Chapter 28

Jack walked into the station and sat at his desk. He knew he needed to head back to finish things but didn't want to leave Elizabeth. He was making mental notes of the things he needed to accomplish – packing, which charities to call, and a mental note to talk with Johnson about what cases he can hand off and which ones he needed to finish himself. He was so lost in thought he didn't hear Johnson walk into his office.

"Jack, do you have a moment?"

"Oh sorry Superintendent Johnson. I was just thinking about a few things."

"Yeah. I noticed. Anything I can help with?"

"Yes, there is. What cases of mine do you want me to hand off and who do I need to hand them off too and which ones are you wanted me to handle before I leave for good?"

"I'll have to check to see. If I remember correctly, you should be able to hand off all of them except the Farley case. You will need to finish that one yourself. If you need to and if it's alright with Bill, you can work on it here if that will help you out."

"I'll check with him and that would be a great help if that's the case. I leave on Wednesday to head back to finish things out so I can move here."

"Sounds like you have a good plan."

"Yeah. It will take a day or two to pack everything at my apartment and then the time at the office to wrap things out."

"It would save you a few days if you can work on the Farley case from here."

"That would be a big help if that is the time frame.'

Jack was getting excited. He would be gone for six days, maybe seven. He would be back to Hope Valley by Monday or the latest Tuesday. That would be perfect for the time frame he was thinking. He just had to get Elizabeth on board with his plan. He was also becoming a little concerned with William and his thoughts on their wedding.

…

"Jules, we got a house!" Tom stated for the umpteenth time since the phone call from the realtor. Julie laughed at him. He was so excited, and it was rubbing off on her.

"I can't believe it. I need to call Bethie."

He was excited about the house. He never wanted a house before, but now he can't wait. Things were coming together for him and Julie and this excited him even more. Their wedding and now a house, he couldn't believe it.

"Sweetheart, she is at work."

"Oh yeah. I'll text her."

She sent off a text and after ten minutes she received Elizabeth's very excited reply. Elizabeth was exited for her little sister.

"What are you thinking about decorating?" Tom asked.

Tom didn't know it, but this opened the flood gates. Julie started rattling off colors for the walls in each room. Some rooms she wanted accent walls with the other three walls the same color, other rooms were all one color. She wanted a deep red in the kitchen with white cabinets and stainless steel appliances. Tom was surprised she had all of this with only looking at the house once.

Tom smiled at her enthusiasm in telling him all the things she wanted. With his new job and Julie beginning a part time job until her schooling began, he knew they would be able to decorate it like she wanted as long as she didn't get too expensive.

…

Charlette stopped by the station at Jack's request. He needed to talk with her about a few things.

"Hey Jack, how are you doing today?"

"I'm good ma. How are you?"

She could see the excitement on his face. He always showed his emotions through is facial expressions.

"What's up, Jack. You said you wanted to talk to me."

"Yeah. There are a couple of things I would like to run by you and get your thoughts."

"Ok. What's on your mind?"

Jack spoke with her about her coming with him back to his apartment and helping him pack. That would help a lot. He could concentrate a little more on work and finish things up while his mom helped with his apartment. He shared with his mother about the time frame of the wedding. She was a little shocked about the time frame but thought it would be doable.

"Have you talked with Elizabeth about that?"

"Not yet. I will tonight or tomorrow."

"Ok. Just let me know what she thinks. I will be able to go back with you and help you with your apartment."

"Now, the big one."

"The others weren't big enough?" She sassed.

"I want your help with the honeymoon."

"Jack, I'm not so sure about that."

"I have thoughts. I just want your opinion about it. Let me know if it sounds ok or if it's dorky."

"Ok. Let's hear it."

Jack shared with her part of his plan. He wanted to surprise Elizabeth but wanted to make sure it was a good plan. He didn't go into too much detail. He blushed as he told her. He wasn't used to talking intimate ideas, like a honeymoon, with his mom.

"Jack, I think that would be perfect. I think Lizzy will love it."

"Lizzy?"

"Yeah. She is family and it's time she gets her nickname."

Jack shook his head. He hasn't told Elizabeth about his mom always giving family a nickname.

…

He left the office shortly after his mom had left. He finished with the paperwork for his new position and then stuck his head into Bill's office to let him know what he finished, and he needed to leave for a couple of errands.

