"Hi, grandma." Harrison waved at Grace from the doorway.
Her face lit up. "Hi."
Elizabeth nudged Harrison further into the room. "Harrison made something for you, mom."
He moved to stand beside the chair she was seated in. "I made this at school." He handed her a picture he had drawn, pointing at the different things on the paper. "It's Blue. And that's you and grandpa William, and me and mommy and daddy and Salem. Oh! And Simba."
"Thank…you."
"Mommy and daddy said you gotta learn how to talk again."
She nodded. "Yes."
"Daddy said your brain got hurt. I'm sorry that happened."
She gave him a smile. "Better…now."
"Yeah." He put his hand on hers. "Mommy says she's happy, 'cause now you get to meet Salem. I'm happy, too."
Elizabeth took a seat near them. "Dad said therapy is going well so far."
Grace nodded. "Yes."
"I'm glad to hear it. Just please, don't push yourself too hard. I'm sure it's frustrating not being able to speak like you used to, but you'll get there in time."
"I…know. How…uh, baby?"
"Salem is good." She smiled, resting a hand on her stomach. "Just about two more months until she's here. We're very ready to meet her. Aren't we, bud?" She looked over at Harrison.
"Uh huh." He nodded. "Daddy's going to take me to the store to get her a Christmas present. I wanna get her a dinosaur!"
Elizabeth laughed softly. "Good choice, bud."
"Christmas…"
"You don't need to worry about a thing, mom. Viola said she and Luke can host this year, and Julie and Owen are hosting Thanksgiving. Jack and I are spending Thanksgiving with his mom this year, though. Julie and Vi and I are meeting tomorrow to finalize all of our plans. You and dad just need to show up."
"Okay."
"We will probably need to get some recipes from you, but it's no rush." She took her mother's hand. "You just work on getting better."
...
"Have you seen mom lately?" Viola sipped her wine.
"Harrison and I stopped by yesterday after I picked him up from school. She looks good."
"It's just so strange," Julie set down her glass, "her not being able to speak."
"Luke told me that most people in her position recover really well with therapy. It'll just take time," Viola assured them.
"I'm just grateful that she's still around." Elizabeth touched her belly. "I can't imagine not having her here when the baby is born."
"We're very lucky."
"Very," Elizabeth agreed. "So how is everything going with you two? I feel like lately, our conversations are all just about mom or this baby."
"Well, speaking of babies, Luke and I are officially trying for another. Obviously, it hasn't happened yet," she motioned toward her glass of wine, "but we're hopeful it won't take too long."
"Oh, that'll be so fun if you have one close in age to Salem since Aaron and Harrison are so close in age."
"There might be three Thatcher cousins close in age. Owen and I decided we want to start trying again, too. We don't want a big gap between Willa and the next one."
Elizabeth smiled at her sisters. "Well, I hope it happens soon for both of you."
"And in the meantime, trying is pretty dang fun," Viola joked. "We weren't actually trying when I got pregnant with Aaron, so it's very different this time around."
Julie laughed. "You know what I just realized? We're basically just telling each other 'hey, my husband and I stopped using protection.'"
"You're right." Viola joined in her laughter. "We don't need to tell mom and dad that we're trying, then."
"Good call. Oh!" Julie suddenly gasped. "I just remembered your anniversary is coming up, Elizabeth. What are you and Jack planning to do to celebrate?"
She shrugged. "Jack says he has something planned, but he won't tell me what it is. I'll love whatever we do, but I'm kind of hoping he plans something low-key. A relaxing night in or something like that."
Viola nodded. "I remember being so tired at the end of my pregnancy with Aaron. Between him moving around and just being uncomfortable, I felt like I never slept."
"Salem isn't even that big, but she sure feels it when she's shifting around at three in the morning." She looked down at her stomach where a small bulge emerged and chuckled. "Yes, I'm talking about you."
"You look so happy, Beth," Julie observed.
A smile played on her lips. "I'm very happy. I never imagined my life could be like this."
...
"Mommy!" Harrison ran to the door, wearing a crisp button-up shirt with his purple tie that he had gotten to match Jack the night he proposed.
"My my, Harrison Thornton, you look very handsome tonight."
