Chapter Fifty-Five

The Hope Valley Community Dinner and Dance had been such a resounding success, that a prestigious Committee had been formed to oversee the production of a similar monthly event for the townspeople.

Rosemary was chairing it, of course, and the individual Committee Members consisted of Clara, Felicity, Fiona, Sophie, and Taleisha. Sophie had quickly and excitedly volunteered, which made sense as she would be co-owning "The Queen of Hearts" soon and that would be the chosen venue. Faith would also join them as a member as soon as her Medical Studies were completed. That way, there would always be someone there to break a tie, if it ever occurred. As always, the new Chairwoman was nothing, if not thorough!

The Chairwoman had also recruited Florence and Molly to serve, but both felt with their new added job responsibilities, they wouldn't be able to do justice in serving the committee properly. They did however enthusiastically agree to always get the invitations out whenever they were ready and to make sure the word was spread to all for any given event. And since this was a most important part of any Gathering, the two women were thanked profusely and forgiven for not officially serving as full-fledged Committee Members!

The Chairwoman's next order of business was for the Committee Members to recruit some Men who would serve as manual labor when needed. Of course, the way Rosemary told the women to describe their needs, the unsuspecting men would know nothing of the real purpose for including them! She explicitly instructed her members, to tell them only how very much their ideas were needed from a masculine point of view, which was slightly true. Their opinions WERE needed for accomplishing the heavy lifting, but in Rosemary's mind, that was ALL they were needed for. So, Rosemary had even put a clause into their new Bylaws that would protect and ensure dominance of the feminine point of view, by stipulating that female Committee Members were to outnumber the male Committee Members by 2:1! So, now that every precaution had been taken, the little order of business involving the recruitment of the male contingent was to be a primary focus for the Committee.

There had been some concern, that by having the Celebration on a Saturday night, that people might just sleep in and forgo the Sunday Morning Church Service. But surprisingly, the exact opposite happened.

The church was filled to the max, and the new Pastor was thrilled, thinking it was because of him, but in reality, after having felt such a close kindred-ship on Saturday night, the townspeople just wanted that feeling to continue. Definitely, an unexpected benefit of celebrating together!

"Darling, the Stew smells wonderful! I think I'm famished now!"

Elizabeth had made Beef Stew early Sunday morning, so she could just quickly make the Biscuits and heat up the Stew after Church.

"It won't be long, my Love," and she checked her Biscuits. "Probably ten more minutes."

"Perfect, ten minutes for the grown-ups while the children play!" and Nathan took her in his arms and danced her around the kitchen!

"Darling!" and she couldn't help but laugh.

"Mrs. Thornton, this is no laughing matter! I want a private dance, just with the two of us. I think I like dancing in our Cabin better than the Saloon…" and he kissed her as they kept dancing.

"I know I like dancing in our Cabin better, but Darling it was wonderful last night…"

"It was," he whispered. "Elizabeth, are you happy?"

"Never, more so!" and he stopped dancing just long enough to really kiss her.

His kiss was forceful but wistful, and she suddenly knew what he was thinking. But they had made a pact, and their discussion would come later in the day, after eating with the children, then celebrating the second Sunday of Advent with them, and then opening their Advent House drawer of gifts.

Then they would ride, then they would discuss, and then they would resolve.

"Elizabeth, Nathaniel said the oddest thing to me last night."

"What was that, Darling?"

"He said we should disassemble the cabin and rebuild it on the lake, especially if we're going to add on anyway."

"Wonder what made him think of that?"

"He said he thought of it when he saw us standing by the lake. He said he knew that was the right spot for us. Turns out, his Elizabeth had always chided him that they hadn't done that very thing. He says the sunrises and sunsets over the lake are magnificent, and they shouldn't be missed. When he first built, he was just interested in getting something up quickly, so he could hunt. And since their main house was already on a Lake he just didn't think about it. But his wife missed looking out over the water when she was at the cabin. And Nathaniel says we shouldn't miss it, too."

"I do love the water, and you and Allie are so into fishing, too. You're going to want to be on that lake all the time. It would be nice to have you right there."

"Not all the time, Darling…" he said with a flirty smile. "And if we are going to add on as much as we seem to need, it makes sense to take down what's already built, move it to the lake and then add on there. What do you think?"

"Truly, I love the idea. I absolutely love the idea. But I would have never thought of it, and I wouldn't have thought Nathaniel would want us to do that at all!"

"He's sentimental, but he's practical too. And the more I think about it, it makes a lot of sense. I haven't had a chance to show Lee our drawings yet. And you know, whether or not we do it, we have to build a better passage to the lake anyway. It's too dangerous for the horses the way it is. But, Darling, that cabin is already very special to us. Would that change the way you feel about it, to move it, and completely add on?"

