Four years later, December 1923
Jack hung up the phone and looked at me. "They're home and ready for the children."
"I'll go let them know."
"Are you sure you don't want to take them?"
I looked at him, blinking slowly. "You know how I feel about that car. I have absolutely no desire to drive. Besides, once I see those babies, I'm not going to be able to leave."
"Good point. I'll get the car ready." He kissed my cheek and headed outside.
I made my way over to the kitchen, where Patrick and Jane were busy coloring at the breakfast table. "Patrick, finish up there, please. That was your dad on the phone. They just got home."
"Does he have to leave, mama?" Jane looked up at me, a pout on her face. At seven years old, Jane and Patrick were still best friends and hated any time they had to say goodbye to each other.
"Yes. You'll see each other at school tomorrow." I addressed Patrick again. "Is your bag already packed?"
"Yes, ma'am. It's in Levi's room."
"I'll go get it while you and Jane clean this up."
I traipsed up the stairs, making my way to Levi's bedroom.
"Levi Jack," I groaned when I entered the room. His dresser drawers were all open, and clothes were strewn across the floor.
"Hi, mama." He crawled out from under his bed. "I get dressed!"
"I see that, Levi, but I thought we told you to stop hiding under your bed."
"But I need something."
"What's under your bed that's so important?"
"Shoes." He held up a little boot.
I shook my head and laughed. "You silly boy. Let's go say goodbye to Hannah and Patrick, and then you and I are going to put your clothes back in the dresser, okay?"
"Yes, mama."
I found Patrick's bag and picked it up before taking Levi's hand and heading across the hall to the girls' room. Hannah was reclining on Jane's bed, reading a book.
"Hannah, sweetheart, your parents are home with the babies. Mountie Jack is going to take you and your brother over there."
"Okay, Mrs. Thornton. I'll be right down."
A few minutes later, I stood on the porch with Jane, Ellie, and Levi as we waved at Hannah and Patrick. Once the car was out of sight, I turned to the girls.
"Let's go back inside before we all freeze."
"Okay, mama."
The girls immediately settled on the floor next to the fireplace. Chief walked over and curled up between them. I lifted Levi into my arms.
"Goodness, little man, you're getting so big. Let's go check on your brothers and get your room cleaned up." I looked over at the girls again. Jane was sprawled out, staring into the fireplace, and Ellie was using Chief as a pillow, gently petting his neck. "Girls, I'm going to check on the twins. I'll be right upstairs if you need me."
"Okay."
Once upstairs, I shooed Levi to his room, promising to join him shortly. I peered into the nursery, where our two-year-old twins were supposed to be napping. Daniel was fast asleep in his crib, but Benjamin was sitting up in his.
"Mama."
"Hello, my sweet boy. You are supposed to be napping."
He gave me a toothy grin, reaching out his arms.
I lifted him from the crib, settling him on my hip. "What do you say we go see what your big brother is doing? The last time I checked his room, he had his clothes all over the floor, and he was hiding under his bed."
Benjamin giggled.
"That is a silly thing to do, isn't it, Benny?" I lowered him to the floor in Levi's room. "Well, boys, let's see if we can get things cleaned up in here."
...
Jane skipped over to me. "Mama, can I go for a ride with daddy? He said I had to ask you."
"Yes, just be careful, and make sure you bundle up."
"I will."
I glanced across the room at Jack. "You bundle up, too, Jack Thornton."
"Yes, ma'am." He grinned and gave me a little salute. "Ellie girl," he turned toward Eleanor, "do you want to come, too?"
She jumped up and smiled. "Yes, please."
Levi ran over to him. "I go daddy."
"Next time, bud." He ruffled his hair. "It's just me and your sisters this time. You get to stay here and play with your brothers."
He pouted, crossing his little arms in front of his chest. "I want to ride."
"Tell you what. This afternoon, you and I can go for a ride, just the two of us. Okay?"
The girls donned their coats and hats—it took some persuading for Jane, as she still hated wearing hats—and followed Jack out to the barn.
"Well, boys, it looks like it's just us for a little while. What should we do?"
"Let's read, mama."
"You want to read? Go choose a book, then." I nudged Levi toward the bookshelf.
He looked back at me. "Benny and Daniel pick, too."
"Okay. Boys, go help your brother choose a couple of books to read, and then we can all snuggle up on the sofa."
A few minutes later, I was on the sofa with my three boys. Daniel was curled up in my lap, and Benjamin and Levi were leaning against either side of me.
As I read The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Benjamin dozed off, his thumb in his mouth. By the time I finished the second book they had chosen, all three boys were fast asleep.
I closed the book and set it aside. I looked at my boys as they slept so peacefully. It was a rare moment to have all of them napping at the same time, so I knew I needed to savor it.
Daniel sighed and snuggled further into me. I kissed the top of his head.
"I love you boys so much," I whispered.
...
"Look at these babies." I smiled at the two newest Hope Valley residents who were lying peacefully in the crib; Oliver Henry and Catherine Elaine Coulter. They were almost five months old, both with green eyes and dark blonde hair.
Shortly after they were born, they had been left at the same orphanage that Patrick had been in. When the women running the orphanage contacted Rosemary and Lee to tell them they had a set of twins, they immediately started planning to bring them home. Now it had been a few days since Rosemary and Lee had brought them to Hope Valley, and they seemed to be settling in well.
Rosemary came to stand beside me, peering in at her new babies. "Aren't they just perfect?"
"They're beautiful." I gently touched Oliver's cheek. He opened his eyes, blinking slowly. "How are Hannah and Patrick adjusting to having two more siblings?"
