Disclaimer: I do not own the characters within this story. All rights and much respect go to Crown Media, Hallmark, Brian Bird, Michael Landon, Jr., the actors, creators, and writers of the show "When Calls the Heart."

Thank you to bbflabradors for being my sounding board. Thanks to everyone who wrote such kind and encouraging reviews. I really do appreciate it.

Chapter 2- Mom's the Word

"Sgt. Thornton; is something wrong?" Mrs. Saunders asked.

Jack's eyes followed the emerald green Mustang down the aisle and out of the parking lot. Oh he wished that he could chase after her in his police vehicle, stopping her for something, anything…maybe a malfunctioning light, expired tags, or simply being too beautiful to operate a vehicle. The latter of which he knew wasn't an actual charge, but with her it was absolutely true.

"Sgt. Thornton, are you okay?" Mrs. Saunders called out again.

Jack turned back to face her, "Excuse me?"

"Are you okay?" she asked again.

"Oh, yes I'm fine. May I ask you, who was the woman in the Mustang?" he asked.

"That was Elizabeth Thatcher. She teaches kindergarten, beautiful, isn't she?"

"Yes ma'am, she is. I believe I met her a few weeks ago. Do you know if she's married, or dating anyone?" he hesitantly asked.

"My, looks like someone might be smitten. I don't know her very well, but…" she stopped when her cell phone rang. "Excuse me," she stated as she pulled her phone from her purse and answered it.

"Hi, I'm leaving now," she stated. Jack waited patiently for her to finish her conversation. "No, they said we'd meet at 6," she listened momentarily as the person on the other end of the line provided her with further information.

"Well, I didn't hear them change it to 5, but I'm leaving right not and I'll just barely make it. Tell her I'll be there soon." She turned to Jack, "Thanks again for the help Sgt. Thornton. I wish I could stay and chat longer, but apparently I'm running late."

Jack stood in the parking space next to hers and observed as her van pulled away. Sadly he couldn't help but feel that she was carrying important information with her and all he could do was disappointedly watch. However, he did have one very important tidbit…her name, Elizabeth Thatcher.

"What are you doing?" Ryan, one of the narcotics detectives asked.

"I can't find her anywhere."

"Jack, are you working on a case?"

"Uh, yes and no."

"Is it something I can help you with?"

"I don't think so."

"Well, maybe you could get Janice over in Child Protective Services (CPS). She's always discreet and has helped out quite a few times in the past."

"Ryan, it isn't a CPS type of case. It's personal."

"Does Jack have a girlfriend?" Ryan teased.

"Stop…it's just a woman I sort of met, but not really."

"Excuse me?"

"She's a waitress, but also a teacher at Hanson Park. I just can't seem to get her out of my head."

"Well, you do have the basketball signups soon. Maybe you'll see her there," Ryan offered.

"I doubt it. I know most of the teachers come out to support their kids, but she teaches kindergarten, and the teams in elementary schools are for 1st-5th grade," Jack reminded him.

"What's her name?"

"Elizabeth…it's such a beautiful name," Jack replied.

"Well, I came down to tell you that Mary and I are having a get together three weeks from this Saturday and I want you to come," Ryan handed him an invitation.

"Why are you telling me so far in advance?"

"Because the last three parties I've had you said that you already had plans. Now, this is your plan for the night."

"Well…"

"Jack, you need to come. Mary invites her friends, so if you aren't seeing anyone, there are always single women there. However, if you meet this Elizabeth, bring her."

"I'll think about it," Jack stated as he began to shuffle paperwork on his desk.

"No, I'm not letting this drop. If I have to come to your place and get you, I will. You know I will," Ryan reminded him.

"Yes, I remember the high school Halloween party you dragged me to…"

"You didn't even dress up."

"I told you then and I'm sticking to that story, I was dressed as an undercover officer," Jack stated as both of them laughed.

Ryan headed for the door, "Three weeks from Saturday; my place; be there."

Before Jack could respond, the door closed and Ryan was gone.

Jack returned to the computer, "Facebook…nothing; Instagram…nothing; Snapchat, whatever that is…nothing."

Paige, the department secretary stepped into Jack's office, "Hey, do you have everything you need for the signups this weekend?"

"I think the only thing I may need is some more permission slips," Jack stated.

"Okay, I'll run some off for you and put them in your mailbox," she advised before stepping back out into the hallway.

