Chapter 68
One week has passed since Elizabeth returned home from her girl's weekend. The week has been wonderful except for the fact that Jack was trying to do everything so she wouldn't have too. She told him every day that she was capable of doing things because she was only pregnant and not an invalid.
Jack didn't try to be overbearing, but he just couldn't stop himself. His desire to take care of his pregnant wife was stronger than his common sense. Elizabeth appreciated his attentiveness, but she wished he would back off a little. When he was this way, she would back off a little. She knew he wasn't being mean, but it could become a little too much.
In three hours, he was going to pick up his wife from school to take her to the first doctor visit. She was going into her classroom to begin the process of setting up for the next school year. Instead of working all day, she would go in every so often to spend a couple of hours to work. She always did this so she could enjoy more of her summer break.
After breakfast, they left for work. Jack dropped her off at the school and then he would continue on to the station. The plan for today was to spend the entire day with Bill. He was still learning the job. Some days he felt he was gaining ground and other days he felt he was lagging behind. He didn't think he would ever pick up the entire workload.
…
This was the first day Elizabeth was back at work. She walked into the office to pick up any mail that was for her or any other items in her mailbox. She was a little surprised to see Ms. Florence at the front counter.
"Good morning, Ms. Florence. What are you doing here today?"
"Good morning, Mrs. Thorton. I'm trying to get ahead of work so I can enjoy a few days at my sister's house. I'm looking forward to seeing her."
"If Jack knew you were here, he would have escorted me in." She teased Ms. Florence. She knew Jack liked her because she was so helpful.
"Well, I guess my day could have been better." She blushed then both ladies laughed.
"Is there anything in my box?"
"Yes, there are a couple of things."
"Thank you Ms. Florence. I'll tell Jack hello for you."
"Thank you, dear. You are a blessed woman."
"Yes, I am." She smiled. While Jack was willing to tell everyone about the pregnancy, she was still hesitant to say anything until the doctor gave her approval.
After gathering all of her items, she headed to her classroom. Hopefully, she would finish her classroom within a few weeks and could enjoy the rest of her summer. She walked into her classroom and stopped dead in her tracks. The sight before her took her breath and made tears form instantly in her eyes.
…
Charlette looked over the table at the café and into the eyes of Adam. They have been doing well since he proposed. They didn't share the news at the dinner like they intended because of the news of the baby, but they were excited, nonetheless.
"Adam, when do you think you would like to be married?"
"I'm not sure. Do you have any thoughts?"
"I would prefer soon. I don't want to wait too long. I also don't want a big wedding. I did that before and it is not something I wish to do again."
"I agree, Charlie. I don't think we are the same people when we were younger."
"We still need to tell everyone we are engaged."
"Yes we do."
"Are you nervous telling Jack and Tom?"
"No. They know how we feel about each other and they are comfortable with us. I think they will be fine."
Charlette was very comfortable with her and Adam. There were a few bumpy spots on the road early in their dating, but those areas were settled. She realized she could still love Tom and not forget him, but she also loved Adam. Since before Tom's death, she felt her life was complete.
"Adam, what about one month from now?"
"One month?"
"Yeah. You ok with that?"
"Sure, that will make it easy for me to remember."
Charlette looked at him confused. He reached for her hand. "That would be my birthday."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Are you ok with that?"
"Are you kidding me. You will never fuss at me because I forgot my anniversary. I'm perfectly ok with that." He sassed.
"Great, so we have our wedding date."
"Perfect. Now, we just must tell everyone."
…
Tom settled into his new job very well. He was quickly becoming a star at his new position. His outgoing personality was a perfect match for his position. Just a few weeks in, and he already brought in a couple of medium size customers. The customers he already had, was beginning to increase their orders. The salespeople he oversaw was happy with the increase in work and revenue. That meant their paychecks were going to increase. They also loved working for him.
Julie settled into her parttime job, and she was finished preparing for the start of school. For the first time, she was excited about her education. She was looking forward to getting her degree and begin teaching the kids.
