Hi Hearties,

The last chapter was up late so I have two for you this week, and I'm already in the process of writing Chapter 31! I hope you enjoy this :)

Hamilton

"You're sure you don't mind babysitting for us again?" Jack asked Julie as they stood in the parlour.

Elizabeth watched Julie who held Matilda on her hip. They'd only been in Hamilton for three days now but she noticed her sister starting to look like an expert with her childrearing skills.

"I don't mind at all, I love spending time with Tilly. And I will be keeping a constant eye on her, we won't have any mishaps like last time." Julie said as she looked from Jack and Elizabeth and back down to Tilly.

"That could have happened to any of us." Elizabeth said as she recalled Julie's last babysitting mishap where Matilda fell out of the crib while Jack and Elizabeth went out for the night.

"Maybe so, but I'm going to be extra careful this time. So, where are the two of you going?" Julie asked.

"Shopping and out for lunch." Jack informed Julie.

"Well have fun." Julie said with a smile.

Jack and Elizabeth said their goodbyes to Tilly and made their way out of the parlour.

Elizabeth went to head for the front door, but Jack took her hand and stopped her.

"Before we head out into all that busyness can we talk?" Jack asked, he still wasn't comfortable being out in the busy city streets and shops in Hamilton, and felt the desire to want to connect with Elizabeth.

"Of course." She said returning to his side as she continued to hold onto his hand. "We could go out back?"

Jack nodded, and Elizabeth lead him out through the back of the house and out onto the patio amongst the gardens.

Jack looked out over the garden that surrounded the patio before looking back at Elizabeth.

"Take a walk with me?" He asked casually as he held out his arm for her to take.

"Is there a reason for this walk?" She asked with a grin on her face, as she took hold of his arm and leaned into his side.

"Is just wanting spend time with my beautiful wife reason enough?"

"It is." She said giving him a smile.

Jack led her down the patio steps and through the lush green gardens on her parent's property.

"What was that?" Elizabeth asked hearing something. "It sounds like Tilly."

"Come on!" Jack said looking around for the sound before grabbing her arm and pulling her further into the garden.

"What are you doing?" Elizabeth laughed as Jack pulled her behind a tree. "Why are we hiding?"

Jack gently held a finger up to her lips to silence her.

"Because Julie doesn't know we're here."

"Oh." Elizabeth said realising.

Jack and Elizabeth peeked around the tree and saw Julie running after Tilly, who was running through the garden, totally naked except for the cloth diaper that was half falling off her.

"What has Julie been doing with her?" Jack asked surprised as they tried to stifle their laughter so as not to be heard.

"This reminds me a little of a story your Mother told me."

Jack looked back at Elizabeth with a puzzled look on his face.

"How you liked to sneak out of the house and run around outside without a stitch of clothes on…" Elizabeth said with a grin as she reminded him.

"Oh, that story." Jack said, feeling a little embarrassed.

Elizabeth placed a hand on Jack's cheek as she noticed it start to colour.

"I'm sure you were a beautiful child. Just as our Tilly is." She said giving him a smile.

Jack and Elizabeth then heard a loud squeal and they both quickly looked around the tree again as they saw Julie scoop Matilda up into her arms. They continued to quietly watch as Julie carried their daughter back into the house, and then Jack and Elizabeth turned their attention back onto each other.

"She's a funny girl." Elizabeth said looking up at Jack.

"Your sister or Tilly?" Jack asked as he'd noticed how frazzled Julie had looked while trying to catch Matilda.

"It was quite amusing watching Julie, but I meant our daughter."

"She's a happy girl, we did make a beautiful baby didn't we?" Jack said as more of a statement than a question.

"We did, maybe we could make more beautiful babies." Elizabeth asked flirtatiously as she placed her hands-on Jack's shoulders and slightly pushed him till his back was pressed up against the tree.

"Now?" Jack asked somewhat surprised.

"Why not now?" She asked as she placed her hands on his chest and leaned in closer.

"I thought we were going shopping and out for lunch." He said as he instinctively wrapped his arms around her.

"Can't we do that another day Jack?" She asked sounding rather persuasive, as she looked down and played with the buttons on his shirt before returning her eyes to him.

"We could." He said as he started to cave into her idea, and he gave her a small smile.

