Sorry for taking so long getting this next chapter posted. I started a couple new project that were very time consuming but they are done now. If you'd like to see them, copy and paste these links into your browser. I did 2 different photo album vids of our favorite couple. Part 2 is extra special!
watch?v=ERTujEa5LmM
watch?v=X73rceJoJrE
Thank you everyone for reading my story! Enjoy this next one.
The twins were six months old now, rolling over and amazing their parents every day. As Elizabeth had predicted, she was unable to nurse them. By the time she was able to try nursing again, the twins had been on a bottle for over a week and showed no interest in nursing. Elizabeth missed that special bond between her and her babies. For a little while she felt another emptiness, adding to the emptiness that left a void inside her from the loss of their baby. But Elizabeth had found other ways to bond with them in snuggling and singing. She would cuddle with them in the bed and sing to them; the twins were always mesmerized by their mother and her beautiful singing voice. Elizabeth would often times catch Jack standing in the doorway, listening to her sing a lullaby.
Jack returned to work only three weeks after the shooting. Elizabeth was doing better than expected and had the help of Laura now. Jack's shoulder was almost back to normal, only an occasional twinge of pain if he lifted something heavy. He had a pile of paperwork to catch up on his first day back at the jail. Bill wanted to do some but they had to be completed by a Mountie so he was unable to. As Jack was thumbing through the forms, one caught his eye: Shooting of Elizabeth Thornton was typed across the top. He could see that Bill had filled out what he could, but the rest had to be done by Jack. He set it aside to do later. Two hours into his day, Jack had most of the paperwork caught up and returned to the one on the shooting. Bill had the date and time, victim's name, suspect's name and location filled out. But in the middle of the form was an area for "account of the incident".
Jack inserted it into the typewriter and began typing, starting with the interaction in the saloon. His hands began to shake when he got to the part of Elizabeth. Images of her blood-soaked shirt flashed in his head. He shook his hands out and shook his head trying to eradicate the thoughts. He returned his hands to the typewriter and finished as quickly as he could so he could be done with it and put it behind him forever.
Just as he was finishing the form, the door to the jail opened. Jack looked up to see Lucas walk in. He stood as Lucas approached his desk.
"Good morning, Lucas. What can I help you with today?
"Good morning, Jack," Lucas put his hand out for Jack to shake. "I was wondering if you had a moment to talk?"
"Sure," Jack motioned toward the chair for Lucas to sit and then sat down himself.
"First, I'd like to apologize for that day at the saloon. I should have done more to stop those men. Maybe Elizabeth wouldn't have gotten hurt if I had stopped serving them."
"I won't lie, I thought the same thing at the beginning. But since then, I've had time to think about it and have talked to my wife many times about it. Neither one of us blame you for what happened, Lucas. You could not control what those men did."
"Thank you for saying that but I still feel like I could have done something to prevent it."
"Let's say you did cut them off and kicked them out. Who's to say they would not have done the exact same thing, except this time killing someone. Multiple people even."
"But he did kill someone." Lucas with a regretful tone in his voice.
Jack's eyes dropped to the desk as he thought about his poor baby that he would never get to see grow up. "Yes." He said quietly. "Yes, he did kill someone."
"I'm very sorry for your loss, Jack."
"Thank you."
After several seconds of silence, Lucas started again, "I assume that Elizabeth told you about our talk."
Jack looked back up to him, "Yes, she did. And I'm sorry for your loss. I know how I felt when I thought Elizabeth could die, I don't wish that on anyone."
"Thank you. Well, I just want to start over. Clean slate. I would like to make a home in Hope Valley."
"Hope Valley is definitely a great place to call home." Jack fiddled with a pencil in his hand then looked back at Lucas, "Look, I'd like to apologize. I jumped to conclusions when you first arrived. I should have gotten to know you better first."
"It's not your fault. I wasn't being forthcoming and wouldn't have opened up to anyone anyway."
"Yes, so why Elizabeth? That's been on my mind lately."
"She reminds me of my fiancé. I guess I felt comfortable with her so I was able to open up. I hadn't spoken to anyone about Sarah before talking to Elizabeth. It really helps to talk about it. I've been so bitter for so long; I just didn't know any other way to live. I feel like I've had a weight lifted off my shoulders now. It's hard to explain"
"Yes, Elizabeth is easy to talk to." Jack nodded.
"I hope you can stop by the saloon sometime; have a beer on the house."
"Thank you, Lucas. I just might do that."
"Well, I'll let you get back to your work. I'll see you around."