Saturday morning rolled around and Jack busied himself at the signup table at Hanson Park Elementary. Most of the children signing up were third grade and above, so he doubted that Elizabeth would find the need to be there is support of her students.

As the line began to wean, a young boy, approximately second grade appeared from behind the older and taller students. He approached the table, but seemed hesitant to speak.

"Hi there. Did you want to sign up to play basketball?" Jack asked.

"I did, but I don't think so now," the young boy stated as he looked around at all the bigger and taller students. "I don't know how to play."

Jack stepped from behind the table, "Is your mom or dad here?"

"My mom is. She's over talking with her friends. Did you need her?" he asked.

Jack looked over and a woman glanced back, giving him a smile, "No, but if you sign up, she'll need to sign too."

Jack took a basketball off the table and squatted down in front of the boy. What's your name?"

"Riley…"

"I'm Jack…"

"I know you. You did the presentation the other day. Oh, the cookies were good too," he finally smiled. "My mom says that I should always show respect, so can I call you Sgt. Jack?"

"Absolutely," Jack stated as he looked over at the group of women talking and the nicely dressed attractive woman again glanced back and smiled.

"Let's go out here on the gym floor and let me see how you dribble and shoot," Jack suggested as Riley followed him onto the basketball court.

"Nice job, Riley; you're doing great," Jack called out as he clapped his hands in encouragement.

A few minutes later they returned to the table. "So, do you want to play on the team?" Jack asked.

"Can I think about it?" Riley asked.

"You sure can. I'll be here next Saturday morning too. If you decide that you want to play, just come back with one of your parents and we'll get you signed up."

Jack watched as Riley started back toward the group of women standing by the bleachers. He gathered his paperwork and slipped it into his file folder, grabbed his basketball and turned to leave.

It was almost as if it were at an office at closing time; just a few minutes before there were plenty of people milling about, but now the gym was empty.

Jack headed for his vehicle and headed back to the precinct.

Jack found it difficult to get Elizabeth's face out of his head. He went by the school to drop off pamphlets and other materials hoping to innocently run into her. He even looked for Mrs. Saunders, hoping that possibly she could introduce him to her. But still nothing…

The week seemed to drag but finally Saturday arrived. Jack always enjoyed interacting with the kids, so he looked forward to bringing more of the students into the recreational programs.

Jack set up the table in the gym and sat down waiting for what he hoped would be a lot of boys and girls wanting to participate. He got his wish, as those unable to sign up the previous week took their place in line.

Again, at the end of the line was Riley.

"So, did you decide that you want to play, Riley?"

"Yes sir. Sgt. Jack, will you be my coach?"

"I will be coaching, but I'm not sure now which team. But I'm sure whoever is handling your team will be able to help you." Seeing the disappointment in the little boy's eyes he continued, "I tell you what, if you have any problems at all you just let me know and I'll help you, okay?"

Riley smiled and ran around the table, hugging Jack tightly.

"Okay, is your mom or dad here? One of them needs to sign the permission slip."

"My mom's here. I'll be right back," Riley stated as he darted out of the gym.

Jack was finishing up the signups on the Madison twins when Riley returned. He patiently waited his turn as he and his mother stood behind Mr. Madison, Patrick and Polly.

"Okay, here's my card if you need to reach me, but we will notify you by email about the practice times," Jack stated as he handed Mr. Madison copies of the registration forms on his two children.

"Jack was writing in his book when Riley approached. Without looking up Jack stated, "I'll be right with you, Riley."

When he looked up his heart stopped…

"Sgt. Jack, this is my mom," Riley had done what Jack had been unable to accomplish in the proceeding weeks. He was face to face with Elizabeth and they had been introduced.

"Thank you Sgt. Thornton for helping Riley. He's been a little nervous about opening up himself to teasing, but your talk last week really helped him."

He couldn't believe it. All of the trying he'd done to find information on her and it was her son…her son?

"Sgt. Thornton, are you okay?" she asked.

"Mom, his name is Jack, but you told me to be respectful so I call him Sgt. Jack. You can call him just Jack, right?" Riley asked as his attention was on Jack but Jack's attention was on Elizabeth.

"Uh, yes, of course. Please call me Jack."

"Nice to meet you, Jack," she stated as she stuck out her arm to shake his hand. "Again, I want to thank you for encouraging Riley to participate. I've tried but I'm just…"

"Mom, stop; Sgt. Jack doesn't want to hear about that," he stated.

