"Elizabeth!" Florence called.
"We need to talk with you!" Molly said from across the street, walking quickly with Florence.
Elizabeth smiled and turned toward them. She, Jack and Allie had stopped off at Abigail's after being at Dottie's for their final fittings of their wedding clothes.
"Good morning!" Elizabeth said to both of them. It was Saturday, and in exactly one week, she and Nathan would be getting married.
Allie was carrying a basket with coffee, apple juice and sweet rolls for Nathan, Hickam, Kevin and Lee, who were installing the windows and doors in their house by the pond.
"We have an idea..." Florence started breathlessly, once she had reached Elizabeth.
Molly finished, "...And we think you'll like it!"
Elizabeth looked at Allie. "Do you mind taking the basket out to the house while I talk with Molly and Florence? We want to make sure the coffee is still hot for our hard workers," she said, smiling. "Thank you, Allie."
"Sure!" Allie said, already on her way.
Florence said, "Since Fiona is going to Airdrie..."
Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. "Oh, is that certain? Wonderful. Last I heard, she wasn't sure."
Molly said, "Yes, she's going with Kevin."
"Kevin's coming? Oh my goodness. I really didn't know that!" Elizabeth said.
"And Ned as well, so I'll be covering the switchboard and the Mercantile," Florence said.
"With my Rosaleen's help," Molly corrected her quickly.
"Of course, yes, with Rosaleen." Florence finally took a breath, something she hadn't done since she'd first called out to Elizabeth.
Jack was on Elizabeth's hip, and he looked as if he was watching a tennis match, turning his head avidly back and forth between them.
"And you must know that Bill is closing Abigail's for the weekend, because he and Clara and Jesse will be in Airdrie too..."
Elizabeth had small frown lines between her eyebrows. She was frantically trying to remember exactly how many bedrooms there were in Rebecca's ranch house.
Molly laughed and leaned toward Elizabeth. "And Lucas is already telling those of us who are staying here that they'd better mind their manners because he'll be in charge!"
Florence said, "Not that there will be many of us left!"
Jack wanted down, so Elizabeth set him down on the boardwalk. Molly took his hand and they all started walking toward the pond.
Elizabeth said, "You said you had an idea?" In truth, her head always spun a little when talking to Molly and Florence. Because they finished each other's sentences, they seemed to be able to say twice as much in half the time.
Molly said, "We don't think you should go rushing off to your wedding with only one day to spare."
"So," Florence said, "We would like to teach the children..."
"...Together," Molly said, "For the whole week!"
Elizabeth turned to Florence. "But I thought," she chose her words carefully, "You don't like teaching?"
Florence shook her head. "That's only because I didn't like doing it alone." She lifted her chin. "With Molly's help, I think I'd be just fine."
"So," Molly said, "If you can give us a lesson plan, you can leave tomorrow if you want."
Elizabeth was a little distracted because she was counting. Rosemary, Lee, Julie, Bill, Fiona, Kevin, Hickam, Clara, Jesse, Henry, Faith, Carson, Ned, the Tuckers, Laura, the Hayfords, the Montgomerys, Opal's family... Oh, definitely not enough bedrooms.
Elizabeth thought she was only speaking in her head, but she must have said it out loud. "How are so many people able to come on the train?"
Florence raised her eyebrows. "Oh, you didn't hear? Henry Gowen bought train tickets for anyone who didn't feel they could afford them. They're all coming out together on Friday. Starting the party early!"
Molly frowned, "And we wish we could come, Elizabeth, but really, someone has to run the town!" She and Florence laughed together, "And who better than us?"
Elizabeth was still having trouble wrapping her mind around all this. "And have you heard where people are staying?"
"Oh!" Florence said, "I heard Cat Montgomery on the telephone with Faith. She said there's a boarding house in Airdrie that's very reasonable, and they're offering a special rate for the Grant wedding."
"And some people are just going to camp out under the stars on Nathan's land! Make a weekend of it!" Molly said.
Elizabeth was remembering when she and Nathan were riding back from the pergola after he'd proposed. Maybe it will just be us, they'd thought, since it was so far away.
Florence frowned and took Elizabeth's arm. "Are you alright, Elizabeth? You look a little pale."
"I'm just in a little bit of shock, Florence." Then Elizabeth brightened and smiled at her, happily. "Actually, I'm feeling very loved. I had no idea so many people would make such a long trip to see us get married."