"I hadn't thought about that. But it's going to change so much by adding on anyway, that it's still going to feel somewhat differently."

"I agree. There is one other thing we could do…"

"What's that, my Love?"

"We could move it and reassemble it exactly the same, keeping it exactly the way it is now, and build something much bigger, more of a lodge, right next to it, for all of us. And as the children grow, they might love having a separate little space they could play in. And then when we wanted to spend a night in our original cabin, we could."

'Oh, Nathan that's so romantic. You would do that for me?"

"Darling, I hope you know by now, I would do anything for you. Maybe, I should qualify that, anything within reason!"

She laughed and he brought his lips to hers, smothering her laugh completely.

This kiss was forceful as well, but it held no wistfulness at all. They were both in their present and their future, and it would have continued indefinitely, had they both not realized the Biscuits were ready!

"Nathan, can we afford to build a cabin, a lodge, and a home so closely together?" she looked up as she removed the steaming Biscuits from her hot oven.

He laughed softly, "Yes, my Darling. We can very much afford it. Remember the lumber is all ours; it will just have to be milled and Lee is willing to do that free of charge. But even, without that, yes, we can afford it. I haven't even had a chance to tell you. We had to put the Horse Ranch in my name, for obvious reasons. There's a monthly income attached to it, that I don't touch. And actually, it's done quite well under my Mother's management. Plus I'll help with the construction on nights and weekends. So, don't worry. It's not too much. We'll manage fine."

She set the biscuits down and rushed to kiss him. He swept her up in his arms and they could literally feel the passion each had for the other. Building what would be their homes to live in made everything seem so real. And so wonderful!

They finally forced themselves to pull apart from the other…

"Are we ready?"

"We're ready! Children come to Lunch!" she called.

"Little Jack and I are starved…because it smells so good in here! Can I help?" asked Allie.

"Thanks, Sweetie, but everything's ready! It's just Stew with Biscuits. Oh, and a Salad, which I almost forgot!"

Elizabeth quickly got the Salad and set it on the table along with the rest of the food.

They each sat down in their regular places around the table, and took each other's hands, as was their custom, to pray.

"Allie, would you like to lead in prayer?"

"Yes, Ma'am!"

"Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you for December and for our second Advent Sunday. We thank You for giving us Baby Jesus and all His love. Help us remember the children who don't have as much as us. Thank You for Frederic and thank You for Auntie Rosie's new baby that will come visit us soon, and please let it be a little girl! And thank You for letting me babysit. Thank You for Laila and Tyrone. Thank You for this delicious food that smells so good and thank You for Mrs. Thornton fixing it for us. And thank You for…well, maybe I better wait and thank You for that later. We love You! Amen!"

"Amen!" "Men!"

"Oh, P.S. thank You for our Party last night. Amen!"

"Amen!" "Men!"

Nathan and Elizabeth were trying not to smile.

"That was wonderful, Allie Bean and Jack your Amen is getting stronger every day. Proud of you both!"

"Beautiful job, Allie. Great Amen, Jack. Here, pass your bowls," and Elizabeth ladled in huge spoonfuls of piping hot Beef Stew into them. "Nathan, can you pass the biscuits?"

"Here, you go, Darling!"

"Boy, Laila can really play the piano! I mean wow, she's really good! Would it be okay if she gave me piano lessons, please, please, pretty please?" begged Allie.

"Elizabeth, what would you think about Allie learning to play?"

"Darling, music feeds the soul! I think it's a wonderful skill to have, and I think Allie's mature enough to commit to it if that's what she really wants. I think it's a great thing if you do!"

"Then let's consider it. But, Allie, learning to play the piano takes a whole lot of hard work. You would have to be willing to practice every single day and work really hard. But," and Nathan paused, "It may just run in the family…because your Mother was a pretty good pianist! And she did start her lessons at about your age. As far as Laila giving you lessons, you would have to first talk with Laila's Mother and ask her if it would be okay to ask Laila. Then you would have to talk to Laila to see if she would be interested in teaching you, and find out how much she would charge. We'd also have to make arrangements for a piano. So, you're asking a lot. Why don't you think about it all before you talk to Mrs. Williams and Laila? Also, talk to Mrs. Thornton about how you could work it into your schedule. We just want you to be sure that's what you really want. Fair enough?"

"Fair enough, Dad! I'll think about it really hard. Thank you, Dad! Thank you, Mrs. Thornton!"

"You're very welcome, Allie! We'll see if we can't find a good block of time where you can concentrate just on music," smiled Elizabeth, surprised, but happy that Nathan had included her in the decision process.

Allie was thrilled!

"Dad, you and Uncle Bill, and Constable Aaron were great! The kids loved your song! And they wanted you to sing a whole lot more!"

"Thank you, Allie! Were you surprised?"

