Chapter 37

The Big Surprise

As soon as Elizabeth, Julie, Cindie, and Cheryl arrived at the Thatcher mansion, they were greeted at the door by Jack. "Hello ladies." He said, as he took Elizabeth by the hand and kissed her cheek. "Did you have a nice time?" He asked Elizabeth.

She giggled. "I did. But I missed you."

"What did you buy?" He asked.

"It's a secret." She smiled. "But you will be able to see it later."

Just then, William walked by and saw that Elizabeth and Julie were home. "Hello girls." He said. "Julie I need to speak with you."

"What is it, father?" Julie asked

William pulled Julie aside and started whispering to her. A few seconds later, Elizabeth heard Julie scream with delight. She looked over at Jack, who was grinning from ear to ear. "What was that about?" Elizabeth asked.

"I don't know." Jack replied. "How would I know?" He was still grinning.

Julie then came back in the room with a big smile on her face.

"Julie, what did father tell you?" Elizabeth asked.

"Oh nothing, nothing at all," Julie answered in a singsong voice, as she pulled Cindie and Cheryl aside and started whispering to them.

Jack took Elizabeth by the hand. He leaned in and pecked a quick kiss on her lips. "So," he said, putting his arms around her waist. "How would you like to have a romantic dinner with me tonight?"

"Hmm," she replied, smiling. "I'll have to think about that for a minute." She reached up and put her hand on his smiling face, tracing the outline of his dimples with her finger. "You know I would love to have a romantic dinner with you."

He leaned in to kiss her. "Great," he said. "Can you be ready by 7:00? That gives you about two hours.

"Sure," she replied. "I bought some new dresses today. "I'll just wear one of those."

He smiled. "I can't wait to see you in your new dress. I didn't tell you, but I went out and bought a new suit the day your father told you to stay away from me. I got it in case I needed one. I guess I'll just wear that."

"You'll look handsome, no matter what you wear." She replied. "Well I'm going to start getting ready. I can't wait for dinner." She kissed his cheek, and then made her way to her room.

As soon as Elizabeth was out of sight, Jack went over to talk to Julie, Cindie, and Cheryl. "Julie, I suspect your father told you what's going on."

"Yes he did. Julie replied. "And I told Cindie and Cheryl here."

"Great." Jack replied. "Well she went for it."

"Do you think she suspects anything?" Julie asked.

"I assume she thinks it's just a romantic dinner." Jack whispered.

"Won't she be surprised, then!" Cheryl exclaimed.

"She will be very surprised." Cindie agreed.

"I hope so." Jack replied. "That's what I'm going for. Jack smiled.

Cheryl swooned. "You really love our Elizabeth. Don't you, Jack?" She asked.

Jack blushed, and looked at the floor. He then looked up and smiled. "With all my heart," he answered.

"Well she's really lucky to have you." Cindie said.

"Jack, do you have a brother?" Cheryl asked, jokingly. "If you do, I'd love to meet him, especially if he looks like you."

"Cheryl, stop it." Cindie said. "You're embarrassing him."

"I'm just saying." Cheryl replied.

"Thank you, Cheryl. I'm flattered. He reached for her hand and kissed it. "And thank you too, Cindie." He reached for her hand and kissed it as well. "Well if you ladies will excuse me, I'm going to start getting ready for tonight." He headed up the steps to his room. When he arrived, he heard Elizabeth splashing around in the bathtub. He smiled. I guess I'll have to just wait my turn. He thought. He walked to the closet, where he had placed his new suit. He took it over, laid it on the bed, and smoothed it out. He was looking forward to his night with Elizabeth. He hoped she would love the surprise he had in store for her.

Elizabeth stepped out of the tub and dried off. She went to her room to get dressed. She selected a pale yellow dress that she had just purchased and slipped it on. She pulled her hair back in a single barrette and let her curls fall down her back. Soon, she was ready. She checked herself in the mirror. The dress looked nothing like she was now used to… nothing like Coal Valley. She soon heard a knock at the door.

"Elizabeth," Julie called.

"Come in." Elizabeth called back.

As she opened the door, Julie gasped. "You look so beautiful, sister."

"Do you really think so?" Elizabeth asked unsure.

"Yes," Julie replied. "Elizabeth, you will knock Jack's socks off with that yellow dress. You look simply stunning."

Next door, in Jack's room, he was slipping into his new dark gray suit. He'd never seen a yellow tie before, but when he saw it, it made him think of Elizabeth, his little ray of sunshine. So he bought it. He slowly tied the tie around his neck. He checked himself in the mirror. The yellow tie went great with his black shirt. He quickly combed his hair. Soon, he was ready. He couldn't wait to see his little ray of sunshine. He walked out into the hallway. He stood right outside Elizabeth's door and tapped lightly. The door slowly opened. When he looked at the vision of beauty standing in front of him, his heart skipped a beat. Time just stood still. "Elizabeth," his voice barely above a whisper, "Elizabeth," he said again. He swallowed and took a deep breath. "You look so… so very beautiful."

Elizabeth was at a loss for words. "Jack," She was finally able to muster. "You look… Wow! You look handsome. I can't wait to have dinner with you tonight, especially if it's anything like our date in Cape Fullerton."

"I hope this one is even better." Jack said.

"I don't know if that is even possible, Jack." Elizabeth responded.

Suddenly, Julie emerged from Elizabeth's room. She looked at them. "Wow!" She exclaimed. "Did you two plan that?"

"Plan what?" Elizabeth asked.

"You're both wearing yellow." Julie pointed out. "Did you not notice?"

Elizabeth glanced at Jack's tie. "Jack, where did you ever find a yellow tie? It looks very good on you?"

