Abigail opened the café door and Jack nodded politely but his gaze went directly to Elizabeth.
Abigail looked at both of them, "Well, have a nice walk you two, I have things to do, excuse me," she tried to control her excitement for her two friends and quickly went upstairs.
"Elizabeth, you look so beautiful," Jack took her hand.
"Thank you Jack and you look so handsome," she rocked forward on her feet, "I've been looking forward to our walk all day."
Jack couldn't take his eyes off her, "Me too." He offered her his arm. The two walked in silence along the wooded path until they approached their special grove of trees.
Elizabeth couldn't wait any longer, she was feeling anxious and was having trouble controlling her emotions, "Jack," she stepped in front of him and took his hands in hers. Jack was a bit startled wondering why she stopped and what she was going to say.
"Jack," she licked her lips and looked up into his eyes, "when you were sick, I just couldn't do enough for you. I wanted to help you get well. I wanted to take care of you."
"And you did that…so well" he brought her hand to his lips, "thank you for taking care of me."
"I would do anything for you Jack. You've always been there for me. You're such a wonderful man, you have such …"
"High moral character?" He couldn't help interrupting her, "I heard what you told the doctor Elizabeth."
Elizabeth felt herself blush and looked down. Jack gently raised her chin, "Thank you for saying what you did, it was very special."
"Jack, I said those things….they're all true because," she exhaled and looked into his eyes, "I love you Jack… I love you."
Jack inhaled, did he hear her correctly? He looked over her face, every inch, wanting to remember this moment forever. The woman he knew he wanted to be with beyond any doubt, without any question had just said the three words he dreamed of hearing from her. He swallowed hard and stared into her eyes. "Elizabeth," he whispered, "my Elizabeth…" he took several steps, "Come with me." He led her by the hand around the bend to their special grove of trees.
Elizabeth's face lit up, "Oh my! Jack!" Everywhere she looked, small white lanterns flickered from every tree branch over their heads, and on almost every tree stump circling the area. "What is all this?"
"Elizabeth," he gently pulled her toward him, "I wanted to have a special moment with you... I wanted to tell you….." he took a deep breath, "Elizabeth, I love you." He smiled, staring at her face, watching her eyes sparkle in the candle light as she looked lovingly at him. He kissed her ever so softly and she reached up, touched his face and deepened the kiss. Jack pulled back wanting to tell her again, "I love you. Do you even know how much I love you?" barely controlling the emotion in his voice.
Elizabeth nodded, tears brimming in her eyes, "Yes… yes Jack, I know. I feel it every time you look at me," she gasped softly, choking back tears.
"Elizabeth, let's sit down for a minute," he gently took her hand and led them to their usual bench. But they no sooner sat down when Jack stood up, reached into his pocket and dropped to one knee, "Elizabeth, I love you with all my heart." She took a deep breath, watching him. Jack squinted for a moment, looking at her face, trying to control his emotions, "I never knew what true love was until I met you and I see my future with you next to me, if you'll have me." He didn't shift his gaze from her eyes, "Elizabeth, will you do me the honor of being my wife, will you marry me?" He opened his hand revealing a beautiful ring.
Elizabeth let out a small gasp, her eyes moving from Jack's face to his open hand cradling the ring. "Jack…yes!" She felt a tear run down her cheek, "Yes Jack, I'll marry you."
Jack smiled and slipped the ring on her finger and brought her hand to his lips, "I love you so much," he whispered. Elizabeth leaned forward, falling into his arms; he laughed softly lifting them both up. Jack kissed her lips, her cheeks, her nose all while Elizabeth was giddy with joy. Jack laughed, threw his head back, "I'm so happy," he looked into her eyes again, "you make me so happy."
Elizabeth could barely speak, tears spilling from her eyes, "Jack….I'm so happy. I love you so much." She hugged him tight, bouncing slightly in his arms.
Jack was shaking, "Let's sit down, I'm feeling a bit weak in the knees," he laughed softly.
Elizabeth put her palm against Jack's cheek, "Oh Jack, I never expected this," she looked at the ring, a diamond in a filigree gold setting, "it's so beautiful."
"There's so much more I wanted to say, but well, I just got ahead of myself I guess," Jack smiled nervously, "I wasn't expecting you to tell me you loved me, not then anyway. I thought that would happen after I put that ring on your finger…"
"You knew I loved you," she touched the beautiful ring, "ring or no ring, although this …well this. Jack Thornton….."
"I knew, just like you knew how much I loved you," Jack looked down, "just hard to pick the right time."
"Well, this is the perfect time Jack. When you were sick, I realized I couldn't live without you and I was determined to tell you how I felt." She bit her lip, "Wait, if you had this planned, did I ruin your surprise?"
Jack shook his head, "No, you didn't ruin it," Jack rubbed his chin, "you did shake it up a bit, in a good way. I was so happy to hear you say those words."
"Those four words…." Elizabeth smiled.
"Four?"
"I love you and yes," she held up her hand flashing the ring next to her face.
"Yes, those four words," he took her hand, kissed it and pressed it to his chest, "you will always have my heart."
Elizabeth could only nod in agreement and entwine her fingers with his.
Jack stood, "Miss Elizabeth Thatcher," he offered her his hand, "may I have this dance?"
Elizabeth took his hand, rose into his arms and put her other hand firmly on his shoulder, "Every single dance Mr. Thornton."
"Soon I'll have to call you Mrs. Thornton," he began to sway.
Elizabeth blushed, "I look forward to being Mrs. Thornton." They kissed and they danced, holding each other close in their candlelit grove.
This is the end of "What is Courting"…Coming soon, "What is Engagement".