Elizabeth, mortified at getting caught sleeping with Jack again by her father, went straight home and buried her face in the pillow on her couch.
"I am a grown woman," she said to herself as she sat up.
There was a knock at her door. She opened it to find Julie.
"Hey, sis. What are you doing here?"
She stepped into the house, "Beth, what did you do to get mom in such a tizzy?"
"Huh? Oh, ya. Well, she caught Jack and I in a make out session on the elevator. The doors opened and her and Charlotte were standing there staring at us mid kiss. Oh, and I was sitting on his lap in the wheelchair."
"Oh my. I'm going to need more details than that, dear sis."
Elizabeth poured herself and Julie each a glass of iced tea and they sat at her island in the kitchen. Elizabeth told Julie all about getting caught with Jack in bed...twice...by their dad.
"Caught in bed with him?!" Julie squealed.
"No, no, no. Not like that. We were fully clothed and just sleeping."
"Oh, ok. Good."
"Julie, you know me better than that. I would never."
"I know, that's why I was shocked."
"So, what's going on between you and Tom?"
"Why, whatever do you mean?" Julie's voice went up an octave when she said that, alerting Elizabeth that there was a secret.
Elizabeth just looked at Julie, raising one eyebrow.
"Oh alright. We've been talking and have gone out to dinner and a movie a couple times. That's all."
"Now, I'm going to need more details, dear sis." Elizabeth echoed back to Julie.
Julie told Elizabeth about the long, late-night talks that she'd had with Tom in the den, walks along the trail, dinners at off-base restaurants in hopes not to run into their parents.
"Why hide it?" Elizabeth asked.
"Just for now. It's new. This might not even go anywhere so why get the third degree from mom and dad if it isn't necessary."
"Oh, don't I know that."
The sisters laughed together. Something Elizabeth missed while her sister was off to college.
"When is your last day of work for the school year?" Julie asked.
"Tuesday is the kids' last day, then Wednesday we have our last day. Then I'm free all summer."
"Wonderful. Will Jack be able to get out of the hospital more and actually go places?"
"I think so. He's starting to get around pretty well. Just needs to build his muscles back up from being in bed for so long."
"You know, I've heard mom and dad talking. Jack is lucky to be alive. He had a gun pointed at his face, twice."
Elizabeth gasped, "What?"
"Yes, during the attack, after his Humvee rolled. An enemy soldier walked up on Jack and smashed his hand then pointed a gun at his face."
"Oh my gosh. I had no idea. I knew about the Humvee but that was all."
"You might want to be careful, sis. You know how men with PTSD can get."
"I know, Julie. Jack has been fine. He's had nightmares but that's it."
"So far."
"That's enough. Jack is doing great right now. He's in therapy and working through things."
"Just be careful, okay?"
"Okay. I will."
The two sisters talked for another hour before retiring to the living room to watch a movie.
"How about The Proposal with Sandra Bullock?" Julie asked.
"I love that one. Yes, good choice."
Their movie was over before lunch and the sisters were deliberating on what to do next.
"I know. What is Tom doing now?"
"I'm not sure, I can call and ask him."
"Yes, see if he can meet us at the hospital. We can take Jack out to lunch somewhere."
"That's a great idea. I'll call Tom."
Julie walked into the next room to make her phone call so Elizabeth picked up her phone to call Jack.
"Hello."
"Hey there, handsome."
"Hi, sexy. What are you doing?"
"Julie is over here and we were talking."
"Oh, no."
Elizabeth laughed, "No, she's calling Tom to see if he's free. We thought we could all come and break you out of there and go get lunch somewhere."
"That would be awesome! Please, come get me."
"Will do. We'll leave here shortly."
"Hey, Elizabeth?"
"Yes."
"Can you ask Tom to bring me some clothes that covers my backside?"
The two of them laughed before Elizabeth could get a "yes" out.
The trio showed up at the hospital at the same time. Tom had a small duffle bag filled with clothes for Jack. After he helped Jack get dressed, they made their way to the parking lot.
"Who's driving?"
"I will," Elizabeth offered.
"Where are you parked?" Tom asked.
"Section 16. I'll go get it and drive up here so Jack doesn't have to try to walk all that way."
Jack, Tom and Julie stood in front of the entrance when they could hear a low rumble of a car coming their way. A candy apple red Dodge Charger pulled up in front of them and stopped. It had black racing stripes, dark tinted windows, custom chrome rims and sounded like the exhaust had been modified. The brothers were drooling over it when Elizabeth opened her door and stepped out.
"This is yours?!" Tom exclaimed.
"Yep," she smiled. "Like it?"
"Oh, man, do we."
Jack, on crutches, made his way around the car, looking it over. "This is really nice, Elizabeth."
"Thanks. Dad has always been a car guy so I would hang out with him when he was home on leave. He was always tuning up his car or something. We went to a lot of car shows together. So, I picked it up from him. I guess I'm the son he never had." All four of them laughed.