"Super surprised! Everybody was. They said they didn't think anyone could sing that good! So, I'd call that a success! I think you're stars!" summed up Allie.

"I'd call that a success, too," added Elizabeth. "And, I'd also call you stars! I might even go so far as to say your verse was everyone's favorite!"

She looked coquettishly at Nathan, who blushed two shades of crimson.

"To my Girls, thank you!" Nathan placed his hand over his heart. "Now, you two better eat your Stew before it gets cold!"

"You mean we better eat, before we think of another way to embarrass you, my Love!" Elizabeth looked at him slyly.

"Yes, that's exactly what I mean…" Nathan laughed and reached over to kiss her cheek.

They finished their Stew and Biscuits, and Elizabeth turned to get their dessert.

"I know this isn't very original, but do you mind a sweet biscuit with berry sauce?"

"Sounds perfect! Let me help," and Nathan got up to serve the bowls of dessert as soon as Elizabeth could ladle the berries that she had canned last summer on top of their sweet biscuits.

"Now, you sit and let me serve you…" but then Jack called his name.

"Na'tan!"

"These look yummy. Jack, we have to serve the Ladies first, do you think we can wait?"

Jack shook his head no.

"What if I pick you up and you help me serve?"

"Pweeze," begged Jack as he reached for his Na'tan.

Together they served Elizabeth first, then Allie.

Then Nathan took Jack's Dessert to his high chair and carried Jack back to the counter to get his own dessert.

When they sat back down, Jack decided he preferred to stay on his Na'tan's lap, so that is where he stayed while Nathan crumbled his sweet biscuits and fed him bite by bite. Jack was very happy with his Dessert. He kept opening his mouth in a little 'o' shape like a little bird begging for more. The problem was, it was all his Na'tan could do to keep up with the pace.

Elizabeth and Allie couldn't help but laugh.

"That child eats better for you and Allie than he ever has in his life!" exclaimed Elizabeth.

When Jack had eaten everything in his bowl, Elizabeth reached for her son, "Come, Jack! Let's give Nathan room to eat his Dessert, and we'll get ready to tell our Advent Story."

"Tory?"

"Yes, Litt…I mean Jack. We get to tell the Advent Story with the candles!" reminded Allie.

That, Jack remembered and he started clapping his little hands.

Nathan quickly finished his Dessert.

"Allie, you take Jack into the Living Room, please, and I'll help Mrs. Thornton do the dishes."

"Yes, Sir! Playing's better than dishes any day!" and the two scampered off, anxiously awaiting their story.

"Mrs. Thornton, why don't I wash and you dry, since I'll only put things back in the wrong place!"

"It's a deal, but it will cost at least one kiss…"

"It will, will it…" and he reached down to kiss her on her neck.

"That's lovely, but you do know, that doesn't count."

"Doesn't count? How could it not possibly count? Oh, well. Let's see, I'll try again."

And this time he kissed her forehead.

Elizabeth just shook her head.

Next, he kissed her cheek.

Elizabeth shook her head again.

Next, he kissed her nose…

"Oh, so much closer…"

He finally brought his warm lips to hers, wrapping his arms around her, throwing the dishrag down on the counter beside him, and giving her his full attention. This was the kiss she needed, and her world instantly melted away. She leaned into him further because she couldn't stand on her own, and he tightened his hold on her. No matter what else happened today, now she would be able to face it, as long as she was with him. As long as they were together.

They pulled away, but only because Allie had opened the door, "Sorry, but Jack wants a glass of water."

Elizabeth turned weakly to get the glass and Nathan took it and turned to fill it with water.

"Would you like a glass, too, Allie Bean?"

"No thanks, Dad. I'm fine. Do you think it's going to take you very long to finish? I mean so we can get started on our story?"

"No, Sweetheart, we are rapidly moving into high gear!"

Allie looked puzzled, "What does 'high gear' mean?"

"It's a driving term. It means we're moving into high speed! Super-fast mode for my Girl!" and he reached to kiss her on the top of her head.

"Thanks, Dad! We're just pretty anxious about our story!"

"Mrs. Thornton," he said grabbing his dish towel, "looks like we need to get a move on!"

"Yes, Sir!" and Elizabeth playfully saluted Nathan, who in turn saluted her back!

"You two are silly together, you know that?" and Allie turned to take the glass of water to Jack, shaking her head.

When they finally finished the dishes, Nathan took the Advent Wreath from Elizabeth's desk and lowered it to the low table they had used last Sunday.

The children were already in their places on the floor, anxiously awaiting their story.

Nathan and Elizabeth sat down on the settee, closely together.

"First, what do we have here?"

"It's our Advent Wreath and it helps get us ready for Jesus's birth on Christmas Day!" answered Allie.

"That's right Allie! Do you remember why the wreath is a circle?"

"Because our lives go on and on."

"Yes. What candle did we light last week?"

