Chapter 77: Always With Us
Elizabeth woke the next morning as the sun peered through the window of her bedroom. Later today, the Thorntons would arrive by stagecoach from Aberdeen. It had been quite a while since she had seen either one, and she was looking forward to their visit along with introducing them to Allie and Nathan. She was pretty sure that Tom and Charlotte would take to the Grants instantly if she knew her in-laws like she had thought. Elizabeth looked over at her younger sister, who was still sleeping peacefully next to her. They had a late night of visiting and catching up like old times. Elizabeth smiled as she quietly and carefully slipped out of the bed and then out of the room. Before she went downstairs, she peeked in on Jack to see how her son was sleeping. Elizabeth watched for a moment as Jack softly snored and then she closed the door softly and made her way down the steps.
As Elizabeth got a tea kettle on to boil, she reflected on the previous evening. Yesterday had been a whirlwind and Elizabeth was ever so grateful that it was only her sister in her small home. There was only so much time that one could spend in a room full of Thatchers in the small rowhouse she came to discover. Although surprisingly supportive, Elizabeth concluded that her mother and she differed very much when it came to the idea of an ideal wedding for her. She wondered if things would have been different if her mother had been able to be present for her wedding with Jack years ago.
While lost in thought, Julie came down the stairs. "Good morning, sister, dear! Where were you just now? You looked a million miles away." Julie said, and she took a seat at the table. Elizabeth turned from the stovetop, smiling at her sister, as she plated some scones that she had picked up at Abigail's the day before and brought them to the table with her. "Good morning, Julie! Oh, I was just remembering talking with Mother and Father last night and how well they received the ideas about the wedding, and I wondered if they would have been the same way six years ago when I married Jack." Elizabeth responded. Julie nodded as she eagerly grabbed a scone and tore off a chunk. "Hmm, these are the best scones! Something is slightly different than it was the last time I had them. What is it?" Julie asked. Elizabeth giggled and replied, "Umm, it might be the fact that it is a new person making them since you were here last. Clara now lives in Montana. Minnie, our pastor's wife, made these. You can compliment her personally tonight when we go to the cafe for dinner." Julie simply nodded as she continued to chew, enjoying every bite.
The sisters sat at the table, enjoying their tea and scones, and discussing the plans for the day. After breakfast, they would take Jack to preschool as usual and get some errands done prior to the Thorntons' arrival. While sitting there chatting, they heard a slight creak on the steps and looked up to find a very groggy Jack standing on the stairs, holding his Mountie toy, and rubbing his eyes. He sleepily said, "Morning Mama. Morning, Auntie Juwie! I is hungwy." Julie put her hand over Elizabeth's and eagerly asked, "May I?" Elizabeth smiled and nodded.
Julie got up from her spot, walked over to the stairs, picked up her nephew, gave him a big hug, and responded, "Good morning, Jack! It's such a treat to wake up and see you! Would you like to join me for a scone?" Jack pulled back from the hug and scrunched up his little nose, shook his head vigorously, and said, "I don't wike scones, Auntie Juwie! I eat muffins." Jack looked up at Elizabeth with a concerned look and asked, "Mama, we have muffins, right? I don't want scones." Elizabeth chuckled, stood, walked over to where the two of them were, and kissed Jack on the cheek. "Yes, my sweet boy, Ms. Minnie sent me home with a blueberry muffin just for you yesterday." Jack's face lit up, and he clapped his hands. Then, he grabbed his aunt's cheeks and kissed her on each cheek. "I wike waking up to you too, Aunt Juwie! I wuv you, but it's muffin time now, pwease." Jack said it with a little grin. The sisters laughed and went back to the table to finish breakfast with Jack.
Later that morning, the stagecoach arrived with none other than Charlotte and Tom Thornton. Julie and Elizabeth were coming out of the mercantile with their hands filled with miscellaneous things when they saw them. Julie felt the same flutter of butterflies in her stomach when she saw Tom, as if it had been just yesterday and not six years since they had last seen or spoken to one another. Both Julie and Tom seemed to be frozen in their spots as Elizabeth ran over to embrace her mother-in-law, saying, "Charlotte! It's been too long! I'm so glad that both were able to make it!"
Charlotte smiled from ear to ear, wrapped Elizabeth in her welcoming arms, and squeezed her tightly. "Lizzie! It's so good to see you! Where is that grandson of mine? It's been ages since I've laid my eyes on that boy!", Charlotte commented.
"Julie and I were just about to walk over to the preschool to drop a few things off. Would you like to go over and see him?", Elizabeth asked.
"You sure bet I would, lead the way, Lizzie! Tom, would you please get the bags and take them over to the inn? And then, come on over to take a gander at your little nephew,", Charlotte said as she placed her hand on her son's shoulder.
