Pony had been out getting her breakfast. He came back looking rather concerned. "I don't like you leaving without at least telling me where you're going. I was worried. I got you some oatmeal with honey and tea for breakfast. It's normal so I hope you eat it." He shook his head about weird pregnant women's appetites. The mention of a house and work had him looking uncertain.

"Well, I know you're right. We can't be leaving with you getting closer to having the baby but ... how long are you thinking? " He didn't like staying at a place too long, if she got to comfortable and there was no man to help her forget her husband, he'd be there with her for maybe a year or more. The idea truly bothered him, but he wouldn't say as such to her, not right then at least. "I don't mind you doing the books. Do you need me to deliver your stuff when you're done?"

"Ye were sleepin when I woke up, I didn't want ta disturb ye. I did leave a note with the innkeeper in case ye went lookin. Thanks ye for breakfast." She sighed tiredly and took the oatmeal gratefully, feeling lightheaded. She demolished the oatmeal and then ate the scotch eggs she had leftover before answering. "I don't know, long enough to make sure the babe is alright ta travel and I am healed enough. The babe is due in a little less than four months, I would need at least a month to heal. I will accept yer offer ta carry the laundry back to the owners when it becomes clear that I can't do it anymore.. But for now, I need to move about and keep my mind busy."

Pony shook his head. "I didn't check with him. I just knew you were gone." He watched her eat and speak and frowned. Six whole months. It was the longest he had spent anywhere, he was sure. "Alright. For you guys. But I will also take the laundry if it gets late in the day. I don't want you out when it's dangerous."

"Pony..." she said in that voice that meant he was getting on her nerves again. "I'll be fine, stop yer fussin. I will likely be too tired before the sun even dips toward the horizon. I appreciate that ye wanna help, I do... but I'm a woman grown and managed to take care of myself all these months without a man..." She pointed this out. "I am not sayin' I don't want yer help, just that I can't sit here and act helpless. I can't... let ye do all of the work. I have ta do it too. When my mind is idle, I start ta think too much about him and... I don't want to anymore. It hurts too much."

Pony narrowed his eyes and leaned in to her and wagged his finger. "I am allowed to worry and try to make you take it easy. You never listen until its too late. If you want to keep your mind occupied, I'll find you a dog to play with. But I don't want you stressing yourself or working harder than you mean to, because you certainly would if I allowed it."

He had said the wrong thing... She never listened until it was too late. She jerked away from him, a look of deep, emotional pain in her eyes. The hurt was such that if he didn't recognize it, he was simply blind. But this time was different, she didn't argue. She wrote the address of the house down, grabbed her bag and her shawl and bonnet, then slapped the paper against his shoulder on her way out.

Pony blinked and sat up. He frowned and hurried after her, grabbing her arm. "Don't start that again! When you get really angry you like to leave instead of talking. I wasn't meaning about that. You know in the last town we had a lot of arguing. Mostly about you keeping stuff to yourself and saying I ignored you. I'm not talking about HIM or anything like that! So don't think I was trying to make a low blow, ok? I'm trying to start back over like before.. last town happened. Please, Karen. I don't want these moments again. They were .. some of the darker moments in my life. "They were still far from the darkest, but he never talked about those times. He pretended they didn't happen too.

He wanted to make an effort... But it had hurt still. She flattened her lips some before saying very softly, "It doesn't matter if it was about him or it wasn't. It's that ye said it at all. I don't want to regret everything I do. For once in my life, I did what my heart wanted and there was nothing I regretted about it, not even that we didn't wait to get married or any of that. I don't regret becoming a nurse or living in that town. As much as I can look at that place and say that I despise it now, it gave me the best feeling of my life to be there, to help people, to be with him, and even the little snatches of time I had with ye. If I had listened, I would never have known what that kind of love felt like and we would be arguing like children still over it. Ye're tryin' ta do better, I can see that, but ye have this... this thing where ye don't quite know how ta let me take control. It's not a bad thing because ye want ta protect me, but part of protecting me is letting me do what I need to do to make it better on my own. My husband died, yes, I have had a rough go since, but he wouldn't want me to lay there and do nothing, wallowing away in my grief. Ye said once that ye wouldn't want me to grieve over ye, remember? What if I hadn't found ye again, what then? I would be on my own, doin exactly what I have been doin. Surviving. Putting one foot in front of the other."

He muttered to himself as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "You're bringing it up again. And every time I try to help, give advice, whatever you are telling me no. That you're a big girl who can take care of herself. I don't want to fight with you, Karen. So fine.." He let her go and went to the room and grabbed his coat. "I won't tell ya a damned thing. No matter what I think, how dangerous it could be to you or the baby. It is your life. I obviously have no right to say anything since you always take it negatively and personally. I'm going to go meet with someone for lunch. I'm sure you can find food on your own since you're so capable and I'm just holding you back."

He shook his head taking her pain personally since she wasn't even trying to understand his side yet again. It was the old town all over again. He locked the door the room showing he wasn't signing out just yet. "I guess I'll check on you later. Though I'm starting to wonder why you came looking for me. " He gave her a hurt look before starting to walk out past her.

Karen would be gone before he got back. She was at the house, already paid for for the first three months. Thankfully, it was somewhat furnished, the house just needed to be tidied and such. She did that quickly, then moved things around to her liking (unless it was too heavy.) By the time she was done, she was sitting out on her porch with a cup of tea, exhaustion and sadness etched upon her face. Why was it he took it so... damn personal? She did know what she was capable of, what she shouldn't do, et cetera... She didn't want to fight either.

Why couldn't he let her ASK him for help when she needed to instead of making her accept it when she was alright? It wasn't about rejecting him, it was about trying to keep herself from falling into insanity.