Jack walked up to Elizabeth, who was waiting at the passenger door for him. "You are full of surprises," he whispered in her ear then kissed her cheek.
Once they were off the base and headed north on Prim Street, Elizabeth asked what everyone was hungry for.
"Your choice Jack." Tom added.
"I am craving a really good burger."
"How about Red Robin?" Julie asked.
"That sounds great."
Elizabeth drove the five blocks to the restaurant; the guys were commenting on her car the entire way. They got Jack unloaded at the front of the restaurant and they waited as Elizabeth parked the car. Jack stared at her as she climbed out of the car and walked to him.
"Why are you staring?" she asked him when she got next to him.
"You are an amazing woman, Elizabeth Thatcher. And the more I learn about you, the sexier you get." Jack leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips, sending chills through her body.
The group spent two hours at the restaurant, eating, laughing, learning everything they could about one another.
"Oh, they are moving me to a different room on the third floor near the therapy room."
"Oh, that's great, Jack." Elizabeth replied.
"It's not a private room," he winked at her.
Her face turned bright red, "Jack."
Tom and Julie burst out in laughter at Elizabeth's reaction.
When they returned to the hospital, they found that Jack had been moved to his new room already. Elizabeth walked with him down to room 320 and walked inside. Jack was correct, there were two beds, however, no one was occupying the second bed at the time. Jack turned to Elizabeth and wiggled his eyebrows, causing her to blush.
"Now, Jack."
"I know, I know. No funny business. I'm just teasing. But snuggling is still open isn't it?" He added, smiling at her with his dimpled grin.
"Yes, snuggling is always on the table."
Jack had settled into his new room comfortably. He and Elizabeth cuddled on the bed, which was slightly smaller than one he'd been in; but that was okay with them.
Jack had drifted off the sleep but Elizabeth was still wide awake. She sat up, looking Jack over. He was hot and had pulled his shirt off just before falling asleep; Elizabeth could see all his scars on his tanned skin. She traced a long, jagged scar that covered half his abdomen. Then she noticed the smaller one, the one from the splenectomy; she ran her finger over it, feeling its roughness.
Then she saw something she hadn't noticed on him before; small round scars. One in his shoulder, two in his arm and one in his side. She had seen these before, on her own father. Gunshot wounds. She held back a gasp at all the scars she could see on her sweet Jack. He had lost some muscle tone since she first met him; a side effect of being bed ridden for so long. But his skin was still tanned; his arms and face more so than the rest of him.
She ran her fingers over his bicep which was still defined, despite the lack of use. That will change now, she thought to herself.
"See something you like?"
Elizabeth jumped at the question.
Jack laughed, "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."
Elizabeth let out a giggle. "Sorry, did I wake you?"
"No, hard to stay asleep these days."
"Why is that?" Elizabeth asked concerned.
"Demons."
The word made Elizabeth's hair stand up on her arms. "What do you mean?"
"Pastor Hogan's sermon that first time we went; he spoke of inner demons."
"Yes." Elizabeth's face was full of worry.
"Well, I'm still battling mine and they pop up in my dreams."
"Oh, Jack. I thought that was getting better."
"They are fewer, but they are still there." Jack took her hand and placed it over his heart, holding onto it tight. "Have I ever told you about my dreams when I was in a coma?"
"No. Only that you saw me and the characters from the stories I was reading you."
"Yes, you were there. Almost every time. It was I guess the early 1900s, little frontier town called Hope Valley. You would walk up to me and talk to me. My mom, Faith and Dr. Shepherd too. I was at complete peace there, especially when you were with me."
"What did we do...or do I dare ask?" She said, winking at him.
Jack grinned, "No, definitely none of that. It was always different. I think it depended on what was happening out here; it controlled what was happening in my dreams to a point. But you would talk to me, always introducing people to me like Anne with an E." Jack laughed. "Sometime you would just sit and hold my hand and we wouldn't say a word." Jack smiled, "One time, we were riding horses, running through a field. That was a really great one."
Elizabeth chuckled, "Do you ride?"
"Yes, I do. I love it. There's nothing like the freedom of running through an open field. Do you ride?"
"I have a few times, but it's been a while."
"Oh, I want to take you riding someday. When I get out of this joint, that's what we'll do."
Elizabeth smiled, "Sounds perfect. What else happened in those dreams?" She saw the light leave his eyes at the question and wished she had never asked it. "I'm sorry, Jack. You don't have to tell me."
He looked her in the eyes, leaned down and kissed her, then began. "Remember that day I started screaming, coming out of that dream?"
"Yes, I said we all died."
"Yes, you, ma and Tom were walking toward me. Buildings began to explode, then gunfire. People were running all over the place, dropping from getting shot. Then Tom went down, then you and ma. It was like Iraq invaded my safe place. It was horrible."
A few tears slipped down Elizabeth's cheeks.
