Jack walked out of the mercantile with a small box in his pocket. It was the engagement ring he bought for Elizabeth. He had been in love with her for a long time and he suspected she was in love with him for just as long. They confirmed their love for each other just a few days ago when they were in the mine looking for Rip. He thought back to the conversation. With tears in his eyes, he finally confessed his true feelings. He wasn't sure what she would say, especially after she told him she was afraid of him dying. His heart stopped beating for just a fraction of a second while he waited for her response. I love you, too. She had replied, tears shining in her eyes too, along with the love she felt for him. He leaned over and kissed her, knowing in his heart that she would one day be his wife.
He knew he should walk back to the jail and get some work done but his mind was on his Sweetheart, his Elizabeth. He had this idea in his mind to take her out to the land he wanted to purchase for their home in a couple of days and propose to her there. Now that he had the ring in his pocket, he decided he didn't want to wait. It was Saturday and it was a beautiful day out. He decided to go see if Elizabeth would like to go on a picnic with him and maybe later they could go see the land. He made his way to the café. He walked in the back door to the kitchen and found Abigail hard at work at the stove.
"Good Morning, Abigail." He greeted.
"Good Morning to you too, Jack. What brings you by as if I don't know?" She grinned at him. "Elizabeth is in her room working on grading papers."
"Thanks. I would like to take Elizabeth on a picnic today. Would you be able to get a basket together for us?"
"Of course, Jack. It's a great day for a picnic. Unseasonably warm" She commented just as Elizabeth started down the stairs.
"I thought I heard you down here, Jack." Elizabeth walked over to him and gave him a kiss on the check. She stood on her toes and whispered in his ear. "I missed you."
"I missed you too." He replied back as he swept his arm around her waist. "Would you like to join me on a picnic this afternoon?"
Elizabeth's eyes lit up her face. "I would love to, Jack."
Jack grinned. "I will come by for you around one. Is that ok?"
"Perfect."
"I am going to do some work at the jail. See you later." He pulled her in for a hug. "I love you." He whispered in her ear.
"I love you, too." She kissed his cheek again, then watched him leave. She turned back to Abigail and was about to ask her something.
"Don't worry about the food. I am going to make a basket for you."
"Thanks, Abigail. I am going back upstairs to try and get some work done." She walked back up to her room but instead of going to her desk she went to her closet to pick out a dress to wear. She finally selected a blue dress that really brought out the color of her eyes. Knowing she wasn't going to be able to concentrate on school work, she pulled out her journal and began writing. She had this feeling that something big was going to happen on their picnic.
Jack wanted to get some work done but he just couldn't concentrate. He kept day dreaming about how he was going to propose. Finally he got up from his desk and decided to get dressed. It was only noon time but maybe she would want to go on their picnic a little early. He thought about putting on his suit but he wondered if Elizabeth would guess what he was planning so he decided on just wearing his regular clothes. He patted Rip on the head, told him to be good then walked out of the jail. As he approached the café, he noticed Elizabeth was sitting on the swing. He quickened his pace and walked up the steps. "Hi, Elizabeth." He said as he sat down on the swing. "You look beautiful." Her blue eyes were even more vivid because of the color of her dress. How he loved those sparkling blue eyes.
"Thank you, Jack. You look very handsome today." He grinned at her, making her heart melt when she saw his dimples.
Jack noticed the basket sitting on the swing next to Elizabeth. "Are you ready to go?" He stood up and extended his hand out to her.
"Yes I am." She accepted his hand. They began walking to the lake, their favorite place to picnic and talk.
Jack was nervous the entire walk to the lake. His mind was going into overload trying to think of the best way to propose. He finally decided to just ask her from his heart. When they arrived at their favorite spot, Jack spread out the blanket he had brought with him, then helped Elizabeth sit down. Elizabeth started to take the food out of the basket when Jack put his hand on hers to stop her.
"Jack? Is something wrong?" She looked at him, concern etched out on her face.
Jack took a deep breath. "No, nothing is wrong. I want to talk with you first."
"All right. What do you want to talk about?"
