AN: You reviewers are the best! It makes me feel so happy to know that there are people out there enjoying my little story! Another Chapter, coming right up! Warning, a little bit of drama ahead! But then, It wouldn't be the Hope Valley we know and love without that, would it?
"I think I'll send a telegram." Elizabeth said as they made their way back into town. "And then send out a letter on the next stage."
"I guess I should get the word to Tom." Jack agreed.
"To the mercantile?" Elizabeth asked, and Jack smiled. As they made their way down main street, suddenly Emily ran towards them and barely stopped in time to avoid a collision. "Emily! My goodness, you've got to be careful!"
"Sorry Miss Thatcher! But Mrs. Stanton said that I had to find you as soon as you came back into town!" Emily huffed, grabbing her teacher's free hand. "She said to tell you "Charles is here"." Elizabeth froze for a moment, and then looked at Jack.
"What?" Elizabeth asked, and got down on Emily's level. "Are you sure that's what she said Emily?"
"Yeah! I saw him too, he went into the cafe, Mrs. Stanton said he's waiting for you!" Emily explained, and then she noticed the ring on her teacher's finger. "Golly! Is this an engagement ring? Are you marrying mountie Jack?!"
"Yes, Emily. But that's a secret right now, alright?" Elizabeth said, and Emily nodded and then wrapped her arms around both of them as well as she could.
"I'm so happy! You two are like a princess and a knight from a fairy tale! Rosaleen said she didn't think you'd ever get married, but I told her so!" Emily said triumphantly.
"Thank you for giving us Mrs. Stanton's message Emily. Now run along, I'm sure you still have your lessons to see to." Elizabeth said as she smoothed Emily's hair. The girl nodded and skipped away, waving over her shoulder. "Jack, I had no idea-"
"Why is he here?" Jack asked at the same time.
"I really don't know. Maybe he had more business with the mill, and he wanted to say hello?" Elizabeth suggested.
"But he's waiting in Abigail's to see you, not Lee." Jack grumbled.
"And to be perfectly frank, I have no idea why!" Elizabeth insisted. "We're old friends, and I know he worries about me out here, but I'm sure he didn't make a trip solely to speak to me."
"I wouldn't be too sure, Elizabeth. I saw the way he looked at you in Hamilton." Jack said.
"I've told him, countless times, that our relationship is simply platonic, and I have no interest in making it anything else." Elizabeth said. "Jack, Don't be jealous. I already said yes to you. I'm not going to change my mind just because Charles came to town."
"Right." Jack nodded, and headed to the cafe.
"Maybe I should speak to him alone, Jack?" Jack turned to face her with a confused look on his face. "Not because I don't want you there with me, but I think that maybe, He'll take more kindly to the news if I tell him without you there."
"I thought you didn't care what anyone thought about us." Jack said.
"I don't! But I also don't want anyone to get hurt. As much as I want to deny it, I know this news is going to hurt Charles. I've always known that his feelings for me ran deeper than my feelings for him. So, for the sake of an old friendship, just please trust me Jack." Elizabeth said, placing her hand against his chest.
"I do trust you." he said, and put his hand over hers. "But I don't trust him for a minute."
"Jack, I told you, there's no reason to be jealous…" She said, stepping closer. "Though, I'll admit, I sort of like jealous Jack. He's very...attractive." She smirked, and kissed his cheek. "I won't be long. We'll be having dinner together, just like we planned." Jack stood, feeling stunned, but then quickly walked towards Lee's to get started on their home. Elizabeth walked into the cafe, and saw him there, at the table closest to the kitchen, staring at the door. He noticed immediately when she entered, and rose from his seat. "Charles, it's such a surprise to see you here! Why are you here?" She asked, accepting his hug with a brief friendly squeeze. She went to sit down, and he resumed his seat. "Did you have business with the mill?"
"Actually Elizabeth, this time, I did come to see you." He said with a nervous smile. Elizabeth bit her lip and looked at her hands.
"Oh. Well, I wish you'd sent a telegram, or written to let me know you'd be coming. This dropping in unexpectedly that you do...it confuses me." Elizabeth said after a moment.