They both stood and Jack followed Lucas to the door. "Thanks for stopping by. Please, let us know if you ever need anything." Jack shook his hand.
"Thanks, Jack." Lucas nodded his head and returned to the saloon.
It had been a year since Jack and Elizabeth had moved into their new home. Joseph and Lillian at almost seven months old were laying on the quilt on the floor of the kitchen, playing with blocks. The mid-summer heat was beginning to set in and Elizabeth and Rosemary fanned themselves while they worked.
"This has got to be the most miserable summer I have ever experienced," Rosemary said as she tugged at the top of her blouse. At five months along, her belly was beginning to swell quite a bit, making it very uncomfortable in the hot weather.
Rosemary and Elizabeth were baking cakes, cookies and pies for the summer festival that the town was holding that weekend. Rosemary had even shared her chocolate cake recipe with Elizabeth and helped her make it.
"Are all the games lined up?" Elizabeth asked Rosemary.
"Yes, we are bringing back the kissing booth and the photo booth. Michael is building a test your strength game. I wanted to do my fortune teller booth again but I don't fit in the dress." Rosemary rolled her eyes.
Elizabeth let out a small giggle, "Well, maybe next year." She handed the bowl of cookie dough she'd been mixing to Rosemary. "Do you think we are making enough items for the bake sale?"
"Well, we've got a berry pie, peach pie, chocolate cake, oatmeal cookies and an apple cobbler. Maybe some more cookies?"
"I have a great recipe for chocolate cookies from Abigail. I've been wanting to give it a try."
"That sounds great. You get started on those while I finish these."
Elizabeth and Rosemary spent the rest of the morning baking, sharing stories and laughing. When they were finished, Rosemary climbed into her car and drove home to finish some dress sketches.
Jack had been working on a couple banners for the carnival. He had the paper and paints spread across his desk at the jail and had just finished the second one when Jesse walked in.
"Good afternoon, Jack."
"Good afternoon, Jesse. What brings you in today?" Jack picked up a rag to wipe the paint from his hands.
"I was actually wanting to ask you for a favor." Jesse shifted his weight nervously from foot to foot. "You see, I want to ask Clara to marry me and am thinking about doing it at the festival."
"That's wonderful, Jesse." Jack walked up to him and shook his hand and slapped his shoulder. "How can I help?"
Jesse explained his plans to Jack and they discussed what needed to be done. Jack told Jesse that he would speak to everyone that would be involved.
Jesse stood and put his hand out to shake Jack's, "Thank you for all your help. I just want this to be perfect."
Jack shook his hand, "It will be, man. We'll do everything we can to make sure of it."
The morning of the festival, Jack helped Elizabeth load her desserts into the back of the buggy. With twins in tow, they loaded into the buggy and drove to town. Elizabeth met Abigail, Rosemary, Clara and Helen in front of the café to set up the bake sale table. Jack helped Frank finish setting up the photo booth. Lee and Jesse were busy putting the finishing touches on the test your strength while Bill and Carson worked on Bill's chili tasting booth. A local farmer had brought in some baby goats, lambs and a calf for a petting zoo and was unloading them into the small fenced pen that Hickam had just finished setting up.
People from nearby towns were beginning to arrive and main street was filling up. Popcorn, cotton candy and cookies were being devoured by the children. Bill's chili was a hit with the adults and the ladies had already sold half of their desserts in the bake sale.
Jack snuck up behind Elizabeth and covered her eyes. "Guess who," he whispered into her ear.
Elizabeth placed her hands on his and smiled, "Hmmmm. Would it be my gorgeous husband?"
Jack lowered his hands to her waist and turned her toward him, planting a gentle kiss on her lips. "Take a walk with me." He took her hand in his and started down the street.
"Is there a reason for this walk?" She asked him, still smiling.
"There is," he answered, turning his face toward her and smiling back.
They stopped at each booth, playing games, taking photos, buying cookies and even stopped for Bill's chili. Once they made their rounds, they got the twins from Rosemary and Clara who had been watching them and headed for the petting zoo. Jack and Elizabeth, each with one of the babies, sat on straw bales in the middle of the pen while the little animals would sniff them and nibble on their clothes. Joseph and Lillian had full belly laughs each time a goat would nibble on them or the calf licked them.
The entire town and visitors had a wonderful time at the festival. Laughter and conversations could be heard throughout the town. Rosemary could be heard from across the street, telling her tales of staring on Broadway to a visitor. Philip and Opal's laughs were floating from the petting zoo. Voices of the men emitted from around Bill's chili booth where each were sweating from the heat of the chili.