"In a later dream, I was walking through Hope Valley and the buildings all transformed into the buildings in the that town in Iraq. Then I could see the Humvees drive by, the ones my platoon was in. I could see myself driving and my guys inside it. I saw the entire incident happen, but from a bystander's viewpoint. I saw Private Burke shoot a man, saving my life. The man was about to shoot me right after crushing my hand. Then Burke pulled me from the vehicle, picked me up and tried to carry me to safety. But he was killed trying to save me." Tears began to fall from Jack's eyes as he relived that fateful day. "Another insurgent was over me, about to shoot me, when another unit came in and shot him. I almost died that day. I should have died that day."
"Jack. Don't say that."
"I don't mean that I wish I had died. I mean that...how do I say this? Many circumstances happened just right in order for me to still be here. The right side of the Humvee was blown opened from the IED instead of the left side, where I was sitting. Burke coming around the Humvee when he did and shooting that guy. Burke carried me out near the point the new unit dropped in so they were by my side in time to shoot the second man that tried to shoot me. If any one of those things were different, I wouldn't be here today."
Elizabeth had full tears flowing now. She couldn't imagine her life without Jack in it. She wrapped her arms around him, holding him close. Jack kissed the top of her head.
"Thank you for sharing that with me, Jack. I know it couldn't have been easy."
"My therapist has informed me to not hold things in."
"Sounds like a smart man." She forced a smile.
"Something else my therapist said, he wants you to come to a couple sessions."
"What? Really?"
"Yes, if you want to that is. I talk about you a lot in sessions and he thinks it would help me if you were in a couple. He also wants you to learn a method to talk me down if I ever have an episode that many soldiers with PTSD have."
"Episode? Have you had any?"
"No, not yet. Many can get triggered by something; a sound, a voice, seeing something on TV. It can send them back to that day and some have a hard time coming out of it without help. He's taught me some breathing and mental exercises to help me stay...present. But if it doesn't work, then there are ways to safely bring me back."
"Absolutely, Jack. Tell me when you want me there and I'll go."
"When is your last day of school?"
"Wednesday."
"I can see if we can do Thursday, would that work?"
"Yes, Jack." She raised her hand up to touch his face. He lowered down to her lips and gently kissed her. "I love you, Jack."
"I love you too. Thank you."
"For what?"
"For giving me a reason to live, a reason to get better and to learn to control this. Thank you for loving me."
Elizabeth stretched up to reach his lips and kissed him passionately, letting him know just how much she loved him.
When she pulled back, she could see there was still something bothering Jack.
"What's wrong?"
"There is still something I need to tell you, but I'm afraid to."
"Jack, you can tell me anything."
"But you'll see me differently. I can't lose you."
"Jack, it doesn't matter what you tell me; I will never leave you."
Jack looked away and stared out the window for a moment, then looked back to Elizabeth. "I was in love once, or at least I thought I was. We met at AIT, then got stationed at the same base. We started dating and things got pretty serious. I was about to propose to her when she got deployed overseas. I guess it wasn't as serious for her as it was for me; she broke up with me before she left."
"That's fine, Jack. I never thought I was your first girlfriend."
"There's more. Madison and I...well...were together."
Elizabeth looked at Jack, not realizing what he was saying at first, and then it hit her. Together. They had been together.
"Elizabeth?"
She looked back at Jack and reached up to his face, "That's fine, Jack."
Jack let out the breath he'd been holding in, then noticed the look in her eyes had changed slightly. "Are you sure it's fine, because you don't look like you think that."
Elizabeth took in a deep breath before starting, "Yes, Jack. I am a virgin. I assume by this conversation that you have already figured that out. And Yes, I want to wait until I'm married. And I hope that you are okay with that."
Jack let out a laugh, "I am more than okay with that, Elizabeth. That's why I'm telling you this. I want to be completely open with you. But I was afraid that you wouldn't want me anymore."
"Jack, to be honest with you, I never thought you were still a virgin. I had hoped in the back of my mind that you might be, but it was way in the back." They both let out a laugh. "Do I wish you were, yes, I do. But that's in the past and we can't change that."
"Elizabeth, you are the most amazing woman I have ever met. And do you remember that I said I was in love once, or at least I thought I was?"
She nodded.
"I thought I had been in love until I met you. My heart stopped the first time I saw your face, the butterflies in my stomach were doing summersaults. I had to remind myself to breathe when you looked into my eyes. I ached when you left the room, even for a moment. You have become my peace, my safe place. I want to be a better man because of you; for you. Your laugh intoxicates me, your smile drives me wild, your kisses send me to a place that I didn't know existed. I don't see any kind of future that doesn't have you in it. That is love, Elizabeth. Now I know it. And I don't ever want to lose it."
Elizabeth let out a little breath, tears welling up in her eyes. She rolled over onto Jack, straddling him. He carefully placed his hands on her hips. She leaned down and kissed him deeper and with more passion than she ever had before, though Jack didn't think that was possible. He met her passion, but refrained his hands from wandering where they shouldn't. He slowly moved them up her back, stopping at her shoulder blades, and pulling her kiss in deeper.
Jack couldn't get enough of this woman and he wanted all of her. But he knew they had time, they had forever. He would wait for however long he needed to.