A/N Who's ready for a little first anniversary celebration? Like the honeymoon chapter, this chapter isn't explicit, but there are things implied.

Enjoy!

...

I grinned when Jack came into the kitchen, his hair sticking out in all directions. "Morning, babe. That's some nice bedhead you've got going on there."

He kissed my cheek. "You love my bedhead." He ran his fingers through his hair, mussing it up even more.

"I do love your bedhead. Your stubble, not so much." I rubbed my cheek where the beginnings of his beard had scratched me.

"Did you say you want me to rub my stubble all over your face?" He moved toward me, sticking out his chin.

"Jack Thornton, don't you dare!" I held up a spatula to keep him at bay.

He laughed. "Don't worry. I won't do that today. Is Teddy still asleep?"

"Mhmm." I poured some batter into the waffle iron and turned back toward him. "I guess that's his anniversary gift to us: sleeping in."

"Good kid." He pressed his lips to mine. "Happy anniversary, Elizabeth."

"Happy anniversary, Jack."

He pulled me closer to him, linking his arms around my back. "How much time do we have before work?"

"Not enough for what you're thinking, unless we want both of us and our son to miss breakfast."

"Dang it."

I leaned up and brushed my lips against his. "We can put Teddy to bed early tonight."

"Tonight is so far away," he whined.

"I promise it'll be worth the wait." I handed him a plate and put a hot waffle and a few strips of bacon on it.

He shook his head and smiled. "You will be the death of me, Elizabeth Thornton."

I was just about to kiss him again when Teddy's little cry pierced through the baby monitor sitting on the counter.

"Go ahead and start eating. I'll get him."

Teddy was whimpering in my arms when I returned to the kitchen. I settled into my seat across from Jack, noticing that there was a full plate of food set in front of me.

"You didn't have to make up my plate, Jack."

"Well, you made breakfast, so it's the least I could do. Plus, this way, you don't have to wait until little man finishes eating."

"Thank you."

Teddy quieted down once I started feeding him. I looked down at him and smiled.

"You're just like your daddy, aren't you, Teddy Bear?"

"Hmm?" Jack mumbled, his mouth full. "How is he just like me? And don't say it's because he looks like me."

"He's happiest when he's eating."

Jack laughed. "Yeah, he's definitely my son."

I sighed. "It's a shame we have to work today."

He grinned and reached across the table to squeeze my hand. "It'll just make the evening even more special."

...

I stood on the porch and knocked. The day had been long—I'd had to diffuse multiple arguments when I assigned group work—and I just wanted to see my husband and son.

Rosemary answered the door with Teddy in her arms. Eleven-month-old Alina was standing up, gripping Rosemary's leg to keep steady. "Hi, Elizabeth."

"Hi, Rosie. Thanks for watching him."

Teddy grinned and cooed when he saw me. She passed him to me, and he relaxed into my arms.

"You can come in while I get the diaper bag for you." She scooped Alina up off the floor and headed into the living room. "He was good today, as always."

"Good." I tickled his belly, and he gurgled. "Were you a good boy for aunt Rosie while mama was at work?"

She had been watching him during the day for a few weeks, and the arrangement was going well. It made it easier for me to go to work knowing he was safe and happy with Rosemary.

She handed me the diaper bag, and I slipped it onto my shoulder.

"Are you sure you don't need me to watch him tonight?"

"Jack already asked Becky to babysit, but thank you for the offer." I shifted Teddy in my arms. "He probably thought you could use a break."

She chuckled. "Well, I guess I should thank him, then. I'll see you later, Elizabeth. Have fun with Jack tonight, and happy anniversary."

"Thank you." I gave her a wave and headed across the yard to my house.

Bronte was at my side as soon as I opened the door. I greeted her and dropped the diaper bag on the floor.

When Jack arrived home from work twenty minutes later, I was rocking Teddy on the swing while he ate, watching the dogs wander around the backyard.

Jack sank down onto the swing beside me. "I should've known I'd find you out here."

I smiled. "If we ever move, we need to make sure we have a porch with a swing. I don't care about anything else."

