The cool breeze whistled just outside the window, and the pitter patter of the rain provided Rose with a warm and cozy feeling as she was wrapped safely in his arms. It reminded her that no matter what was happening, she would always be safe with Jack.

Rose held up her left hand and studied the ring that now lay on her fourth finger. It had a simple silver band, and in the middle lay a square diamond, with small sapphires on either side. It was a beautiful ring, not too big or heavy, and nothing like the ring Cal had bought her.

Jack kissed her cheek, wrapping his arms tighter around her. "Do you like it?" He asked quietly. They were in bed, a tangle of limbs warmed by each other and the warm blanket draped over them. "If you don't, we can go pick out a new one, or we can have it changed. Whatever would make you happy."

"I love it, Jack," Rose answered, leaning forward to kiss him softly. "How could I not? It's beautiful. And besides, I'd love anything that you gave me." She held up her hand once more, looking at it again. "The sapphires remind me of the color of your eyes. I love that no matter where we are, a bit of you will always be with me."

"I'll always be with you, sweetheart," Jack whispered. Rose placed both her hands on Jack's and pulled his arms tighter around herself. "When should the wedding be?"

Rose turned to look at him. "What do you mean?"

Jack's lips curved upward, amused. "I really didn't think my question needed elaboration," he told her. "When would you like to get married?"

Still not quite understanding, Rose stared at Jack. "You mean, I get to choose?"

Jack's smile faded, realizing that she had never had any control over her life before. Her wedding plans had been decided for her, her fiance had been chosen for her, and her destiny had been chosen for her. It wouldn't be that way, he decided. Everything choice would be theirs to make, not anyone else's. "You get to choose everything this time, Rose," Jack assured her. "If you want someone to take some of the decisions off your plate, we can do that. But unless you say so, every choice is ours."

Rose smiled, a smile that rivaled the one he was greeted with when they danced below decks, when they ran through the boiler room, and when she agreed to marry Jack. She stared at him like he had given her a great gift, and while he loved that he had made her so happy, he hated that something as simple as giving her a choice had made her as happy as it had.

"You'll always have a choice too, Jack," Rose told him, staring into his ocean blue eyes. "I know you have this future that has been decided for you, and I know that it's not a future you would have chosen for yourself. So if you ever decide that you don't want it, that you don't want to be here, say the word, and we'll go. I don't care where we live or how much money we have, as long as I have you."

Jack smiled, touching her cheek. "I love you," he whispered. He wrapped his arms tightly around her, holding her until her head was on his chest, right under his chin. He held her tightly as her breathing slowed, signaling to him that she was asleep.

xXx

Rose woke up to an empty bed, something she hadn't had since falling in love with Jack. She liked waking up against his chest, or opening her eyes and seeing him waiting for her. But today, Jack was nowhere to be found.

Fighting to get up despite the warmth of the bed making her want to stay, Rose grabbed her clothes and padded down the hall. "Jack?" she called for him, looking back and forth, left to right. There was no response, so she continued to the library.

Sitting on the loveseat with a book was Jack's mother. "Good morning, Rose," she smiled, motioning for Rose to take a seat across from her. Rose did, and before she could even ask for it, a cup of tea was placed beside her. "Jack, Betty, and William went to the office earlier this morning. Jack asked me to tell you that he'll see you later. He didn't want to wake you."

"Oh," Rose said, trying not to sound too disappointed. She sipped her tea, trying to think of what she could spend her time doing until Jack came home. This would be a problem she dealt with often now, she realized, as no matter where they were, Jack would likely be leaving every day to work. "What are you doing today?"

Anna put down her book and paid full attention to Rose. "I usually spend Saturdays at the library. I do a lot of charity work there, both with time and money. Would you like to join me?"

Rose grinned. She had been hoping to get to know Jack's mother better, and this was the perfect way. "I'd love that," she answered. "I love libraries. I'd love to visit a new one and donate some time."