"Thank you." He replied. "And to answer your question, Julie, no we did not plan it."

"It couldn't have worked out better though." Elizabeth chimed in.

"Absolutely," Jack agreed. "I bought this tie in one of those shops downtown. For some reason, the tie reminded me of you, my ray of sunshine. He grinned. "And now you're wearing a yellow dress, which you look absolutely stunning in, by the way. You really are my ray of sunshine." He softly kissed her lips. "I love you so much, sweetheart." He then offered his arm and they made their way down the stairs and out the door. There was a car waiting for them outside, compliments of William Thatcher. Jack escorted Elizabeth down the steps to the car and helped her inside. Soon they were on their way to the restaurant. The driver stopped right outside the local flower shop.

"Jack, what are we doing here?" Elizabeth asked. "I thought we were going to dinner."

"We are." Jack replied, somewhat nervously. He was afraid if he said the wrong thing, it would ruin the surprise. "We just need to make one stop first. Don't worry. We're not going to miss our reservation. Jack got out of the car. "I'll be back my love." He smiled. He walked into the flower shop. He returned several minutes later, carrying a bouquet of pink roses and single yellow rose. When he got back in the car, he handed the bouquet to her. "For you, my love." He said.

"Oh Jack, they're beautiful!" She smiled.

"And I also got you this." He held up the yellow rose. "This yellow rose reminded me of your yellow dress; I couldn't resist. May I?"

She nodded, shyly

He tried pinning the rose to her dress. It wasn't easy, since they were both sitting in the car. His hands were shaky. While he was working with the pin, he accidently brushed his hand against her silky skin underneath her dress, causing her to shudder.

Her heart started pounding a little faster.

"I-I'm… sorry. He stuttered. "I-I didn't… mean to…"

"Jack, it's alright." Elizabeth replied.

Finally, the flower was successfully pinned to her dress. His hand still lingered near the neckline of her dress. She reached up, grabbed his hand, and put it to her chest. He felt her heartbeat.

"This is what you do to me, Jack!" She exclaimed. "You make my heart pound so rapidly."

He smiled. "Good," He replied. "That's what I'm going for." He leaned in and kissed her."

After a few minutes, the driver stopped the car in front of the Rosebud Tower. He opened the door. Jack stepped out and offered his hand to help Elizabeth out. He offered his arm. They entered the candlelit building and approached the maître-d. "Hello," Jack said. "I have a reservation under Thornton."

"Yes, sir," the maître-d replied. "You're party has already arrived."

"Party?" Elizabeth asked, confused. "Jack, what's going on?"

He leaned in and kissed her cheek. "You'll see."

The maître-d led them to a private room. When they walked in, Elizabeth gasped. "What's going on here?" Her parents, Julie, Cindie, and Cheryl were all standing around a big table clapping and smiling. "What is everybody doing here? I thought we were having a romantic dinner."

"Jack," William said. "Do you want to tell Beth what's going on?"

"Uh… sure," Jack answered, nervously. He took Elizabeth by the hand and escorted her to the table. He motioned for her to sit down. When she sat down, everyone else followed suit. Jack stood in front of Elizabeth and took her hand. "Elizabeth Thatcher." He said. "First of all, you should know I love you very much. You are my world, Elizabeth. I can't imagine my life without you in it."

"Yes, Jack, I know." She replied. "I love you too. What's going on?"

"Let me finish." He said, squeezing her hand.

"Sorry," she stated.

"Today," he continued. "While you were out shopping, I had a nice conversation with your father."

Elizabeth's eyes grew wide.

Jack noticed her expression. He bent slightly and pulled her hand to his lips. "I told your father how much I loved his daughter. Then I asked him for your hand in marriage."

"Really," Elizabeth asked. "What did he say?"

"He said yes." Jack answered. "On one condition," he took a deep breath.

"What was the condition?" She asked.

"He wanted me to…" He dropped to one knee. "Ask you to marry me," he replied.

She was stunned. "But you've already did this, Jack. I have the ring to prove it."

"I know." He answered. "But this is the request of your father."

William stood. "I wanted to formally welcome Jack into the family. I couldn't think of a better way to do so, than see how much he really loves you, by proposing to you… again… in front of your friends and family… all the people who love you."

Elizabeth had tears in her eyes. "Thank you so much, daddy." She turned back to Jack. He was still on his knee in front of her.

"So… what do you say?" He asked. "Will you be my wife, or am I going to have to stay in this position forever?"

"You know the answer is yes." She answered softly. She leaned into his arms and kissed his lips. "I love you Jack, and if you want to ask me to marry you a thousand times, the answer will always be yes."

They stood up together. Everyone clapped. They all soon ordered and ate dinner. After they were finished, they went their separate ways, leaving Jack and Elizabeth alone in the restaurant.

On their way home, they decided to forgo their car ride home and have a moonlit walk instead. "So, were you surprised?" He asked.

"Yes, especially since you're already asked me to marry you… twice, and I've said yes every single time, and will continue to do so." She was beaming.

"Well I love you." He stated. Third time's a charm, don't you think?"

"Absolutely." She answered.

Asking you to marry me for a third time is a small price to pay to get your father to give me your hand in marriage." He kissed her hand. "I love you."

"I love you too." She answered.

When they got to the Thatcher mansion, they made their way to the porch.

"Lizzie," A man's voice came from behind them.

Elizabeth whirled around. She was taken by surprise. "I can't believe you're here." She said, as the man possessively wrapped his arms around her, as Jack watched in shock.

…to be continued…

Ahh! More cliffhangers… Will they ever stop? I promise. All will be revealed about the mystery man in the next chapter…. Thanks for the support…