Lucas had talked to Jack and Elizabeth a few times since his talk with Jack in jail. He had finally been excepted by the town and enjoyed his day visiting each booth and chatting with his new friends. Elizabeth looked up from the bake sale table just in time to see him approach Fiona and begin a conversation with her. He had told Elizabeth that he wanted to get to know Fiona better and Elizabeth told him to take a leap and strike up a conversation with her. And he was doing just that. Elizabeth smiled and returned her attention to the few items that remained to be sold.
The time had come and Jesse found Jack and gave him a nod. Jack nodded back and disappeared into crowd, giving each participant the signal.
"Hey, Clara, let's go check out the petting zoo. You have got to see this adorable goat." Elizabeth said as she put her arm through Clara's.
"I've already seen them." Clara said giving Elizabeth a sideways glance.
"Oh, but they are so cute. Let's go see them again." Elizabeth led her to the pen and they stood, leaning over the fence, giving each of the animals treats.
Abigail, Henry, Jack, Carson, Hickam, Frank, Molly, Florence, Helen, Faith, Bill, Shane, Alice, Fiona, Lucas and a dozen others all spread down each side of the street; spaced out evenly. Each person politely asking each of the guests to move out of the street, making a path from Jesse to Clara.
Elizabeth still held Clara's attention to the animals so she hadn't seen what was happening. Jesse stood at the end of the street and gave Elizabeth a nod. Elizabeth stepped back and smiled at Clara.
"What?" Clara asked Elizabeth with a confused look on her face.
Elizabeth tipped her head toward Jesse, motioning to Clara to turn around.
Clara turned and gasped at the sight. Elizabeth took her arm and led her to start walking down the street toward Jesse. Once she was in motion, Elizabeth let go and stepped back to join the others. As she made her way down the street, each of their friends took turns stepping out to her, handing her one red rose.
Clara smiled at each one, her eyes already tearing up. By the time she reached Jesse, she held two dozen roses in her arms. Fiona was waiting near Jesse and stepped forward to hold the roses for her.
Jesse took Clara's hands, nervously looked her in the eyes, "Clara, you have stood by me even when I didn't deserve it. You have made me want to be a better man. You have made my life so much more fulfilling." Jesse knelt on one knee and pulled a box from his pocket, opening it to reveal a beautiful diamond ring. "I would be honored if you would be my wife and let me show you each and every day, just how much you mean to me. Will you marry me?"
Clara was full on crying by now, smiling and nodding. "Yes," she replied, barely audible between her sobs.
Jesse stood and placed the ring on her finger as the town erupted into cheers. All of their friends mobbed them in hugs and congratulations. Clara showed off her ring while Jesse got handshakes and slaps on the back from on their friends.
They finished off a perfect day with a street dance. Jack found Elizabeth visiting with Faith.
"May I have this dance?" He asked with his hand outreached to her.
"You may," she answered as she placed her hand in his. He led her out to the middle of the street and they twirled around to the music. Jesse and Clara, Henry and Abigail, Carson and Faith and Lucas and Fiona joined them. Other couples joined as the song played on.
"This has been the best day in a long time," Elizabeth said to Jack and their friends as they stood in front of the saloon.
"Yes, it has." Abigail agreed.
"I will have to agree with that," Jesse said, pulling Clara in closer.
"Lucas and Fiona seem to be getting chummy," Bill said as he nodded his head in their direction. Everyone turned to see Lucas and Fiona standing very close to one another; seeming lost in conversation.
After a few more minutes of visiting, Jack leaned in to Elizabeth. "Let's go home," he whispered into her ear.
"Okay. Let's go get the twins."
"Well, about that." Jack looked at Elizabeth with a sheepish grin, "Abigail offered to keep them overnight for us."
"What? I don't know about that. I would rather take them home."
"They will be fine and it was Abigail's idea. She wanted some Auntie time with them."
"I don't know." Elizabeth had a nervous look on her face.
"Is there something wrong?" Jack asked her quietly.
Elizabeth looked into Jack's pleading eyes, shook her head, "No, of course not. That would be very nice."
She had said the words, but Jack wasn't convinced. But now wasn't the place to press her for a more satisfying answer.
"Can we at least go tell the twins good night?" She asked.
"Of course." Jack answered.
They walked over to Abigail's where Laura and a few of the other children had been watching the babies. Joseph and Lillian were already asleep in the crib that Abigail kept on hand for times such as this. Jack and Elizabeth each kissed them goodbye and quietly left them, thanking Laura and the kids on their way out.