"The Prophecy Candle for Hope, because people were hoping Baby Jesus would come."

"Exactly. Now, the candle that we're going to light today is also purple and it represents Faith. Specifically, the Faith Mary and Joseph had when they traveled to Bethlehem. So, this candle is called the Bethlehem Candle and it's about Faith. Let's say a prayer."

"Dear Father, we thank You for this Bethlehem Candle that so beautifully represents the Faith, Mary and Joseph had as they traveled to Bethlehem with their unborn child. They had Faith that You would take care of them. We ask that during this Christmas Season, You help give each of us the Faith we need in order to celebrate our best Christmas honoring Your Son's Birth. And we ask that You also teach us to have the Faith we need in order to live our best lives for You. In Your Holy Name, we ask that you bless our Bethlehem Candle and all it means in our lives. Amen!"

And everyone joined in saying 'Amen!'

Nathan first lit last week's candle, "This is our candle from last week called the Prophecy Candle, and it represents Hope," and Nathan reached to light the Prophecy Candle. Jack, Big Guy, just like last week, I'm going to pass our new candle, the Bethlehem Candle that represents Faith to you first."

He then handed the new purple Bethlehem Candle, unlit, to Jack first, who was thrilled. And just like last week, he inspected it closely before he finally handed it to Allie.

"Allie, Sweetheart, now you put the wick into our Prophecy Candle and very carefully hand the lit Bethlehem Candle to Mrs. Thornton."

Allie carefully lit the new Bethlehem Candle by placing it's wick into last week's Prophecy Candle and very cautiously handed it to Mrs. Thornton, who placed the lit candle upright in the wreath holder on the table.

"Next Sunday, we have a pink candle, our third candle, and it is called the Shepherd's Candle and it represents Joy. For our Fourth Week, we'll have another purple candle called the Angel's Candle and it represents the message "Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward Men," because that's the message the Angel gave us. Then on Christmas Eve we place our last candle, a white candle, called the Christ Candle, and it represents the Purity of Christ. And the purpose of all of this is that it helps us prepare our hearts and minds for the true meaning of Christmas. And that's our Advent Story for today."

"Can you tell us what our candle is called today and what it represents?" asked Elizabeth.

"It's the Bethlehem Candle and it helps us have Faith, just like Mary and Joseph had on their way to Bethlehem!"

"Perfect, Allie!" smiled Elizabeth.

Nathan and Elizabeth gathered both children to them and gave each a kiss along with hugs.

And if you were to ask the children to give you one word to describe Advent. They would say 'love,' without any hesitation.

"Who's ready for the Advent House?" a

"Me!" "Meee!" "Me, too!"

Elizabeth deftly moved the Advent Wreath to her desk, so Nathan could relocate the Advent House to the table so the children could easily access it.

"Mrs. Thornton, it's your turn to open the drawer," reminded Allie.

Elizabeth lifted the golden latch and reached inside to find a folded envelope with her name on it. She carefully pulled out the envelope, opening it to reveal a beautiful handkerchief. But it wasn't just any handkerchief. It was a dainty square, edged in the same ecru lace that graced her teal ballgown.

In the bottom right corner of the square were initials embroidered in scripted gold. And when Elizabeth realized what the initials were, she let out a little cry of joy. For there in the center position was a beautiful scripted 'G' with an 'E' to the right and a 'T' to the left. She reached over to kiss Nathan tenderly, putting her arms around his neck. His arms immediately wrapped around her and he whispered, "I thought you might want to gradually adjust to that new initial, Darling."

And she whispered back, "It's perfect. Thank you, my Love!"

Allie insisted Jack go next, as he was so excited but not nearly as excited as he was when he pulled out a colorful miniature top and tried to make it spin. Allie had to help at first, but he quickly got the hang of spinning his very own top. And he was absolutely delighted that his top made a noise as it spun!

"That's wonderful, Jack! Your very own top! Allie, hurry, see what's in there for you," urged Elizabeth.

Allie smiled and anxiously reached in. She had gotten a folded envelope with her name on it, as well. The envelope was full of brightly colored hair ribbons.

"I love them! Mrs. Thornton, will you help me fix them in my hair?"

"Absolutely, any time you need me to, Sweetie!"

As Nathan watched these three people he loved show such happiness with their three little gifts, the anguish of this last week somehow started to subside, and his heart was stilled. He knew this was where he was meant to be. He may have arrived later than he should have, and he may not understand at all about the timing or why of six years past vs. now, but he was here now, and he vowed he would make every single moment count with these three human beings he cherished. They were already Family to him in his heart. And he would have the Faith of the Second Advent Candle, that they would proceed into the future together, loving each other enough to easily make up for any lost years.

Nathan also knew in his heart, without understanding how, that he and Elizabeth would make it through this day, closer, and even stronger as a couple...