A/N I figured we'd celebrate 50 chapters with the longest chapter of this story yet! Thanks for your continued support and kind comments!

Big stuff happening for our little Thornton family in this one :)

...

I opened my eyes, blinking in the bright sunlight streaming through the curtains. When I rolled over, I expected to encounter Jack. Instead, I encountered empty sheets. I sighed, trying to motivate myself to get up, something that was more difficult now that school was out for the summer.

I heard Jack laugh from across the hall. I quietly stepped down the hallway and peeked into the nursery. He was sitting on the floor with Teddy, his back to the door. Teddy noticed me and pointed.

"What is it, Teddy?" Jack followed his finger and met my gaze. Teddy babbled incoherently. "Oh, you're right, bud. It's a pretty girl."

I smiled and rolled my eyes. "How long has he been up?"

"I don't know. I came in here ten minutes ago, and he was already awake." He returned his attention to our son. "You were wide awake, weren't you?" Jack tickled him, and he giggled. "I still can't believe he's almost a year old."

"Me neither." I took a deep breath. "Hey, Jack?"

"Yes?" He turned to look at me again.

I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to find the courage to say the words aloud that had been running through my head for days. "I think I'm pregnant."

He froze. "What?"

"I haven't taken a test yet, but I'm pretty sure that I'm pregnant again."

He put Teddy back in the crib and took me in his arms. "How are you feeling about this?"

I shrugged. "Honestly? A little excited, but mostly terrified. I just keep thinking about the last time. I thought we were being careful so this wouldn't happen again until we felt ready. I'm not ready, Jack."

"Well, we thought we were being careful when you got pregnant with Teddy." He brought his hand to my cheek, brushing away a tear that had fallen. "Hey, everything is going to be okay. Why don't we go downstairs and have some breakfast?"

I shook my head. "No, I need to take a test right now. I need to know for sure." Thankfully, I still had a few tests left over from the last time. I found the package in the back of a drawer in the bathroom, double checking the expiration date.

Jack was sitting on the bed, patiently waiting, when I stepped out of the bathroom a few minutes later. I stood in front of him silently, staring at the test in my hands.

"Well?"

I just nodded as tears began to roll down my cheeks. He pulled me into his lap, wrapping his arms around me.

He kissed my temple. "I love you, Beth. I can't believe we're having another baby." He placed one hand on my stomach.

"Another baby," I whispered, resting my hand on top of his.

"I'm so happy, Elizabeth."

"So am I. Terrified and happy."

"Hey, are you still up to going to the zoo today?" He reached up with his other hand and wiped the tears from my cheek with his thumb.

"Yes. We promised Teddy."

"Are you sure? I'm pretty sure he doesn't remember we promised. We can just stay here today."

"Really, Jack, I'm fine. A little overwhelmed, but fine."

He moved his hand across my stomach. "Do you feel sick or anything?"

I shook my head. "No. I feel fine. My answer might be different later, but right now I'm fine."

He grinned, looking down at his hand on my belly.

I laughed softly. "You're just so proud, aren't you?"

"Just a little. I mean, that's my baby in there. Our baby."

...

Jack took my hand as we walked down the sidewalk. Teddy was nestled against his chest in the baby carrier, his head poking out so he could see. "I think the first thing we'll see up here are some grizzly bears."

I smiled. "Perfect. Our little Teddy Bear can see some real bears for the first time."

We crossed the train tracks and headed up the steps leading to the viewing area for the bears.

"Look, Teddy." Jack pointed toward the exhibit, where a grizzly bear was lumbering across the rocks. "See the bear?"

"Hey, Teddy Bear, can you tell your daddy what kind of sound a bear makes? Does a bear say 'grrr'?"

He looked from me to Jack to the bear before letting out a little growl.

Jack chuckled. "Good job, bud."

We continued on through the row of buildings, pointing out the different animals to Teddy: foxes and lizards, eagles and seahorses. He stared at everything in wide-eyed wonder.

We exited the last building, stepping into the sunlight.

Jack put his hand on my back. "Do you need to sit down or take a break or anything?"

"No. I feel fine. I promise I'll let you know if I need a break." I kept walking. "Come on, we're almost to the petting zoo."

"Ooh, a petting zoo. What do you think about that, little man?"

