Jack rolled onto his side and placed his hand on my cheek. "How are you feeling?"

"Still a little weak and sick to my stomach, but I feel much better than I did yesterday." I covered my mouth while I yawned. "Apparently I'm still tired, too. I'll take off work again today, just in case, and then I should be more than fine to go back Monday."

"Good." He kissed my forehead. "I hate when you're sick."

"It's no fun for me, either," I touched my thumb to his lips, "because I don't get to kiss you when I'm sick."

"I never said you weren't allowed to kiss me." He leaned in and pressed his lips to mine. "If I get sick, then so be it." He kissed me again, then grinned. "Worth it."

I rolled my eyes. "You're such a goof."

"Okay, I need to take a shower and get ready for work. You just relax."

I stretched and settled back into the pillows, letting the sound of the shower lull me back to sleep.

I woke a few minutes later when the water shut off.

Jack came out of the bathroom, doing up the buttons on his shirt. "Do you want me to take Teddy next door?"

"I think I want to keep him here today. If I start feeling worse, I'll call Rosemary and have her come get him."

"Okay." He laced up his shoes. "Do you need anything before I go?"

"Maybe just a glass of water."

"On it."

I smiled as I watched him walk out of the room, thanking God for leading me to Jack Thornton.

He returned ten minutes later with Teddy and a glass of water. He set the glass on my nightstand.

"I heard him moving around in his crib when I came back upstairs." He lowered our son onto the bed. "I went ahead and changed his diaper."

"Thank you." I reached toward Teddy, brushing the hair back from his forehead. "Good morning, Teddy Bear."

He climbed onto me, grinning, his little knee digging into my stomach.

"Oh, bud, be careful. Mama's tummy is still a little sick." Jack lifted him off of me and set him on the bed beside me.

"Thank you, Jack."

"Don't overdo it today." He leaned down and kissed me. "I'm working a longer shift today, so I can pick something up for dinner on my way home."

"Okay. Stay safe. I love you."

"I love you, too." He kissed me again, then kissed the top of Teddy's head. "I love you, little man."

...

"Okay, Teddy Bear, what should we do today?"

"Mamamama." He crawled to my side and tugged on my shirt.

"Oh, you're right, bud. I need to feed you before we do anything." I poked his belly, sending him into a fit of giggles. "Are you hungry?"

I leaned against the headboard and got him settled in to eat, and he smiled up at me.

"Did you sleep well last night, Teddy Bear?" I touched the little dimple in his cheek. "Goodness, you look more and more like your daddy with every passing day. If you didn't come out of me, I wouldn't know you're half Thatcher." I chuckled. "Speaking of the Thatchers, your nana and papa Thatcher and your aunt Julie are going to come visit in June for your birthday, and your grandma Charlotte and uncle Tom. I think your aunt Viola is going to try to come, too. It'll be nice to see all of them, huh?"

He pulled away and crawled out of my lap.

"Done already?"

He grabbed the little stuffed bear he had dropped on the other side of the bed and returned to me, getting situated in my lap again.

"Or not." I chuckled as he started to eat again. "How about we go outside for a little while today? Does that sound fun? We could even have a picnic lunch out back with Rip and Bronte, and we can play in the grass."

...

It was a beautiful day outside, a clear blue sky with not a cloud in sight. The sun was still blocked by the house, keeping the backyard shaded and cool.

I set out a blanket on the grass and lowered Teddy onto it. He immediately rolled from his back to his stomach and started to crawl away. Bronte met him at the edge of the blanket, licking all over his face.

I smiled as he shrieked and giggled.

"Is Bronte your friend, Teddy Bear?"

He sat back on the blanket and reached up to pet the dog. I loved the bond that they had. She had been protective of him from the moment he was born, and he had gotten attached to her quickly. I was thankful that she had adjusted so well to having a baby in the house. Now that he was mobile, she had to put up with a lot. He left Rip alone most of the time, but he was always climbing on Bronte and tugging on her fur, and she just let him.