The touch of his mother's hand on his shoulder took Tom out of his mutual reverie with Julie. "Uh, sure, Ma. Julie, would you like to join me? It will give us a few minutes to catch up." Tom responded with a grin that spread from ear to ear.
"Wait a second, little brother, I didn't get to hug you or say hello. Come on over here." Elizabeth said, and she came over to Tom to give him a hug. Tom chuckled and gave his sister-in-law a bear hug. "Good seeing you too, sis! Now, go on, and Julie and I will catch up as soon as we are done with mine and Ma's bags." Tom said as he gestured for them to go ahead.
When Elizabeth joined Charlotte once more, they curiously watched as Tom grabbed the bulk of the Thornton's bags and Julie grabbed Charlotte's carpet bag and Tom's satchel, and the two walked side by side, lost in conversation. "Hmm, wonder if anything will come of that?" Charlotte said. Elizabeth chuckled, shook her head, and replied, "Those two have been like magnets with one another for years now. Who knows? Come on, let's go get Jack and go drop these things off." So, the two women walked towards the preschool, lost in their own conversation.
On the way back over to Elizabeth's rowhouse, Tom hoisted his nephew upon his shoulders, and Jack squealed with pure joy. Julie beamed up at her nephew and walked proudly beside Tom during the walk back. Charlotte shared about the time that she fell off the horse and wrenched her back before Elizabeth's wedding to Jack. "That accident kept me down way longer than I wanted to be. I've never experienced so much pain in my life. But I am thankful that time is over and I have my health now to be here to enjoy this special occasion. You said I get to meet this Nathan tonight at Abigail's, Lizzie?" Elizabeth nodded, weaved her arm into her mother-in-law's, and said, "Yes, the Grants, my parents, the Coulters, the Averys, all of us, and possibly Abigail if she makes it on today's afternoon stagecoach, will all be there tonight for a private dinner." Charlotte nodded thoughtfully in response and answered, "Good. I want to make sure I approve of this fellow before you marry him. Not just anyone marries Lizzie or becomes Little Jack's stepfather.
"Gamma Chawie… Natan is my daddy. I wuv my Mountie Daddy too, though. I is special! I have two daddies! One in heaven and one here wif me, Mama and Awie." Jack spoke confidently as he looked down at his paternal grandmother from his perch on Tom's shoulders.
Charlotte stopped in her tracks, turned around, and walked back to where Tom was with Jack and said, "Oh Jack, you are special! You see, I was your Mountie Daddy's mama, so I knew what he was like. I don't know your Daddy Nathan yet, and I want to make sure he's the best person for your mama and you. Is that ok with you?"
Jack looked up thoughtfully for a moment, and then he glanced back at Charlotte, smiling and nodding his head, answering, "Mountie Daddy thinks Daddy Natan is a good daddy. That's why he sent him to Mama and me. You wike him, Gamma Chawie, I promise."
Charlotte heartily chuckled, patted the boy's leg, and gestured for them to continue home. When they returned, Julie, Charlotte, and Elizabeth set to making some sandwiches and cutting some fruit for lunch while Tom entertained his nephew in the living room. When the five of them sat down for lunch, they chatted as if they hadn't been apart for as long as they had.
At one point, when there was a lull in the conversation, Elizabeth reached out her hands to both Thorntons on each side of her at the table and said, "Charlotte. Tom. I have an important question to ask. I'm not sure how exactly what I envision would work, and I think Rosemary may have a solution for it to happen. I'd like to ask you both to give me away at my wedding to Nathan, along with my parents. As I explained to them, as I see it, I went from being a Thatcher to a Thornton, and now I'm transitioning to a Grant. You are just as important in this process as my own parents are. Would you be willing to do that for me?"
Julie watched the Thorntons as they mulled over the question that Elizabeth had just asked them. Tom looked over at Julie and smiled as Julie blushed in response. Then, Tom glanced over at his mother, who caught his gaze, and she spoke without words to her youngest son. The mother and son smiled at one another and then looked back to Elizabeth and simultaneously answered, "Yes!" Charlotte placed her other hand on top of Elizabeth's hand that was already holding her one hand, and she replied, "Lizzie, it was an honor to be invited to this wedding to begin with. But this, giving you away with your parents to represent Jack, Charlotte paused as tears filled her eyes, and she began to choke on her words. She took a deep breath, looked up, closed her eyes for a moment, and then opened them up to continue, "We are so blessed to have you as our family, and we would love to give you away."
Elizabeth's own blue eyes filled with tears, and she squeezed both of their hands. "Thank you so much! We can let Rosemary know at dinner, and hopefully she can help come up with a plan."