Their house was settled and in place. The home was perfect for her and Tom. The colors were bright and the house had a theme that ran through every room of the house. Tom was certain his beautiful wife should be a home decorator. He was questioning her plan when she described it to him thinking there was no way it would complement each other. He was wrong and was happy he was. The house was beautiful. He never would have thought of himself as owning a home. However, with Julie by his side, he was a completely different man.
He texted Julie to see if they could enjoy an evening together out.
J – I would love an evening with my man
T – Let's head out at six. We can find dinner and then a movie?
J – Oh. That sounds great.
T – You can pick the movie…within reason
J – Perfect. A chick flick it is.
T – That's not exactly what I said.
J – A chick flick and dinner. Perfect evening
Tom knew he lost the conversation. He was secretly ok with it. As long as he was with his wife, he didn't care.
…
The Hogan household fell into a good routine. Henry was playing baseball and loved every moment of it. He was getting very good with it and enjoyed the friendships he made with his teammates. It was good for him as he was still adjusting.
He was growing closer to Frank and Abagail. He no longer called them Frank or Abagail. Now it was mom and dad. He was grateful for it and Frank and Abagail loved it. The church was going well for Frank, and it was slowly growing. The café was busier than normal. Abagail was beginning to think she may need to add to her staff to take care of the extra business.
"Hey mom!" Yelled Henry from his room. Abagail would always ignore him when he did this. She was teaching him that you don't yell for people. You get up and walk through the house to find them. She smiled each time she did this. She realized she was turning into her mother because that was what she did to Abagail when she was younger.
Henry walked into the room a few minutes later. "Mom, can Emily come to my game tonight and have dinner with us?"
"May Emily come to your game tonight and have dinner with us?" Abagail corrected her son.
With a dramatic eye roll, Henry corrected his question.
"Please don't roll your eyes at me young man." She stated in a mother's tone.
"How did you know? You weren't even looking at me."
"Oh my dear boy…I know what you are doing and thinking before you do it and think it." She was shocked to hear her mother's voice.
"Well…?"
"That's fine. I'll call her mother to set everything up."
"Thanks mom."
She still got a little teary eyed when he would call her mom. She was loving her new role. Frank walked up behind her and place his arms around her stomach and lightly kissed her on the neck. "You know, you're really good at this mother thing."
"Thank you, but I'm starting to hear my mother's voice and it's a little disconcerting."
Frank laughed. "Well, I never knew your mother, but if you are a copy of her, she must have been a wonderful woman."
"What are you up to preacher man?" She asked raising one eye brow.
Frank still had a hold of his precious wife and began to nibble her neck. "Me…up to something…?"
…
With the weekend with the ladies and the excitement of her pregnancy, she forgot all about the flowers that were still in the vase sitting on her desk. The flowers were dead. There were a few pedals still on some of the stems but most of the pedals fell on top of her desk. Every area of the flowers was brown and crusty. The mistake of taking her husband for granted came back to her with intense sorrow. She didn't know how long she stood there staring at the dead flowers, but it had to be a few minutes. She was too scared to approach her desk. She looked around and notice that her classroom was cleaned, but the flowers remained in a prominent spot on her desk.
Elizabeth slowly walked toward her desk never taking her eyes off the flowers Jack got for her on her last day of class. Unfortunately for Elizabeth, she remembered the entire scene of that day and the following morning, every painful part of it. She placed her items from the office on the corner of her desk and stood in front of the flowers. She hesitantly reached for a pedal and when she touched it, it fell from the stem and landed on her desk with the others.
She sat down in her chair with a loud sigh. She has never forgotten the trouble of that night. Out of everything, she still remembered the sight of Jack when he finally realized that she didn't seem to care about the little things anymore. As bad as that was, it was the fact that Jack sat in the driveway for ten minutes to avoid coming into the house. She will never forget that feeling knowing he didn't want to come home. She sighed at the memory.
