Elizabeth bundled up into her winter white coat. She rarely wore this fancy of a coat anymore. But she had resolved that it was the perfect holiday coat and needed to be worn.
"I'll be right back, Ally," Elizabeth hugged the girl. "Thank you for watching Little Jack for me."
"Aw, it's nothing," Ally said, handing Little Jack his stuffed dog. "I can wrap Dad's presents this way. He is always around and it is near impossible to hide presents from him. And Dad is a lousy present wrapper. There is a reason he usually gets decorative boxes."
"Well I am glad I can help," Elizabeth laughed. "Now if you have problems, don't hesitate to get Mr. Lee and Miss Rosemary. But I trust you."
Ally beamed. "Thank you Miss Elizabeth!"
Elizabeth kissed Little Jack goodbye and headed out the door.
"Well, Little Jack," Ally whispered. "You might become my brother if tonight goes well! Wouldn't that be cool? I'd be your sister!"
"A'eee, sissy," Little Jack responded.
"That's right!"
Ally sent up a silent prayer as she played with Little Jack.
Dear God,
My dad is so happy with Miss Elizabeth. I would really like to call her mom. Please, God, could we all become a family? Please let Miss Elizabeth be happy with Dad asking her to marry him. I know I'd be happy if I were her. Thank you for your many blessings. Maybe Christmas wishes do come true.
Amen
Elizabeth walked into town, taking in the atmosphere. Red ribbons decorated railings and bannisters. Every window had a wreath. Truly Hope Valley fit the song "Silent Night." All was calm. All was brightly lit by the moon and the stars. It truly was a beautiful evening to be out.
Elizabeth walked by the schoolhouse. She knew everything was set up for tomorrow's Christmas Eve singalong so she didn't feel the need to stop. She saw Faith and Carson walking away from the Infirmary; Elizabeth paused and waved hello. Harper and his mother were leaving the Café and stopped Elizabeth to thank her for the Christmas cookies.
She walked up the steps to the Mountie office. The sight she saw upon opening the door made her smile. Nathan was cross legged on the floor, surrounded by paper, ribbons, and tape. There were boxes everywhere. His hair was slightly messed up. Elizabeth wondered if he had raked his fingers through it in frustration.
"So, as you can see," Nathan winked. "I'm less than skilled when it comes to giftwrapping."
Elizabeth chuckled. "Here. Let me help." She joined Nathan on the floor. She saw the box with Nathan's childhood train set. "It looks like this was a definite treasure of yours."
Nathan smiled. "As you might have guessed, Dad wasn't around much even at Christmas time. But Mom, Colleen, and I loved to play with this together. I am really glad Little Jack can play with it now."
Elizabeth picked up another box. "Ally's bracelet charms?" She shook it, much like a child does on Christmas morning, to confirm her guess.
"Yes," Nathan gave Elizabeth a petulant look. "Please help me wrap that nicely. Ally doesn't need a gift that looks like someone with ten thumbs wrapped it."
Almost with every package, Nathan and Elizabeth shared memories, whether it be about Christmases or their childhood. There was so much to discover about one another and both Elizabeth and Nathan wanted that.
Elizabeth made a motion towards the final box needing wrapped. Nathan looked down and then directly at Elizabeth. "That is actually for you."
Elizabeth's curiosity was piqued. "Oh it is?"
"Should I be nice and let you open it?" Nathan teased Elizabeth.
"I think you should," Elizabeth teased back. "Maybe consider it payment for helping wrap presents."
"You drive a hard bargain." Nathan gave the illusion of thinking and pondering Elizabeth's statement. "Alright. Go for it.
Elizabeth stood up and put the box on Nathan's desk. She lifted the lid off of the box in front of her. Inside, nestled in some cloth, was a beautifully carved plaque very similar to one Nathan had made for the library. This one was smaller with roses carved all around. Etched into the wood was another Emerson quote.
Love, and You Shall Be Loved
"Oh Nathan," Elizabeth gasped. "It's beautiful. So beautiful. Thank you."
Nathan stood up also. "When I read that quote, I thought of you. Of us."
"You did?" Elizabeth didn't know what to say. She was very appreciative that Nathan always paid attention to her favorite things. Emerson was a favorite and Nathan remembered that.
