As they walked toward home, Nathan and Elizabeth talked about their ideas for Archie's birthday party.
"I have a request, and I hope it doesn't upset your plans," Nathan said tentatively. "Lee said he'll be ready to put the roof on the house on Saturday, and he's wondering if we can combine getting that done and our party for Archie. He's worried about snow coming in next week because it's already falling up on the sawmill's land."
Elizabeth gasped suddenly and clapped her hands. "Like a barn-raising! Everyone helps, and then we all share a big meal at our house to celebrate. It's a wonderful idea!"
Nathan laughed. "That is not the reaction I expected. Lee and I were worried that you might feel it was taking attention away from the party."
"No, it's perfect. We've been studying the Mennonite culture in school and it would be such a lovely illustration of that for the children. We've been talking about barn raisings, and how all the members of the community rely on each other. Opal raised her hand the other day and said, 'Isn't that what we do in Hope Valley?'"
Elizabeth smiled. "The combination of me being so emotional these days, and our sweet Opal's question, had me nearly in tears in front of the class," she said, her eyes glistening as she remembered.
Nathan smiled at his beautiful wife, her eyes so bright and enthusiastic about offering her students an opportunity to learn. And as he seemed to do with everything these days, he connected it to his approaching fatherhood. His child, his children, would have the benefit not only of her love, but also of her brilliant and creative mind as a teacher.
Elizabeth was talking quickly, excited. "There are some traditions we can incorporate. I've already told people to bring their favorite food to share. We'll get to really use our harvest table." She put her arm through Nathan's and pulled him closer. "And I thought it would be a lovely time to plant the tree from your old row house, the one you and Allie planted last Christmas? I thought you and Archie could shovel the hole and then Allie can help you put the tree in. To keep that family tradition going."
Nathan smiled and leaned closer, kissing the curls at her forehead. "You are the sweetest person I know, Elizabeth. How you remember things, and honor them."
She smiled up at him. "I remember telling you last Christmas how lovely I thought your family traditions were." She stopped and leaned up to kiss him. "I didn't know then that for this Christmas I would be a part of your family." She sighed softly. "And I'm so glad to be."
They were just at the edge of the meadow now, ready to walk on to their "road," the path that had been worn down by horses, cars, wagons and their very frequent visitors.
Nathan stopped and held her tightly. He exhaled and said, "Sometimes I wonder where I go from here, Elizabeth."
She frowned, not understanding. "What do you mean by that?"
He looked out at the glow of their house, knowing that his father, his daughter and his son were inside, safe and warm. He looked at Elizabeth, his one true love, who was now carrying his child. Then he said, "What do you do when all of your dreams come true? When everything, and more, that you've ever hoped for yourself is right in front of you? Real, touchable..." He leaned down and kissed her, taking his time.
After a moment, Elizabeth pulled away and smiled up at him, her eyes still closed. "You dream some more."
They turned and looked again out at the meadow. In the half-moonlight they could see the outline of the walls of Lee and Rosemary's house, and they were both remembering when their own house had looked exactly like that.
Now their home was finished, except for a few small details outside. They had six chickens and a rooster, three horses and a goat, a vegetable garden, a barn, two paddocks, a fenced-in backyard, and a treehouse for Allie.
And a porch swing.
Elizabeth frowned. "We're still missing something, you know."
Nathan looked at her. "What's missing?"
"I seem to recall," Elizabeth said playfully, "That you promised me a cow named Lizzie."
Nathan grinned. "I did, didn't I?" He laughed. "And this is the downside of a woman with an exceptional memory. Is there anything else I've forgotten?"
Elizabeth started walking again. "There was some talk about a long row of bookshelves in the sunroom. I still have boxes of books to put somewhere."
Nathan smiled. "I'll get started on that next week. I think some of those boxes may be mine," he said, looking at her. "We do like our books."
Elizabeth raised her eyebrow. "We can combine your Austen section with mine." She leaned up and whispered to him, "No one will ever know."
After a moment, Nathan said, frowning, "You already know that I organize my books by author, but in your row house, most of your books were upstairs in your bedroom..." He whispered, "...which I never saw, except from a distance in Jack's room." He sighed, "One of the great mysteries of life, a woman's bedroom."
