Chapter 2: O Christmas Tree

A new day had barely dawned before two little footsteps crept almost soundlessly into the master bedroom. Little Jack scaled the footboard and stood ominously over his slumbering parents.

"Daaaaaaaaaddddy!"

Nathan awoke with a start just in time to brace himself for impact as Jack landed unceremoniously with a thump in the small space on the mattress next to where Nathan laid on his side. The Mountie's arm shot out steadying the boy from bouncing from the mattress to the floor. His protective instincts on full-alert despite the morning hour.

The older and more mischievous that Jack grew, the more helpful some of the mundane Mountie training from the Academy seemed to be. The early morning drill sergeants proved useful as a father of a toddler. It seems it took a Mountie to raise a Mountie's son.

With a raspy morning voice Nathan mustered, "Good morning Jack. Thanks for remembering not to land on your mother." Nathan rolled onto his back making himself more comfortable.

Elizabeth chuckled from her side of the bed. "I don't miss that! Sorry Nathan. Old habits die hard I guess. Jack has quite a way of waking people up and always has. Good morning Jack. Why are you up already?"

"Treeeeeeeeeeee!" Jack exclaimed straddling Nathan's bare chest with hands flailing high in the air as if the answer should be obvious.

Elizabeth stifled a laugh. "Jack…the sun needs to be up so we can even find the tree."

"Oh." Jack lowered his hands in disappointment. "But I saw the sun. See?! There!"

The slightest amber hue was peaking above the horizon. Nathan pushed himself up on one elbow collapsing a giggling Jack still sitting on his chest. Nathan squinted…hard. He laughed to himself remembering his own boyish antics preparing for Christmas. This felt a little like payback now and he made a mental note to phone his mother and father later to apologize for his own dawn wake-up calls as a child.

"Hmmmm. I see it Jack. How about we go get the fire going downstairs and some breakfast and we let the girls sleep. It could be just the boys." He whispered the last part conspiratorially.

Jack nodded vigorously and eyed his mama. "Yeah. And we could make oatmeal with extra sugar, right Dad?!" He attempted what ended up being an overly loud toddler whisper.

"I heard that." Elizabeth mumbled from under her pillow. "But I'll allow it for more sleep. Thank you Nathan." She rolled over and kissed him gently before returning to the top of her pillow.

"Now's our chance Jack! Go Buddy! Go! Go! Go!"

Jack's mischievous eyes and smile lit the darkness as he bounded down the stairs making more noise trying to be quiet than if he just went down normally.

Nathan shook his head and winked at his bride. "G'night Love." He kissed her forehead, rearranged her blankets, grabbed a shirt from the dresser, and tiptoed to the door in a stealth only a Mountie could manage.

"I love you." Elizabeth sighed. "Not too much sugar."

"I love you…." He closed the door before making any promises he'd likely break downstairs.

Elizabeth woke nearly two hours later to the gentle rhythm of a child turning her ribs into a drum. Her hand sought the spot on her belly as she smiled to herself at the miracle of new life. This child was already strong and based on the range of kicks within her midsection this baby was likely to be tall like their father.

The length made her suspect that this baby was a boy, but as the first Grant baby she carried, it was hard to say for sure. She still had about three more months left and it was hard to believe that there was more for her to expand with the time left. She felt nearly as large as she was when she delivered Jack.

Apparently she looked it too, as Florence let her observation slip a few days ago when Elizabeth turned from the shelf in The Mercantile. Molly's mouth dropped and she quickly swatted Florence's arm bringing Florence back to her senses.

"Of course you're just glowing!" Florence recovered with her suddenly rounded eyes darting to the floor.

"You're beautiful and we're so happy for you and Nathan," Molly added giving Elizabeth a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder.

Elizabeth smiled graciously and rubbed her belly thankful that this pregnancy was healthy and progressing even if she was entering the stage where she felt far from beautiful.

She had a husband who was enthralled with every change—eagerly anticipating another child to love. It was hard not to feel beautiful the way Nathan looked at her.

Sunlight was streaming through the windows now and as she sat up, her already squished bladder protested. Time to get up and reign in the boys.

The further she got in her pregnancy, the more she was grateful that Nathan had insisted on indoor plumbing in their farmhouse. Although she had grown accustomed to outhouses in her time on the frontier, she didn't miss waddling out in the cold for the second or third time that night thanks to hormones and crushed organs.

Descending the stairs, she found her family of three huddled around the fire with Nathan and Allie reading and Jack staging a stampede of sheep with a lonely shepherd trailing behind.

Upon closer inspection as she neared the bottom of the stairs, Mary and Joseph laid prostrate—apparently taking a nap while a donkey, camels, and a cow scattered about the table in every which direction. There seemed to be a meeting of sorts happening between the angels and wisemen and baby Jesus was suspiciously nowhere to be found.