He ran a hand through her hair as he leant back on the tree and held her tighter. He then brought her towards him and their lips met. Their kisses intensified, and Jack noticed Elizabeth starting to undo the buttons of his shirt.

"I'm not complaining but do you really want to make babies right here? In your parent's backyard?"

"I got a little distracted." She said realising where they were again as she looked around. "Maybe we could sneak in the house?"

"Staying here sounds more appealing right now. The last thing I want is your Father catching us sneaking into the house so I can make love to his daughter in the middle of the day."

"We can go in the back way. No one will ever know."

Jack stalled as he thought about what she said.

"Okay." He agreed, and she noticed a grin appear on his face and his dimples showed.

"Okay?" She asked, as she grinned herself. Jack nodded, and he took hold of her hand and she walked backwards and pulled him with her.

"Wait." Elizabeth said stopping.

"What?"

"Your buttons." She said as she went and started to rebutton his shirt.

Jack looked around to make sure no one was watching them as he waited for her to finish.

"You're quicker at unbuttoning than you are buttoning."

"That's because I've had more practice at unbuttoning your shirts." She said giving him a wink while gently patting his chest after finishing with the last button. She then took his hand again and they headed back towards the house.

Elizabeth showed him the way through a backdoor and up another stairway. They then snuck down the hallway and reached her bedroom door. They quietly opened the door before closing it quickly behind them.

"See, that wasn't so hard." Elizabeth told him as she leant her back against the closed door. She slipped her hands just inside his coat, she found his suspenders and slipped her fingers around them and pulled him closer.

"No, but later we'll have to work out how to sneak out of here." He said placing his hands on her hips.

"We'll worry about that later." She said as she gently held onto the collar of his shirt and looked up at him.

He leaned in and kissed her, a little too intensely as her back hit the back of the door and created a bang.

"I'm so sorry." He said pulling out of the kiss.

"It's fine Jack." She said as she pulled him closer, but she saw the worried expression on his face. "I'm fine really, maybe we should go over to the bed though. Creating a disturbance here isn't going to help us."

Jack nodded and gave her a quick kiss before taking her hand and pulling her over towards the bed. He sat down and she stood in front of him and she placed a hand on his jawline as she looked down at him.

"Were you serious when you commented on making more babies?" Jack asked, sounding more serious now.

"I was." She told him honestly. "I'm actually a little surprised it hasn't happened already."

"I am a little too, considering how often you can't keep your hands off me." He joked.

Elizabeth went to gently swat him on the shoulder, but Jack caught her arm in time before it made contact. She feigned a look of disappointment at him before a smile appeared on her face. He then pulled her down onto the bed next to him, and they both lay on their sides and looked at each other.

"Seriously though Bella, you really want more babies? I thought you'd be a little disappointed if you got pregnant at this point in time?" He said as he ran his hand down the side of her waist and stopped at her hip.

"I know I'm happy to be returning to teaching part time, but I could never be disappointed about having a baby with you sweetheart."

"Really?" Jack asked, and she nodded.

Elizabeth noticed Jack's eyes start to well up and she ran her thumb just below his eye.

"I'm sorry I caused you to think that." She said as she looked into his eyes.

"You don't need to apologise, I just must have misunderstood."

"Maybe so, but I hate knowing that I've caused you to think that. Jack, sweetheart, I want you to know how much I want to have more children with you. Having Matilda was one of the most precious gifts you've given to me, knowing that I was carrying your child inside of me, that we have a child together that is a little piece of both of us. I could never be disappointed in doing that again, no matter how many times. I want you to know how much I want to have more children with you, and how much I love you Jack."

"You don't know how relieved I am to here you say that." Jack said as he brushed a tendril of hair from her face and noticed the tears in her eyes start to fall. He wiped them away with his thumb and she gave him a small smile. "Show me how much you love me?" He whispered into her ear before burying his face into the hair near her shoulder.

"You didn't even need to ask." She said as she moved in closer and tilted her head to find his lips.

He wrapped his arm around her back and held her firmly.

"I love you Elizabeth Thornton."

"I love you too."

Almost an hour later Jack and Elizabeth sneaked out of the bedroom and made their way down the hallway.

"Jack! Your shoes!" Elizabeth said as she noticed his bare feet.

