Bill's Reaction – Chapter 5
Many thanks to MamaBethany for her tireless efforts to beta read this story.
Elizabeth knew the qualities her father looked for in a person. Growing up, she especially knew the value he placed on honesty. No matter what she or her sisters did, if they were honest with their parents, things would go better for them. With this in mind, Elizabeth knew her father would expect nothing less than complete honesty from her, now.
In order to provide him with the answers he desired, she had to go back to the very beginning – her relationship with Jack Thornton.
"Well, Father, to answer your question, I did not share the news of our courtship, because I knew Lucas would never have received family approval. You're not even giving him a chance by referring to him as "that saloon owner" when you know nothing about him." I knew you would think he was beneath the Thatcher social standing."
She paused for effect and then continued, "You never even approved of Jack." Elizabeth was crying at this point, but continued, "I knew you wanted me to marry Charles. Although I loved him, I was not "in love" with him. It was not enough to make a happy marriage." She stopped long enough to wipe away her tears.
The break in the conversation gave her father a chance to refute her comment.
William looked at her directly and replied, "Elizabeth, I don't know why you think we never approved of Jack. Please let me share something with you." Elizabeth nodded for him to continue.
"Just before your wedding, Jack came to Hamilton to ask for my blessing. I told him then, I never disapproved of him. Quite the contrary, I had high respect for his character, his honesty and devotion to duty. My main concern was whether he was the right match for you. He convinced me he was the perfect match and I granted my blessing. My Dear, I never would have travelled to Hope Valley and given you away, if I hadn't approved of the union."
Elizabeth admitted that she was aware her father had given Jack his blessing, but Jack never shared the details of the actual conversation. The wedding was so close, it never occurred to her to ask the details. But then again, it never occurred to her they would be married such a short while, either.
William, sensed the need to shift the conversation.
He quietly asked her to tell him about the man she was now courting. Elizabeth did not see that question coming.
She was happy her father had expressed an interest in Lucas. What surprised her the most, was how little she had to say. Beyond sharing what little she knew of his upbringing and what she had learned in the three years she had known him, she really knew very little about him. Of course, she knew his mother was a book editor, for it was she who had edited Elizabeth's novel. She was sure he came from good breeding because he spoke fluent French. She also shared he was a businessman – proprietor of two businesses in town.
William sat in stony silence. He kept waiting for her to tell him something personal about the man. What made him so special to her? None of that information was shared.
She eventually just stopped talking and looked around the room, trying to think of something else to say. The only place she didn't look was directly into her father's eyes.
Rather than sit in silence, William finally addressed what had happened in the street with Nathan. "Elizabeth, please tell me what Nathan did or said to you that made you so angry."
Elizabeth reluctantly admitted she jumped to conclusions and accused Nathan of sticking his nose in her personal business and calling her father to come to Hope Valley, because he was upset that she chose a courtship with Lucas, instead of him. "Father, he even put you up in his house."
William spoke up, "Well, I did come at request of The Mounties, but it had absolutely nothing to do with you. Seeing you and meeting Little Jack was just a wonderful side benefit from an otherwise unpleasant event. You see, my car was stolen in Hamilton and somehow, made its way to Hope Valley, of all places. Nathan was kind enough to let us stay in his home, so we didn't have to stay over at the saloon."
Despite already knowing a lot of the answers (from having Nathan investigated prior to coming to Hope Valley), William decided to play a hunch.
"Tell me about Nathan," William asked her.
William observed his daughter's face light up and, for the first time during this visit, her smile reached her eyes as she responded, "I first met Nathan three years ago, also. The poor man had a tough assignment as the new Mountie assigned to Hope Valley, after Jack's passing. I am afraid the townspeople weren't very kind to him, in the beginning."
She went on and on – from her first meeting with Nathan when he delivered Jack's pension to her, to meeting and becoming Allie's teacher. She explained how Nathan took custody of Allie, after his sister Colleen passed away and Allie's father walked out. Without betraying his confidence, she explained, "he had a tough childhood and he had to grow up fast, which is why he is so serious – until you get to know him, that is."
She continued on with how they had shared the joys and challenges of being single parents. Nathan had always been a parent figure to Allie, however, he made it official when he recently adopted her.
Then she told her father how he was stationed at Fort Clay and how and why Jack wound up taking his place in the training mission. She just recently found out Nathan requested to be stationed in Hope Valley, so he could look after a fallen officer's widow and young son.
William was astounded. Not even his background check on the man was this thorough!
By some miracle, he had managed to keep a straight face and a closed mouth during Elizabeth's monologue about Nathan's attributes.
He decided to play one more hunch and hoped it wouldn't backfire.
"You mentioned Nathan was upset because you chose to court Lucas. Why would Nathan be upset? I mean, as long as Lucas was a good man, I would think Nathan would be happy for you?"
Once again, his hunch paid off.
Elizabeth looked at her father and before she knew it, she had poured out a very heart wrenching, conflicted reply.
"Oh, Father, Nathan told me twice that he is in love with me. He thinks I love him too and, I don't know, on some level, I do. But Father, after the pain and heartache I went through when I lost Jack, I just can't go through that again. The first time was bad enough. This time, there are children involved." Through tears, she continued, "He said he would quit the Mounties, but I could never ask him to be less than he is, for me. If only his job wasn't so dangerous."
Through her sobs, Elizabeth replied, "I owe Nathan an apology for my behaviour and sadly, not just for what happened today. I don't know how or if he will ever forgive me."
For the first time, Elizabeth reached over and hugged her father, finding comfort in his embrace.
Then, taking his hand she said, "My deepest apologies to you also, Father, for disrespecting you and the Thatcher name. I am ashamed of my behaviour. Will you please forgive my poor judgment?"
William looked at his middle daughter and said, "Elizabeth, thank you for your apology. Of course, I accept it. Although I don't know him as well as you do, I suspect if you are truly sincere and honest with your apology to Nathan, he will accept it too."
"One last thing, Elizabeth. You may be a grown woman, but I am still your father, so every now and then, I get to dispense some fatherly advice. Today, I offer three pieces of advice:
Firstly, examine your heart and figure out who you truly love. Who do you see yourself spending your life with? Think about what is best not only for you, but for Little Jack, too. Remember, he has a stake in your decision, too.
Secondly, don't let fear rule your life. Eight years ago, my independent daughter made the decision to come west and teach school. The world was your oyster; you had no fear of what the future held. That was okay, because your mother and I had enough fear for you. We trusted you to God back then and have continued to do so.
Now, you need to search within yourself and find that girl. I know she is still there, despite having suffered through some painful, life-changing experiences. Search your heart, Elizabeth. What would Jack want you to do?
Finally, before committing to anyone, come to Hamilton for a visit - and yes, I said "visit".
Your mother would love to see both you and Little Jack. We love you and will make ourselves available to help you sort things through, if you want. Even if you just want some time alone to think things through, we could spend some time getting to know our grandson.
I believe time and space away from recent occurrences in Hope Valley may provide you with some much-needed perspective. "
Elizabeth nodded, let him know how much she appreciated his comments and would take each one to heart. She excused herself to wash her face and check on Little Jack.
That left her father to answer the knock on the door.
When he opened the door, William was surprised to see both Bill and Nathan.
Bill handed William a basket containing two dinners from the cafe.
Nathan looked uncomfortable and said "We're here to see Elizabeth on some official business."