"Rosemary?" Elizabeth walked into the house, frantically searching for Rosemary. "Where are you?"
"Elizabeth? Help me!" Elizabeth found her in the bedroom, on the bed groaning and screaming.
"Rosemary, what's wrong?"
"My stomach hurts, shooting pains. My back. I think I'm dying! Get the pastor!"
"Rosemary, please calm down. It's sounds like you're in labor."
"Impossible! Ahhhh!" she screamed again.
"Where's Lee?"
"He's at work."
"How long before you are due?"
"A month. I think. Oh, who knows? I was never very good at math."
"Rosemary, I'm going to go get Faith and send her here. Then I'm going to have Jack go get Lee for you."
"No! Don't leave me! I told you, I'm dying. You wouldn't leave a dying woman alone, would you?"
"Rosemary, listen to me, you're not dying. How long have you been having the pains?"
"All night, and then they got worse this morning."
"Rosemary, you are in labor! I will be right back!"
Elizabeth walked as fast as she could to the infirmary. She could hear Rosemary screaming most of the way. "Faith!"
"Elizabeth? What's wrong? Are you sick?"
"No, its Rosemary. She's in labor. She said she's had the pains all night and all this morning. She's at her house."
"Ok, I will get some things I will need and then head over there. Will you tell Lee and Jack? I normally wouldn't ask Jack but I've only delivered two babies and is not in town. I may need help."
"Of course, but instead of Jack, Abigail has delivered babies before. Can I ask her instead?"
"Someone, anyone with experience is fine. Please go!"
Elizabeth went and told Abigail and then went to the jail. "Jack!"
"What's wrong?" He jumped up when she ran in the door.
"Rosemary is in labor. Can you get Lee?"
"Ok. Take a deep breath. You need to stay calm too."
"I know. I'm sorry." She sat down on the edge of his desk and started laughing.
"What's so funny, Sweetheart?"
"Rosemary. That woman is always the actress. I get there and she's screaming and moaning on the bed. I asked her what was wrong and she told me to get the pastor."
"Why?"
"She was convinced that she was dying."
"Of course she was." Jack rolled his eyes.
"Jack, Faith told me that she might need your help."
"Delivering Rosie's baby?"
"Yes. She has only delivered two others and Dr. Burns is out of town. I asked Abigail to help, but Faith wanted me to ask you."
"Ok. Thank you for telling me, Sweetheart. I'm going to get Lee and head over there. Are you coming too?"
"I will meet you there."
By the time Lee, Jack, and Elizabeth got there, Rosemary was already pushing. Lee started pacing and Jack and Elizabeth sat at the table, watching Lee and listening to the screaming.
"Lee, I know you probably can't help it, but you are driving me crazy."
"Sorry, Jack. I just feel helpless."
"I know. Everything will be fine. Don't worry."
After a few more moments, and screams, they heard a baby cry.
"Congratulations Lee!" Jack and Elizabeth both hugged him and then he went off to see his family.
Elizabeth looked at Jack, with tears in her eyes. "Jack, I'm glad we came. That's going to be us soon."
"Me too. Come here." He gathered her into his arms and kissed her forehead. "I love you, Honey."
"I love you more."
"It's a boy! I have a son, Jack." Lee brought his tiny son over to see Jack and Elizabeth.
"Lee, he's so tiny. Can I hold him?" Elizabeth asked.
"Of course you can."
Elizabeth took the small whimpering bundle from Lee. "Shhh..little one. Everything's ok," Elizabeth cooed as she bounced him gently. Jack just stared at her, admiring her instincts and gentle way with the baby. He'd seen her hold a baby before, but this time, he was mesmerized.
"You're pretty good at that," he said as he kissed her cheek.
"Thank you. Do you want to hold him?"
"I do actually." She passed the now sleeping baby to her husband's arms. "I have to practice somehow. I hope you don't mind, Lee."
"Of course not, but I will need to take him back to his mother in a few."
Elizabeth watched Jack with the baby. He was cradling the baby so gently and lovingly. Ever since she saw him holding Carla's baby a few years back, she knew he would be a wonderful father. "You're pretty good at that too." She put her arm around his waist and her head on his shoulder.
Jack decided to go work on the house after leaving Lee and Rosemary's. Elizabeth brought dinner as usual. "Jack, I have dinner," she called when she walked in the door.
"I'm out here." She walked through the living area to the back door and walked out on the porch. She gasped.
"Jack, it's so beautiful." He had just hung a new porch swing and placed lit candles on the railing.
"You're just in time for the sunset." He came over, took her hand, walked her over to the swing and covered their legs with a blanket.
"Perfect." She leaned her head on his shoulder and held his hand as they watched the sunset.
"Oh, I almost forgot. I got a telegram from my mom today. She is coming home tomorrow."