They quickly rushed back into the bedroom and Jack hurried over and put his shoes and socks on before they headed out the door once more.

They carefully made their way down the hallway and quietly descended the stairs.

"I'm starving, how about we both go into the kitchen and find something to eat?"

"I didn't realise you had both returned." Julie said, and Jack and Elizabeth stopped dead in their tracks.

"Uh yeah, we're here." Jack fumbled with his words as Elizabeth bit her bottom lip.

"What's going on? I thought you went out for lunch." Julie asked looking at the suspiciously. "Did something happen while you were out?"

"No nothing happened, we just didn't happen to have time to get anything to eat." Elizabeth said as she stood by Jack's side.

"Where is your shopping?" Julie asked as she just realised they were empty handed.

"Don't tell me you couldn't find anything that was suitable for use in Hope Valley again?"

"No nothing like that. So where is Matilda?" Elizabeth asked, trying to change the subject.

"I made up a space or her in the parlour to take a nap, she's still sleeping." Julie informed them.

Jack and Elizabeth headed back into the parlour and Julie followed them. She was still suspicious and then took note of Elizabeth's dishevelled hair and grinned.

Jack and Elizabeth noticed their daughter sleeping on a blanket on the floor. She had Jack's blankie in one hand and was grasping onto Brownie with the other, as well as having her favourite doll her parents had given her for Christmas at her side.

"She looks like a little Angel." Elizabeth said quietly.

"She was, until she escaped outdoors." Julie said.

"She got outside?" Elizabeth queried, pretending she didn't know a thing.

"Yes, right in front of my eyes! I was trying to put a new diaper on her and she took off and escaped out the back door!"

Jack and Elizabeth laughed as they remembered the sight of Julie chasing Tilly around the backyard earlier.

"She is fast these days." Jack said.

"She sure is." Julie said. "So, since the two of you apparently haven't eaten maybe you should go grab something before Tilly wakes up. I can stay here and watch her."

"Thank you Julie, that would be wonderful."

"I don't think you'll have time to get your shopping done though." Julie said with a grin as she held back her laughter.

Jack blushed and stayed silent as he looked everywhere but in Julie's direction.

"Julie!" Elizabeth exclaimed, chastising her sister.

"What? You could have been more careful about it if you didn't want me to know."

Elizabeth glared at Julie.

"Well, you walk in saying you're hungry, you don't have any shopping, and look at your hair Elizabeth!" Julie exclaimed.

Elizabeth placed her hands on her hair and looked up at Jack.

"Your hair looks fine to me." He said, trying to argue innocence.

Julie laughed and shook her head.

"If you wanted time to yourselves you could have just said so, you didn't have to make up some elaborate plan."

"It wasn't an "elaborate plan" we did intend to go shopping and out for lunch." Elizabeth argued.

"Oh, so it was spontaneous, how romantic."

"Julie." Elizabeth exclaimed between her teeth.

Julie smiled, which made Elizabeth feel more infuriated with her.

Matilda then cried out and Jack rushed over to pick up his daughter. He was relieved he had something else to do.

Elizabeth followed him over, eager to see her daughter, and Tilly's cries stopped once she saw her parents. Jack and Elizabeth then realised that Julie had left the room and both were somewhat relieved.

"I don't know how she does it, but every time we're here that sister of yours manages to embarrass me."

"Don't worry you're not the only one Jack. Embarrassing people is one of Julie's favourite pass times." She said, still feeling exasperated about the conversation she had with Julie.

Elizabeth looked down at her daughter and smiled. Her anger managing to dissipate as she became engaged just by her daughter's presence. Jack noticed Elizabeth start to calm and handed Tilly over to his wife.

"Did you miss Mummy and Daddy?" Elizabeth asked Tilly.

Tilly placed her hands on her Mother's face and Elizabeth started to place kisses on them before realising her daughters hands were all sticky.

"What has Aunt Julie been doing with you?" Elizabeth asked looking down at Tilly's hands.

"I don't know what it is but you're going to have a sticky face now." Jack said laughing as he looked at his two girls. "Come on I'll run you both a bath and I'll go find something in the kitchen for us to eat." Jack said as he guided Elizabeth out of the parlour and she followed his lead.

A/N So are you enjoying the 'steamy' moments or the heartfelt family moments better? Or both? Please let me know :)