"Hey, Teddy Bear, where's Rip? Is he on the porch?" I turned to look at the lazy dog, who was stretched out and sleeping beside the porch swing.

"Mamamama." Teddy used Bronte to pull himself up, swaying a little on the uneven ground. "Bee." He tapped the dog with one hand, holding onto her fur with the other.

"That's right, bud. That's Bee." Before he moved further away, I pulled some fruit from a bowl I'd brought out with us. "Do you want a snack, Teddy Bear?"

He grinned, dropping to his hands and knees to crawl over to me. He had become a very confident crawler over the previous months, and he was starting to cruise more and more along the furniture in the house. I knew it was only a matter of time before he would be walking all by himself.

I sighed as I watched him chew on a piece of melon. As much as I loved seeing his personality develop and appreciated his increasing independence, I hated how quickly he seemed to be growing. Part of me missed the days when he was content to stay in my arms for hours.

"Mama." He held up his food to show me.

"I see it. Is that yummy?"

We stayed outside for an hour, snacking and traipsing through the grass, only returning to the house when it started to feel warm and I noticed Teddy's little face turning pink.

...

"Elizabeth?"

"We're in the living room." I rubbed Teddy's back as he shifted against my chest, snoring quietly in his sleep. Jack came in, carrying a bag of food. I smiled at him. "Hey, babe. How was work?"

"Good. I'm glad to be home, though. I brought dinner." He set the bag on the coffee table and leaned in to kiss me. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay. Teddy and I had a picnic outside earlier, and I think that might have been a little much for both of us. He refused to nap after that, which is why he's out now. Oh, and I figured out my stomach isn't quite ready for fruit again, yet."

"Then it's a good thing I brought you soup instead." He smirked and kissed my nose. "Do you want me to take little man up to his room?"

"No. I was about to wake him anyway, so he won't struggle to fall asleep later."

"Okay. I'm going to change out of my uniform, and then we can all eat."

...

By the next morning, I was feeling back to normal, and the rest of April passed quickly. May came before we knew it, and with it came my birthday.

"Good morning." Jack kissed my nose. "Happy birthday, Beth."

"Mm, good morning and thank you." I stretched and nuzzled my face into his chest. "I don't want to get up."

"Well, we have to get up and get through work so we can come home and start celebrating."

"Can't we just stay home and start celebrating now?"

"By 'celebrate' do you mean 'sleep in'?"

"Maybe." I laughed softly and kissed his chest. "It should be a thing that everyone is allowed to sleep in on their birthday. Don't you think?"

"Yes, but unfortunately that isn't a thing." He brushed his lips across my forehead. "Besides, Teddy wouldn't let you sleep in, anyway."

I sighed. "That's true. He's just lucky he's so cute."

Jack rolled out of bed. "I'll get him up and changed this morning so you can stay in bed for a few more minutes."

"Mm, you sure know the way to my heart."

...

The school day went well. There were no major incidents with my students, Jack had a vase full of purple roses sent to me, and one of my coworkers brought in cupcakes.

After work, I spent the early part of the afternoon playing with Teddy in his room. When Jack arrived home from work, he found me sitting in the glider with Teddy in my lap while I read him a Dr. Seuss book.

"Hi." He leaned against the door frame, a grin stretching across his face. "Are you ready for the birthday celebrations to begin?"

"As soon as I finish this book and change his diaper."

"Okay. I'll start getting things ready."

When I came downstairs with Teddy a few minutes later, I noticed that Jack had pushed the furniture toward the walls, leaving the middle of the living room empty.

"Uh, what's going on in here?"

"Well, we can't very well watch a movie on the projector out back while it's raining, so I had to improvise."

"At least it's just rain and not a storm. Did I ever tell you about the year I had a sleepover for my birthday, and we ended up having to take shelter in the middle of the night because the tornado sirens went off?"

"Seriously?"