Teddy giggled and kicked his legs.

The enclosure was filled with goats and sheep; a smaller pen held a few rabbits. There were a couple of children roaming around inside, following the animals around.

"You take him in. I'll wait here."

Jack went through the gate and took Teddy out of the carrier, lowering him to the ground in the middle of the enclosure. He looked around for a moment, hesitant, before he took a few steps toward one of the goats.

Jack crouched down beside our son. "You have to be gentle, Teddy, just like you are with Rip and Bronte. Okay?"

The animals barely paid him any attention; they were too focused on eating from the pile of hay laid out for them. Teddy reached out and touched a goat, immediately turning to make sure Jack was watching.

"Dada!"

"I see you, bud. Are you petting a goat? Can you say goat?"

As I leaned against the fence, watching them, I found my mind drawn to the new baby I carried. I touched my stomach, imagining a day in the future when we would bring our two children on outings.

Jack looked over at me and grinned. "Hey, Teddy, can you show mama how you can pet the goat?"

"That goat is kind of funny looking without ears."

"What do you think, Teddy? Is that a silly looking goat?"

...

Teddy fell asleep in my arms before we even made it to the car.

I buckled him into his car seat while Jack loaded everything else into the trunk. "I'd say that was a successful outing."

"Who would've guessed he'd be fine with elephants and tigers but terrified of tortoises?" Jack chuckled.

"In his defense, those tortoises were huge."

"I wonder if the next one will be afraid of them, too." He brushed his hand across my stomach as he passed me.

"I can't believe our little Teddy Bear is going to be a big brother."

"Well, if he's anything like me, he'll be a great big brother."

"Should I ask Tom if that's true?"

"I don't know. Should I ask Julie if you're a good big sister?" He winked and kissed my cheek.

I smirked and slid into the passenger seat. "Go for it."

...

I didn't look up from the picture in my hands when Jack walked through the front door. "Hi."

"Hi, Beth." He came to stand in front of me and kissed the top of my head. "I'm sorry I couldn't come to your appointments today. How did everything go?"

Without a word, I held the picture out to him.

He looked at it intently, trying to figure out exactly what he was seeing. "This is our baby?"

I nodded.

"Our baby." He brushed his finger across the ultrasound picture, a grin stretching across his face as he traced the baby's profile. "Everything looks good?"

"Everything is perfect."

He set the picture on the table and took a seat beside me. "How are you feeling?"

"Still terrified. It really hit me while I was sitting there looking at the screen. We're having another baby, Jack. We're going to have two kids under two." I leaned my head on his shoulder. "How are we supposed to do this?"

"We'll figure it out." He took my hand, rubbing his thumb across my knuckles. "I'm not saying it's going to be easy, but you know we'll have lots of help."

"I know." I sighed. "I'm feeling a little better now that I've had the ultrasound, though. I know the odds of losing another one aren't high, but I was worried. The technician said the heartbeat is exactly where it should be." I put my hand on my stomach. "Plus, I'm already eleven weeks along, which is almost a month past when we lost Owen."

"I'm sure everything is going to be just fine." He kissed the top of my head. "You said you're eleven weeks along?"

"Mhmm. Eleven weeks and four days, to be exact."

"So…" he was quiet for a moment as he counted, "Vancouver?"

I nodded. "I'm pretty sure."

"Apparently that trip was even better for us than we thought it was." He raised his eyebrows.

"Apparently."

"And when you were sick last month?"

"Oh, I really did have the stomach flu then. I've had a little bit of morning sickness, but that didn't start until recently." I rubbed my stomach. "That's when I started to suspect that maybe I was pregnant."

He picked up the ultrasound picture again, a smile playing on his lips. "The baby has your nose. She looks cute."

"She?"

He shrugged. "Or he looks cute. That just slipped out."

"Are you hoping for a girl this time?"

"Maybe? I don't know. A daughter would be nice, but I would love another son, too. Honestly, I'm just happy there's another baby in there." He smiled, placing his hand beside mine on the tiny bump.

"Jack?" I absentmindedly reached for his hand, lacing our fingers together. "I think I want to find out what this baby is. I know we kept it a surprise with Teddy, but with everything that happened with Owen, I just want all the information we can possibly get. I realize that knowing if we're having a boy or a girl isn't going to change anything, but I just want to know."