Molly was still holding Jack's hand, and now she took Elizabeth's arm as well. "Oh, sweetheart. Do you doubt how much you and Nathan are loved in this town? And your dear Allie and our little Jack? I'm so sorry we won't be there," she said, looking around to Florence, "But we feel like we're helping out by holding down the fort, so to speak." She squeezed Elizabeth's arm.
From Elizabeth's other side Florence said, "And Lucas and Gustav can't set up that whole celebration at the saloon by themselves for when you get back!"
Molly patted Elizabeth's hand. "When you all get off the train on Sunday afternoon, we will be there to welcome you home. Constable and Mrs. Nathan Grant." Molly sighed.
Now Elizabeth really did need to catch her breath. One week.
She thought she must have been walking around in a fog, because up until about a week and a half ago, she really did think it would be just the six of them; with Allie, Jack, Rebecca and Charlie joining them at the pergola. Then Rosemary and Lee, then Bill, and Julie got in touch saying she wouldn't miss it and would take the train directly to Airdrie... and obviously the idea had gained some traction since then.
She knew that although there was no telephone in Airdrie, Nathan had been communicating with his mother and Charlie by letter and occasionally by wire. Nathan had obviously been handling a lot of the room and transportation details while she fussed about her dress and Allie's, designed Jack's clothes with Rosemary, and exchanged letters with Rebecca about food and flowers.
And Nathan had also been working on their house nonstop when he wasn't making his rounds.
Elizabeth smiled as they walked toward the house. Nathan was holding a window from the outside, while Lee secured it from inside the house. The roof was on, all the walls were up, and today was doors and windows.
It's such a beautiful house, she thought. Five bedrooms, a ranch kitchen, living room with a large stone fireplace, and a sunroom with an extra stove. Together, she and Nathan still didn't have nearly enough furniture to fill it, but they would do that little by little as fall and winter set in.
It was a house built for family, Elizabeth thought. Roomy and ready to grow into, but not in the least ostentatious. It was the opposite of the large Hamilton homes she remembered. The porch rail was a design she had wanted, still in branch form, stripped to the rustic wood with a lattice of the same so that Jack would be safe there. In fact, the whole house looked almost as if it had sprung fully formed from the forest. When they painted, they had decided against the traditional white. They would use tan and brown with green trim, so it blended rather than clashed with its surroundings.
A natural road had begun to show through the meadow just from the activity of bringing out lumber, shingles, stone and stoves. Already, Lee and Rosemary were able to drive their car easily to the house.
Later in the summer they would build a small barn and paddock out back for Bear, Sergeant and Sarah. Next spring, they would design the small house where Rebecca, Charlie, or Julie could stay when they visited and wanted to have quiet and privacy.
Elizabeth's vegetable garden was already in full bloom, and lately she and Allie had been walking home from school by way of it to pick tomatoes, squash, lettuce and beans for dinner. Often they had so many tomatoes they would pass them out to people on their way to the row houses.
Looking to the right, Elizabeth could see the posts marking the land that Lee and Rosemary would buy when all the wedding commotion was over. Of course Rosemary had the interior fully designed before Lee even had plans finalized.
"Oh, my," Molly said. "What a fine house this is, Elizabeth."
Florence sighed. "Just lovely."
Escaping Molly's grip, Jack ran to the porch, which now had steps and the wood railing. He was laughing and calling out, "Natan!" The window Nathan had been holding was in place now, and he turned and scooped Jack up. Before putting him on his shoulders, Nathan hugged him and looked at Elizabeth, his face suffused with joy.
On either side of her, Molly and Florence squeezed her arms, seeing the unbridled happiness in front of them. They actually sighed in unison.
"We're going to owe you a lot of dinners, Mike," Elizabeth called out to Hickam, who was putting the finishing touches on their front door.
Mike said, "You're keeping us fed pretty well already, Elizabeth. Thanks for the coffee and Clara's sweet rolls." To illustrate, he held half a roll up in the air and within moments, it was gone.
"Hi, Lee!" Elizabeth said, climbing the porch steps.
"Hey, Elizabeth," he said, muffled by the closed window. He opened it from the inside and poked his head out, smiling broadly. "House is coming along, isn't it?"
Elizabeth sighed. "It certainly is. We can't thank you enough for your help."