"Oh that's great, Jack! I've missed your mom!"
"Me too. A lot has happened since she left town. Why don't we have her over for dinner tomorrow night and we can fill her in?"
"Sounds good." They sat silently for a few moments, watching the sun sink below the mountain and the colors slowly fade to darkness. "Sweetie, can I ask you something?"
"Always."
"If Faith had needed your help with delivering Rosemary's baby, would you have done it? I mean, after what happened last time, would you have hesitated?"
"To be honest, I would have helped in a second, but I wouldn't have been comfortable. I know that what happened isn't that common, but it doesn't change the fact that I couldn't save them."
"Oh, sweetie, you don't blame yourself, do you?"
"No, I guess not. I did everything I knew to do. It just hit a little too close to home."
"Yeah, that makes sense." She laid her head back on his shoulder and yawned.
"Tired?"
"Yes, but I'm comfortable here."
"You know what? I finished the fireplace earlier. Why don't we eat in front of the fire, and sleep there tonight?"
"That sounds wonderful."
The next morning, Jack and Elizabeth went to meet the stage. When Charlotte stepped down, Jack immediately went up and hugged her. "Mom, it's good to see you!"
"Its good to see you too, son. Now where is my beautiful daughter-in-law and grandchild?"
"Charlotte!"
"Elizabeth. You look wonderful. Come here." She held out her arms and Elizabeth gladly walked right into them.
"Its good to see you. Jack and I want to have you over for dinner tonight to tell you about all that's happened around here since you left."
"I will be there."
"I'm going to go to work on the new house. Why don't you come with me Mom?"
"I would love to see it. Elizabeth isn't coming?"
"No, I have my lessons for the week to prepare for. Why don't you and I meet at Abigail's for lunch later?"
"Ok, dear. I will see you then."
Jack and Charlotte rode up to the new house. "Jack…this is beautiful. I always knew you were talented but this…wow."
"Thanks Mom. It's not done yet, but it will be soon. I'm a little behind schedule because of my last assignment but I should be done by December, I hope."
"Don't you have anyone helping you?"
"During the week, I have a few men from the sawmill helping me in the afternoons. Other than that, it's all me."
"Let's go see the inside."
Jack and Charlotte walked in the front door. "This is the kitchen, obviously. I'm almost done with the cabinets and table." They walked around and looked at the rest of the house. Charlotte was impressed but she also knew he had way too much to go to be in less than a month from now. She was formulating a plan.
"Mom, are you ok? You've been staring at nothing for about five minutes."
"Just fine, son. Well, put me to work. What do you need help with?"
A bit later, Charlotte met Elizabeth at Abigail's for lunch. "Charlotte, what did you think of the house?"
"I'm in awe of Jack's talent. He has done a wonderful job."
"But?"
"He said he wants it done by December, but that's three weeks from now. I don't see how he will get it done by himself. So I have been thinking."
"You have a plan?"
"Yes, want to help me surprise him?"
"Absolutely."
The next day, Elizabeth and Charlotte had put their plan in motion. Charlotte asked Elizabeth to somehow delay Jack coming into town so she could get started.
Elizabeth snuggled up to Jack and kissed his lips, hoping to wake him up.
"Mmm.."
"Sweetie?" she kissed him again.
"Hey. Good morning." He smiled at his wife, who apparently wanted his attention.
"Morning, Jack. I think we should stay here for a few hours." She rolled towards him, kissing his neck and his ear.
"I would love to, believe me, but I have to do my rounds."
"No you don't. I asked Bill to fill in for you. You've been working so much, including the house, that I think you deserve the morning off."
"What about school?"
"I don't go in until this afternoon, so I'm all yours."
"Yes, you are."
Elizabeth delayed Jack as planned and when they got to town, Jack noticed it was pretty much deserted. "Where is everyone?"
"I'm not sure."
"Well, I'm going to do some paperwork and then head to the new house."
"I don't have to be at school for a few more hours so I'm going to see Abigail. Love you."
"Love you more." He leaned down and kissed her. "See you for dinner?"
"I'll be there."
When Jack got to the house, he knew where everyone from town was. There were horses and wagons everywhere and people milling about cleaning up wood scraps and other outside jobs.
"Hi, Jack!" Lee said from the corner of the porch.
"Lee, what's going on?"
"Come in and see."
Jack walked in and couldn't believe it. There were people everywhere. Everyone seemed to be working on the house. Painting, putting up the cabinets, which were now finished by some miracle, cleaning. He looked around and saw his Mom, sweeping the floor and dusting.
"Mom? What's going on?"
"Elizabeth and I wanted to surprise you. I asked a few people in town to spread the word and, well, you can see."
"Thank you so much, Mom." He hugged her tight and kissed her cheek.
"It's the least I could do. You work so hard and you had so much left to do. I just wanted to give you a boost."
