January, Jamaica

Beth snuggled closer to Jack, if that was possible. They were in their favorite spot. The hammock.

"Its just like being back home in Hope Valley," she mumbled as they soaked in the sunshine.

"Yeah, except here, I have you all to myself," Jack said.

"Thank goodness. Happy Anniversary, honey."

"Happy Anniversary."

At the risk of being cliché, they rarely left the room, unless it was to lay in the hammock. Whether to stare at the clouds or the stars, or just close their eyes and listen to the waves crashing on the sand, it didn't matter. Together was key to the trip and together they were.

"Have you checked your phone today?" she wondered.

"No. I really just don't want to deal with anything."

"Yeah, but what if they want you to come in for a second interview?"

"I told them I was taking you out of the country and the dates I would be gone. And Rick said he wouldn't call me in from my vacation so…"

She knew those things already, she just didn't want him to miss the opportunity to get them out of the city. Now that they were trying to have a baby, less danger meant a lot, even if it meant she needed to travel an hour and a half twice a day to go to school. She was ok with it. Well, she told herself that anyway.

"I'm hungry. Let's go out for dinner tonight."

"Out? Like out out? But, babe, I really enjoy eating dinner in the room." There was a slight whine in his voice but honestly there was nothing like sitting there staring at her, barely covered by a sheet while they ate amazing room service.

"Two days is all we have left. Don't you want to get all dressed up and go to a restaurant?"

"Honestly, no." She giggled and sat up to get out of the hammock. "Um, where are you going?"

"To take a shower. Care to join me?"

"Silly wife. No need to ever ask that question. The answer will always be the same."

….

She convinced him to leave the room that night. She had a black floor length dress with spaghetti straps and a thigh high slit and he took one look at her and decided he wanted everyone to see his gorgeous wife on his arm.

Now, they sat in a beach side restaurant, watching the waves and listening to local music. The atmosphere was romantic, yet festive. Jack slipped his arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple.

"This is nice," she mentioned, scooting her chair a bit closer to his.

"It is. I'm glad we came out."

"See, I have good ideas once in a while."

"Mmhm. Like that shower earlier. Good idea. That dress you're tempting me with, good idea." His free hand toyed with the slit that was dangerously high on her leg as she sat there.

She looked at him and kissed the corner of his mouth. "Watch yourself, hon. We are in public."

He looked around. "No one is paying any attention." He kissed her mouth, lingering, pushing the limits a bit.

"Ahem," their waiter said as he stood there with their food. "Guava stuffed chicken with mango," he said, putting her dish down. "And for you, sir, jerk chicken with red beans and rice. Enjoy."

"Thank you. May we have another drink?" Jack asked.

"I just want water," Beth mentioned.

"Very well."

Beth watched Jack cut a piece of perfectly cooked chicken. He stopped and looked at her, knowing exactly what she wanted. She always begged a bite of his food. He held the fork out and watched as she opened and accepted the food.

"Thank you, baby." He knew better than to ask to try hers though. "Wow, that is amazing."

"I'll let you know what I think in a moment," he told her, a sparkle in his eye.

The waiter set his beer down and refilled her water glass. "The food good, miss?"

"Yes. I…yes, thank you," she laughed. "I'm sure it is."

She cut a piece of her own food and ate it and nodded to the waiter. He chuckled and left them alone.

"I checked my phone while you were getting dressed," he mentioned.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. No messages." He was slightly disappointed and a bit surprised. He had expected at least a phone call mentioning when he should go to Silver Pines to interview again but nothing.

"They'll call. They'd be crazy not to want you."

"Thanks. I mean maybe I should look around for other jobs. Copper Springs or Wilsonville might need someone. Those are closer to LA for your school." True, but Silver Pines was really what he wanted.

"I'm willing to commute for the next six months if it means you're happy and safe."

"What if you get pregnant though? You won't always feel good and driving three hours a day for school might be too much."

"What do you want to do, Jack?"

"I think I'll apply for a job in Copper Springs too. It makes sense."

"Ok. We also need to get preapproved for a mortgage. You have the day after we get back off, right?"

"Only until three. I have overnight shift."

"Alright, so we should go to the bank and apply."

….

That meant a bit of research. The price of a house in Copper Springs versus the price of one in Silver Pines seemed to be comparable.

Two days later, they sat at their table in the condo and looked at the job listings in Copper Springs. There wasn't anything Jack would qualify for, but he applied anyway, hoping they'd keep his application on file when something came up.

By the end of the week, he still hadn't heard anything from Silver Pines but they had heard that they were preapproved for the amount they requested to buy a house.

One afternoon, at the end of January, Beth was making dinner for herself and for Jack to eat later when her cell rang.

"Hello?"

"Beth Thornton?"

"Yes. This is she."

"Hi, ma'am. This is Samuel Radcliffe from Copper Springs PD."

"Hello. How are you?"

"Just fine, ma'am. I have Jack Thornton's resume and application here."

"Oh yes. Thank you for calling. He's at work right now."

"Understood. Could you get him a message to contact me when he gets home? We may have a job opening soon." Jack had listed both phone numbers, but hers as the preferred contact, knowing she would get the message or answer before he could.

"Yes. I will absolutely do that, sir."

After getting his information, she hung up. "Did you hear that, Mozart? Daddy might get a job in Copper Springs. Isn't that exciting?" Mozart purred and rubbed against her legs.

She waited up for him, or attempted to anyway. He got home at two in the morning and she was asleep on the couch.