"So, shag carpeting in every room and fake wood paneling on every wall?"

"Well, maybe I do care about other things, too." I laughed. "I really do love this swing, though."

He slipped his arm around my shoulders. "So do I. Do you remember the Sunday after our first date? We spent the afternoon out here, just talking."

"Mhmm. That was a good day."

Teddy grunted and pulled away from me. Jack took him from me, lifting him to his shoulder.

"Do you ever miss that? The early days of our relationship?"

I shook my head. "Not really. I mean, it was fun getting to know each other and everything, but I love where we're at now. I like that we know each other so much better, but we can still learn more." I set my hand on his thigh. "Speaking of knowing each other, thank you for the flowers." I nodded toward the house, where there was a vase of purple roses sitting on the table. They had been waiting on my desk when I arrived at work that morning.

He kissed my temple. "You're welcome."

"Are you a regular at the flower shop yet?"

He chuckled. "Basically. I just have to give my name and they know to make up an arrangement of purple roses."

"Hey, are you going to tell me where dinner is?"

He nudged me with his shoulder. "You've been married to me for a whole year now. That's one thing you should know about me by now: I don't give away my secrets."

"And you should know by now that I don't like surprises."

He grinned. "But you love my surprises."

"At least tell me what time I should be ready."

"I told Becky we'd bring Teddy by around six."

I checked my watch. "In that case, I'd better start getting ready. Are you good here?"

"We're good."

...

"Must be a slow night. I know it's early for the dinner rush, but I don't think I've ever seen the parking lot this empty." I looked around. There were only two cars in the lot besides ours, and one was definitely Abigail's. "I hope everything is okay."

"Mm, I'm sure everything's fine." Jack lifted Teddy from the car seat as I reached for the diaper bag.

Teddy gurgled against Jack's shoulder as we walked around to the back door. Becky was there to greet us.

"Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Thornton." She opened the door wider to let us in.

"Hi, Becky. Where's your mom?"

"In the front. I'll let her know you're here." She disappeared through the door that led to the dining room.

I set the bag on the table. "Hey, Cody."

He looked up from his homework. "Hey, Mrs. Thornton."

"Is that a history report?"

"Yeah. I have to write about the Land Run."

"Ah, yes. Where the nickname 'the Sooner State' comes from."

He glanced over at Jack. "Is that where the OU Sooners come from, too?"

"Mhmm. Boomer Sooner."

We all turned when we heard the door open again.

"There's the royal family of Hope Valley."

I laughed and hugged her. "Hi, Abigail."

"You look lovely, Elizabeth. And your sheriff is looking quite handsome, himself."

Jack chuckled. "Thank you, Abigail."

Becky took the baby from him, and he slid his arm around my waist.

"Okay, I think everything should be set for Teddy. There are diapers and a bottle and a change of clothes in the bag. There's some extra milk in there, too, but he shouldn't need it." I looked over at Jack. "We should probably get going."

"You two just enjoy yourselves. We've got everything under control."

"Thank you."

I started moving toward the back door, but Jack grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the dining room.

"What are you doing?"

"Shh." He opened the door to reveal an empty dining room.

Our usual table was covered in a tablecloth, two candles lit in the center. So that was why the parking lot had been empty.

"Jack…"

He pulled out a chair for me. "I'll take you to a fancy restaurant in Tulsa when we can get away for a whole weekend, but I thought this would be a good place for tonight."

I smiled and took a seat. "It's perfect."

It was perfect. The café was the place where I first took notice of him, the place where we had our first date, the place where we told our friends that I was pregnant with Teddy.

It was only right for us to spend our first anniversary there.

We spent the evening eating a delicious meal and reminiscing about the first year of our marriage.

After we ate, Jack stood and offered his hand, pulling me to the center of the room. He pressed something on his phone, and music started playing, filling the dining room. He kissed me softly as we turned slowly, his hands on the small of my back and my hands on the back of his neck.

"It's still true."

"Hm?"

He leaned in to kiss me again. "On our honeymoon, I told you that I'll want to dance with you until the day I die. I still feel that way."

