Chapter 36

The sun came streaming in through the window as Elizabeth stretched her limbs and then slowly sat up smiling. The day had finally come, it was the day she would be getting married. When Jack had died she had never thought that she would find someone that she could love as much she had him, but then Nathan had showed up and she knew how blessed she was to have a chance at love again. It had blossomed slowly, but once her heart had figured it out she knew with certainty that Nathan was the one her heart desired. She slid her feet out of the bed and planted them firmly on the hardwood floor. Sliding them into her slippers, she stood and went to check on Jack.

Upon entering his room, she smiled at him. He was playing quietly in his crib with his stuffed animal. She watched as he looked up at her and stood, reaching for her, "Mama."

"Hi big boy, good morning!" She lifted him out of the crib and encircled him with her arms and then placed a gentle kiss on his forehead, "Mama loves you, so very much. You are going to look so handsome in your little suit today. Are you hungry, ready for some breakfast?"

"I hungry," he answered back.

"Let's go get some scrambled eggs and toast and then Laura's coming over this morning very briefly while I make a special trip." She carried him down the stairs and then placed him on the floor to play while she fixed their breakfast. It was nice to have a few quiet moments with just the two of them for the last time. As the eggs finished she brought him to the table and the two of them finished their breakfast together.

It wasn't long before Laura had knocked at the door and Elizabeth had gotten herself dressed. She let her in and then telling her she would be back shortly headed out the door and to the stables for a morning ride on Sergeant. She saddled him up and then rode towards the cemetery. When she got there, she dismounted and tied him to a fence post and then quietly walked into the cemetery and found Jack's grave. She stood there for a moment gazing at the headstone and then pulled out a letter she had written the night before.

She took a deep breath and began to speak out loud, "Hi Jack, I'm getting married again today. I felt like I needed to come and tell you that, but I wasn't sure what to say so I wrote it down in a letter to you." She cleared her throat and then continued on, "Dear Jack, You told me that if something happened to you that you wanted me to find love again. When I first read your letter, I wasn't sure that I could ever do that. What we shared was so special that it left me completely broken inside when you died. I thought we would be spending the rest of our lives together, but God had other plans. It took me a while, and a lot of searching of my heart, to finally open it again. Nathan is a wonderful man, a Mountie just like you and he loves me and our son with his whole heart. He is patient and he never once pushed me, giving me the time that I needed to move forward. I love him with everything that is in me, but you will always be my first love and the father of our son. Jack will grow up knowing about his father, Nathan and I will make sure of it. I miss you, even now, but I'm finally ready to move forward with my life and I know you would approve of Nathan. Rest easy and know that I'm being loved and well cared for. You'll never be forgotten, Jack. Love, Elizabeth."

She folded the paper and slid it back into the envelope she had pulled it from and then placed it on the top of his headstone. With one last glance she kissed her hand and laid it on top of the marker and then turned to walk towards the exit of the cemetery and mount Sergeant to head home.

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Nathan was in his room laying out his dress uniform and examining all of the buttons to make sure that they were properly shined and all in place. It had been a long time since he had donned the uniform and he wanted to make sure it was still in pristine condition. He was so absorbed in checking it over that he almost had not heard the light tapping at his door. He looked at the clock on the wall of his room. It was too early to be Bill or Jesse. He padded down the stairs to go answer the door and crossed the room to open the door. He swung it open and just stood there blinking in disbelief before a small smile of surprise slowly spread across his face. "Mom!" He exclaimed, "What are you doing here?"

She smiled a wide smile at him, "Why don't you invite me in first and then we can talk."

Nathan reached had wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace, "I'm just…I'm just so surprised. I mean I'm pleasantly surprised, but surprised. Come inside."

She walked through the door and looked around the room and then turned to him, "Where is Allie?"

"She walked down to Elizabeth's house. She's going to be getting ready for the wedding with her. She's very excited and she is going to be even more ecstatic to see you." He shook his head, "I just can't believe you're here."

"Elizabeth wrote to me shortly after you did and helped to work things out so that I could come. It's not every day that my only son gets married and I have to admit I never thought I would see this day come." She looked him up and down, examining him carefully, "You look happy son."

"I am, mom. You're going to love Elizabeth. She is the most kindhearted person I have ever met. She is beautiful on the inside and outside and I have no doubt that the two of you are going to get along really well. She's the school teacher here in town and she helped me out a lot with Allie and with Dad when I first arrived. She was the first person to really welcome me into the town, which was remarkable in and of itself because I came here replacing her late husband."

"She told me that in her letter. She also told me she has a son."

"Yes, his name is Jack and I love him as much as I love Allie. He has wormed his way into my heart and quickly become my little buddy. Mom, I love her so much."

"I can tell son, I haven't seen you with this much joy on your face since Allie was born. It seems to me like Elizabeth has been good for you and I'm so grateful for her presence in your life. I know she is special just from her letter. She really wanted me to be here to celebrate with you and when I told her I didn't really have the funds to get her, well, she helped make it happen. At first, I refused, but she insisted that she wanted this to be her gift to you and I couldn't refuse her after having it put that way."

"Well I have a surprise for you too. Allie's dad gave up his parental rights."

She looked at him with a flummoxed expression, "So what does that mean?"

"Mom, it means that Elizabeth and I are going to adopt Allie. She is ours permanently and he will never be able to try and come and take her from us."

He watched as the realization of his words sunk in with his mom. Her eyes went from shock to a glistening brightness of unshed joyful tears. She reached out and hugged him, "That's great, Nathan. I'm so relieved and happy to hear this. I wish I could help you with her, but you are doing an unbelievable job with her. Colleen would be so proud of you."

He swallowed back the lump in his throat, "I know mom, thank you." He took in a large breath and then released it, "Are you hungry? Can I get you something to eat?"

"No, I ate at the café in town, a delightful place with good food."

"Yes, that's Bill's place. He is also the judge in town and a former Mountie. He's my best man today. If it hadn't been for him encouraging me along the way I don't know if I ever would have had the courage to ask Elizabeth out, but he kept prodding and encouraging me, in more words or less, to pursue her and I'm so glad he did." He paused and then looked around the room and then back at his mom, "Bill and Jesse should be coming over soon. Let me show you upstairs. You'll be staying here, yes?"

"I would love to. Maybe Allie can stay with me while you and Elizabeth are gone."

He smiled at her, "I'm sure she would love that. She's grown so much since you saw her last, you might not recognize her. She's becoming a young woman, growing way too fast for my taste."

His mom stood there chuckling, "Yes, they do that, grow fast I mean."

"Yeah, I guess so. Come on let me show you upstairs." He led her up the stairs. He wasn't sure how Elizabeth had managed to do it, but he would be forever grateful to her for managing to get his mom to Hope Valley for his wedding. He new with uncertainty that just how blessed he was to have Elizabeth to share his life with and just 3 more hours she would be his and he hers.

To Be Continued…