The sight before her was exactly how she felt that night. For Elizabeth, that was a learning experience she would take with her for the rest of her life. Taking someone for granted was very easy to do. You could do it without even realizing you're doing it. She knew she was not perfect, but her love for Jack could be perfect, just like his love for her could be perfect.
Ms. Florence stepped into Elizabeth's classroom with some papers she found for Elizabeth after she left the office. "I'm sorry Mrs. Thorton, I found these after you left."
Elizabeth jumped at the sound of Ms. Florence's voice. She was so lost in thought she didn't realize that Ms. Florence stepped into the classroom.
"I'm sorry Mrs. Thorton. I didn't mean to startle you."
"That's ok, Ms. Florence. I was just lost in thought."
After looking around the room and her eyes falling on Elizabeth's desk, she asked, "What happened to the flowers? Did the flower store mess up or something?"
"No. They didn't mess up. I did on the last day of school."
Elizabeth shared a little about what happened on the last day. She did not go into too much detail, just enough for Ms. Florence to understand.
"Those are the flowers from Jack that I delivered to you on the playground?"
"Yes." Elizabeth stated but never taking her eyes off of the flowers.
Ms. Florence nodded her head in understanding. "Would you like for me to take them out to the trash bins for you?"
"No, Ms. Florence. I think I want to keep them. They are a reminder for me to never take my husband for granted again."
"Well, that's a great lesson to learn."
"Would it be ok if I can fix these to bring them to the office to laminate them?"
"Why in the world would you want to do that? All that is doing is causing you hurt."
"As a reminder. Not as a punishment, but a reminder how easy it is to take someone for granted. I never want to feel that way again."
Ms. Florence looked at her skeptically. "Ms. Thorton, are you sure you want to do that? It feels like you are just beating yourself up over them again."
"I'm positive, Ms. Florence. I promise I just want to use it as a reminder."
"Yes. Bring them by the office and I'll do it."
"Thank you, but I think I want to do it myself."
Ms. Florence smiled at her friend. "Not a problem Mrs. Thorton."
…
"Jack!" Bill called out. "Do you have a moment?"
"Sure boss. What's up?"
After Jack took a seat in Bill's office, Bill closed the door. "Jack, next week I am going to take a week's vacation. I will leave town for two days to go on a fishing trip with a couple of my buddies. The other days I will be in town. Let's consider this as a trial run for when you take over. I will be around if you need me, but I know you will do great."
Jack grew instantly nervous. "Boss, I don't know…"
"Jack, you are ready for this. When I come back from vacation, you will take the lead in the office for the next two to three weeks. After that, I am retiring. You are ready for this!'
"Boss, you may be going with this a little too fast."
"Jack. You are ready now. I could walk out that door today and you will take this station forward and upward. You are ready, but I know you will question yourself. So, you will have the week alone running this office with me around if you need me. Then, for two weeks or so after that you will be running it with me here. After that, it's yours. I will still be around, but Jack, I have all the confidence in you. You will do great with this. I love your ideas and the direction you wish to take the station. Just don't forget the first principle I taught you."
"Follow the law but remember you are dealing with people."
"See, you are ready."
Jack exhaled a deep breath. He wasn't so sure about this. "Bill…"
"Jack…enough. You are ready. I know it. Everyone here knows it. Everyone knows it except you. Now, tighten your belt and get to work. You are going to do great things here."
Jack shook his head knowing he wasn't going to win this argument. "Yes, sir."
"Now, let's go over a few things."
"Oh, before we do, I have some exciting news I need to tell you…"
…
Elizabeth arranged the dead flowers on a clear plastic sheet. She was saddened those twelve flowers was dead and shrunk enough to fit on one sheet. Very slowly, she walked to the front office. She didn't want the pieces to fly off the sheet or to move too much. She had it arranged in a particular order. There were six stems and bulbs that didn't have any pedals on it at all. Those were arranged on the outside of the sheet on both sides. In the middle was the one stem that had the most pedals left on it. It was the center piece. The other five stems were around the center piece with varies pedals still attached. She even picked up the pedals that were on the desk top and placed them throughout the sheet in different locations.