Jack took another deep breath. "Elizabeth, I have been doing a lot of thinking since we had our talk in the mine the other day. I know we have had our differences and obstacles but we have solved them together and come out stronger on the other side."
"I agree, Jack. I have loved you for a long time and my love for you has grown just in the few days since our talk in the mine." She smiled at him, then leaned over to kiss him. When they parted, both of them were breathing heavy and trying to calm their racing hearts.
"I feel the same way, Elizabeth. I love you with all my heart and I only see that love growing in the years to come." Jack swallowed hard, then shifted so he was on one knee and pulled out the ring box. Elizabeth gasped when she realized what he was doing. "Elizabeth, I love you so much. I can't picture my life without you in it. What I see in the future is us together, in a home I build for us with a little girl and a little boy filling our hearts with more love. Elizabeth Thatcher, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" He looked into her gorgeous blue eyes, seeing tears in them. As they began to fall, he reached up and wiped them off her cheeks.
"Jack Thornton, I love you with every fiber of my being. I also can't see a life without you in it." She paused and put her hands on either side of Jack's face. She looked into his eyes and saw a tear slid down his cheek. "I see the same things you do, a cozy home and children running around. Jack, I love you and would love to be your wife."
Jack let out a big breath he didn't realize he was holding while he waited for her answer. Jack took her hands and stood up. He reached a hand behind her head and gently pulled it closer to him. He kissed her with a new passion never of them had experienced before. He hand his fingers through her hair, enjoying the silky soft feeling of it. When they parted, they grinned at each other. Jack lifted her hand to his lips and then realized he hand not put the ring on her finger. He had set the box down on the blanket in his exuberance. "Hold on, Sweetheart." He told her has he bent down to get the ring. He pulled it out of the box and slid it on her finger, kissing it when it was on. "I love you, Sweetheart." He whispered, then kissed her again.
Elizabeth felt like she was floating on a cloud with only Jack with her. She glanced down at the ring; it was beautiful. It then dawned on her what he had just called her, twice. "Did you just call me, Sweetheart?"
"Yes, I did. Are you ok with that?"
"I love it, Honey."
Jack grinned at her name for him. It was so simple and so perfect. He took her hand and helped her sit down again. He put his hand on her cheek. "My Elizabeth. My Sweetheart. I love you, so much."
"I love you too."
"I suppose we should eat."
"I guess but I am much too excited to eat."
"Me too. Should we talk about our future? Like when we would like to set the date and our home?"
"That sounds nice." She paused for a moment, trying to decide if she wanted to tell him something that might be a bit forward of her. "Jack? How do you feel about long engagements? I personally don't like them but if you want to build us a home, we might have to wait."
"I don't like long engagements either but I think I have a solution. How about we look into renting one of the row houses? That way we can get married sooner and I can build the house I want for us and our family."
"Jack, that's perfect!" She pulled him into a hug.
"Then it's settled. When would you like to get married?"
"How's Valentine's Day sound? I don't need a lot of time to plan anything because I want a simple wedding. I am sure Clara will make a dress for me and Abigail can make the food."
"That sound great to me but I have to ask. What about your family?"
She looked sad for a moment and he grabbed her hand to comfort her. "I don't think my parents are going to agree with me marrying you but I don't care. I'm very happy with you and living here in Hope Valley. I was never happy in Hamilton. I don't like the lifestyle. I could never see myself marrying Charles or someone like him. You are my best friend, the first person I want to talk to when something good happens and the person I want to comfort me when I am sad. You are the man I want to be my husband, best friend and partner for life. If my parents can't see that I am happy with you, then I will have to say goodbye to them."
Jack had tears falling down his cheeks as she spoke. He loved this woman so much and she just made him love her even more. He pulled her into his arms and just held her. "Elizabeth that is the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me." He kissed her again.
"I meant ever word."
"I know you did. I love you." They held each a little longer. "Would you like to take a ride to see the land I have in mind for our home? We could go tomorrow after church. Maybe have another picnic."
"I would love to."
"Great. I also have some ideas sketched out on paper for the house. I will bring them with us. I want your ideas too. I can change anything you want."