"I wanted to surprise you, Beth." He said. He looked around at the mostly empty cafe, and smiled to himself. This was perhaps the perfect time to ask. This was the only chance he had. He reached for his coat pocket.
"Well I am surprised." Elizabeth said. "I hope you haven't been waiting too long. I was with Jack."
"No, not too long at all." He smiled, though he inwardly cursed when she said Jack's name. "Elizabeth, I came here to talk about your future...to talk about, our, future." As he spoke he smoothly moved the ring box from his pocket, onto the table.
"Oh no." Elizabeth exhaled, and pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Elizabeth Thatcher, I think you know how deeply I care for you. This, this place, this isn't your destiny! You're meant for so much more. You deserve so much more." As he spoke, he opened the ring box, revealing an absolutely stunning diamond ring. "And I want to be the one to give it to you. So, Elizabeth-"
"Please-"
"Will you-"
"Charles-"
"Marry me?"
"I'm engaged to Jack!" Elizabeth said, just a bit too loudly. So loudly that Florence Blakely at a table near the door heard, and quickly shuffled out the door to tell Cat Montgomery.
"You-what?" Charles asked. She extended her left hand slowly, and showed him the ring that sat so perfectly on her hand. "When?"
"Today. Two hours or so ago." Elizabeth said, and pulled her hand back to her lap. "I love him, Charles. Very much."
"Elizabeth, he's a mountie. His life is dangerous, it's messy, and unpredictable! Why-"
"Because I love him! And maybe I like messy, and unpredictable! Maybe I realized that I didn't want all of my days to be planned out ahead for me, and I didn't want someone else to be in control of my life!" Elizabeth huffed.
"Elizabeth, as your oldest friend, I have to protest-"
"It's only out of respect for our friendship that I'm not yelling at you right now Charles. I'm sorry. But I love Jack Thornton, a mountie. And I'm going to marry him, and be a mountie's wife." Elizabeth said.
"Your father wont stand for it Elizabeth. He's said on several occasions that a marriage to that mountie would mean-"
"That he would disinherit me? I don't care."
"How can you say that Elizabeth? All of the things you were raised with, do they mean nothing to you?" Charles asked, reaching for her hand.
"Of course not! They mean a great deal to me. But I love Jack, more than I want dresses from Paris and vintage wine." Elizabeth said. "And I've lived out here long enough to know that I love it. I love this town, the children, the people. I couldn't leave, even if I wanted to."
"But you don't want to." Charles sighed.
"Not even a little bit." Elizabeth said frankly.
"But what about your mother? Your sisters? Elizabeth, surely-"
"I'd miss them, if I couldn't see them. But they are all grown women. They can choose who they want to associate with." Elizabeth shrugged.
"There's no way that I can talk you out of this?" Charles asked. Elizabeth reached out, and gently closed the ring box.
"No. I'm sorry Charles, I don't want to hurt you- you mean a great deal to me. But I am going to marry Jack, and if you can't accept that-"
"It'll...take some getting used to. Calling you Mrs. Thornton, instead of Beth." Charles said with a sad smile.
"Charles. You can always call me Beth." Elizabeth said. "We're friends."
"I have to ask, Elizabeth. If there was no Jack, if you'd never come to this place-"
"Asking "what if" is never a good idea, Charles." Elizabeth said.
"But I have to know. Would I have had a chance?" Charles asked, pulling the box off of the table and putting it into his pocket.
"I don't know Charles. I can't imagine a world where there is no Jack, no Hope Valley." Elizabeth shook her head. "I hope you can understand-"
"What should I tell your parents, when they ask about my trip here?" Charles asked. "I'll be leaving on the next stage, about an hour or so from now, I believe?"
"If I'm quick about it, would you take a letter to them for me?" Elizabeth asked. "If it's too much to ask-"
"Of course I'll take the letter Beth." Charles sighed, and then smiled. "He must be a good man, to have you think so highly of him."
"I think highly of you too Charles. I really, truly do, but-"
"But you don't think you could ever love me?"
"Oh, Charles. I do love you, but it's not the same way I love Jack." Elizabeth frowned. "You're like my-"
"Don't say it." Charles said, holding up his hand.