He showered and headed to the kitchen to warm up his dinner when he saw her note.

"Beth?" he whispered as he knelt beside her on the floor.

She opened her eyes and smiled. "Hi."

"Hey, your note. Copper Springs called?"

"Yeah. His name was Samuel Radcliffe and he wants you to call. They might have an opening soon."

"Wow. You'll never believe it but Silver Pines called too. They want me. I guess I don't need a second interview."

"Really?"

"Yeah. They need an answer soon. I told them I needed to talk to you first. Now I don't know what to do."

"Well, maybe you should at least see what the job entails in Copper Springs. What if it's a perfect opportunity for you?"

"Yeah. You're right. I'll call later and talk to him."

"Wow. This is really happening, Jack."

"Yeah." His feelings were a mixture of relief and nervousness. Yes being in LA was dangerous, but he was also used to the city. Moving to a small town or at least a small city was completely different.

….

In the end, they chose Silver Pines. Jack felt that it was a better fit for him and Beth insisted that commuting for the rest of her schooling wasn't a big deal.

"Jack, you're really going to make me pick out our house alone?"

"You did a great job with the condo."

"Yes, but…"

"Babe, we need to get housing situated by March 31st or I'll be commuting from LA."

She had looked forward to choosing a house with him. This was something they would be in for a number of years. She wanted his input.

"Fine." She asked Charlotte and Grace to go with her this time.

By mid-February, she had three open houses to go to.

The first one was too much of a fixer upper. Neither of them had the skill or the time to fix up a house. So the second house, a three bedroom home, two and a half bath, new construction in a subdivision seemed like a good fit.

"Mom? You're quiet. Do you like this one?" she asked Grace.

"Its nice, dear."

"But…?"

"The laundry is on the first floor, far from the bedrooms, which isn't convenient if you're pregnant at some point."

"That's true." She hadn't thought of that.

The third house was similar, but it had only two bedrooms and it was an older ranch. The ranch aspect appealed to Beth but all three ladies agreed that an older home was bound to have more issues than the new construction.

So due to needing a home as soon as possible, she chose the new construction, even with the poor location of the laundry room.

She put in an offer of full asking price and hoped for the best.

….

"So I put in an offer. Hopefully I'll hear today or tomorrow." She put his food down in front of him as he looked at the pictures on the laptop next to him. "Do you like it?"

"Yeah. You made a good choice. I just wish I could have been there."

"Babe, I wanted you there but you told me to do it."

"I did."

"Well, so I made the decision. If we don't get it, you get to choose the next one."

The realtor called the next day and told her the offer had been accepted and their move-in date was March 28th but they could begin painting the week before that. She was grateful. It was perfect timing. His last day with LAPD was March 27th so he was going to be able to help them move.

On Jack's next evening off, she took him out for dinner and to the Home Depot to pick out paint colors.

"Too blue," he told her. "What about this?" He held up a beige sample.

"For the half bath that would be fine. But our bathroom, I want it to have more character."

"Character for a bathroom?"

"Absolutely. So if you don't like blue…maybe this one?" She held up a light yellow sample.

"No. Blue is fine if you need character. Yellow is too…"

"Yellow?"

"Exactly."

She shook her head. The man was driving her nuts. They had been picking out paint samples for an hour and he hated whatever she picked, but if she let him do it, it was beige or off white all the way.

They did agree on a light grey for what would be the nursery because it was a gender neutral color that could go well with other colors.

"Let's just go to dinner," she said after one more "Its too…" statement. Her patience was not high at that point.

As they sat down at the restaurant, she began to feel weird. Nothing smelled good. When she ordered and she took a bite of her food, it tasted terrible.

She pushed her plate away. "Not good?" Jack asked. She loved pasta but she actually looked green almost.

"No." He took a bite of hers and it tasted fine to him.

"What's wrong with it? It tastes like it always does."

"No. Its bitter or something." She took a breadstick, and the buttery garlic bread that normally made her groan with pleasure, disgusted her.

When they arrived home, she fed the cats and went to bed, thinking she was coming down with something.

The next week it got worse though. She even threw up a few times and nothing tasted good.

"I've been under the weather," she told Julie over the phone.

"Beth, you have to start packing. You move in two weeks."

"I know but this flu…its wearing me out. It's all I can do to get up and go to school. By the end of the day, I just go to bed."

Julie was silent for a minute. "Charlotte and Tom have Lane tomorrow. Why don't I come help you pack?"

"That would be so helpful. Thank you!"

"You're welcome. See you around noon?"

"Ok."

Thank goodness it was Saturday because that meant she could rest more. She needed to get better or moving would be almost impossible.

Julie arrived at noon with a small white bag. "A gift." She tossed it on the bed.

"For me?"

"Yep. I think you need it."

Beth looked at her and opened the bag. "A pregnancy test?"

"Yes. Think about it, Beth. When was your last period? Now, with not feeling good and being exhausted…"

"Oh. How did I not think of this? And everything tastes awful! I thought something was seriously wrong with me."

"No. But moving and with school too. No wonder it didn't dawn on you."

"Wow. That would be great if I was."

"Aren't you going to take it?"

"That would involve moving. Next time I get up to use the bathroom, I'll take it."

"Ok, well, where is your list?"

"List?"

"For moving. Which things you don't want to pack until last, etc."

"I don't have one."

"Boxes?"

"Well…"

"Good heavens. I'll go get boxes and I'll be back. Take the test!"