"Julie, Jack said you got a letter today?" Elizabeth was sitting in the rocking chair feeding Emmy, trying to get her sister to spill the beans.
"Yes, I did," Julie said from the edge of the bed.
"Who was it from?" she prompted.
"Mother and Father."
"Julie, will you just tell me what's going on? Jack wouldn't tell me. Why did they write to you?"
"I sent them a telegram telling them I was going to move here."
"You did? That's great. What did they say?"
"I don't know, I haven't read the letter yet."
"Why not?"
"I'm afraid of what their reaction might be."
"Julie, you've been living away from Hamilton for a long time. Honestly, why would they be anything but happy for you?"
"I don't know. Losing their last daughter to Hope Valley."
"Julie, I think they will be happy and it gives them one more reason to come visit. Why don't you just read the letter?"
"Ok." She walked out of the room and Elizabeth put Emmy in her cradle by the fireplace.
She could hear Maddie still whimpering in the living room, so she went out to get her. She could hear her cough as she got closer and she was rubbing her ear. Elizabeth sighed. This was going to be a long night.
"Jack, can you heat up some water on the stove? Not really hot, but warm?"
"Sure Honey, what for?"
"I think Maddie has an earache. I'm going to soak a washrag in the warm water and put it on her ear. My nanny used to do that for me when I was little. It really helped."
Elizabeth sat down sideways on the couch against the pillows and cuddled Maddie while the water was heating up. She could feel Maddie's fever through her nightgown. She pulled a blanket over her and held her, rubbing her back and playing with her hair. Her eyes kept shutting, but she would pop awake again, fighting her sleep and rubbing her ear. A few moments later Jack had the rag ready. Elizabeth unbuttoned her nightgown and started feeding her. Then she put the warm rag over her ear, hoping to soothe the pain. "Jack, can you put some more wood in the fire? I'm going to stay here with Maddie."
"All night?"
"Maybe. We'll see how it goes." Jack put a few more logs on the fire to keep his girls warm. Then he walked over and kissed Maddie's cheek and Elizabeth's forehead. "I love you. I hope you get some rest."
"Me too, but I have a feeling it's going to be a long night."
It was a long night. Maddie's fever went up so Elizabeth removed her nightgown so she would be cooler, but still kept her covered by the blanket. She still rubbed her ear, so Elizabeth repeated the process with the rag, which helped for awhile. She wouldn't eat anything as far as solid food, so Elizabeth nursed her a couple times throughout the night, alternating with Emmy. She finally got both girls to sleep and comfortable when Jack got up to get ready for work.
"Elizabeth, how's Maddie?"
"Sleeping, finally. Unlike me. I feel like I didn't sleep at all. I'm so exhausted."
"Here, let me take Maddie and put her in her crib and you take Emma into our room. Then you go to sleep. You don't want to catch Maddie's cold."
"No, I don't because then, Emmy would probably catch it, and you." She went to Julie's room and knocked.
"Come in," Julie said quietly.
"Hey, Julie. Can you listen for Maddie, please? We've had a rough night. If she wakes up, can you try to give her some fruit or a biscuit or something? She hasn't eaten real food in a while."
"Sure, Elizabeth."
"Thank you. I'm going to try to sleep." She put Emmy and her cradle in their room and climbed into bed, sighing. She fell asleep almost the instant she shut her eyes.
Jack walked into the Jail, trying not to worry about his family, but that was difficult. "I'll check on them later during my rounds," he thought. He looked down and realized the letter they had received from Faith was still on his desk. He put it in his pocket to give to Elizabeth later.
Down the street at Abigail's, Frank was arriving for breakfast. He walked in the side door and saw his lovely fiancé cooking breakfast. "Good morning Abby." He had started calling her that shortly after they became engaged a month ago and it made her eyes light up when he said it. "Good morning," she answered with a smile. She walked over to kiss him hello, careful not to get his clothes dirty with the food that was on her hands. "What are you doing today, Dear?" she asked.
"Oh the usual things. I was hoping that we could meet here for lunch. I want to discuss a date for the wedding with you."
