The rest of the day passed quickly for Elizabeth. The car accident victims kept her busy. When she finally had a chance to glance at the clock, she was surprised that she only had twenty-five minutes left of her shift. She decided to spend the remaining time doing some of her never ending paperwork instead of taking another patient. Most days she worked over her shift; she was determined to make sure toady was not one of those days.

She made it home about forty-five minutes later and immediately went to her bathroom to start water for a bath. She wanted to soak in a bubbles before getting ready. She needed to wash the day off of herself. She added vanilla scented bubble bath to the warm water. Soon, she was relaxing with her head resting on the back of the tub. Her thoughts were of the wonderful evening she was sure she would have with Jack. She an instant connection with him when they first meet months before when he was there to question a criminal who was a patient. From then on, the connection grew every time they saw each other until yesterday when they both decided to move things forward.

After her bath, she went to her closet to pick out a dress to wear. She finally decided on a blue dress with little white flowers on it. The color was almost the same shade as her eyes. She went back into the bathroom to apply her makeup and brush out her hair. She returned to her bedroom to get dressed and put on her opal jewelry. She had just finished putting part of hair up and then letting the rest fall down her back in wavy curls when she heard her buzzer ring. That must be Jack! She thought as her heart beat faster in her chest. She quickly walked out to her living room to answer the buzzer.

"Who is it?" She asked, wanting to be careful in case the person wasn't Jack.

"Hi, Elizabeth, it's Jack."

"Come on up!" She said as she pressed the button to let him in. A couple of minutes later he was knocking on her door. She opened it with a huge smile on her face. "Hi!" She gave him a quick kiss on his lips, then turned to let him in the apartment.

He pulled her back so they could kiss a little longer before he pulled away and put his forehead on hers. "Hello, there." He replied. He then stepped back from her and was amazed at her beauty. The blue dress she was wearing really brought the blue out in her eyes. "You look beautiful!"

"Thank you, Jack." She smiled while she took in his suit. "You are looking very handsome." She kissed his cheek. She walked over to her hall closet to grab a jacket and returned to where Jack was standing. He took the jacket from her and held it out for her, wanting to help put it on. They walked out into the hall and Elizabeth locked her door. "May I ask where we are going to dinner or is it a surprise?

"I am taking you to one of my favorite restaurants. It's a little Italian place not far from where I live. They make all their pasta on site, every day." They had reached the door to her building and he held it open for her.

Wow! He is a real gentleman! Helping me with my coat and holding doors for me? He is one in a million. "That sounds delicious, Jack. I have been in the mood for some Italian food the last few days. If we didn't have plans tonight I probably would have just picked up a pizza on my way home from work. This is much better."

"I usually just get take out from them and eat in front of my TV. I am looking forward to sitting down there with you and enjoying the food and the company." He took her hand as they walked.

Elizabeth felt her heart jump in her chest as he took her hand. She knew without a doubt that being with Jack was going to be special. She had never felt like this before. She wondered if it was possible to be falling in love so quickly. She squeezed his hand to let him know she didn't mind the hand holding.

Jack felt the squeeze and his heart did flips flops in his chest. He knew at that moment he was definitely in love. He didn't think he was an emotional person, but he felt a tear in his eye after she tugged on his hand.

They turned the corner from her street and Elizabeth saw her friend, Abigail walking out of her café. "Hi, Abigail!" She waved.

Abigail heard her name and waved back. She quickly crossed the street to talk to Elizabeth and find out who the man was she was with. He looked familiar. "Hello, Elizabeth! How are you?"

"I'm great." Elizabeth turned to Jack. "Jack, this is my friend Abigail. She runs the café over there." She pointed in the direction Abigail just came from. "Abigail, this is Detective Jack Thornton."

Jack held out his hand to Abigail, who took. "Nice to meet you. I have been in your café a couple of times. Your food is great." Jack said.

"Thank you, Detective. I thought you looked familiar; now I know why." She gave him a bright smile. She had this feeling her friend was out on a date. "I hope to see you stop in to eat again some time. I won't keep; I need to get home. Have a nice evening!" She started towards the nearest "T" station, but turned one last time to wave at the couple.

"I hope I didn't scare her away." Jack wondered out loud.

Elizabeth laughed. "No, Jack. You didn't. She is normally home by this time of the night. She must have had some guests taking their time eating. She needed to get home quickly to her foster kids, Becky and Cody."

"Foster kids?"

"Yes. It's kind of a funny story although the cop in you might now think so."

"Ok, now you got me intrigued." They continued their walk towards the restaurant.

"Well, Becky and Cody are on their own. Their parents are dead. They were staying in an abandoned home with no money or clothes. Becky got sick, so Cody took to going around to restaurants and stealing food so she could have something to eat. Abigail caught him pilfering her biscuits; she insisted he tell her what was going on. When he did, she had him bring her to where they were staying. She took Becky to the hospital to see me. Turns out she only had the flu but she needed to rest in a better place. Abigail took them both home with her. She contacted child services and became their foster parent."

"Abigail sounds like an amazing woman."

