I woke when Jack tightened his arm around my waist. I shifted backwards, pressing my body against his chest. He sighed in his sleep; I shivered at his warm breath on my neck. He spread his fingers out across my stomach.

I smiled when I felt a tiny flutter in my belly. I drew my hand next to Jack's, savoring the movement of the tiny baby inside me.

"Hi there, sweet baby. I love you so much. I can't wait to meet you."

Jack kissed my temple and laced his fingers with mine. "Talking to little Elizabeth?"

"No, I'm talking to the baby whose name is not little Elizabeth." I squeezed his hand. "She's moving, and I can finally feel it."

He dropped my hand and pressed both of his palms against my stomach, heat seeping through my nightgown.

I laughed softly. "Jack, you still won't be able to feel her for a while."

"I know. I'm just excited. The fact that you can feel her now makes it even more real."

"Because it wasn't real with just the nausea and fatigue. Oh, and the growing belly."

He laughed. "It's been real since the moment you told me."

I rolled over to face him. He lowered his lips to mine, kissing me deeply.

I pulled back to catch my breath. "What was that for?"

"Just because I love you." He grinned.

"I love you, too." I reached up and dragged my thumb across his cheek. "I wonder if this baby will inherit your dimples, too."

"I hope she looks like you."

"No matter what, she'll be perfect. Just like Jane."

He kissed me again, gently rolling me onto my back. "Are you ready to go home today?"

"Yes," I breathed, sliding my arms around his neck and pulling him down to meet my lips. "I'm ready to be back in our own house."

"Our own bed."

I chuckled. "That too, but I think we have to leave this bed first."

He brushed the hair from my forehead. "Let's get home."

...

"Welcome home, Elizabeth." Jack smiled as he helped me down from the stagecoach. "I'll go get a wagon and load our luggage."

"Okay. I'll drop by Abigail's to let her know we're back and pick up Chief."

He gave me a quick kiss and passed Jane to me. "I'll meet you there when everything's ready."

Abigail looked up from the stove when I entered the café.

"Elizabeth! Welcome back. We didn't expect you for another few days." She wiped her hands on her apron and made her way over to me, giving me a hug.

"Oh, it's a long story," I followed her back into the kitchen, "but the short version is that my parents invited Charles to a dinner party and things got very uncomfortable. I couldn't stay there any longer."

"I'm sorry that happened, but I'm glad to have you back. How's the little one? Growing a lot, it seems." She glanced down at my stomach, which had gotten quite a bit bigger during my time in Hamilton.

I sank down on the sofa and carefully placed Jane on the floor. "Good, I assume. I started feeling movement just before we left to come home—or at least what I assume is movement. It's just flutters right now, but that's how it started with Jane." I smiled, rubbing my hand across my growing belly.

Jane was trying to climb onto the sofa, so I lifted her into the spot beside me. She leaned in to kiss my stomach. "Baby." She looked up at me, grinning proudly.

"That's right, Janie. There's a baby in there, your little brother or sister." I glanced up at Abigail. "That's her new favorite thing to do."

"How sweet." Abigail smiled and returned to the stove.

"I'm not sure if she really understands what it means, but she loves the attention it gets her when she talks about the baby. She's actually the one who broke the news to my parents." I laughed softly. "She just kept saying 'baby' over and over. I guess we need to start watching what we say around her, because she's obviously paying attention."

"She'll be a wonderful big sister."

"Yes, she will." I brushed my fingers through her curls.

She snuggled up against me, patting my stomach with her little dimpled hands. "Baby baby baby."

"You're so happy about the baby, aren't you, Janie? I hope you still feel that way once she's here."

"She?"

"Jack and I both have a feeling with this one." I laughed softly. "And before you say anything: yes, I remember that I was wrong about Jane being a boy."

"I think you're right this time."

"You do?"

She smiled and nodded. "I really do, and I think another little girl would be just perfect."

"I think so, too. Abigail, I know you've done a lot for us lately, but would you mind making up a dinner basket for me? With all that traveling we did to get home, I'm not sure I'll feel up to cooking."

"Of course. Anything for the Thorntons."

A few minutes later, Jack came into the café. "Everything's loaded up, and Chief is waiting out on the porch. Hello, Abigail."

She glanced up from the basket she was filling with food. "Hi, Jack. Welcome home."

I stood up, lifting a now-sleeping Jane to my shoulder. "Thank you, Abigail. And please tell Cody thank you for watching Chief for us."

"I will. Now you get home and get some rest."

I rubbed Jane's back and smiled. "I'll try. Jack, can you grab the basket?"

He effortlessly picked the basket up off the table, despite the fact that Abigail had loaded it with more food than the two of us could ever eat. "Thank you, Abigail. We'll see you later."

"Have a good evening." She waved as we headed out the door.

...

"Home sweet home." Jack lowered the first of our bags to the floor just inside the front door.

"Will you be okay unloading everything? I want to feed Jane and get her in bed before she gets fussy."

"I'm fine here. Go." He kissed my cheek and shooed me further into the house.

Within an hour, Jane was fed and fast asleep in her crib, our bags were all unpacked, and the dinner that Abigail had packed for us was reheating in the oven.

Jack set the table. "Did you ask Abigail for dinner, or did she offer to pack one for us?"

"I asked. I knew that I wouldn't want to cook after all the traveling we did today. Besides," I stepped in front of him and wrapped my arms around him, "the less time I spend cooking, the more time we can spend doing other things."

His eyes sparkled. "Other things? I like the sound of that." He leaned down to kiss me, softly and slowly.

"Mm, as much as I would like to continue that, our dinner is going to burn." I touched his cheek. "But hold that thought."