He quickly stopped by the café to talk with Abagail.

"Hey Abagail. Do you have a moment?"

"Sure Jack. What's up?"

"I was wondering something. I will be leaving town on Wednesday to finish out my workload at the office and pack my apartment. I need a place to stay when I come back first of next week. I was wondering if you would allow me to rent your apartment until Elizabeth and I get married."

"Jack, the apartment is yours as long as you need it and you do not owe me any rent."

"Abagail, you are priceless!"

She blushed at him comment.

"Can you keep a secret?"

"For you, of course."

Jack went on and told her about his plan on the wedding and a little about the honeymoon. He didn't go into too much detail about the honeymoon, he wanted that to be between Elizabeth and him.

"Oh Jack! She will love it!"

"I hope so. We are having dinner with her parents tonight. Could you please say a quick prayer that everything will go ok?"

"You have this Jack, don't worry."

He kissed her on the cheek and headed toward his next stop.

…

Julie wanted to go shopping for appliances and other things. Tom tried to warn her that they would not be able to be in the house within four weeks. She didn't care. She was so excited she couldn't stop herself.

"Let's go Julie. We can at least look. We leave tomorrow to head back home. We need to turn in our notices at work and start packing our apartments."

"Why are we wasting time. Let's go!"

Tom shook his head. He loved her excitement.

…

Jack slowly walked back into the school's office. Ms. Florence noticed him and gave him a smile.

"Good afternoon, Jack. You are a little early if you want to see Ms. Thatcher. She still has about thirty minutes of class left before the end of the day."

"Ms. Florence. I came to see you. I need to talk to you about something. Oh, and I have these brownies for you from Abagail's Café."

"Oh…you want to talk to me? And thank you for the brownies." She asked surprised and her face was turning red.

"Yes. I need to talk to you, but only if you can keep a secret."

"Well, I have been known to keep secrets."

Rachael, an assistant who worked in the office with Ms. Florence laughed out loud. "Ms. Florence, you are a blabber mouth. You can't keep a secret if your life depends on it."

Ms. Florence huffed at Rachael's response. "Rachael, I certainly can keep certain secrets. Especially for Investigator Thorton."

"Ms. Florence, this is very important, and I need your complete confidence in keeping a secret. It will ruin a major surprise if you tell anyone, especially Elizabeth."

"Ms. Thatcher, I can certainly keep a secret for her."

Jack asked her to walk outside for a moment so they could be out of prying ears. Jack didn't want to go into detail about the honeymoon, particularly with someone who couldn't keep a secret. What he was wanting from Ms. Florence was to set some vacation time for Elizabeth for their honeymoon, but he didn't want Elizabeth to know. This was part of his surprise for her.

"Does Elizabeth have any vacation time available?"

"I will need to check, but she doesn't miss work, so I would say she has a lot of time accrued."

"Great, if she has two weeks, can you please put her in for vacation? I will let you know the exact dated tomorrow."

"I can do that."

"Without her knowing about it?"

"Absolutely. I can fill out her request form and have Ms. Blakely sign it. All the teachers bring me their forms and I always have her sign the leave forms, so no one would ever question it."

"That is great. Thanks Ms. Florence. Please remember I want this to be a surprise."

"I understand."

They talked for a few more minutes and then Jack escorted her in the school office. He wanted to leave the school before Elizabeth saw him. He wanted all of this to be a big surprise. He winked at Ms. Florence as he walked away.

"If I was a little younger, young man…" She mentioned as he left the office and the door closed.

"What was that?" Asked Rachael.

"Nothing dear. No get back to work."

…

Jack was feeling accomplished. He secured his living arrangement when he moved to Hope Valley. He was working out the details on the honeymoon and felt good about the arrangements so far. While speaking with Abagail and his mother, he was still able to keep the honeymoon a secret. They didn't know exactly what he was up too, but they were excited at what he was planning. Ms. Florence was able to get Elizabeth's vacation approved as long as he got her the dates. He called a couple of places to check availability and was narrowing down his choices. He was hoping everything was going to work out and that she would love it.

His phone buzzed and it brought him out of his thinking. It was a text from Elizabeth.