The sound of her footsteps on the bottom stairs finally raised three pairs of eyes to her movement.

"Mama!" Jack clambered up from the table and met his mother at the foot of the stairs embracing her legs. Steadying herself with the railing, she hugged him back with her other arm.

"Daddy! Trees! Mama here. Let's go!" He could hardly contain himself.

"Alright little man. Let's at least let your mama eat her breakfast. She's feeding our baby too you know."

"My bruver," Little Jack confidently corrected.

"Jack we won't know if it's a brother or a sister until the baby is born." Elizabeth gently tried to reason with the toddler hoping not to disappoint him should he be blessed with a sister instead.

"He's a bruver."

At this point, Nathan grinned in amusement. "And how do you know it's a brother, Jack?"

"I peeked." Jack responded matter-of-factly.

Elizabeth audibly chuckled before she covered her mouth with her hand stifling the laugh further. "Oh you did, did you?"

"Yep. I wooked right fru Mama's belly button…boy." Jack placed his hands on his hips as if what he was saying was the most obvious explanation.

"Well, we'll see if you're right Jack. Just a few more months Buddy." Nathan attempted to maintain a serious face. Jack nodded approvingly and returned to his animals.

Smiling to herself, Elizabeth headed over to the stove and found her oatmeal still warmed from the oven. It was topped with brown sugar and cinnamon and smelled of apples. "Thank you Nathan. This smells wonderful. We're starving."

He smiled at her "we." She had been referring to her cravings as "we" ever since she learned she was pregnant and every "we" warmed his heart that he was gifted another child—and so soon after marrying too.

Leaving Elizabeth at the table to eat, Nathan pulled out their outerwear from the closet for his wife and children and he headed out to the barn to hitch up the horses to the wagon.

By the time he returned to the house, the family was ready and the kettle was whistling on the stovetop. Winking at his wife, he pulled the canteens from the cupboard and wrapped them discreetly in scarves. She nodded in approval filling them quietly and handing them back to Nathan.

"Ok Jack. It's time. Come and get your coat and gloves on," his mother requested. He didn't have to be asked twice.

Nathan helped each child up into the wagon. He helped cover the two of them huddled together with a thick quilt tucking the fabric in tightly around their feet.

It was hard to say which child was more excited this morning. Allie sat tall with a protective arm encircled around her little brother with a wide grin eager to find a tree. Her knees were visibly dancing under the quilt unable to keep them still. Jack seemed to be bouncing off the seat before the wagon even moved forward as if he were willing it into motion.

Elizabeth stood with one hand resting on her stomach closing the gap between her already stressed coat buttons. Maybe she should take Rosemary up on her offer to sew a maternity style coat after all.

The strong hand that she loved reached out as his other arm hugged her waist to help her up into the wagon. Nathan had placed the warm canteens at her feet and after climbing into the wagon himself, he arranged some furs and a hand-stitched quilt from his mother around them.

With a quick flick of the reins, Sargent and Newton were off. Nathan glanced at his bride and flashed her his best lop-sided grin. Any day together with his family was a good day. She slid closer to him fitting into his side like no other woman could.

They caught a quick glimpse of Main Street. Coulter Enterprises still provided a Wishing Tree each year for the center of town, although it's use was mostly symbolic now after Jack Thornton's passing and after Abigail had left town to care for her mother.

Continuing down the road, some smaller homesteads could be seen in the distance peppered through a sea of pines, firs, and spruce trees. A light snow last night had dusted the branches with white which glistened now in the sunlight. The air was cool against the family's cheeks, but the sun was warm making the outing comfortable despite the winter temperatures.

The horses stilled as they pulled up to Jack Thornton's land. Rather than hunt for trees in their old spot, Nathan and Elizabeth had decided that coming to Jack's land was a nice way to honor Jack's memory and include the Thornton family, in a way, with one of Jack's trees as a centerpiece of their Christmas celebration.

Part of becoming a married family was the delicate dance of blending and honoring both prior family's traditions as well as making their own. A simple solution seemed to be to find a tree here on Thornton ground while carrying on the Grant tradition of planting a tree from the pinecone both in their yard at their home as well as plant a tree here on the Thornton ground sowing into future Christmases for the continuation of Thornton and Grant families some day.

Securing the horses, Nathan helped both children down and reminded Allie of her promise to stay within eyesight. Allie and Jack nodded eagerly and took off for the timber.

With a laugh, Elizabeth took Nathan's hand and stepped down carefully from the wagon. "Well that didn't take long. Maybe we should come here more often and enjoy a few minutes to ourselves." Elizabeth teased.