Lee laughed. "Oh, I'm expecting to get all this back when we start building next door." He looked around at Kevin and Hickam. "Don't put your hammers away, boys, because we're starting right after the shindig in Airdrie."
Florence and Molly had walked over to look at the vegetable garden. Elizabeth moved closer to Nathan holding Jack on his shoulders. "Good morning," she whispered to him, kissing him gently on the neck and tugging playfully on Jack's little leg.
"One more week of freedom, angel. You still have time to change your mind," Nathan said softly, moving around to kiss her on the lips. They were in a small alcove between windows.
Elizabeth sighed against his lips. "Sorry. You're stuck with me. I'm holding you to your promise to marry me."
Nathan tenderly kissed her again. "Well, if I have to." He put his arm easily around her shoulders and they walked to the front of the porch.
"How did you sleep?" Elizabeth asked.
"Very well. But not very long. I couldn't wait to get out here and start. And," he said, pouring another cup of coffee from the thermos Allie had brought, "Thanks for the coffee." He took a sip and smiled.
Elizabeth looked up at the front of the house. "It's perfect, Nathan. It already feels like home."
He tightened his grip on her waist. "And none too soon." Looking down at her, he laughed softly, "I think Allie spends more nights with you than she does with me these days."
Elizabeth raised her eyebrows playfully. "We have girl stuff to talk about. Wedding stuff. You would be so bored."
Nathan's eyes were very blue in the sun coming up over the trees and the roof of their house. "Oh, not this wedding. This one fascinates me." He kissed her on the cheek and pulled Jack down into his arms.
Elizabeth said, "Speaking of which, do you know how many people are coming? You remember when we thought it might be just us?"
Nathan laughed. "It's the snowball effect." He raised his voice so Lee could hear him. "It started with Lee and Rosemary, and now everyone is coming to Airdrie."
Lee smiled and raised his eyebrows. "Rosie and I know how to give a party! What can we say?"
"Did I hear my name?" Rosemary said, walking up the steps behind them. She moved between Elizabeth and Nathan and hugged them both, with the added benefit of getting a big smile from Jack. "I brought sandwiches!"
Kevin came out smiling through the finished front door. "We just had breakfast, and now here's lunch. You ladies feed us well."
Elizabeth laughed. "It's not just out of the kindness of our hearts, Kevin. It's to keep you here, toiling away."
Taking the sandwich Rosemary handed him, Kevin nodded. "It's working! Thanks!" he said, going back into the house through the front door.
Rosemary said to Nathan, "Can I steal her away? I have to look at that fireplace again. I'm getting ideas."
Lee poked his head back out of the window and said to Nathan, "She gets ideas, I see dollar signs."
Rosemary made a face at him. "Lee Coulter, I am decorating our house on a budget. You'll see," she said, closing the window from the outside.
Lucas' voice came from the porch steps. "Hey, Kevin, Bill saw us coming out here and wanted us to let you know his horse threw a shoe this morning. Not urgent, but he needs to ride out this afternoon." He was carrying a large pot, and Jesse and Clara were behind him, carrying bowls, spoons and napkins.
Nathan laughed and said, "What's all this?"
Lucas raised an eyebrow. "Well, if everyone is out here, there's no one in the saloon to eat Gustav's goulash, is there?" He smiled back at Nathan. "Just being neighborly. And I want to see how the house is coming along."
Elizabeth said, "Thank you, Lucas, that's so kind of you. We have a table inside that we can clear off. Just go right through the front door," she said, laughing, "Which was just this minute put in."
Elizabeth hugged Clara and Jesse and pointed the way.
Turning back to Nathan, Elizabeth gave him a look of wonder. She whispered, "Is there anyone left in town?"
Nathan handed Jack to Elizabeth and whispered back, "I have noticed lately that when we work on the house, we gather a crowd." His eyes softened. "Have I told you recently how much I love Hope Valley?"
"Every day." Elizabeth smiled, looking around at their dearest friends sharing food and talking happily in groups.
Out on the road, Elizabeth could see Henry Gowen and Bill walking together toward the house.
She looked back at Nathan. "Just another day on the Grant homestead."
Nathan exhaled softly. "We dreamed of this, Elizabeth. And here it is." Looking up at their house, he said, "Congratulations. You've made a believer out of me." He kissed her softly on the forehead. "Dreams really do come true."