When she reached the office door, she carefully opened the door slowly. Ms. Florence looked up and smiled. "I have the machine already on. It should be ready."
Elizabeth nodded. "Ms. Florence, would you mind making sure I'm doing this correctly."
"Mrs. Thorton, you know how to laminate things."
"Yes, but this is important and I don't want to make a mistake."
Ms. Florence saw the determination of her friend. "This is important to you, isn't it?"
"Very."
The ladies make their way to the laminate machine and Ms. Florence watched as Elizabeth went through the process. She didn't need the help but felt more comfortable with someone else there. Both ladies watched as the sheet with the dead flowers begin to go into the machine. When the flowers came out on the other side, both ladies released a breath they didn't know they were holding.
Elizabeth smiled when she realized none of the flowers moved and were in the exact same position, she had them arranged.
"Mrs. Thorton, may I ask a question that may seem personal?"
"Sure."
"Why are you so consumed with this? I understand the importance of not taking your husband for granted, but isn't this taking things a little too far?" While the question was a hard one, it wasn't meant to be mean, and Elizabeth knew that.
"Well, you now the story. The deal is…" She hesitated looking for the correct words. "Ms. Florence, you know of all the things Jack does for you?"
"Sure. He always brings me something when he comes to visit you. I don't know why, but I love it. Sometimes it's Abagail's chocolate cake or a snack from the gas station if he didn't have time to pick something else up. Sometimes it a bouquet of flowers. I'm not sure why he does it, but I am grateful."
"That's the point. You're grateful. I took all of that for granted and I will not do that again." She stated with determination. "All the things he does for you, multiply that by a thousand fold and that is what he does for me. The little things are so important, and I don't want him to think they aren't important."
"That's great to remember that, but you don't need to beat yourself up over a mistake that everyone makes."
"I know. I felt so bad for doing it and I will not do it again. I don't think I am beating myself up, but there will be times in my life where life will be busy, and I may lose focus on what's important. Things that involve Jack and other areas that may not involve him. I just want a reminder to keep my focus on the important things in life. These flowers will be my reminder to hold dear to what is important, not a club to keep beating myself up."
"Well, dear. That's a great lesson to learn early in life."
"A lesson I do not wish to forget."
Ms. Florence gave her a warming smile. "Just be sure you are not being too hard on yourself, dear."
Elizabeth gave her a reassuring smile and a small nod.
…
Jack finished up in Bill's office and began walking toward his office to get started on a couple of things. However, he had to do something first. He pulled out his phone and texted Elizabeth.
J – Bellisima do you have a moment to talk?
Elizabeth's phone buzzed with Jack's text. "Oh, Ms. Florence, I need to make a phone call."
"Tell Jack I said hello."
"How did you know?"
"Well dear, your eyes light up when you think of him. Say hi for me and don't be too hard on yourself over the flowers. A mistake is just that…a mistake. Learn from it and move on."
"Thank you."
Elizabeth touched her screen to call her husband. "Hey, Dimples. How are you?"
"I'm fine. How are things at school?"
"Great. Talking with Ms. Florence. She said to say hi."
Jack smiled. Ms. Florence has become a good friend to him and Elizabeth.
"Please tell her I said hello. Hey, did you tell her?"
"No Jack. Unlike you I am not telling anyone until the doctor gives me the ok to do so." She teased.
"Ok. May I talk to her?"
"Jack Thorton, I thought you wanted to speak to your wife." Sassed Elizabeth.
"I do. It's pretty important too, but I just need to speak with Ms. Florence for a moment."
"Fine…here."
Elizabeth kept the phone to her ear waiting to hear what he was going to say. She already knew. While she wanted to wait to tell people, she was thrilled that he was so excited he couldn't keep the secret. It was odd, he was so great at keeping things to himself. He had to be because of his job. However, the news of the baby was just too much for him to keep to himself.