Elizabeth laughed. "Not much mystery in there. With a baby in the house, it was a challenge just to keep it clean."
Nathan laughed softly. "So, I organize my books by author. How do you organize yours?" he asked.
Elizabeth was warming to this discussion. "Well, it could be like a library; by genre first, then by author, then by title."
Nathan was frowning. "That sounds way too complicated for me. What's the penalty if you find a book in the wrong place?"
She leaned up quickly, "A kiss."
Laughing, Nathan said, "Those shelves are going to be a mess..."
Elizabeth continued, "But actually, I alphabetize by title. A system that typically ignores a, an, and the in the title."
Nathan pulled her closer. "Oh, there's the teacher voice. Why do I love that one so much?"
Elizabeth moved back to look at him and laughed. "You still haven't told me about all my voices! What does that even mean?"
Nathan smiled mysteriously. "A topic for another evening," he said.
"So," Nathan said, "My books go by author and yours by title. We are now married and our goods and chattels are combined." He grinned at her and said, "Will this be our first disagreement?"
Elizabeth smiled up at him. "We've had plenty of disagreements. I seem to recall quite a few early on," she said.
Nathan nodded. "You were right a lot of the time."
"So were you," Elizabeth said. "I could always see it from your point of view, even if I didn't agree."
Nathan turned to her as they walked. "It was a good thing, I think. That we had those quarrels, expressed ourselves and worked through it." He laughed softly. "A little like our marriage started a long time ago. When we really got married, we knew what we could expect from each other."
Elizabeth gazed up at him. "It's true. And we've always fought fair. And listened. And still do."
They were at the house now, and without even deciding, they both walked straight to the porch swing and sat in it. They knew as soon as they walked in the door they would be in the middle of the life of the family. And wonderful as that was, they also wanted to stretch out this time, just the two of them.
"Only for a minute..." Nathan said, pulling her gently on to his chest.
"Maybe two," Elizabeth said, cuddling next to him.
Nathan's hands naturally went to Elizabeth's stomach, resting there protectively. "Boy or girl?" he whispered, "What's your guess?"
She smiled. "Too soon. I'll let you know when he or she starts talking to me."
Nathan's eyebrows went up. "They talk to you?"
Elizabeth laughed. "Not in the strict sense of talking. When I was pregnant with Jack, I would get thoughts that seemed to come from outside of me, maybe from God, who knows? But now that I know him, I think it was little Jack."
Nathan shook his head in wonder, and said, "Thank you, Elizabeth, for this adventure."
She laughed. "Tell me that again when I'm big as this house, cranky, and more emotional than I am now!"
He hugged her tightly. "I'll still be thanking you, out of pure gratitude that I don't have to do this..."
Elizabeth smiled. "It's very good that you know to say that."
They looked up at the stars for a time, enjoying the silence of the porch and the sound of laughter from inside the house.
Nathan said suddenly, "I just remembered something you promised me that I've never seen."
Elizabeth turned to him. "What?"
"The purple riding culottes that Rosemary made for our horse courting," he said. "The ones you didn't want to wear."
Elizabeth laughed and put her hands on her stomach. "Well, it had better be tonight, because I'm not sure how much longer I'll be able to get them on."
Nathan whispered softly, "Tonight it is."
Elizabeth felt the heat come into her cheeks and she smiled back up at him. "You know, I told Rosemary that those were so bright that you could probably find me in the dark."
Since nothing more needed to be said, Nathan simply kissed her. Then, drawn by the sound of the voices inside and the glow through the windows, they stood and walked in to join the rest of their family.
Down at the row houses, Julie and Lucas stood on the front porch.
"I had a very nice evening," Julie said.
Lucas smiled. "As did I." He took her hand, looking down as he intertwined his fingers with hers. "And I hope that the combination of business and pleasure didn't diminish your enjoyment of our first date," he said, looking up into her eyes.
Julie shook her head. "Not at all." She was allowing him to continue to hold her hand, and she'd had enough experience of these goodnight moments to know that he wanted to kiss her. She was surprised by the fact that she wanted it too.
But there was more at stake. This wasn't just a flirtation; they were now business partners. The tightrope she was walking was to keep that relationship intact while still exploring how she was feeling about him, which had only deepened over the course of the evening.
