mercy I'm making up my own mind at last. If ya cut me outta of you life Pa, it will be your doing, not mine. It will be because you want it, not me."

Prescott put his hat squarely on his head and buttoned up his jacket. "C'mon Bob, ya sisters have done made up their minds. We'd best be going."

He turned to Victoria Barkley. "Thankin ya for ya hospitality ma'am. It seems ma girls will be staying Mrs Barkley, I wish ya luck." He made for the door.

"Pa?" Emmie shouted after him, worried that this would be the last time she saw him.

Prescott stood for a minute, his hand on the door. At length and without turning to face her, he said. "I'll be expecting ya and Mercy next Spring. If ya still with them husbands of yours ya can bring them along too. And don't forget the first grandson is named after me and the first granddaughter after ya ma, I've a thinking y'all both be in the family way come Spring and then Lord help us they'll be more Barkley's walking this earth." And with that he shut the door behind him. It was only after he closed the door he let out a broad toothless smile.

"Whatcha smiling at Pa?" said Bobby standing by his side. He had been witness to everything and yet understood nothing.

"Ya too young boy." Prescott stood back and looked at his youngest boy. "Just how old iz ya boy?

"Seventeen Pa," Bobby smiled back eagerly.

Prescott thought back to the young blonde haired daughter of the silver haired matriarch. 'Nah, he thought, too young boy, she'd eat ya alive."

"Emmie?" Nick shouted up as he ran after his wife, the spring in his step motivated by his wife's decision to stay.

"I can't Nick, I can't do this just now." Emmie cried back before running up the rest of the stairs and shutting the door to Nick room's behind her, leaving him on the other side wondering just what more he had to do to persuade her that he truly loved her.