E – The class wouldn't let go of your little stunt today before lunch

J – I'm so sorry Elizabeth

E – It's fine Jack.

E – Every time I looked up, they were making the sign and giggling

J – I wished I could have seen that. I bet that was awesome

E – It was actually. I have a picture

J – So you're not mad?

E – Of course not

Jack was relieved that she wasn't mad about his little signing stunt before lunch. He loved how embarrassed she was. She is so beautiful when she is embarrassed and speechless. "I have to marry that woman soon!" He said as he typed out his next text to her.

J – When and where are we meeting your parents?

E – Six o'clock at the café. Ok with you?

J – Perfect. I will pick you up.

E – Great. Dress casual but nice

J – Can I come over a little early. Say five?

E – You can come over any time you want. Why so early?

J – Practice?

"That man will be the death of me, but a what a way to go!" She spoke out loud and then looked around to see if any of her students were listening. She didn't need to give them any more ammunition to embarrass her.

E – That will work. Dress cool

J – Dress cool?

E – Our practicing usually gets pretty heated. Think you can handle that?

She blushed at her text. She was never one who flirted like this but she couldn't help it with Jack. It just came naturally. After a few moments, Jack didn't text her back. She was afraid he didn't like her last text.

E – where did you go? Are you ok?

J – I'm fine. I think my heart stopped for a few minutes

She laughed at his response and they both sent the same one word text at the same time. "Soon!"

…

Bill and Johnson finally received all the reports back from the lab. All the evidence came back pointing directly toward James and Jimmy. There were zero doubt about their guilt.

Bill was relieved that they would be punished for their crimes. He looked toward Johnson who was working on his computer.

"How long do you think Jack will have to stay in Oklahoma City to finish out his cases?"

"I was just emailing our secretary who handles all of that. She is priceless. She said that there is just one case he will have to handle himself and he can pass along all of the other cases he was working on.?

"Just one case?"

"Yeah. Would you mind if he works on it here? If he can, he would only have to stay at headquarters for a few days. If not, he would have to stay a week or two ."

Bill had absolutely no desire to face the wrath of Elizabeth if she found out Jack was away longer because of him. He relented very easily. "He can work on it around his activities here. Would that be alight with you?"

"Absolutely. As long as he finishes it, I can live with it taking a little longer. I'll let him know before I fly out tomorrow."

"I hate that you are leaving, but I understand. If I can ever help you out in any way, please let me know."

Johnson nodded and they both continued to work on the projects on their desks. He hated to lose Jack and his talents, but he understood. He was a little jealous of Jack. Every so often, he would question if he made the right decision of chasing a career instead of pursuing a family.

…

At five o'clock, Jack pulls into Elizabeth's driveway. He notices her looking out the screen door. Once she sees him, she pulls back. He laughed sitting in his car. She is as excited about seeing me as I am seeing her.

He gets out of the car and instead of walking toward the door, he stands there with his back to the apartment looking at nothing. After a couple of minutes, he heard the door open. A smile creeps across his face. After a couple of minutes, he heard her footsteps getting closer. Just before she reaches him, he quickly turns around and sweeps her up by placing his arm behind her knees and around her back. She instinctively wraps her arms around his neck and lets out a loud scream in her surprise. He laughs when she lets out the loud scream.

"Jack Thorton! What are you doing?!" She basically yells in her surprise.

"I came to see my intelligent and beautiful fiancé."

"Did you now?" She is starting to play his game and enjoying it.

"I did. She is intelligent, great with her students at school, and loves them very much."

"Is that all?" She sassed.

"Not at all. She is caring, loving, and a strong woman. She can do anything she sets her mind too."

"Really?"

"Yes. She is perfect. Oh, and she is stunningly beautiful."

She was a little embarrassed at his words, but she loved every moment of it. He just wasn't saying those words to be nice. Nor was he saying them to be self serving. She could see the love and admiration in his eyes. She loved this man completely.

"Are you going to put me down now?"

"Do I have too?"

"If you want to go for our walk before dinner, then you will have too."

"Walk. Who said anything about a walk?" He sassed.

"I thought you wanted to take a walk. What else did you have in mind?" She said seductively. She wasn't even embarrassed by her forwardness anymore. She loved Jack and didn't care if he knew it.