"Sure, come by around noon."
"Ok. I love you, Abby."
"I love you too." He kissed her cheek and left the café.
Abigail hoped he wanted to get married very soon. She didn't want to wait anymore. She loved him more everyday, which made her feel as if she were twenty years old again, and when he called her Abby…it made her heart skip a beat. Noon, and their wedding day, couldn't come soon enough.
Jack was on rounds and he had just arrived home to check on his girls. He walked in and everything was quiet. He didn't expect that, but hopefully that meant everyone was sleeping. He peeked in Maddie's room and she wasn't in her crib, so he went to his bedroom and looked in. Julie, Maddie and Elizabeth were all asleep in their bed and Emma was in her cradle, moving around. "Uh oh," he whispered to himself, rushing to pick up Emma before she started crying. He picked her up and she was wet so he grabbed a diaper and a clean nightgown and took her to the living room to change her. "Hi, sweetie. Let's change you before you get upset." He worked quickly, since he now had experience changing diapers. It made him laugh when he remembered the first time he changed Maddie the day she was born. He had been clueless. He was so proud of himself and then the diaper fell off. Elizabeth never let him live that one down.
He finished changing her and she started making sucking noises. "I wish I could feed you so we didn't have to wake Mama up." He carried her in to Elizabeth and whispered, "Hey, Love. Emma needs to eat." Elizabeth's eyes popped open. "Jack? What are you doing home?"
"I wanted to check on you and make sure everything was ok."
"Thank you. You're a good husband." She kissed him and took Emmy and nursed her.
"How's Maddie?"
"She's ok. Her fever went down and her ear isn't bothering her as much. She is coughing and sneezing though."
"Poor Bug."
"As much as I'd love you to be home, you can leave if you need to."
"Ok. I'll try to be home early if I can."
"Thank you. Love you."
"Love you more." He leaned down and kissed Elizabeth and both his daughters. "Oh, I almost forgot, I have a letter from Faith for you."
"Oh, wonderful. Thank you, Jack." He kissed her one more time and then left.
She couldn't wait to read the letter from Faith. Even though their relationship had started out rocky, she counted her as one of her friends and she was very happy for her.
It was noon and Frank walked in the café door. "Hey, Frank. You can sit if you want. I'll be right there."
"Ok, I'm going to get some coffee first. Would you like some?"
"Sure, thank you." She took the two plates she was carrying to the dining room and told Sarah, her new waitress, that she was going to be meeting with Frank for a while.
She sat down next to Frank at the table and squeezed his hand. "Hi," she said flashing him a smile.
"Hi."
"So what we're you thinking as far as when we should get married?"
"I contacted my friend who's a pastor in Buxton and he said he could come whenever we are ready."
"I'm ready now, Frank. I don't want to wait much longer. I'm sorry if that was too forward, I just wanted you to know how I feel."
"How about two weeks? That will give us time to plan a short trip after and get things ready."
"Ok. I want Jack and Elizabeth there, but I'm ok with just them. And Cody should be back from his aunt's tomorrow so he'll be there too.
"Ok, sounds good. Maybe we could go talk to them tonight?"
"Alright." Her heart was swelling with love and excitement.
"Where do you want to go on our honeymoon?" he asked.
"I don't care, as long as we're together."
He scooted his chair back and pulled her over to his lap. "Abby, I just want you to know that I love you very much and I will try my best to make you happy."
"You do, Frank. I'm very happy." She leaned over and kissed him softly. "I love you too."
Jack walked in to the café at that moment. "Oh, I'm sorry!" He chuckled. They turned to look at Jack.
"That's ok, Jack. We need to talk to you anyway."
"What about, Abigail?"
"We were going to come visit tonight but we might as well ask you now. We are getting married in two weeks and we would be honored if you and Elizabeth would be our witnesses."
"The honor would be ours. Of course we will."
"Thank you so much, Jack."
"Why don't you come over tonight anyway? Elizabeth would love to see you. She's been cooped up in the house for a long time."