"Believe me, I will."

I felt his eyes on me as I walked away from him to retrieve our dinner from the oven. I blushed, knowing what he was thinking.

I set out the food, and he held out my chair for me.

"Jack," I took my seat, "can you believe that in the next six months, we're going to celebrate our second wedding anniversary and welcome our second child?"

"It's amazing how fast time is passing. Sometimes I wish it would slow down." He reached across the table and took my hands in his, brushing his thumbs across my skin. "I love you."

A smile played on my lips. "I love you, too."

...

The following morning, I woke to an empty bed. Jack's pillow was cold.

I padded down the hall, checking to see if he was in Jane's room. The crib was empty.

"Jack?" I headed toward the staircase.

"I'm downstairs. I've got Jane down here with me. Just go back to bed and relax. We'll be up in a moment."

"Jack Thornton, what are you up to?"

He appeared at the bottom of the stairs, a grin spreading across his face. "You'll find out soon. Just stay up there."

"Okay…" I returned to the bedroom, curious as to what Jack had planned. I flicked through the book that I found on my nightstand, hoping it would keep me from wondering what Jack was doing.

A few minutes later, Jane toddled into the room, followed closely by Jack, who was carrying a tray of food. "I thought we could all have breakfast in bed today."

I sighed contentedly. "That sounds wonderful."

He placed the food in front of me: oatmeal, berries, scones, and jam.

"Mm. This looks delicious. Thank you, Jack."

He smiled as he lifted Jane onto the bed. "I had some help."

"Thank you for helping your dad, Janie." I touched her cheek, and she giggled. I popped a blueberry into my mouth. "The berries were a good idea. I think that's what I'm craving this time around."

"I know. I noticed how many you were eating while we were in Hamilton." He spread a bit of strawberry jam on a piece of scone and fed it to Jane.

She clapped her hands. "Num."

"Is that yummy, Jane?"

"Num!" She reached for the dish of jam, trying to scoop some out.

Jack pulled it out of her reach before she made a mess, then fixed another piece of scone for her. She opened her mouth wide while she waited for him to feed her, like a baby bird.

I laughed. "I'm not surprised that she loves strawberry jam so much given that it was basically all I ate before she was born."

"So we should probably stock up on berries when the next one is born?"

"Probably." I popped a few more berries in my mouth, and the familiar flutter rose in my stomach. "Mm, the baby likes that." I rested my hand on my belly and smiled. "Maybe I can plant some berries in the garden next summer."

"Sounds like a good plan. Fresh berries for breakfast, and jam, and pie." He licked his lips.

"You're very lucky that I've finally figured out my way around the kitchen."

"Yes, although I would still love you just as much even if we had to eat at Abigail's for every meal to keep from starving."

"You would?"

"I fell in love with you long before you learned how to cook. Now that you can, it's just a bonus." He grinned, making his dimples show.

I leaned in and kissed him. "Sweet, sweet man."

...

Rosemary entered the café, Patrick in her arms and a little girl following closely behind her.

"Oh, Elizabeth. I didn't know you were going to be back yet."

I set down my teacup. "Hello, Rosemary. We were just all ready to come home, so we shortened our trip a bit. Who is this with you?"

She grinned as she lowered Patrick to the floor and gently touched the little girl on the arm. "This is Hannah Kate Coulter."

I smiled. "Hello, Hannah. You have a very pretty name. My name is Elizabeth Thornton, and this is my daughter, Jane."

"Hello." Her voice was quiet.

Jane squirmed in my arms until I placed her on the floor. She immediately toddled over to Patrick.

"He kept asking for Jane while you were gone."

"That's so sweet. I think she missed him, too."

The two toddlers sat on the floor, playing with a spoon.

Rosemary took a seat across from me, and Hannah sat beside her. The little girl looked so much like Patrick with her dark hair and gray eyes. It was clear that they were siblings.

"Hannah, Mrs. Thornton is the schoolteacher, so you'll be in her class when school starts back up in a few months."

I smiled at her. "I look forward to having you in my class, Hannah. Have you been to school before?"

She dropped her gaze to the floor, shaking her head in response to my question.

"Well then, this will be a good class for you to join. The other children will love to have a new friend. I'm sure you'll meet some of them this summer, so you'll already know some of your classmates on the first day."

Rosemary rubbed her back. "I know it's hard being in a new place, but I promise that it will get easier. Mrs. Thornton and I both came here without knowing anybody, but everyone was so kind and helped us feel like this was home."

I gave her a reassuring smile. I couldn't even imagine how difficult this transition had to be for all of the Coulters: Hannah, losing her family and her sense of security and now trying to find her place in a new family and a new town; Lee and Rosemary trying to make her feel safe and loved and welcome while also caring for an active toddler.

...

I set my journal on the nightstand when Jack slipped into the bed.

"Rosemary and Lee adopted Patrick's older sister. Hannah."

"I know. I ran into Lee during my rounds, and he was telling me about her."

I pulled the quilt up higher and curled up into Jack's chest. "I met her. She's absolutely precious. She and Patrick look alike." I sighed. "She seemed so sad, though. I can't even imagine how hard this whole thing is for her. I hope she settles in quickly."

"Well, one thing is for sure: she won't be lacking in love living in this town."

I smiled and kissed his cheek. "You're right. There's no shortage of love in Hope Valley."

...

A/N I'm currently in my final semester of graduate school, and my schedule has gotten very full recently. Naturally, school has to take priority, so I don't think that I will be able to keep up with weekly updates of my stories right now. However, I will continue to update them as much as I can. I promise that I still have lots of plans for both stories, so there's still a lot to look forward to :)