"Great!" Anna smiled back. "We'll leave in a few minutes."

A few minutes later, Anna and Rose were walking to the library. They had chosen to walk since the weather was nice and it wasn't too far. Rose walked next to Anna, slightly nervous that someone would recognize her. If someone did, Jack's parents would be devastated. She knew they'd tell them the truth eventually, but she still wasn't ready.

Anna must have noticed that Rose was uncomfortable, because she wrapped her arm around Rose's and held the girl close. "It's scary, being placed in a new world that you know nothing about," she smiled at Rose kindly. "I remember it was for me. But it makes it easier when you're doing it with and for someone you love."

Rose smiled and nodded. "Thank you for being so kind to me," she said quietly. "I see where Jack gets his kindness and compassion from. All of you have it."

"Jack loves you, dear," Anna answered her with a small smile that reminded Rose of Jack's. "I see how much you love him, and how much he loves you. I've never seen him care about anyone as much as you. Well, one person, but she's his sister."

"I do, I love your son very much," Rose answered. "And I know that given your status and fortune, you're hesitant to accept that your son wants to marry a girl you know nothing about. I know that can be scary. But I want you to know, the only thing that matters to me is Jack. Rich or poor, good times or bad, family fortune or no, I will always, always love Jack."

"I know," Anna answered. "And I know Jack feels the same way about you."

They arrived at the library, and Rose couldn't help but gasp at what she saw. There were tall bookcases that went all the way to the ceiling, a wood spiral staircase that went all the way up to the third floor, and large tables and chairs where people could sit and read. "This is beautiful," Rose said quietly.

"It's all due to this fabulous woman right here," a voice said from behind them, and they both turned to see an older woman with glasses smiling at them, books in her arms. "We used to be an empty building, with old chairs and collapsing bookcases. But then Mrs. Dawson came along and turned it all around for us. We owe all of our success to her."

Anna blushed and waved away the compliment. "You give me far too much credit," she insisted. "I only gave you the resources to do what you needed. The rest was you and your staff." After a moment, Anna introduced Rose. "I'm so sorry, I can't believe my manners! Rose, this is Mrs. Sclar, the librarian here. Mrs. Sclar, this is Rose, my soon-to-be daughter-in-law."

Mrs. Sclar put out her hand to shake Rose's. "It's a pleasure to meet you," she said, and Rose shook her hand. "Here, let me show you what we've done this week."

The women walked around the library, and Mrs. Sclar pointed out all of the new changes from the past week. While walking, Rose spotted a young girl sitting in the stacks, a book almost as big as she was sitting on her lap.

Separating from the group for a moment, Rose walked toward the young girl. "Hi," she smiled. "I'm Rose, I'm working here today. What are you reading?"

The little girl looked up at Rose, her big brown eyes filled with tears. "Little Women," she said quietly, looking down at the book. "It's so sad. Beth just died!"

Rose smiled, sitting down next to her. "I love that book," she saw that the pages had tears on them. She turned back to the young girl. "Do you come to read here often?"

She nodded. "My parents work a lot, so I spend a lot of time here." She looked up at Rose, her green eyes large and bright. "I'm Ruby. Your name is Rose, right?" Rose smiled and nodded. "You're really pretty. Are you a princess?"

Rose smiled and shook her head. "No, I'm just a normal girl," she answered. "You're really pretty too. And you have to tell me what you think after you finish that book. And then maybe I can give you another one to read when I'm here next week. Would you like that?"

Ruby smiled and nodded. "I'd like that," she leaned forward and hugged Rose. "Thank you."

Rose looked over at the aisle between the bookcases to find Anna standing there, watching her with a serene smile. "I have to go now, I'll see you next time!" She stood up and walked over to Anna. "Sorry I just walked off, I just-"

"You saw someone who needed help," Anna finished for her. "You're a natural. A natural helper here, a natural with children. You'd be a fantastic mother, you know."