"Alright sassy one. I mentioned practicing before dinner."

"Practice?" She faked confusion. "Did you join a softball team or something?"

"What must I do for you to want to make out with me instead of always going for a walk?"

"Such sass." She stated.

"Come with me, Ms. Thatcher."

She giggled as he carried her into her apartment. In between the giggles, she would nibble on his neck. She loved doing this and found out that Jack liked her attentions there as well. Once inside, he placed her down on her feet and back her up against the wall gently. She let out a short, quick breath when her back hit the wall. He was pressed up against her and looking into her eyes. She saw complete love in his eyes. That alone make her knees go weak.

They were so close they were sharing the same breath. They lovingly looked into each other's eyes and admired what they saw. While she saw love, she also saw passion and want. Jack noticed the same in her eyes. Once they became engaged, the passion grew for each other. They still wanted to wait until marriage before giving into each other's passions fully.

As she leaned in to give his lips a kiss, he pulled back just before their lips met. He gave her a smile and kept his face about three inches away from her face while keeping eye contact. He tried to pull her a little closer.

"Elizabeth, when I pray about the things that I'm thankful for in my life, I begin with you. I thank God for you."

She melted at that moment. Jack was so kind and sweet, but there was never a hidden motive. He wasn't just trying to get something. He meant every word, sincerely meant every word. He could have done anything at that moment, and she would have let him, but she knew she could trust him. He always put her first.

"Jack…"

He kissed her lips slowly and soft at first. She grasped his shirt color and pulled him as close as she could. She didn't want slow or soft. She wanted passion. She wanted Jack's lips on her completely capturing her in his love.

Jack responded at her action. He pressed himself against her a little more which pressed her closer to the wall. Elizabeth let out a soft moan against Jack's lips and that was his undoing. To feel her lips vibrate against him was too much. His hands began to move without his mind telling them what to do. They slid down her arms and onto her waist. Her hands followed his and rested on his belt loop at his waist. At the same time, both of their hands slowly moved under the other's shirt and when their hands touched skin, an immediate blaze ignited and grew in intensity.

After their fingers traveled up about three or four inches, they both stopped. He pulled back just enough to look at her. Both were attempting to catch their breath, but it was taking some effort and time to do so.

"Jack"
"Elizabeth"

They said at the same time, still trying to lower their breath to a normal range.

"We may need…" She began.

"to go for a walk." He finished.

…

Grace and William were preparing for dinner. They both knew this was a discussion about the wedding. Grace finished with her hair and was laying out her outfit for the evening. Her outfit was a nice, dark blue blouse with a matching long skirt. The color was perfect for her.

Grace was trying to find the right words to say to William. After a couple of minutes, she decided to go with the direct approach. "William, you need to come to terms with this or you will lose your middle daughter."

"I am trying Grace. I know. I am struggling with all of this. Julie and Tom, Elizabeth and Jack. At least Julie and Tom are waiting for a few months." William laughed. "Who would have ever thought that Julie was using more common sense than Elizabeth?"

"Why would you say that. Because she isn't yielding to your desire, therefore, she isn't using common sense?"

"Yes. This is way too fast."

"William, who is to say they are moving too fast when they both are comfortable with their relationship?"

"I'm her father."

"You are a father to a brilliant woman who knows her mind. We have done a good job in raising her. She knows what she wants, and she wants Jack. I don't think she should submit to your will when it isn't what she wants."

William stood speechless. It was an internal struggle for him. His mind and his heart was at war with each other. He knew Jack was good for her and he knew she loved him. However, his daddy's heart wanted to protect his daughter from any pain. This very short relationship needed more time to grow and have a solid foundation.

"You need to trust her."

"What if this is a mistake?"

"First, Jack is made for our Elizabeth, this is not a mistake. If it is a mistake, we will support her. But most importantly, she will learn from it, and she will pick herself up by her own strength. The strength we gave her and the strength that she has in herself. She will learn from it and become better because of it."

William nodded his head. He knew what he was supposed to do, but his father's heart was strong too. He let out a long, slow sigh while rubbing his hands over his face.

…

Elizabeth locked her apartment and started walking down the sidewalk with Jack. They didn't want to lose their closeness, so he extended his arm and she place her hand on his forearm. Jack took his other hand and placed it over her hand.