Julie smiled, clapped her hands, and said, "I just love it when a plan comes together."
Once lunch was over and dishes were cleaned up, Tom looked over to Julie, smiled, and said, "Julie, would you like to go for a little walk? I'd love the chance to catch up with you." Julie's face lit up at Tom's question, and she glanced over at Elizabeth, silently asking her sister if she'd be okay with her absence. Elizabeth smiled in response, nodding enthusiastically at Julie, and said to the pair, "Dinner isn't until 6 o'clock, so go and enjoy! If anything, you could always meet us over at the café then." Tom went over behind Elizabeth, bent down to kiss Elizabeth's cheek, then his mother's, and tousled Jack's hair. "Great! We will see you all in a bit." Then Tom went over to Julie, holding out his arm to her, and said, "Shall we walk, my lady?" Julie beamed up at Tom, stood confidently, took hold of his arm, and answered, "We shall!" The pair walked out the door as Elizabeth, Charlotte, and Jack stayed behind, watching, shaking their heads, and chuckling.
"I may gain another Thatcher girl as a daughter yet if those two keep up like that." Charlotte commented as Elizabeth giggled even more. "I'm not sure how my parents would take that news. But, I have to say, they go well together, and both have matured a lot over the last several years since they first met. Maybe…" Elizabeth responded as she looked at the door thoughtfully.
Charlotte stood, took hold of Jack's hand, and gestured for Elizabeth to follow her into the living room. Elizabeth sat on the couch as Jack crawled up next to her, and Charlotte joined them after she had grabbed her leather satchel that she had brought with her that afternoon.
"I'm glad that we have this time to ourselves. I have something special for the both of you." Charlotte said with a smile as she started to rummage through her satchel. She paused for a moment with her hand still in the bag and peeked up at the mother and son pair with a bright smile on her face and said to her grandson, "Jack, I love to sew, and I wanted to make you something very special, so that you'll always have a piece of your Daddy with you."
Charlotte pulled out a stuffed bear made of various fabrics. Elizabeth pointed to the bear and said to Jack, "Jack, look! Grandma Charlie made a bear just for you from some of the things that your daddy used to wear. What do you think?" Elizabeth asked Jack, a little choked up with emotion herself. Jack reached out and carefully touched the bear, then looked at his paternal grandmother and asked, "Gamma Chawie, you made this for me? From Daddy's things?" Charlotte smiled tenderly at her grandson, stroked his blond hair, and replied, "Yes, Jack, I made it with love just for you from your Daddy's things. And can I tell you a secret?" She leaned in closer to Jack as he eagerly shook his head, and she whispered, "I made one just like it for myself too, so we both can always remember your Daddy." Jack looked back down at the patchwork bear, hugging it closely to him, and then reached out to Charlotte to envelope her in a bear hug with his other arm. "I wuv my bear, Gamma Chawie! Thank you!" Elizabeth brushed back the tears that had fallen down her cheeks as she watched the sweet moment between grandmother and grandson.
When the pair broke apart, Jack looked back at Elizabeth and said, "Mama, can I go pway wif my bear?" Elizabeth nodded, and Jack gave her a quick hug before going off to the corner of the room where his crate of toys was. The two women sat watching the young boy with smiles on their faces.
Charlotte turned back around to face Elizabeth, her own eyes misting with tears as she spoke, "I've got something small for you too, Lizzie." Charlotte searched through her satchel once more, pulling out some rolled up pieces of paper tied with a ribbon, holding them close to her heart as she said, "I kept some for myself, of course, but I have some of Jack's drawings that he did as a teenager before he joined the Mounties and even some he sent while he was away. I thought you might like them for Jack or for some of your stories."
Elizabeth took the papers, untied the bow, and carefully unrolled them out onto her lap. There were several scenic drawings, some of Sergeant, one of the Jack Thornton School, and finally one of her and Jack's first picture together. Elizabeth smiled as she gently touched the one of her and Jack and said, "I would love to frame this and some of the Sergeant ones and hang them in Jack's new room. And the one of the school, I would love to frame and hang at the schoolhouse above the plaque there. I have to think about the scenic ones a little more. Thank you so much, Charlotte! That was so thoughtful of you to share these with me and Jack!" The women embraced and held each other in a moment of loving reflection on their lost love. When they finally broke apart, Charlotte grabbed hold of her daughter-in-law's hands, looking into her blue eyes as she said, "Lizzie, I have a request of you. Is it possible that before we go to dinner, we go up to the cemetery to visit Jack's grave? I've never seen it, and I think it would be very appropriate right now if you're willing." Elizabeth nodded, smiling in response as she said, "I think it's a wonderful idea, and I couldn't agree with you more. Let's get ready and see if we can borrow the Coulter's car too."