"Ok, we will bring dinner."
"Ok, see you tonight then."
Jack made it home an hour earlier than normal. "Honey?" he called out.
"Yes, Sweetie. I'm in here," she called from their bedroom. He walked in as she was putting Emmy down.
"Hey. I ran into Frank and Abigail at the café. They said they are getting married in two weeks and they want us to be their witnesses."
"Oh that's great."
"Also, they are bringing dinner over to us tonight."
"They are? When?"
"In about an hour."
"An hour? Jack! How am I going to be ready? I look terrible, the house is a mess…"
"Hey," he said as he walked over to her. "You never look terrible, just so you know. I will straighten up the house and listen for the girls."
She sighed. "Thank you." She reached up and hugged him and kissed his cheek. She walked into the closet to find something that would fit her. She hadn't thought about clothes in a month, basically living in her nightgown. She found a dress that she wore at the beginning of her pregnancy with both girls. "That should work," she muttered. She went to the washroom to get ready. To her surprise and delight, the dress was a little big, which means she had lost more baby weight than she had thought. She put her hair half up and half falling down her back, like Jack liked. Then she put some vanilla lotion on her arms and neck. She felt pretty good about the way she looked.
She walked out of the washroom and almost ran into Julie. "Whoa, sorry Julie. Where are you off to?"
"I'm going to town. Won't be late. Love you, Sis."
"Love you too."
She walked into Maddie's bedroom and looked in her crib. She was sleeping soundly. Then she walked into her and Jack's bedroom and found him getting ready too. "Hey, you look nice in that sweater, Sweetie."
He turned around and looked at her. "You look beautiful, Elizabeth." He came over and kissed her. "Oh you smell good too." He trailed kisses down her neck, intoxicated with her lotion.
She put her fingers on his lips. "Hold that thought until later. They're going to be here very soon."
He sighed and captured her lips with one more taste of later and ran his fingers through his hair.
"All right, let's go."
As they walked out of the bedroom they heard a knock at the door. Jack walked over and opened it. "Hey, come on in."
Abigail and Frank walked in. Abigail walked over and hugged Elizabeth. "You look great, Elizabeth. Beautiful."
"Thank you, Abigail. That's very sweet." She took her hand and pulled her over to the couch. "I heard you're getting married in two weeks."
"Yes, would you stand with me?"
"Of course I will. I'm so happy for you."
"Hey where are the girls? I miss them."
"They're both sleeping. Maddie has a cold, so she's sleeping a lot today. Emmy is fine. In fact it's almost time to feed her. Let's go see her."
They walked into Jack and Elizabeth's room and looked down at Emmy. "Her hair is getting lighter," Abigail pointed out.
"Yes, it is. I noticed that too. Do you want to hold her?"
Abigail nodded. Elizabeth picked her up and placed her in Abigail's arms. "Frank hasn't seen her yet, do you mind if I take her out there?"
"Of course not."
Abigail walked out to Frank, holding Emma. Frank smiled. "This is Emma?"
"Yes, that's her," Jack answered with pride in his voice.
"She's beautiful." Elizabeth walked up to Jack and wrapped her arm around his waist and he kissed her forehead. "Thank you, Frank."
"May I hold her?" Abigail handed her to Frank. Seeing the man she loved holding a baby, brought tears to her eyes and butterflies to her stomach. Elizabeth looked at Abigail's face and noticed she was tearing up. She knew what she was thinking. Every time Jack held his daughters, she fell more in love with him.
Maddie started crying in her bedroom. "I'll get her, " Jack offered. He walked in and she was standing up, tears rolling down her face. "Dada." She raised her arms up. "Hi, Bug. How are you feeling?" He picked her up and noticed her nightgown was all wet. Her fever must have broken. "Let's go get you cleaned up and then get something to eat." She snuggled into his neck, sighing.
He walked with her into the kitchen to heat up water for a bath. "Mama." Elizabeth came over to them and felt her forehead. She felt cool. "Oh good. Her fever must be gone."