She broke the silence, "I'm sorry I pushed too far, Jack. I didn't mean too."

"No, Elizabeth. I am sorry I pushed us. When I look at you, my brain stops working. It's a little unfair."

Elizabeth giggled. "I know what you mean. I have the same problem."

"Elizabeth…" Jack tried to start but trailed off. He was struggling to find the words that was in his heart.

"Jack…" Elizabeth started but was having the same problem Jack was having.

Elizabeth stopped walking and faced Jack. He took her other hand, and they face each other. Like so many times before, they communicated through their eyes. They saw love, passion, patience, desire, and respect. Their desire for each other wasn't purely a physical one. The desire was there, but that desire was laced with everything they felt for each other – love, respect, friendship, admiration.

"Elizabeth…" Jack began again but Elizabeth cut him off.

"I know Jack. Trust me, I know."

He looked at her and they both understood. They just knew what the other was thinking. They smiled at each other and both blushed. They just knew without having to say a word to each other.

…

Enjoying a quiet walk with each other, Jack and Elizabeth arrived at the café ten minutes before her parents.

"Jack are we ok?"

He looked at her stunned. "Of course, we are ok. Why would you ask that?"

"Our walk was quiet."

"It may have been quiet, but I enjoyed being with you. I love our time together. It doesn't matter if we are walking quietly, working together at the kitchen table, or…practicing." He blushed at little at the last part of his statement.

"I love you, Jack."

"I love you, Elizabeth."

"Hey before your parents get here, I have something I want to talk to you about."

"What's up?"

"It concerns our wedding date."

This got her attention. She has been thinking about it too but didn't realize he was. "What have you been thinking about?" She slowly asked. She was curious to what he was thinking.

"Well, I leave in two days, which is Wednesday. If things work out well in Oklahoma City, I should be there six or seven days. Which means I will be back Monday or Tuesday."

"Ok."

"What are you doing next Friday?"

"Friday? Well, I have school on Friday."

"Well…about that. I have some thoughts that may change our calendars."

"Do tell Detective Thorton." She asked intrigued.

"Let's get married next Friday. Frank said he would perform the wedding for us. We just need to find a place to get married. Then we can go on a two week honeymoon."

"What?" She asked stunned. She was not expecting this.

"Yes. We want to be married. We don't want to wait a long time. So, why are we waiting if we already know what we both want?"

Her silence was beginning to worry him. His fear of pushing too fast was starting to come to the service again.

"We can wait longer. I am not asking you to forgo your dreams for a wedding. I was just thinking about getting married to you and I was excited. I'm sorry if I pushed you too much."

Elizabeth reached for his sides and began to tickle him. He jumped at her teasing.

"Boy, you really are ticklish." He laughed.

"I am. Why are you tickling me?"

"I told you if you told me that you were pushing me, I would tickle you."

"Ok…Ok…" He said trying to catch his breath when she would stop.

"Are you serious about next Friday?"

"I am Elizabeth. If you think we can make it work. But I was serious about you not sacrificing your dreams for your wedding."

"My dreams have changed Jack. I am not a little girl anymore. I know what I want, and I want to be married to you. Friday might work, but I don't know if I can get off work."

Jack lowered his head with a little smirk.

She noticed his expression. She was grateful knowing he expresses himself through his facial feature no matter how hard he tries to avoid it. "What?"

"You already have that time off. I just need to let them know the exact dates."

"You didn't?"

"I did. I have already arranged your time off for our wedding and honeymoon if you say yes."

"How did you?"

"I have my ways." He sassed.

She was impressed that Jack was so thoughtful and trying to plan their wedding.

"So, let me get this straight…you have planned for the two of us to be married in twelve days and already have me scheduled for two weeks of vacation for our honeymoon. Plus, Frank has already agreed to perform the wedding. Is that everything?"

"Yeah" Jack said sheepishly. "If that's ok with you?"

Elizabeth thought for a few moments. Her silence was starting to bring back his fear of pusing her too fast.

"Elizabeth, I don't want to be tickled, but the longer you are silent the more it makes me think you are thinking we are moving too fast, and I start to freak out."

She starts to laugh at his statement. She begins to speak at the same moment her parents walk up to the booth.