After what he thought was long enough for Elizabeth to pass the phone, he stated. "We're having a baby, Ms. Florence." He practically shouted in the phone.
Elizabeth pulled the phone from her ear. "Jack! I haven't given her the phone yet." She playfully scolded him.
"Oh…"
"Jack, that's great!" Yelled Ms. Florence. Jack said it so loud that she was able to hear.
After handing the phone to Ms. Florence, Elizabeth busted out laughing at her husband's excitement.
"Yes, we are having a baby. We go to the doctor's office today for our first visit."
"That's great Jack. Wait, you haven't been to the doctor's office yet?"
"No. Not yet. I will pick Elizabeth up in a couple of hours so we can go."
Ms. Florence thought for a moment, "You shouldn't be telling people you're expecting until you visit the doctor first."
Jack sighed into the phone. He just couldn't control his excitement. "Why does every woman tell me this? Elizabeth, you, her mom, my mom. Julie, Viola, the lady at the gas station."
"You told the lady at the gas station?"
Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "He really can't stop himself." She whispered.
"Yes, she was nice, and she asked me how I was doing." Jack defended himself. "So, I told her."
"That's great Jack. I am happy for you two." Ms. Florence smiled and then handed the phone back to Elizabeth.
Elizabeth took the phone and whispered thank you to Ms. Florence.
"He really can't control himself, can he?" She whispered with a laugh to Elizabeth.
"No, I can't and I'm not even trying." Shouted Jack when he heard Ms. Florence speak.
…
Elizabeth sat at her desk listening to her husband describe the meeting with Bill. She was excited for her husband. His dream of taking over the police department was coming true. She couldn't be prouder of Jack. She also sensed a hesitation in his voice.
"Sweetheart, what's wrong?"
Jack sighed. "I don't feel like I'm ready to take over yet. I still have so much to learn."
Elizabeth was a little surprised at his inability to believe in himself. Jack was always a confident man, but not when he looked inward to himself.
"Jack, does you trust Bill?"
"Yes."
"If he thinks you are ready to take over, why are you doubting yourself so much?"
Jack didn't say anything.
"Jack, you are a good public servant. You know the job. You are still learning different areas of the job, but I think that you will always do that. There are always things to learn. However, you have a good grasp of the job Bill does and he is confident you can do it. Plus, consider this time as training with training wheels. He will be around if you need him, but I seriously doubt you will. You've got this, Dimples."
She could feel Jack's smile. "Thank you, Nani. You always know exactly what to say."
"You and me."
"You and me."
"You are always there when I need you and I want to thank you for that. You are my strength."
Elizabeth was holding the laminated dead flowers in her hand.
"Jack, I try to be. You are my strength too."
"Don't doubt it, Nani. I couldn't do this without you."
Elizabeth told Jack about her morning. She has been at school for over an hour and haven't accomplished anything she set her mind to when she walked into the building. She told him about finding the flowers and how the flowers were.
"I'm holding the flowers now. I laminated them so I could keep them as a reminder to never take you or anything else for granted."
"I know you won't on purpose. Please just throw them away."
"No Jack. I want to keep them."
"Just don't beat yourself up over them, ok? It was a mistake. A mistake we will all make. Learn from the mistake and grow from it. I have no problem with you. You have been great since that night. I wouldn't change a thing."
"Thank you." Elizabeth was beginning to feel better about her morning. If Jack wasn't holding it against her, why should she.
Their conversation flowed well as they discussed their mornings. They had plans for Jack to pick her up in just under two hours for their doctor visit. They were going to grab lunch afterward.
…
Fifteen minutes after hanging up with Jack, Elizabeth's phone vibrated with a call.
"Good morning."
"Good morning, Elizabeth. This is Emma Walkins."
"Hey, Emma. How are you?"
"I'm great. I wanted to congratulate you."
"How do you know?"
"Jack called me yesterday to tell me."