They walked hand in hand to the livery where Rose was patiently waiting in a stall. Jack pulled her out and led her outside to the buggy. Elizabeth stood and watched as Jack harnessed Rose and hooked her up to the buggy. He turned and held his hand out to her. Elizabeth placed her hand in his and just as she was about to step up into the buggy, Jack pulled her to him, placed his free hand on her cheek and kissed her deeply. It was the first intimate kiss they had had since before the shooting. Elizabeth melted into Jack's arms.
When they finally stopped to take a breath, Jack cupped her face in his hands and with complete admiration in his eyes, taking in every detail of her face, "I love you so much, Elizabeth."
"I love you too."
"Let's go home."
Elizabeth nodded and Jack helped her up into the buggy, climbed in and signaled Rose into a walk. They rode home in silence. Elizabeth had something weighing on her mind and Jack knew it; he just didn't know what it was.
When they reached the house, Jack pulled Rose to a stop and turned to Elizabeth. "Please tell me what is wrong." Jack took her hand in his. "And please don't tell me it's nothing, because I can tell that something is bothering you."
"I'm afraid." Elizabeth looked down at their hands interlocked.
"Afraid of what?"
She paused for a moment then looked up at Jack. "I'm afraid to be intimate with you because I'm afraid to get pregnant again. Losing our baby ripped my heart out." A tear slipped down her cheek.
"Oh, baby." Jack pulled her into a tight embrace. "Why haven't you talked to me about this before now? I was beginning to think you didn't love me anymore. Every time I kissed you or touched you, you'd pull away."
"I know. I'm sorry. I didn't know how to say it. Plus, I was hoping I'd get over it. But the feeling just won't go away. I love you and I want to be with you, I just don't know if I can."
Jack gently pushed a loose curl out of her face and tucked it behind her ear. "Elizabeth, I love you with all my heart. I will wait for however long you need. I will never push you into something you aren't ready for. I thank God every day for saving you and letting me have more time with you. I will treasure each and every day that I have you in my life. If there is every anything troubling you, please talk to me. I want to help you through your difficult times, praise you with your success, celebrate your achievements, and love you through it all."
More tears slipped down her cheeks as Elizabeth listened to his words. She knew her husband loved her but hearing him speak like this just softened her and removed any fear or doubt that she'd been feeling.
"Let's go inside." Jack said as he stood to climb down.
Elizabeth waited by the back door, watching Jack unhitch Rose and put her in the pen with Sergeant. The two horses are always happy to see each other and kick and play when one comes home. Elizabeth smiled at their antics as Jack shut the gate.
As they walked through the house, Jack walked beside her with his hand on the small of her back. Elizabeth loved it when he did that. His simple touch always sent and electric surge through her and tonight it was amplified after what he'd said outside. His love for her was overwhelming and she couldn't hold it in any longer.
Elizabeth stopped, grabbed the collar of Jack's shirt and pulled him in to her. She pressed her body against his and kissed him hard, her tongue finding its way into his mouth. Jack met her enthusiasm and pushed her back against the wall, pressing his body harder against hers. She could feel how much he wanted her and she wanted him just as much.
She began unbuttoning his shirt as quickly as she could. He helped her and pulled his suspenders down and his shirt off. He started on her shirt and made short work of getting it off. He dropped it on the floor next to his and pushed her skirt off, letting it fall onto the floor around her feet. He pressed his half naked body against hers again and kissed her, holding her face in his hands.
He stopped a moment and pulled back, asking, "Are you sure?"
"Yes, very." She grabbed him and pulled him back to her.
After getting her undergarments removed and her shoes off, Jack kicked his boots off and removed his pants. He scooped her up into his arms and carried her into the bedroom, carefully lowering her down onto the bed. He lit the lantern next to the bed then removed his underwear. Jack climbed onto the bed, sitting next her, taking in the sight of his beautiful wife. It was the first time he'd seen the scar after it had healed as she wouldn't change in front of him anymore. A pink, jagged L shaped line ran down her ribcage and across to her navel. He gently placed his hand on the scar and rubbed his thumb across the top of her stomach, as if willing the painful memories of that day to disappear.
Looking up at her face he asked, "What changed your mind?"
"You."
"Me?"
"Yes, what you said outside. I know you love me but hearing you say how much made all my fears go away. I know I won't ever have to go through anything alone as long as I have you by my side."
"No, you won't. Not ever." Jack leaned down her kissed his wife.
They spent the remainder of the evening showing each other how much they loved one another and making up for lost time. Then they fell asleep in each other's arms, their sweaty bodies entwined, their emotional wounds healed.