"Not a bad idea, Love. I'll take any time with you that I can get, Mrs. Grant." He nuzzled her cheek with his chilled nose.

She squealed from the cold shoving him playfully. His face broke into a full grin amused at his own antics. He took her hand in his and kissed her hand tenderly. Though she was wearing mittens, the warmth of his breath on her knuckles still sent butterflies a flight just like they always had.

They walked silently, each lost in their own thoughts, as they watched their children darting back and forth through the trees ahead. Jack seemed satisfied with every single tree he found, whereas, Allie had a more discerning palate. She remained on mission to find the perfect tree for their new farmhouse.

Jack was scurrying from tree to tree growing more excited with each one when he tripped on a branch and face planted into the snow. Elizabeth's arm stiffened in alarm, but before she could move, Nathan dropped her hand. He had taken off at a run to catch up to the boy.

Still a few paces off, Nathan's heart swelled as Allie swooped in from seemingly nowhere and dusted Jack off giving him a hug. He slowed his steps watching the sibling pair carefully.

"Are you ok Jack?" Allie held the sides of his stocking cap looking him over thoroughly assessing for injuries both physically and emotionally.

With a sniffle, he nodded. "Fanks Awie." He smiled up at her and grabbed her hand ready to journey on. Seeing his father approaching, he called out, "I'm ok Daddy! You hold Mama."

Nathan smiled at his tough boy and nodded thankfully to Allie. She might not have had a mother for most of her young life, but it was encouraging to see her nurturing side coming out with her younger sibling. This had been a dream for her for years and she took her role of big sister very seriously. He couldn't wait for her to finally have her dream of a baby sibling of her own fulfilled in just a few short months.

Threading her arm through her husband's, Elizabeth's touch broke through Nathan's thoughts as it often did. "She is such a great big sister, Nathan. I can't wait to see her with this new little one. Do you think she wants a brother or a sister?"

Nathan thought a moment, "I don't really know. She has just wanted a baby for so long I think she'll be thrilled with either. What about you?" He asked as they continued walking together, following behind the children.

"Me? Well….maybe this is silly because I'll be happy with either too and I've always wanted a little girl, but now that I have Jack I really hope we can give him the brother he wants at some point."

"Well, Jack says he already got his brother." He pointed at her belly with the lop-sided grin she loved so much.

"I hope he's right. I mean he is convinced." She said with a laugh as she shook her head. "What about you Nathan, what do you want?"

"I just want babies with you. That's all I care about." His eyes were so sincere she didn't dare challenge him on it. He was serious.

Still, her own fears ate at her resolve, "Nathan, if we only have girls will it bother you not to have son bearing the Grant name?"

He looked at her for a moment puzzled. "But, I have a son. I'm proud that he is a Thornton and he is just as much a Grant as the rest of us."

"I know he is. And you are as much his father as Jack is. I just didn't know if having a son with your last name mattered to you." Elizabeth fumbled with her mittens as she asked sheepishly looking down at the snow.

"Lizbeth," he stopped walking and turned her chin up gently so her eyes sought his. "I will be thrilled with every baby the Lord gives us. What I want more than anything is you. Your love is one of the greatest gifts that the Lord has ever given me."

She stood on tiptoe and kissed his lips. "I'm so thankful that God has given me you, Nathan." She smiled to herself and got that teacher-look in her eye.

"What? I know that look…what clever thing are you trying not to say?"

She blushed. "I was just thinking about your name. Nathan—meaning gift of God. And that is what you are." She smirked again.

"Go ahead…just say it." His eyes narrowed playfully at her.

"Grant—unmerited gift. The fulfillment of a request….the answer to my prayers." His eyes softened at her as he let out his breath and then a laugh.

"Usually the kids at school reminded me that Grant meant tall…or large. I thought you were going to call me Big Gift there for a second." He laughed shaking his head.

She grinned, "no, but Gift Gift is rather fun isn't it?"

"Oh boy…I'm not going to live this one down am I?" He shook his head even though his eyes danced with merriment. As long as he was her Gift, he was secretly ok with it.

"Daaaaaaaaaad! Mooooooooooom! Come see! It's perfect! Oh you'll love it! Come and see what Jack and I found!" Allie was beside herself with excitement.

Stepping through the grove of trees, Nathan and Elizabeth saw—what really was—the perfect Christmas tree. It was a seven foot tall Balsam fir glittering in the sunlight. On it's branches, were several pine cones interspersed among the snow dusted needles. Not only was it beautiful, it was practical as there would be plenty of seeds for replanting.