"She is. She is a great friend. I can't wait for you to get to know her better."

"I'd like that." Jack said as they reached the restaurant. He pulled the door open and let her walk through. Jack waved to the hostess. "Hi Maria! Table for two, please!"

"Detective Jack! It's good to see you! Come this way!" The hostess led them to a quiet table for two in a more secluded place in the restaurant. She waited by the table while Jack helped Elizabeth with her coat and push her chair in once she was seated. Jack then took a seat himself. Maria handed them their menus. "Hope you enjoy your meal." She said as she walked away.

Elizabeth opened the menu and began looking over the choices. There were so many delicious sounding meals she didn't know where to start. She looked up to ask Jack for suggestions when she spotted the specials menu. She pick it up to read it. "Look at this special, Jack!"

Jack looked it over. It was for a dinner for two with an appetizer and dessert to share and two glasses of wine for $60. Listed were the main course options they could pick from. His favorite was on the list. "That sounds good, Elizabeth. Want to try it?"

"Yes, please, Jack if you don't mind."

"Not at all. My favorite dinner and appetizer is on the list." He smiled, showing his dimples.

"What are they?" Elizabeth ask as she felt weak from seeing those dimples.

"The mozzarella appetizer is fantastic. It's not a fried stick like you get some places. I also love the lasagna, which is what I am going to get."

"Those sound yummy. I think I will get Chicken Marsala, but I would love a taste of the lasagna, if you don't mind."

"Not at all." He replied as their waitress came over to the table. They put in their order along with two glasses of white wine. "Elizabeth, I know you mentioned you have an older sister, but I got the impression that you two aren't that close."

"No we aren't. I am much closer to my younger sister, Julie."

"Another sister? Any other siblings?"

"No, just Viola, Julie and me." Elizabeth said as the waitress brought them their wine. She took a sip. "So what about you, Jack? You said you have a brother. Older or younger and do you have any more siblings?

"It's just Tom and me. He is younger than me, but back to you. What's it like being the middle child?"

"I always knew I was loved but there were times I felt invisible. I wasn't the perfect, do as you are told oldest daughter and I was the spoiled youngest sister. Although Julie has grown up a lot now and isn't so spoiled anymore."

"How so?"

"She matured a lot after I moved out and she was alone. She and Viola never got along, so she spent more time by herself. She started reading some of my nursing books I had bought myself. She developed an interest in nursing as well."

"Really?" Jack inquired.

"Yes. In fact she is enrolled right now in the same nursing program I took at City Hospital."

"That's great! I can just imagine what your parent's reaction was to that."

Elizabeth laughed. "It was the same as it was for me, but I had prepared Julie for that reaction. We had a plan already mapped out. Julie stayed with me for the first semester, then she moved into an apartment with a couple of her friends from her class."

"That's wonderful. She is almost as amazing as you are for having the courage to stand up to your parents." He praised as the waitress placed their appetizer on the table with two plates. Jack served Elizabeth a piece of the mozzarella and watched as she took a bite. She closed her eyes as she savored the taste.

"Jack, this is delicious!" She opened her eyes and said. "Thank you for what you said about Julie and me. You have no idea how many people think we are crazy for giving up the so called "good life" to work in a busy public hospital."

"That's a shame. I know there are plenty of wealthy people out there that are like you that don't flaunt where they have come from and want to help people." He took a bite of the mozzarella.

"Thank you, Jack. That means so much to me." She stood up from her chair and leaned down to give him a kiss on his lips. She felt her heart jump again at the connection between her and Jack.

Jack's heart resumed doing flip flops when she kissed him. The kiss had surprised him but brought joy to his heart. As Elizabeth sat back down, he looked into her gorgeous blue eyes and took her hand. "Elizabeth, I know we just started to get to know each other, but I have to confess something."

Elizabeth felt a shiver go down her spine as she looked into his velvety brown eyes. "What is it, Jack?"

"I think, no! I know I am falling in love with you." He carefully watched her face to gage her reaction. He hoped he hadn't said it too soon. What if she wanted to stop seeing him because of his boldness? He continued to stare at her and realized she wasn't mad at him; she had a look of love in her eyes that he was sure matched his own.

Elizabeth squeezed the hand he was holding. She couldn't believe what he just told her. He was falling in love with her! Her heart fluttered. "Jack, I am falling in love with you, too!" She watched his face break out in a big smile, his dimples flashing at her. Even though she was sitting she could feel herself getting weak in the knees. She felt tears forming in her eyes.

Jack frowned when he saw the tears. "What's the matter, Sweetheart? Why are you crying?"

"Oh, Jack! Don't you know sometimes women cry not only when things are sad but when they are happy too? Sometimes we cry for no reason at all!" She reached her hand out to his face. It then sunk in what he had just called her. "Did you just call me Sweetheart?"

Jack looked embarrassed. It had just slipped out of his mouth but he felt comfortable saying it. Maybe it was too soon for him to be using a term of endearment. "Ahh, yes I did. Is it too soon for that?" He asked nervously.