"I fell in love with you, Elizabeth. And I feel loved in return. You and I have shared many moments in this jail. Our first meeting, last Christmas you being upset about my possibly leaving, asking Robert to be a Mountie, calling me out for shutting you out." Nathan paused and took Elizabeth's hands in his. "But in every one of those moments, I grew more in love with you."
"The plaque I made you for the library said 'Always Do What You Are Afraid to Do.' At the time, I did not realize how true that quote would be for you and me. I just thought it was a nice Emerson quote; Ally said it was a favorite. But Elizabeth, since falling in love for you, I have stepped out even though I have been afraid. I've been afraid because I am a Mountie and don't want you to go through loss again. I've been afraid because I couldn't offer you the things Lucas could. I've been afraid of opening up my heart because I have been burned.
"But Elizabeth," Nathan caressed Elizabeth's cheek, "Feeling your love, your support has made me not be afraid. With you by my side, I feel like I can do anything." Nathan shifted so that he was away from the desk and in the open space. He knelt down in front of Elizabeth.
"Elizabeth," Nathan choked back emotion. "You have brought so much joy into my life. I cannot imagine living without you. I cannot imagine living without Little Jack. I want to love you, both of you, for the rest of our lives." Nathan reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. Elizabeth gasped.
"Elizabeth, will you marry me?" Nathan opened the lid and inside, there was a beautiful small diamond solitaire on a simple gold band.
"Yes!" Elizabeth didn't need to think twice. "I absolutely will marry you Nathan Grant!"
Nathan practically leapt from the floor and twirled Elizabeth around. Both of them had huge smiles on their faces. Nathan put the ring on Elizabeth's finger and then kissed the ring.
"Honestly, Elizabeth," Nathan kissed Elizabeth's cheek. "I cannot wait to have you be my wife. I know life won't be easy. I know that the two of us have difficult memories of our past still to work through."
"But we will do it together," Elizabeth walked into Nathan's embrace.
Elizabeth and Nathan stayed in each other's embrace for an indeterminate amount of time. Neither wanted to move. Instead, they once again listened to their hearts beating in unison. It had taken a while for them to find each other. But now they had and would not let go.
Ally kept watching the window. She was surprised that Nathan and Elizabeth were not back yet. She had even warmed up leftovers for herself and Little Jack; she had washed him and put him to bed. Miss Elizabeth would be proud of her, Ally thought. So would her dad.
Ally looked over at the pile of presents she had wrapped. She also had prepped this year's pinecone seedling pot. Ally thought involving Little Jack this year would be a good idea. She would let him pick out the pinecone to get the seeds from.
Ally noticed a figure in white forming down the road. It was Miss Elizabeth's coat. And she recognized her Dad's brown jacket. At least they were walking together. Ally couldn't wait any longer. She opened the door as soon as she heard footsteps on the porch.
"Why hi Ally," Nathan chuckled. "Everything okay?"
"Everything is great," Ally remarked. "Everything okay with you two?" Ally tried to stealthily look for a ring on Elizabeth's finger, but she had her gloves on.
"Everything is wonderful," Elizabeth nodded. She looked to the clean kitchen. "You cleaned up?"
"Yes ma'am," Ally nodded. "Dad taught me that when I make a mess, I should clean it up. I heated up dinner for Little Jack and myself."
"My little girl is growing up," Nathan patted Ally on the back. He noticed Ally's wrapped packages. "Your wrapping job is definitely better than mine."
"Ally, do you want some hot cocoa before you and your dad head home?"
"I would like that Miss Elizabeth." Ally nodded in appreciation.
Elizabeth went to warm milk on the stovetop. She then took off her coat and slowly removed her gloves. Ally immediately caught sight of the ring on Elizabeth's finger. She squealed in delight!
"You did it Dad!" Ally gave Nathan a bear hug and rushed over to Elizabeth.
Elizabeth turned to face Ally. "You're sure about this?"
"Am I sure about this?" Ally gave Elizabeth just as big of a hug. "I wanted this so badly. This was my Christmas wish."
Ally promptly burst into sobs. "We're going to be a family."
Elizabeth and Nathan both embraced the young girl. She had been through so much in her life. But both of them were resolved that from here on out, Ally would know love and stability.
The kind of stability that comes from a family. The Grant family.