"You did it again Allie-girl! It's perfect." Nathan smiled down warmly at his daughter who glowed with his praise. Nathan slid his arm around Allie pulling her into a side hug. Taking his cue from his father, Jack latched onto Allie's legs in his own hug which prompted Elizabeth to complete the circle hugging Allie's other side making a sweet family hug right there in the snow.

Nathan cut the tree while the kids gathered any fallen branches making a neat stack to the side. Wiping his brow, Nathan looked up to find his wife gathering more branches and discreetly tossing them into their pile. With a puzzled brow he called out, "Lizbeth? What are you doing?"

Caught. Elizabeth froze with another pine branch still in her hands. "Uh…decorating."

"You're decorating the forest with…branches?" He cocked his head to the side with his eyebrow raised and an amused grin at his own joke.

"I was hoping to make a few garlands and maybe a wreath. Maybe that's silly…" Elizabeth trailed off feeling foolish.

"Honey, I would have helped you. You don't have to do this alone anymore." He stood and enveloped her in a hug.

She sighed into his shoulder. "Thank you. I'm still not used to having a husband around to help me. I've just always done everything myself."

"Lizbeth, I'm pretty sure you've been independent long before that." He leaned back and looked her in the eyes as his sparkled with mirth.

She laughed. "I guess I am a Thatcher."

He winked at her. "It's one of the many things I love about you. We have a pretty independent daughter too you know." He nodded in Allie's direction who was also gathering cuttings unbeknownst to Elizabeth. "She's your daughter alright. Colleen would be so glad. I know I am."

"Don't get sappy on me Constable." She playfully pointed a finger at his chest as she quickly kissed him.

Nathan's eyes lit up at the dad-joke opportunity, "Sappy?!" He gestured to the evergreen trees around him. "I'm fir-ocious. I cedar…"

"Daaaaad!" Allie dropped her branches and shook her head placing her hands on her hips. "Really?! You'd better stick to being a Mountie. Those jokes are awful."

"Awfully funny." Nathan socked her arm and she rolled her eyes with a huff. Elizabeth just smiled to herself and shook her head.

"Ok Allie and Jack let's grab these branches for Mom and head back to the wagon. I'm pretty sure your mom has a surprise for you."

It was all the encouragement they needed. Allie and Jack gathered every last branch and twig and hauled their bounty back to the wagon as fast as their legs could carry them. Elizabeth followed behind not as quickly, but managing the best she could.

The kids loaded the branches and prepared the back of the wagon for their perfect Christmas tree. Elizabeth reached up into the wagon and uncovered the still-warm canteens that she had wrapped in furs, scarves, and blankets earlier—insulating them from the cold.

Allie smiled knowingly, but Jack stood puzzled not anticipating a canteen for his surprise. Undeterred by his lack of excitement, Elizabeth unscrewed his canteen and held it up for him to drink. The scent of cinnamon and cloves raised Jack's interest and he gulped down several swigs of what turned out to be apple cider.

Allie smiled at her brother's delayed excitement. At the sight of the warm canteens, she had recognized her dad's tradition of packing warm cider for a long tracking mission. He had always called it "a little taste of home."

Thankfully, Nathan hadn't been called out in awhile, but it was fun to be included this time in the cider sipping as a whole family.

Bringing up the rear, Nathan appeared dragging the tree behind him—thankfully leaving only a small trail of needles. He smiled at his family surrounding the wagon still warming their hands and insides with cider.

Allie helped him load the tree and before long they were off again. They headed home with plenty of time to make lunch and decorate the tree. Everyone's spirits soared anticipating the Christmas season now officially upon them and more time together as a family.

A/N:

For those keeping track of the Christmas objects, Ch 1 had the manger, Ch 2 has the Christmas tree.

If you've read any of my other stories, some of these details/Easter eggs may sound familiar (cider canteen etc). My intent is for this story to fit in neatly after the end of But Now I See, but several years before You'll Always Be My Little Girl. For those of you dying to know if Jack gets his "bruver," you'll have to check in My Little Girl. There are several Grant kids already born in that story with one last one on the way in My Little Girl.

For fanfic canon's sake, this story alludes to Nathan's parents being reconciled like we see in My Little Girl even though we haven't seen that yet in But Now I See.

Is it weird that I'm enjoying the back & forth of writing a sequel before the first story is finished? Kind of a unique position to be in honestly.

Thanks to Lynn nebula2 & Sherri pn1thrasher for being my beta readers!

Typically, my Little Jack scenes are inspired by my little kids, but the "bruver" scene was inspired by myself as a toddler completely convinced that I would get a younger brother. My parents told everyone how I had told them that I had "peeked." (Same reasoning as LJ). My younger brother Jim is now 33. I knew…somehow. (Ultrasounds weren't standard in the late 80's unless there were complications).