Jack nodded. "She's all sweaty. I'm going to give her a bath and see if she'll eat something."
Maddie reached for Elizabeth. "Mama."
"Hi, Sweetie. Daddy is going to give you a bath, ok?"
"Mama up," she whimpered. Elizabeth reached over and took Maddie. Abigail walked over. "Hi, Maddie. How are you feeling?" Maddie buried her head into Elizabeth's shoulder, acting shy.
"She's feeling a little better. Her fever broke finally."
"That's good."
"Bath water is ready," Jack announced a few minutes later. "Come here, Bug. Let's take a bath."
"No, Mama." She held on to Elizabeth, not wanting to go with Jack.
Jack put the bucket down and gently took her from Elizabeth. "No, I'm going to give you a bath. It'll be fun. Then we can come out and see Aunt Abigail." He picked up the bucket and took her away.
"Why don't we eat? Pretty soon, Emmy will need to eat too so let's take advantage of the quiet," Elizabeth suggested.
Later after Abigail and Frank left, Jack and Elizabeth were cuddling on the couch in front of the fire. Jack leaned over and kissed Elizabeth's forehead. This was what he had always dreamed of. "Curling up by a warm fire, with someone I love." He remembered saying that years ago, thinking Elizabeth was listening, but really she had fallen asleep. He chuckled.
"What's so funny?"
"Just thinking."
"About what?"
"Remember when we stayed at the homestead to watch Nellie and Patrick?"
"Of course. What made you think of that?"
"Sitting here with you."
"Oh, the warm fire?"
"Yeah."
"I wish you had kissed me that night."
"Me too. I might have, had you not fallen asleep."
"You can kiss me now." She looked at him, smiling. He turned slightly, touched her face and kissed her long and slow, savoring the taste of her lips, forgetting that Julie could walk in at any moment and then remembering. He pulled back, slightly. "Why are you stopping, Jack?"
"Julie could come in." He said as he gave in and kissed her again, making her forget about Julie, until she walked in.
"Oh. I'm sorry." Julie laughed as she walked past them to her room.
Elizabeth turned red, even though there was nothing to be embarrassed about, after all, this was their house. They could kiss wherever they felt like it. Jack laughed. "You're cute when you're embarrassed."
"You're cute all the time." She touched his lips, and then kissed them. "I love you, Jack."
"I love you more."
The next morning, Elizabeth looked over at her bedside table and realized she had forgotten to read Faith's letter. So she opened the envelope and read it. "Oh good!" she said a little louder than she had intended. She looked at Jack and Emmy. Both of them were still sleeping.
She smiled to herself, remembering the night before. She and Jack kissing on the couch like they were newlyweds again, of course it hadn't been that long since they were married. No matter how long they were married, she would always enjoy kissing him. "What're you smiling about?" Jack asked as he pulled her back down next to him.
"You. Last night."
"Oh you mean on the couch? Yeah, I enjoyed that." He kissed her ear, giving her goosebumps.
"Me too. It made me feel like we were just married again, like nothing could spoil it…until…"
"Your sister walked in."
"Yeah."
"Did she ever mention finding a place of her own?"
"No, but I hope she figures that out soon. I mean, I love having her here, but I miss having our house to ourselves."
"Me too."
"So, Julie?"
"Yes, sister?"
"What are your plans, now that you're moving here?"
"You mean, am I moving out anytime soon?"
"Well…."
"After last night, I figured this would come up soon. I have been talking with Abigail and Clara and Viola. Clara has an extra room above her store and Abigail can always use help with the café so, I'm thinking about moving in with Clara and Viola and working for Abigail."
"I'm not trying to discourage you at all, but you can't cook, can you?"
"No, but Sarah, the other girl that works there, can and so we will be a good team while Abigail is on her honeymoon."
"That sounds great Julie. I think you should do it."
"Well, I want you and Jack to know I appreciate you letting me stay as long as I did. I know I can be annoying."
"You were welcome to stay, Julie. You helped me a lot after Emmy was born, and little sisters are supposed to be annoying," she said with a wink.