"I should have known." She laughed.
"What do you mean?"
"We are going to the doctor in a couple of hours and…"
"Wait, you haven't been to the doctor's office yet?"
"No, but that hasn't stopped Jack from telling everyone."
"He does know he shouldn't be telling everyone…"
Elizabeth but her off. "I know and several have told him, but he is so excited about the news he just can't keep the secret to himself." She laughed with visions of Jack's excitement.
"Huh…he's always been great at keeping things to himself."
"Maybe so, but he can't keep this secret. He even told a stranger at the gas station this morning."
"Well, at least he is very excited. The group here is already working on a gift to send to you all."
"Wait, the group there?"
"Yes, the whole floor knows."
"How many people has he told?"
"Well, I'm guessing all of Oklahoma City knows." She laughed.
"As much as I wanted to wait, I can't be mad at him for telling everyone because he is so excited."
Emma shared with Elizabeth that her and her husband will be moving next week to Hope Valley. It was important for Emma to keep Elizabeth up to date with everything. She was really hoping their relationship would be good.
"Thank you, Emma for keeping me in the loop on things. I know this will be a big move for you and your husband."
"No problem, Elizabeth. I hope we can be friends or at least get along with each other."
"Emma, you are a friend. I just haven't meet you yet."
...
As much as he tried, Jack just couldn't concentrate too much on work. He did accomplish a few things, but nothing like he should have. His mind was too occupied with the doctor visit with Elizabeth. He wasn't sure what all would be happening, but he was hoping to hear the heartbeat. He also wanted to know the sex of the baby but wasn't sure if they would be able too so early.
Instead of just wasting time at his desk accomplishing nothing, he decided he was going to spend a little bit of time with Elizabeth. He had one stop to make before going to the school.
…
Jack walked into the school office with two bags. "Good morning Ms. Florence."
She looked up and offered Jack a smile. She stood and walked around her desk and gave him a hug. "Congratulations on the baby. I know you must be excited."
"I am. So much I can't stand it."
Mrs. Thorton is in her classroom. She has the same as last year."
"Thank you. Oh, here is a little gift for you."
"Jack, you are a special man. Thank you for always bringing me something. You don't have too but thank you."
"You're welcome. It's not anything big, but I wanted to show you how much I appreciate you."
…
Jack stood outside of Elizabeth's classroom door just admiring his beautiful wife. He took a few moments to just look at her. She is in her element sitting in her classroom. She is sitting at her desk looking over some papers. She lays down one piece of paper and picks up another paper and begins to examine it. She places the cap end of her pen between her front teeth and gently bites down on it. Jack's knees go weak. How in the work can someone look so beautiful reading a piece of paper and biting the end of a pen? Jack continues to admire Elizabeth. She places a stray piece of her hair behind her ear. It fell from the pony tail holder. Jack wants to walk in and place a kiss on her that she will never forget, but he also doesn't want to stop looking at his wife.
Jack takes a moment and thanks God for his precious wife. He is forever grateful this woman is his wife, the mother of his child. He knows she will be a terrific mother. She is so kind and loving with her students. He can only imagine how she will be with their child.
Ever since he learned of the pregnancy, he can't determine if he wants a boy or a girl. A boy would be great. He could pass his name down. He could also teach his little boy all the things his father taught him. Elizabeth would be a great mother for his little boy. But a little Elizabeth running around the house would be perfect too. A little Cinderella that looks just like her mother and acts like her too. That would almost be too much cuteness in one household. He wasn't sure if he could handle that. Elizabeth would be a great mother to his little Cinderella. Maybe God will grant them two children over time, a boy and a girl. Jack enjoyed having a brother that was close to him in age. Maybe they could do that, two to three years apart isn't too much of a difference. He had to check to see if Elizabeth would be willing to do that.
"Jack. You're early." Elizabeth stated when she noticed Jack leaning against the door frame. "Jack. Do you hear me?" Asked Elizabeth when he didn't say anything.
"Huh…"