"I can't wait to see them. I do have one request now if you haven't thought of it yet. I would like a wraparound porch and a swing."
"Already done, Sweetheart. I was also thinking about some rocking chairs to put on one side of the porch."
"I like that idea." She kissed him. "I'm getting hungry. We should eat the delicious lunch Abigail packed us."
"I am too." He reached for the basket and began pulling out food. They sat there sneaking looks at each other while they were eating. After lunch, they walked around the lake for a while, talking about their future. When it got dark, they went back into town. They told Abigail, who was so excited for her friends. They had dinner with Abigail and filled her in on some of their plans. When it was time to say goodnight, Elizabeth and Jack had a hard time leaving each other. They had a final kiss, comforted with the knowledge that soon, they wouldn't have to leave each other at night.
The rest of the weekend went by quickly. Elizabeth loved the piece of land Jack had in mind. She was amazed with his sketches and approved of everything he thought of. They said goodnight early because they both had work to do, work they had neglected in their excitement over the wedding. Before he left, Jack mentioned that he had a busy day and would not be able to walk her school. He wasn't sure he would be able to walk her home either but promised he would be back in time for dinner in the café. He said if he could get back in time, he would see her home.
Elizabeth thought the day was going by so slowly. She had talked to Clara on Sunday about making her a dress and Clara said she could have some ideas ready for her to look at after school. All Elizabeth wanted was for the school day to end so she could meet Clara and then have dinner with Jack. Finally, it was 3pm; she dismissed the students then stayed behind to get some papers corrected. She wasn't meeting Clara until 4. 30 minutes later, she heard the door open. Thinking Jack had made it home earlier than he thought, she stood up and started walking down the aisle. She was shocked to see Charles enter the school room.
"Charles, what are you doing here?" Elizabeth asked him as alarm spread through her body. Not knowing how he would react if he saw her engagement ring given how he reacted to her wanting to remain friends, she hid her left hand with her right and waited for him to respond.
"Elizabeth, I'm here to discuss the future, our future." He tried to reach for her hand but she stepped back from him. "Elizabeth, I love you. I know I can provide you with all the things you could ever want in life and we could have a beautiful family." He got down on one knee and pulled out a ring. Elizabeth shook her head at him and murmured no to him several times, but he either didn't hear her or was ignoring her. "Elizabeth Thatcher, will you marry me?" He looked up at with a huge smile on his face.
Elizabeth let out a sign and frowned at him. "Charles, do you even remember the conversation we had when I was in Hamilton? I told you I don't feel that way about you. I only think of you as a friend or a brother."
"That doesn't matter to me, Elizabeth. Once we marry you could learn to love me."
"No, I can't Charles. I can't and won't marry you. We aren't meant to have that kind of life. If we were, I never would have left Hamilton. I wouldn't have gone to college to earn my teaching degree. My dreams have always been to leave Hamilton and teach in a town in the west, just like my Aunt Elizabeth. I am very happy living here. I love my students, the people I am very proud to call my friends and I love Jack. In fact, Jack and I getting married in February." She showed him the ring.
Charles looked devastated, then angry. "Elizabeth, you can't be serious. How can you marry that Mountie and stay here? This job was only supposed to be temporary. You were supposed to return home and take your place in Hamilton society. Your father will never approve of you marrying him. He sent me out here to bring you home."
Elizabeth heard disgust in his voice. "No, Charles. I am not leaving here and you can't force me to. This is where I belong. I have everything I want in life right here. The sooner you and my father realize that, the better."
Charles stood up from the floor. "How can you say that? This town is nothing. There are no hotels, no 4 star restaurant, no museums or concert halls. You must be bored out of your mind with nothing to do here. Come to your senses Elizabeth and come home to Hamilton, where you belong."
"My senses are perfectly fine, Charles Kensington. There is more to life than just going to the opera and having dinner in a fancy restaurant. I have never loved those things. You would know that if you really paid attention to me instead of just thinking of me as some pretty lady to have on your arm. That's all you want from me Charles. You don't love me. You love the idea of having William Thatcher's daughter on your arm."