"We'll find out halfway through, right?"

I nodded. "Probably sometime at the end of July. I'm due in mid-December, just over a week before Christmas."

He chuckled. "Good to know this one probably won't be born during a tornado."

"Maybe it'll be an ice storm instead."

"Well don't say that. Now I'm going to worry that'll happen."

I chuckled. "Chances are, this baby will come on a mild winter day. I just hope she isn't nine and a half pounds."

"Oh goodness, I didn't even think about that. I'll just go ahead and apologize in advance." He slipped his arm around me, pulling me into his side. "Hey, did you say 'she?' You think it's a girl, too?"

I shrugged. "Maybe. I don't really have strong feelings either way. Considering I made it nearly three months before realizing I was pregnant, I'd say my instincts aren't as great this time."

He laughed. "Well, regardless of whether your instincts are correct or not, this baby is going to be perfect."

...

I rolled onto my back and draped my arm across my stomach. "Jack, I don't want to tell anyone about the baby tomorrow."

"Not even our parents?"

"Well, maybe we can tell them when Teddy is napping. I just want the day to be about him, though."

"I guess that makes sense." He smiled and slipped his hand under my shirt, brushing his fingers across my stomach. "I'm just so happy. We made another baby, Beth."

I lifted the hem of my shirt, revealing the little bump. "I wonder how long we'll be able to hide this from everyone else. Since it's not my first pregnancy, I'll probably get bigger faster than I did with Teddy. I'm pretty sure I've been showing since before I even knew there was a baby in there."

"You can probably make it another week or two if you wear loose clothes." He shifted down in the bed until his face was even with my belly. "Hi, baby. Thanks for letting us get pictures of you today. I think you look like your mama, but I guess we'll find out in December, eh?" He looked up at me and winked.

I rolled my eyes. "You're adorable, Jack Thornton."

"Hey, little one, tomorrow is your big brother's first birthday, so I think your mama and I should probably get some rest now. You let your mama get some sleep, okay?" He pressed his lips to my stomach. "I love you, baby T."

He moved back up in the bed, leaning his head on his pillow.

"And I love you, too."

I kissed him. "I love you, babe."

...

I pulled my dress over my head, turning sideways to look in the mirror. I moved my hand across my stomach, trying to determine if my little bump was visible. I sighed and walked back to my closet.

"Elizabeth, are you ready?"

"I need to change. You can tell I'm pregnant in this dress."

"I can't tell at all." He shifted Teddy in his arms. "Come on, people are going to start arriving any minute."

"But Jack…"

"Beth, I can't tell you're pregnant, and I know to look for it. No one is going to notice. Besides, everyone is going to be so focused on this little man, they probably won't be paying attention to anything else." He rubbed his nose against the top of Teddy's head, making him giggle.

"Just tell people I'll be down soon." I flicked through my closet, not bothering to see if he left.

Three dresses later, I made my way downstairs. Jack's mother and brother had already arrived, and my family was just walking in the door. Viola, Lionel, and little George had been unable to make the trip from London, but Julie and her boyfriend, Steven, had come from St. Louis with my parents.

Everyone greeted each other, giving extra attention to Teddy, who was happily reclining in his uncle's arms.

Within fifteen minutes, the rest of our guests had arrived: Abigail, Becky, and Cody; Faith and Carson; Rosemary, Lee, and Alina; and Jesse, Clara, and baby Ally.

Jack rested his hand on my back. "The party's out back, so we can all head out there."

As soon as we were outside, Teddy squirmed until Tom set him down.

"Bee!" He and Alina both toddled after the dog, giggling.

"I can't believe how much he's grown since Christmas. Walking and talking; it won't be long before he's in school."

I groaned. "Don't talk like that. He and I have reached an agreement, and he's going to stay my baby forever."

Abigail put her hand on my shoulder. "I hate to break it to you, but it doesn't work that way." She chuckled. "I tried to keep Becky and Cody from growing up, and look at them now." She nodded toward her kids, who were out in the yard playing with Teddy and Alina.

...

I set aside the last of the gifts that Teddy had—not so carefully—opened and forced a smile onto my face. "I'll uh, go get the cake."

Once the door closed behind me, I hurried to the bathroom.