Julie was very good at fluttering her fan and being enigmatic, but as she stood looking at Lucas, she realized that she wanted to be more than that to him. And somehow, the only answer seemed to be honesty.
"We're friends, aren't we, Lucas?" she said, smiling.
Pushing down the sinking feeling those words gave him, Lucas nodded. "Yes, we are."
"I can't remember a time when I had a man as a friend, and I've enjoyed the last three months with you so much." Julie could see the frown beginning between his dark brows and before she knew she was doing it, she reached up and touched the lines she saw forming there. "No, this isn't bad. I'm just trying to think of how to say it."
Her touch so relaxed him that Lucas was taken aback. He wanted very much to kiss her, but he wanted more to hear what she had to say, and that was a new feeling for him. Always the traveler, he decided to just let go and see where this was heading.
Julie said, "I had a wonderful time, and I'm glad you called it our first date, because I'd like to do this again. But I have to know that we can keep the business part of it separate," she said.
To the question in her eyes, Lucas said, "I agree, but..." He took a deep breath. "I can't deny wanting to know if we can be more than friends, Julie."
The blush overtook her cheeks again, and she laughed. She held her palm over one side of her face. "This..." she said, touching the heat with her fingers, "...hasn't happened to me in a long time. It's distressing to me that what I'm feeling is so obvious."
Lucas gently took her hand from her face. "Don't cover it up, please. It makes you even lovelier."
Julie said, "Well, I'm glad you think so because it seems to happen whether I want it to or not."
Smiling, Lucas said, "Look, I know it can be tricky to mix business and personal relationships. It can help to put everything very clearly in writing, and I think we should do that. And I can promise you that, apart from my obvious..." Lucas paused, "...my obvious attraction to you, I also have tremendous respect for your talents. If for some reason this doesn't work out, I don't want to lose you, professionally. I'll do everything I can to make sure that doesn't happen."
It was exactly what she needed to hear. Julie smiled brightly at him. "Thank you. I hope you don't mind if I remind you of this conversation someday."
He bowed his head very slightly. "I would expect nothing less."
Lucas reached his hand up tentatively and touched her cheek gently with his thumb. "So, what does this blush mean, precisely?" he asked.
Julie looked down, suddenly shy. "I suppose it means that I like you," she said, softly. And now she actually felt twelve years old, so she shook her head. "Honestly, I'm usually much more in control than this. And I don't understand it, because you and I have spent so many hours, days, weeks together."
"Julie," he said, trying to meet her eyes and needing her to look up. When she finally did, he said, "I like you, too. Very much."
Very slowly, and giving her every chance in the world to stop him, Lucas moved closer. Julie sighed and whispered, "Are we really doing this?"
"I think so," he whispered back, just inches from her lips. "Tell me no and I'll stop."
Julie closed her eyes. "I don't want you to stop."
His lips touched hers and now he could feel the heat in her cheeks on his own. It only made him want her more. Lucas put his arms around her and drew her to him, and she didn't resist. He didn't want to stop, but on some level, he knew there would be time for more, and he pulled away just as slowly.
Julie smiled. "That was as lovely as I imagined it would be," she whispered against his cheek.
Lucas pulled back and raised an eyebrow. "You imagined it?"
Julie laughed softly and tilted her head. "And you haven't?"
He smiled. "Perhaps once or twice." Lucas cupped her face with his palm and kissed her again, quickly. "Goodnight, Julie." He turned and walked down the steps toward his car as she put her key in the door.
"Oh, Julie," Lucas said from the bottom of the steps. "You probably know that Nathan and Elizabeth are having a birthday party for Archie on Saturday at their new house?" He smiled at her. "I was wondering if you wanted to go with me."
Julie smiled as she opened her door. "Our second date? I would be delighted."
"And I was thinking, since we're asked to bring a favorite dish, that we could consult on something for Gustav to create?"
She smiled, "That would be fun."
"So, tomorrow," Lucas said, backing down toward his car. "Come by and we'll talk about it."
Julie laughed. "You mean, like I have practically every day for the last three months?" She smiled at him tenderly. "Nothing has changed, Lucas."
He waved and got into his car, smiling.
And everything has, he thought, his heart beating solidly in his chest.