Seeing no one behind him, Riley took the basketball from the table and Jack's hand and dragged him out onto the court. "Please show me how to dribble again."

Elizabeth watched from the sidelines as Jack worked with Riley, encouraging him, making him feel special.

After a short game, Elizabeth called out, "Riley, I'm sorry, but we need to get going."

Riley ran over to Elizabeth, "Thanks for letting me play."

"I'm happy for you buddy. Go grab your bag and let's get going, okay?"

Jack was gathering his materials together when he felt little arms wrap around him.

"Thanks again Sgt. Jack. I hope I'm on your team," Riley stated before grabbing Elizabeth's hand and leading her toward the door.

Jack watched as they walked away. Although he wasn't surprised that she was taken, he couldn't help feeling depressed that he had spent so much time looking for this mystery woman, only to find out that she was married with a child.

*Knock, Knock, Knock*

"Come in," Jack announced as his office door opened. "Hey Lee, what are you doing in my neck of the woods."

"I had a meeting down on Center Street and I thought I'd come by and take you to lunch," Lee offered.

"Hmm, now I can't pass up an offer like that," Jack stated as he stood up, grabbed his jacket and followed Lee.

They walked two blocks to the local hot dog joint, ordered lunch and sat at a picnic table to talk.

They talked about everything but "Her."

"So, we haven't talked in a while, so what's the status on "Becky."

"I found out her real name, and unfortunately she's unavailable."

"What's her name, and who's she dating?"

"Her name is Elizabeth; she's a kindergarten teacher at Hanson Park, and she's…married."

"Married? Oh man, that's a bummer. I'm sorry, but we'll just have to keep looking."

"Lee, I found her on my own; I don't need any help finding a woman."

"That's right, how is the last woman you found working out for you? Oh yea, it's not…because she's married," Lee stated as if he needed to remind Jack. "I'm not saying that we'll set you up, but Jack, you need to get out more, go to parties, out to dinner with friends, open yourself up to meeting new people."

"Well, I'm going to Ryan's party next Saturday."

"You're actually gonna go?"

"If I don't he'll come and drag be there, so I'll stay for a little while and then I can leave."

"Okay, women aside, how are the basketball teams lining up? Did you get a lot of kids signed up?"

"I did. That's where I found out that Elizabeth was married; her son signed up. He's actually a pretty cool; kid," Jack explained. "Hey Lee, you love kids, why don't you come and help coach?"

"What group?" Lee asked.

"The younger kids," Jack replied.

"What group are you coaching?"

"Well, that's the thing; I thought I'd just oversee the different teams.

"What team is Elizabeth's son on?" Lee pressed.

"He is on the younger team. The problem is that everyone who signed up to help wants the older kids," Jack stated.

They got up from their table, threw away their trash and started back to Jack's office. "I personally don't care which group I coach, I enjoy working with all of them. But to be honest, I don't want to have to see her or her husband at each and every practice.

"You really had it bad for this girl, didn't you?"

"I guess as bad as you can have it for someone you don't know"

They stopped at the intersection and waited on the sign to change allowing them to cross. "There's something in her eyes; they're warm and she just pulls you right in."

Jack watched as the traffic light began to change, "Lee, I just don't think I can be around her right now. Please take the younger kids…"

As the seconds began to tick away on the crossing sign, Jack and Lee continued walking.

"Lee, don't laugh, but I envy what you have with Rosie. I'm at a point in my life where I want to settle down, have kids." Jack inhaled and released a harsh breath, "I guess it will happen when it's meant to be, and apparently now isn't the time."

They stopped outside the 25th precinct, "So, are you going to coach the younger kids for me?"

"I'd love to help you out Jack. I'm sure I can free up some time. When do I start?

"I'll send you the information in an email. If you have any questions, let me know. You have no idea how much I appreciate this."

Jack walked back into the precinct and pulled the signup sheet from his desk. He sat down and devised an email which was sent out to each coach allowing them to schedule their own practices.

Saturday's big party night arrived and although Jack hesitated, he realized that he actually was in need of this.

Jack pulled onto Ryan's street and parked along the curb, several houses down from the party. He rang the doorbell and handed Mary a bottle of wine when she answered the door.

"Ryan told you to bring somebody, didn't he?" she asked.

"Yes, he did, but I'm not seeing anyone right now, so I came alone. I hope that's all right."

"That's more than all right. Several of my single girlfriends from work are here. We'll hook you up," Mary teased him.