"Oh, no! No it isn't. I liked it but I wanted to make sure I actually heard you correctly or if it was my imagination. I am glad you said it, my darling, Jack."

His smile returned as he thought about the term she used for him. He liked it. He was about to stand up and go kiss her when their food was brought to the table. He would wait until later to give her a big kiss, to show her even more how much he cared for her.

Elizabeth thought Jack was going to come over and kiss her but their waitress came by with their dinners. They would have to wait until later. She hoped he didn't mind her being a bit forward. She was anxious to give him a longer kiss than what she had given him a few minutes earlier.

They smiled at each other, happy to be together before they started to eat their food. They were quiet while they ate, making small talk about how good the food was. Elizabeth loved her chicken and pronounced his lasagna was one of the best she tasted. She said the restaurant was her new favorite place for Italian food.

Elizabeth was full when she had finished half of her plate. The portions were huge. When the waitress returned to check on them and get their dessert order, Elizabeth asked to take the rest of her dinner home. "Jack, I am stuffed. Would you mind if we took the dessert to go? We could eat it at my place later."

"I would like that." Jack replied, happy that their evening would be continuing after dinner. He wanted to spend more time with her and wasn't sure if she had plans for tomorrow, Saturday. He didn't want to wait to see her again until Sunday.

They ordered tiramisu to go and while they were waiting for it and for their waitress to bring the check, he decided to ask her. "Do you have any plans tomorrow? I would love to get together again."

Elizabeth frowned a little. "I do, unfortunately. I do every Saturday."

Jack tried to keep the disappointment off his face. "Are you working?"

"Yes but not in the ER. I teach for the nursing program. Right now I am teaching classes one night a week, on Wednesdays, and on Saturdays during the day. The class starts at ten and ends at two. I usually work on correcting assignments for the rest of the afternoon. I tend to be pretty tired at the end of the day and I just relax watching TV or a movie. I would love it if you joined me." Her smile returned to her beautiful face.

His face lit up. "That sounds fabulous. What time can I come over?"

"About six is fine." She replied as the waitress brought their check and the dessert. Jack handed her a credit card before Elizabeth could protest. Soon they were walking back to her apartment, Jack with his arm wrapped around her waist. She enjoyed the feeling of his arm there. If felt like he was protecting her. Even though she was a woman who thrived on being able to take care of herself, she liked it. There was no reason she couldn't take care of herself but still feel giddy about having a Jack's arm protecting her.

When they reached her apartment, Elizabeth went to the closet to put her coat away. "Jack, would you like to have some coffee with our dessert? I was going to make some decaf."

"That sounds good. Can I help?"

"No thank you. Have a seat on the couch. I will be out in a couple of minutes." She called back from the kitchen.

Jack walked around her place, looking at pictures on a book shelf, as well as her book collection. One picture was of her with a young woman who looked a lot like Elizabeth. He wondered if the woman was Julie. He noticed pictures of people that he recognized from the hospital. He then took note of her book collection. She had romance novels, mysteries and medical books. He was about to look at one book, called "Call the Midwife" when he heard her heels clicking on the wood floor. He turned to face her and was one again taken by her beauty. "Hi!" He whispered.

"Hi, yourself." She motioned towards the books. "Did you see anything you like?"

He wanted to answer "yes, you" but knew it was not the right thing to say at that moment. Instead he replied, "I was going to look at the Midwife books you have. I was wondering if they were text books."

She laughed again. He loved her laugh. "No they aren't but that's not a bad idea. Call the Midwife is a true story about midwives in 1950's London. It was written by one of the midwives and it's now a TV show that airs on PBS. I have read the books and I watch the series." She grabbed his hand and walked over to the sofa, sitting down and patting the place next to her for him to join her.

"That's interesting." He said as he sat down. "I noticed you have some mysteries there too."

"I like to read though I don't have a lot of time for it between working in the ER and teaching. I try to put aside some time to read for pleasure on my day off."

"That's great." He yawned then, immediately embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Elizabeth. I didn't mean to yawn in your face. I was up early this morning work on a new case and I guess the early morning is catching up with him."

"That's all right, Jack. I am tired too. Why don't we pick this up tomorrow night?"

"I would love to." He said as he stood up.

"I will save our dessert until then." Elizabeth said as she walked him to the door. Jack turned towards her, put his hands on either side of her face and kissed her, a kiss that left them both seeing fireworks after.

"Have a wonderful night, my sweet Elizabeth."

"Sleep well, darling, Jack!" She kissed him one last time before he stepped out and she closed the door behind him. She went in the kitchen to turn off the coffee pot, poured it into a carafe and put it in the fridge. She then went to her bedroom and got ready for bed. Once she had slipped under the covers, she found she couldn't sleep. Her mind was full of thoughts about her wonderful evening with Jack. She remembered him telling her he was falling in love with her. She finally drifted off, thinking about seeing him the next night. She had a smile on her face as she slept.

I like the TV series Call the Midwife and thought it would be nice to thrown it my story. I live in the Boston area; I grew up in a suburb of the city. The "T" stands for the MBTA, which is the public transportation system in Boston and surrounding areas.