Slightly nervous about the prospect of being a mother, Rose shrugged. "I don't know about that," she laughed nervously. "I had a horrible mother. I don't think I'd know how to be one at all."

"I thought the same thing, you know," Anna told her. "My parents were horrible. They wanted a son who could work and earn money for them, but they only had me. And they put me to work as a young child, never showing me love or treating me as anything other than an economic inconvenience." She sighed at the memory. "And when I married William… His parents were better than mine, but they still had their faults. And when I was pregnant with Jack, I was sure I would be a terrible mother. I had no role models, I had no one to turn to for advice. It was just the two of us."

"So what did you do?" Rose asked.

"I believed in William. I knew how wonderful he was, I knew how much he would love our children, and I knew if he made any mistakes, it would be because he was trying to do what he thought was best for them," Anna continued. "And he knew the same thing about me. And somehow, our combined faith in each other helped us believe in ourselves." She took Rose's hand and squeezed it. "Being a parent is hard. It takes all of your energy and all of your patience. And there are times where you feel like you're the worst parent in the world. And everyone, no matter how they grew up or how fantastic their parents were, makes mistakes and at times, feels like a bad parent." Rose nodded, understanding. "But I can tell you, you would be a wonderful mother. And I'll be here to help you any way I can."

"Thank you," Rose smiled, and Anna patted her hand kindly.

xXx

By the time Rose and Anna got home, everyone else was already there. William was still in his office, and Jack and Betty were sitting in the library, arguing over something. Rose stood by the door, unsure if she should bother them, or if she should walk away.

"You can't just give up, Betty!" Jack exclaimed frustratedly. "This isn't fair to you. You're being too hard on yourself." Rose had never heard him take such a tone, so she was sure if he was, it was something that he was passionate about. "You're not being reasonable."

Betty's arms were crossed over her chest, her eyes fixed on her brother. "And you're being naive," she shot back, and Jack stood up, pacing around the room. "You always see things in the best possible way, and I love that about you, but this time it's just not possible." Jack stared back at her. "Just let it go. This is what will happen. You need to accept that."

Jack was about to respond, but he saw Rose standing in the doorway. "Rose," he said quietly. "Hi." He seemed distracted, but he still walked right over to her, hugging her and kissing her gently. "Sorry, just a little sibling argument. Nothing out of the ordinary."

Betty stood up and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her, and Jack sighed. "What was that all about?" Rose asked, taking Jack's hand and leading him to sit with her.

"Nothing important," Jack said, rolling his eyes. Rose took that as a sign that he just didn't want to talk about it. "How was your day? Were you at the library with my mother?"

Rose smiled and nodded. "Yes! It was fabulous. I love it there, and I'd love to go with her more often." She stared at Jack, knowing that whatever had happened with Betty was still distracting and upsetting him. "Are you sure you don't want to talk about whatever's going on with you and Betty?"

Jack sighed, giving in. "Betty wants a part in running the family business, which I've already agreed to give her. But she thinks that in order to be a legitimate member of the family business, she needs to be married. So she went to my father and asked him to arrange a marriage for her with someone who would benefit our business." Jack looked down at his hands, and Rose took them in hers. "It's not fair to her to do that. She should be able to be with someone that she loves, not someone who would be an economic match."

Rose nodded, understanding. "I agree," she told him. "But if this is something she's sure she wants… I guess you shouldn't stand in the way of that." Jack shook his head. "Doesn't she want to fall in love with someone? To marry someone she loves?"

"It's more complicated than that, unfortunately," Jack told her. "I can't exactly talk about it, I'm sorry. But… Betty is going to do what she wants to do, and no one can stop her." He looked away. "Not even me."

Rose squeezed Jack's hand, attempting to give him some comfort, though her mind was a mess of concerns about not being enough for him or for their life, and Jack keeping whatever this was from her was just the newest item to add to the list.