"You're going to make some woman very happy one day Charles. A very lucky woman. She just isn't me." Elizabeth said, and put her hand over his.
"William Thatcher's princess, A mounties wife. Who would have ever thought?"
….
"So you finally did it! You son of a gun!" Lee laughed, and smacked Jack's shoulder. "You and Elizabeth. If that wasn't written in the stars I don't know what was."
"Keep it down Lee, We're trying to keep it quiet until after church on sunday." Jack said, but he couldn't find it in himself to be upset. He wanted everyone to know that Elizabeth Thatcher was going to be his wife. "Now, let's talk business, Mr. Colter." Jack said, and took a seat opposite of his friend's desk.
"Yes, of course. Well, as your friend, I'm willing to give you a significant discount of course, as a wedding gift." Lee said with a smile.
"Oh, you don't have to-"
"Jack, I'm a man. I can't go out and buy you china plates or lace table cloths- I wouldn't know what the heck I was lookin' for. But I can certainly afford to give you a discount, alright?" Lee laughed.
"Well, if you put it that way-"
"Excellent. I could even talk to some of the boys- I'm sure they wouldn't mind helping." Lee said, already writing out the details. "These are real solid plans Jack. You should have been an architect."
"I had some help. Mr. Miller."
"He's the man that made the plans for the church, yeah?"
"The very same." Jack smiled.
"How did you get all of this together so quickly?" Lee asked.
"Honestly? I've been thinking about marrying Elizabeth for...quite some time. And in the last two weeks or so, I thought that it might be possible. So I wanted to get everything together. Just in case." Jack laughed, and so did Lee. "Adam seems to think it'll be possible to finish the house pretty quickly, with enough help."
"You can count me in." Lee said with a grin.
"Thanks Lee." Jack nodded. "Now lets-"
"Jack Thornton, did you get engaged today, and not tell me about it directly?!" Rosemary burst through the door very suddenly, and suddenly every eye was on Jack. "I had to hear it from Molly Sullivan, who'd heard it from Cat Montgomery, who'd heard it from Florence Blakely for goodness sake!"
"Rosemary, we weren't telling anyone just yet-"
"I'm not just "anyone" Jack! I'm me!" Rosemary gasped. "Oh, hi Lee." She added as an afterthought, and kissed him on the cheek. "Now tell me absolutely everything- hold on, are these house plans? Jack. Did you tell Lee before you told me?"
"Only because I needed the lumber to build-"
"Jack Thornton!" Rosemary nearly shrieked. "Who else knows?"
"If Florence Blakely found out, it's a safe bet that everyone in town knows." Lee said, and Jack sighed. But how had Florence heard?
"I'm so...No, I'm not. I'm not angry Jack, because this is a very special day!" Rosemary sighed. "You're going to marry Elizabeth! Oh, I just know it's going to be a beautiful wedding!"
"Well, Lee, if you don't mind, I think I'm going to go find Elizabeth."
"Your fiancee!" Rosemary chirped, and clapped her hands. "Oh Lee, isn't it romantic?"
…
"I've been waiting for you." Elizabeth grinned and stood to embrace Jack as soon as he came in the cafe's back door. "Where have you been?"
"Making a deal with Lee. I've got the lumber. I start building tomorrow." Jack said, and accepted the kiss he offered. "It's going to be a very time consuming task, Elizabeth. I want to finish it as quickly as possible. That means that most of my spare time will be spent at the sight."
"Then so will mine." Elizabeth shrugged.
"You don't have to do that. It'll be boring."
"Boring? The construction of our future home? Not a chance. And maybe I can help." Elizabeth suggested, and frowned at Jack's dubious look. "What? I went into the mine with the widows didn't I? I've still got some old work clothes upstairs."
"You did look good in those." Jack smiled, and brushed a strand of hair from her forehead. "How did it go with Charles?"
"I'll tell you all about it. But first…" She trailed off, and kissed him. "I haven't gotten to kiss you nearly enough, all day."
"Well, we can certainly fix that." Jack said with a serious expression.
"I was hoping that you'd say that." Elizabeth nodded, and their lips met again.
AN: So it was a little longer than usual- sort of like three mini chapters rolled into one! I hope that you enjoyed! Thank you for reading! XO