"That's okay Mary, I'm fine."

Jack went in and grabbed a beer out of the cooler. He found Ryan who was on his way out to the backyard and decided to tagalong. They stepped outside and he observed several kids playing, and was somehow more comfortable realizing that this get together was family oriented.

"Hey Ryan, can we play catch?"

Jack recognized the voice, "Riley…"

"Sgt. Jack, what are you doing here? Do you have kids?" Riley asked.

Surprised, Jack assumed that they lived nearby and he would be fortunate enough to meet Elizabeth's husband. Although Jack really liked Riley, he couldn't help but think that this evening was quickly taking a downward spiral.

"I'm friends with Ryan from work. Do you live nearby?" Jack asked.

Before Riley could answer Ryan spoke up, "I guess he's my cousin, like maybe once removed or something like that."

"Huh?" Jack cocked his head, obviously confused.

"His mom is my cousin."

"Elizabeth is your cousin?"

"Yes, well we've always called her Bethie."

"Ryan, when I was talking with you a few weeks ago I told you about doing some things at Hanson Park and you never mentioned that your cousin taught there."

"That's because Bethie and I haven't seen each other in awhile. The last time I saw her she was teaching second grade at Delano Elementary."

Riley ran off to play as Ryan and Jack took seats on the deck.

Ryan started laughing, "No, no way, is Bethie the woman you were talking about? WOW, Jack has the hots for my cousin…"

"Shh, Ryan stop it. I saw her and was intrigued."

"Jack, I can set you up. I used to always set her up."

"Stop it. Is that how she met her husband?"

"Jack, wait…where did you get the idea that Bethie was married?"

"It isn't a hard assumption to make. Riley calls her 'mom.'"

Ryan's laughter began again, "She's not married; she's never been married."

"But what about Riley?"

"Her sister, Viola and her husband, Lionel were killed in a car accident when Riley was 2. Actually Riley was in the car too, and it was a miracle that he survived," as Ryan explained, Jack's heart began to break for the small boy.

Bethie adopted Riley, and I think she's the only one he's ever really known as his mom. He's been calling her that for years."

"Is she dating anyone?" Jack asked.

"No, she hasn't dated anyone that I'm aware of in quite some time," Ryan stopped for a moment and looked off in the distance as if he was thinking. "You know, she was dating some guy named Charles when she adopted Riley. He told her to choose between 'him and the kid' and she made the choice…she never looked back."

"Did you hook her up with Charles?"

"Yes…why?"

"Don't do me any favors then. Looks like your setups don't go so well. I'll do this on my own," Jack stated.

"Do you want to go out with her?" Ryan asked.

"I'd love to, but…"

"I know it's hard when kids are involved…"

"No," Jack interrupted, "It's not that. She has Riley; maybe dating isn't what she's looking for."

"Jack, you and I have been friends for awhile. You're a good man, and you're just the kind of guy she needs. I'm just afraid that she doesn't know it," Ryan remarked as he finished off the beer he had in his hand. "Oh, speak of the devil…"

"Hey Bethie, I believe that you know Jack Thornton."

"Would you please stop calling me Bethie? It was cute when we were kids, but I think I'm a bit old for it now…please?"

She glanced over at Jack and smiled, "Hi Jack, I didn't know you two knew each other," she stated as she glanced between the two men. "It's very nice to see you again. Riley's here somewhere."

"We've seen each other," Jack replied. He's over there playing," he stated while pointing to the children playing kickball.

"I'm going inside to get a beer. Can I get either of you anything?" Ryan asked.

Jack held up his beer, "I'm good. Would you like something to drink Elizabeth?"

"No thank you; I'm fine. We can't stay long anyway," Elizabeth responded as she glanced out into the yard searching for Riley.

As Ryan walked away, hoping to give them some time alone, Jack offered her a seat.

"Thank you so much for taking some time with Riley. He's a good kid," she stated as she glanced out into the yard and watched him play with the other children.

She turned back to Jack, "Riley hasn't had it very easy…"

"Ryan told me about your sister and brother in law, I'm so sorry for your loss."

"Thank you, we manage. I've been trying to get him involved in sports since last year, but this is the first time that he has begged me to do it. So thank you."

"Thank me? I didn't do anything."

"Jack, you took some time with him. You have no idea how much that meant to him, and to me."

"Well, as it turns out I'll be the coach for Riley's team…"

To be continued...