I chuckled and nodded, shifting Teddy to my other hip. "And somehow, I slept through most of it, so my dad had to carry me to the closet. I woke up in there with no idea what was going on."

"Goodness. How old were you?"

"I think seven or eight."

"If little nine-year-old Jack had been there, he would've held your hand so you wouldn't be scared." He winked and kissed my cheek before he finished setting up the projector screen in front of the fireplace.

"So, what are we watching?" I moved to the center of the room, trying to spot a DVD case.

"You have to wait a few more minutes to find out. Don't worry, it's something you like."

"Well, it better be. It is my birthday, after all."

"Now get settled in." He motioned toward the pillows and blankets scattered on the floor.

A grin spread across my face a few minutes later when he started the movie and the opening notes of Hello Dolly began to play. I sank into his side, and he rested his hand on my leg.

"Happy?"

"Very."

...

I nudged Jack and pointed at our son. He was sitting up straight, staring intently at the screen.

"Looks like we have a little Streisand fan there."

Jack ruffled his hair. "He probably gets that from his daddy."

"Really? Since when are you a fan of Barbra Streisand?"

"Since my mom played her music all the time when I was little."

I laughed softly. "Why do I have such a hard time imagining your mom listening to that kind of music?"

"It really doesn't seem like something she'd enjoy, but she loves it."

While we were talking, Teddy used Jack's arm to pull himself up.

"Wait, Beth. Is he about to walk?"

I shrugged. "He could be. He's been cruising for a while."

We both watched as he let go of Jack and stood unsupported for a few seconds, his little body swaying just a bit. He took one tentative step, then another, slowly moving closer to the screen.

He got halfway across the room before falling on his little diapered bottom.

Jack scooped him up. "Look at you, little man! Walking all by yourself."

"You're such a big boy, Teddy Bear." I kissed the top of his head, then moved to press my lips to Jack's. "Can you believe that this time last year, he was still inside of me?"

"That feels like forever ago and yesterday at the same time."

Teddy squirmed in Jack's arms until he released him. He stood back up and took a few steps toward the screen again.

Jack took my hand. "Our baby is walking."

I shook my head. "I wish time could slow down a bit."

Teddy dropped to the floor again, pointing at the screen and babbling.

"Who would've guessed that Hello Dolly would be the thing to get him walking?"

"He has good taste. And he waited until your birthday. He really is the perfect child."

...

"I ran you a bath."

"That sounds amazing. I just need to put Teddy to bed."

"I'll put him down." He held out his arms. "Go. Relax."

I kissed Teddy's forehead. "Good night, Teddy Bear. I love you."

Jack took our son from me. "Let's go get you in your pajamas and get you in bed." He kept speaking softly to him as he walked down the hallway.

I made my way to the bathroom and sank into the hot water. I took a deep breath and leaned my head back on the edge of the tub.

I started dozing, only to be awakened when Jack tapped on the door frame. He poked his head into the room.

"Doing okay in here?"

"Yes." I shifted a bit, disturbing the water around me. "I'd be better if you joined me, though."

"Well, if I must." He winked and undressed before slipping into the tub behind me, just barely squeezing my hips with his legs.

I leaned back, resting my head on his shoulder. "Thank you for a wonderful birthday."

"The day's not over yet." He brushed his lips across my neck, sending chills down my body. "I still have more plans for us."

"Mm, I think for once, I might actually be able to guess what you're planning."

"Oh, really?" He kissed my shoulder.

"At least I hope my guess is right." I turned slightly, meeting his eyes. They were dark, shining. I pressed my lips to his jaw. "I love you, Jack Thornton."

"I love you, Elizabeth. Ann. Thornton." He punctuated each of my names with a kiss. "So much."

...

A/N I know I've mentioned this before, but here's a reminder that you guys are welcome to let me know what you want to see more of in my stories! I get inspiration from lots of places, and your comments can be a big help when I'm stuck on a chapter!