"Better than I expected." She reached into the crib and lifted Catherine out. "Hannah's so thrilled to have a sister, and Patrick loves holding them."
"That's wonderful." I reached toward Oliver. "May I?"
"Of course."
I lifted the little boy to my shoulder. "Hello, little one. Aren't you just darling?"
"Just to warn you, I might be coming to you and Clara with lots of questions about twins."
I chuckled. "It is different than having one at a time, that's for sure, but at least yours aren't identical. I think two sets of identical twins will be more than enough for one classroom once mine and the Flynn boys are in school."
Rosemary shook her head. "Clara brings Andrew and Peter to the dress shop all the time, and I still can't tell them apart."
"Neither can I. And it took me longer than I care to admit to be able to tell Daniel and Benjamin apart, and they're mine! Even now, it sometimes takes me a moment to know which one is in front of me." I shifted Oliver in my arms. "I still can't believe Jack and I ended up with not one but two children who look just like him." I laughed softly. "Charlotte can't tell them apart either, so she just calls them Jack One and Jack Two."
"That sounds like Charlotte." Rosemary grinned when Catherine cooed. "Goodness, it baffles me that I was ever afraid of being a mother. These little ones bring so much joy to my life."
"I know just what you mean."
...
Jack stood with his hands on his hips. "Okay, Thorntons. Who wants to go get a Christmas tree?"
"Me!" The children all shouted.
"Before we go, we all need to bundle up. It's cold outside, so everyone needs a hat, a coat, and mittens."
"Mama. Help, pease." Benjamin toddled over, carrying his coat.
I slipped the coat onto his shoulders. "You need your boots, too, Benny. Ask dad to help you with the laces."
After buttoning up multiple coats, resituating hats on heads, and lacing up boots, we were ready to go.
Jack had already hitched up the wagon, and we loaded all five children into the back.
I turned around once Jack got the wagon moving. "How big should the tree be?"
"Bigger than daddy!" Jane yelled.
"Bigger than me?" Jack questioned. "How much bigger?"
Ellie reached her hands in the air. "To the ceiling!"
Jack chuckled. "But if it goes to the ceiling, then there won't be room for the star on top."
"Then just a little shorter than the ceiling."
"How about we get one that's just a little taller than me? After all, I need to be able to reach to put the ornaments at the top."
Jane frowned. "But I could get on your shoulders and reach even higher."
"Let's just wait until we get into the woods and see what we can find," I suggested.
It didn't take long for us to find a good selection of trees. We unloaded the children, reminding them to stay close while they surveyed the available trees.
I slipped my hand into Jack's, a smile playing on my lips. "Do you remember the first time we looked for a tree together after we got married?"
"You mean the year that I had to do all the work because your morning sickness was conveniently bad that day?" He chuckled. "I remember it well."
"You can blame Jane for that." I laughed and shook my head. "I can't believe this is our eighth Christmas together since we've been married."
He nudged me. "We're getting old, Mrs. Thornton."
Jane's voice sounded from up ahead. "Mama! Daddy! We found a tree!"
"Come see!"
"Let's go, Corporal. You have a tree to cut down."
...
"Mama! Daddy!" Jane jumped up on the bed, followed by Ellie. "It's Christmas!"
"And it's snowing!"
Jack looked at me and smiled. "So I guess this isn't the year they decide to let us sleep in on Christmas."
Ellie crawled over me. "When do we get presents?"
"We will open presents after breakfast, and we won't have breakfast until your brothers are awake."
"We can wake them up!" Jane offered.
"No, Janie. We don't need you to do that."
Jack sat up. "How about we go downstairs and get started on breakfast? Then we can have it ready as soon as the boys are up."
"Okay, daddy!"
They climbed off the bed and ran downstairs.
"It is way too early for them to have this much energy." Jack shook his head and laughed. "I should probably get down there before they destroy the kitchen."
"Good idea. I'll be down there soon."
By the time I made my way downstairs with the boys, Jack and the girls had a pile of pancakes waiting on the stove.
"Good morning, boys." Jack smiled at our sons. "Merry Christmas."
"I want presents!" Levi shouted.
Jane took her brother's hand, leading him to the table. "After breakfast, Levi."
Jack placed the plate of pancakes in the center of the table. "Thank you for helping me make breakfast, girls."
"You're welcome, daddy. Can we eat now?"
"Yes, we can."
The children scarfed down their food, eager to get to their presents.
...
"Checkmate!" Jane grinned and looked at Jack. "I win, daddy!"
"Again? You're getting too good at this, Janie."
She smiled, resetting the board. "I need to beat Patrick."
"Well, then it's a good thing you have your own chess set to practice with now."
"Let's play again."
Jack chuckled. "I need a little break before you beat me again."
She pretended to pout. "Okay, daddy."
He came over to the sofa and took a seat beside me. "So, the chess set was a good choice."
"For Jane, yes. For you, no." I smirked.
"In my defense, it's been a very long time since I've played chess."
I patted his chest and chuckled. "Whatever you say."
He rested his arm across my shoulders. "Aside from losing multiple games of chess to our seven-year-old, I'd say it's been a good Christmas."
I looked around the room at our children. Jane was now playing chess against herself; Ellie was lying on her stomach, drawing something in her new sketchbook; Levi was busy rolling his train across the floor; and Daniel and Benjamin were building with their new sets of Lincoln Logs and Tinker Toys.
"It has been good." I leaned into him. "I love our life, Jack."
He lifted my face to his, kissing me gently. "I love you."
...
A/N Just a heads up, the next chapter (chapter 75) will be the last in this story! Thank you all for sticking with me this long!