As soon as the words were out, she felt him slap her across her face. She fell backwards and landed on the floor with a loud thud. As she brought her hand to her face to touch where he had hit her, she saw him coming towards her with a look on his face she had never seen before. He looked crazy and it scared her. She scrambled away from him, trying to get to the back door but he was too fast for her. He grabbed her legs and pulled her back. She screamed as he pulled her up from the floor by her arms; she was sure he was leaving bruises. "Charles, let me go! You're hurting me!" She tried as hard as she could to free herself but he just held on tighter. "Charles! What is the matter with you? Stop it! Please! Help! Someone please help me!" She screamed with all her might hoping someone one would hear her. She started sobbing from the pain and fear.
Suddenly, Charles was pulled off of her and thrown across the room. She crawled over to the corner of the room and curled up in a ball, squeezing her eyes shut. She heard sounds of fighting all around her but she was too afraid to open her eyes. She thought she heard Jack's voice but she wasn't sure. She heard someone being thrown into one of the desks and then there was silence. She was still too scared to open her eyes until she felt familiar arms gently pull her into an embrace. "Jack?" She said, her voice wavering as a fresh set of tears started falling down her cheeks. She was still shaking in fear.
"Yes, Sweetheart, it's me." He whispered in her ear as he began rocking her back and forth. "I'm here, Sweetheart. He won't ever hurt you again. I love you." He continued to hold her in his arms until her sobs died down. She lifted her head to look at him and he felt anger once again pulse through him when he saw her bruise eye and cheek. He carefully wiped away her tears as he didn't want to hurt her. "If I help you, do you think you can stand up?"
"I'm not sure. My legs hurt from where he dragged me across the floor."
Jack was trying very hard not to get even angrier than he already was. What else did Charles do to his Sweet Elizabeth? "Give me your hands." He picked her up and carried her outside to one of the benches outside the school. He wanted to ask her what had happened with Charles but also wanted to get her out of the school room. He had handcuffed Charles after he had knocked him unconscious. "Do you feel up to telling me what happened?" He reached over to caress her face.
"I think so." She took a shaky breath then let it out. "He came here to propose Jack."
"What?"
"He told me he loves me then asked me to marry him." She told Jack everything that had just happened. Jack wanted to kill him. How could Charles claim to love Elizabeth and then proceed to hurt her like that? He held back his rage, because he needed to focus on Elizabeth.
"Elizabeth, I am going to take you back to town. I need to document your injuries for the report I am going to fill out. Once you are settled in the café, I am going to come back here to get him."
"No, Jack. I don't want you to leave me, even if it's for a short time. Let's bring him now, together. Please don't leave me alone."
He looked into her face and saw the fear she had experience. He couldn't say no to her. "Are you sure?" He wanted to check with her again.
"Yes, Jack. I am. I just want you to be with me as long as you can today. I need to feel your arms around me." She felt a tear slid down her cheek.
Jack wiped away the tear, then spotted Adam Miller walking up to the school. "Adam? May I talk to you for a moment?"
"Sure Jack. Is everything alright?" He saw Elizabeth's face and realized something was wrong.
"I need your help. Elizabeth was attacked by Charles Kensington. I have him handcuffed inside. Would you help me bring him to town? I need to help Elizabeth."
"Of course, Jack."
"Elizabeth, I am going to leave you here for just a couple of minutes while I get Charles. Then I will be back to help you into town"
"All right." She whispered.
When Jack returned, he helped her stand but her left foot gave out under her and she cried out in pain. Jack looked at it and realized Charles must have twisted her angle while he was dragging her across the floor. He picked her up and helped her get settled on his horse, then he hopped on behind her. He put his arms tightly around her waist to keep her from falling off. He could feel her crying the whole way back to town. He was so worried about her and so angry at Charles. He prayed that Elizabeth would be able to recover from the attack and he vowed he would be with her every step of the way.
Sorry to have such a dramatic first chapter but don't worry. I have a plan in mind that will showcase Jack and Elizabeth's love and devotion for each other and how they can overcome anything together.