I leaned on the counter, taking deep breaths through my mouth and trying to will away the nausea that had decided to wash over me.

"Oh, baby, please." I rubbed my stomach. "You can't make me sick right now."

I slid to the floor, leaning my head back against the wall.

"Elizabeth?" Jack knocked lightly on the door. "Can I come in?"

"Yes."

"Hey, what's going on?"

"Morning sickness." I tucked my hair behind my ear. "It's not as predictable as it was with Teddy."

Jack joined me on the floor. "Can I get you anything?"

"A glass of ginger ale and a good excuse as to why I've been in here for so long." I smiled weakly.

He chuckled. "I can get you the ginger ale. We'll see about the excuse."

...

Jack took a seat beside me and handed me a damp cloth to clean off Teddy's face. "Can you believe it's been a whole year since this little man was born?"

I wiped away the icing and cake crumbs smeared across Teddy's cheeks. "It feels like it was just yesterday."

"What a day that was." He laughed.

"Wasn't he born in the bathtub?" Rosemary questioned.

"During a tornado, yes."

"That was a fun day." Abigail chuckled.

Steven nudged Julie. "You didn't tell me your nephew inherited your love of the dramatic."

She rolled her eyes and laughed. "Yeah, yeah." She held out her arms. "I think it's my turn to hold him again."

I finished cleaning him off and passed him to my sister.

"You're just a little chunk, aren't you?" She kissed his cheek, and he giggled.

"He was twenty-six pounds at his last checkup."

Julie rubbed her nose against his cheek. "What a big guy. Have you had a good birthday, buddy?" He reached up and touched her chin, babbling quietly. "Can you say 'auntie Julie'? Ju-lie. Ju-lie."

He just laughed, still touching her face.

I scooted closer to Jack, leaning against him. "I'm so glad we decided to keep his party small. This is perfect."

"He's perfect." He kissed my temple. "You're perfect."

I brushed my fingers across his jaw, pressing a kiss to his lips. "Thank you for accidentally getting me pregnant a year and nine months ago."

He chuckled and kissed my nose. "You're welcome."

...

Later that afternoon, Jack and I sat in the living room with our parents and siblings. Our friends had all left a few hours before, with a few last birthday wishes for Teddy.

The party had worn our little guy out, and he lay in my lap, fast asleep.

Charlotte took a sip of lemonade. "Lizzy, are you enjoying your summer break so far? I'm sure it's nice to relax a bit."

I chuckled. "It's not really much of a break with Teddy in the house. He's a fast little guy considering he's only been walking for a month. I feel like I spend all of my time chasing him around." I looked down at him, brushing the hair back from his forehead. "Except when he's napping," I added with a smile.

Jack nudged me. "Just think of how busy it's going to get in a few months."

"When school starts again?"

"Well," I looked over at Jack, and he gave a slight nod, "we, uh, haven't actually figured out what I'm going to do about teaching once the new baby comes."

My mom sputtered, nearly choking on her lemonade. "Did you just say 'new baby?'"

"You're pregnant?!" Julie squealed.

"Yes, I did, and yes, I am." I passed Teddy to Jack before I stood up. I cradled my stomach, pulling my dress tight and revealing the bump to my family. "Teddy will be getting a little brother or sister for Christmas."

Jack reached into his shirt pocket and produced the stack of ultrasound pictures. "Here's more proof if that bump isn't enough."

My dad looked at one of the pictures, a grin stretching across his face. "Maybe we'll get a granddaughter this time."

"Maybe." I smiled and sat back down, my hand on my stomach.

"When did you find out?"

"About a week ago. I'm just over twelve weeks along now."

"Well, congratulations."

...

Jack stood behind me, slipping his arms around my waist as we watched our son snoring quietly in his crib.

"Aside from that little bout of morning sickness, today was a good day, babe."

"A very good day," he agreed. "Two years ago, would you have imagined we'd be here?" He rubbed his thumbs back and forth on my stomach.

"Not at all, but our life is better than anything I could have imagined." I turned toward him. "I have you. We have our perfect, beautiful son, and we have another perfect baby on the way."

"I love you, Beth. And our babies." He kissed me deeply. "You three are my favorite people in the whole world."

"And you're our favorite person." I stood on my toes and kissed him again. "I love you, Jack Thornton."