"Goodness, I don't know what I did in my life to deserve you, Jack Thornton, but I'm certainly glad I did whatever it was."

"Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?"

"Multiple times." I felt a blush creep into my cheeks. How he was still able to get that reaction out of me, I had no idea.

"You're not allowed to get rid of this dress." He fingered the navy blue lace covering my shoulder.

I laughed softly. "Okay, and you can't get rid of this tie." I slid the purple silk through my fingers.

"Never. I married you in this tie. Nothing could convince me to get rid of it." He brought his lips to my ear. "But you can convince me to take it off."

I shivered. "Let's go home."

...

"Teddy's asleep, so he should be good until his middle-of-the-night feed." He came into the room and froze when he noticed me sitting on the edge of the bed, wearing a new lavender satin robe, candles lit on our nightstands. "Elizabeth, when did you…? How…?"

I smiled mischievously. "Happy anniversary, babe."

"I would've skipped the fancy dinner if I knew this is what was waiting for me." He grinned and pulled me up from the bed, brushing a strand of hair from my face. "You are so beautiful, Elizabeth Thornton. Thank you for marrying me."

I kissed him. "Thank you for making this last year the best year of my life."

"It's been my pleasure." He loosened the tie on my robe. "Now, I know this robe is new. Is there something new under it?"

"Nope. Nothing new. Nothing at all." I felt my cheeks redden in disbelief that I spoke the words aloud.

He raised his eyebrows, sliding his hands under the smooth fabric and over my shoulders. "Best anniversary ever." He nudged me backward.

"Well, it's only our first, so there's not really anything to compare it to."

"Shh." He pressed his lips to mine.

...

I woke in the middle of the night, feeling oddly cold. I moved toward Jack's side of the bed, only to realize that he wasn't there.

I opened my eyes to find him carrying Teddy into the room. I reached for my robe and slipped it on as he returned to the bed.

"Sorry to wake you, but the little man is hungry. I would feed him, but there aren't any bottles ready." He lowered Teddy into my arms so I could feed him.

"So, when we got married, is this how you imagined we'd be spending our first anniversary?"

"Awake in the middle of the night while you feed our son?" He chuckled and shook his head. "Not at all. But this is so much better than anything I could have imagined." He sighed contentedly, brushing his finger across Teddy's foot. "We should make another one."

I froze. "What?"

"Let's have another baby."

"Like…now?"

"Sure."

"Jack, our son is only three months old. Don't you think it's a little soon to have another one?"

He shrugged. "He'd be at least a year old by the time the next one came, and that's if you got pregnant right away. We don't have to start trying right now, but will you at least think about it?"

"Okay, I'll think about it."

He kissed my temple. "That's all I'm asking for."

We both fell into silence as we watched Teddy fill his belly.

I tried to imagine what it would be like to have another one. Twice the diapers, twice the feedings, twice the fussing.

Twice the smiles, twice the cuddles, twice the love.

I felt Jack's eyes on my face. I glanced up at him. "What?"

"You're thinking about it."

"Maybe…" The corners of my lips turned up, and he grinned. "Stop looking at me like that! I'm not going to make a decision right this second. There's a lot to consider. Like the fact that, if I got pregnant again, you wouldn't be able to see me in that navy blue dress for at least six or eight months, maybe longer."

He held out his hands as if he was weighing two things. "Navy blue dress… Another perfect baby… That is a tough choice." He winked and kissed my cheek. "I'll put little man back in his room."

With his belly full, Teddy was nearly asleep again, his eyelids drooping.

"Thank you, Jack." I kissed the top of Teddy's head before I carefully passed him to Jack. "Night, Teddy Bear."

I settled back against my pillow while Jack put our son to sleep.

A few minutes later, he climbed back into the bed and wrapped his arms around me, his hands warm against my stomach. I tucked my head under his chin.

"Jack."

"Hmm?"

"I want another baby. Not now, but soon."

"Okay." He kissed the top of my head. "I love you, Beth."

"I love you, too."