"Hi, sweetie," Elizabeth said as she came in the room. "What do you think?" she asked with a smile and a hug.
"Its great. I guess it shows what a little love and hard work can do, if you have as many friends as we do. Thank you, Honey and now I know why you wanted us to stay home this morning."
"This and I wanted to spend some time with my extremely cute husband. I also can't take all the credit. It was your mom's idea to get everyone to help. I just kept you busy for awhile," she said with a wink.
Before Elizabeth left for school, they gathered everyone in the front yard.
"Elizabeth and I just want to thank each and every one of you for coming out today to help us. We had the hope of moving in by December and it wouldn't have been possible without all of your love, support and kindness. In addition, we also want to thank you for your help when I was sick and when Elizabeth was going through hers as well. You all mean so much to us. We are truly blessed."
That night, Jack, Elizabeth and Charlotte had dinner at the new house. Elizabeth brought food from Abigail's and they ate at the brand new table in their kitchen.
"So you said that I missed a lot while I was out of town. What did I miss?"
Elizabeth started, "About a week after we returned from our honeymoon, Jack had to travel to Buxton for an assignment. When he came back he had come down with Influenza."
"What?! Why didn't anyone send word to me?"
"Believe me, Charlotte. If he had been sick for much longer, I would have sent word."
"How bad was it?"
"Well, we were both quarantined for two weeks. I thankfully didn't catch it. Jack had a rough time. He had a high fever for almost a week, and muscle soreness, cough, headache. Faith and I just tried to keep him comfortable. It was hard, but we made it through."
Jack continued, "A few months after that, we found out Elizabeth was pregnant, right as I was leaving town for a longer posting. So I took her to Hamilton to stay with her family, on my way."
"While he was away, I came down with really bad morning sickness. I couldn't get out of bed because I was really dizzy. I couldn't keep any food down. I lost weight. About two weeks after that, I traveled back here with Julie. Thank goodness she was here. I couldn't have made it home without her."
"I wish I would have known that too. I could have come home and helped."
"I'm sorry, Mom. I wasn't with her, so I wasn't aware of how bad it was until later."
"Next time one of you is sick, tell me." She pointed at them.
They both said, "Yes ma'am."
"Good."
Jack leaned over and whispered to Elizabeth, "Apparently every teacher has a scary teacher face."
Elizabeth giggled.
The rest of the week, Jack spent all of his free time finishing the house. He was working on a special project for Elizabeth so he told her she couldn't come back until Saturday when they moved in.
The suspense was killing Elizabeth but she tried not to think about it. When Saturday came, she felt like it was Christmas morning. She had been packing all week in preparation with Charlotte's help, of course and she just wanted to get to the house and set things up.
Jack borrowed a wagon from Lee and was moving all the big items first and coming back for the rest later.
When he came back for the last load, he found Elizabeth crying on his Mom's shoulder.
"What's wrong, Sweetheart?"
"Nothing, Jack. I'm just sad to be leaving. It was my first home alone, and our first home together. Lots of good memories mixed with hormones, makes me cry I guess."
"There have been some great memories here. Let's go make some new ones at our new house."
"Ok. Let's go." She sniffed, took one last look and walked with him and Charlotte out the door.
When they got to town, Charlotte went to her own home, giving Jack and Elizabeth time to themselves. She would come help Elizabeth get settled in the morning.
When they pulled up to the house, Elizabeth smiled and kissed Jack's cheek.
"What are you thinking about?"
"The first time you brought me here to show me the land you bought. It was so beautiful and I was so surprised."
"I wanted it to be a surprise."
"I thought you were going to propose that day, Jack."
"I had the ring in my pocket."
"You did?"
"Yeah. I wanted to tell you about the house, but I was nervous to actually say that I was building it for us."
"I never understood why you always danced around the subject of marriage. There were so many times I was hoping you would ask me, but you didn't."
"This time, I was trying to get you to say that you wanted to be there, taking some pressure off me, but we just kept talking about Rip and chickens and goats."
"Jack, didn't you think I would say yes?"
"I hoped you would. After everything we had been through, with Charles and almost breaking up, I had to be sure."
"I'm sorry if I made you unsure. I felt like if I said, "Me, I want to be here, Jack," that it would scare you or push you, if you weren't ready."
"Wait, when did you hope I would ask you?"
"The first time, was when you told me you loved me. Next was on our camping trip. We were talking about a house and I thought our conversation was headed there. Then you kissed me. Let me tell you, that was a great kiss. You took my breath away, but you didn't propose."
"That was a great kiss, and I had the ring with me that night too."
"Silly man. I love you so much. With all this talk of what we wanted in the past, I still wouldn't trade anything we have gone through. I think it made us much stronger together."
"I agree." He stared at her, kissed her gently and said, "Let's go inside, Mrs. Thornton."