"Thank you, mommy." He grinned. "Daddy says you're s'posed to go change and that he put your clothes on the bed."
She chuckled. "Okay, bud. Thank you."
She made her way down the hall and into her bedroom, smiling when she saw the light blue dress laid out on the bed that was almost identical in color to the dress she had worn when they got engaged. She quickly freshened up, running a brush through her hair and rinsing her face.
The baby started shifting inside of her as she slipped her new dress over her head.
"Your daddy is such a sap, Salem," she said, placing her hand on her belly. "Let's go see what else he has planned.
"You look pretty, mommy!" Harrison exclaimed when she came into the living room.
"Thank you, bud. Hi, Charlotte," she greeted her mother-in-law, who was sitting on the floor with Harrison, having arrived while Elizabeth was changing.
"Hi, sweetheart. Jack is waiting for you in the dining room."
"Thank you."
Jack gave Elizabeth a dimpled grin when she stepped into the dining room. "Happy anniversary, Beth."
A smile stretched across her face. "Happy anniversary."
"You look wonderful."
"Thank you." She rubbed her stomach. "You did a good job picking this dress."
"I may have had some help." He laughed softly. "I sent Rosemary a picture of that dress you wore and asked her to find something in the same color."
"Well, it's perfect. We'll have to be sure to thank her."
"Okay." He put his hands on her waist. "Are you hungry?"
"Very."
"I'm sure you've noticed that I brought back a lot of things from the night we got engaged, but I hope you don't mind that we aren't having takeout this time."
She chuckled. "That's just fine with me."
He pulled out a chair for her, waiting until she was seated before taking his place across from her. "I had Harrison help a lot with the planning, and he said I should make, and I quote: 'fancy mac and cheese.'"
"Please tell me you actually made that."
"Voilà." He lifted the cover off of the dish in the center of the table. "Lobster mac and cheese."
"Amazing." She laughed. "Was Harrison so excited?"
"He was, until he tried a bite. Turns out he's not a fan of lobster." He dished up two plates, setting one down in front of her. "I made some plain mac and cheese for him to have."
"Of course." She took a bite of the food. "Mm." She closed her eyes, savoring the flavor. "This is really good, Jack."
"I'm glad you like it. It actually wasn't too hard to make, so maybe I'll make it more often."
"I would love that. This is amazing."
...
Jack leaned against the door frame, smiling as he watched Elizabeth removing her makeup. "My mom just left and Harrison is in bed."
"It was really nice of her to watch him for us."
"She was happy to do it."
She dried her face with a towel before turning to face him. "Thank you for a great first anniversary, Jack."
He stepped toward her, resting his hands on her hips. "It isn't over yet."
"Oh?" She tilted her head up, meeting his eyes as she reached out to play with the buttons on his shirt.
"I was thinking…" He trailed his lips down her neck. "Maybe I could fill up the tub, we could relax for a little while. Then maybe I could give you a foot massage."
"As wonderful as that sounds, I feel like I should do something for you. This is our anniversary, not just my anniversary."
"You do so much for me every single day. And you're carrying our baby. That's more than I could ask for. Besides," he ran his fingers up her arm, creating a path of goosebumps in his wake, "the bath is for the both of us."
"If you're sure." She moved her hands downward, toying with the waistband on his pants. "Because I could…"
"Elizabeth," he breathed. "The bath."
"It can wait."
...
Elizabeth pulled Jack's arms around her, bringing his hands to her stomach. "She's wide awake right now. I can't wait until she's born, and she keeps you up, too."
He chuckled. "I promise I'll help with all of the middle of the night feedings and diaper changes as much as I can."
"Sometimes I forget that you've done all of this before. And you were all on your own, too." She reached back to touch his cheek. "How did you manage it?"
"I don't know. I just did. To be completely honest, I don't remember a whole lot from back then." He sighed. "I had just lost Olive, and Harrison was still so dependent on me. I just took everything one day at a time."
She carefully rolled over to face him. "You're an amazing man, Jack Thornton."
"Not really." He shrugged. "I just made do with the cards I was dealt. I didn't have much of a choice."
"Regardless, I know it had to be hard for you."
"It was," he admitted. "But I was lucky to have Olive's parents, and Carson and Faith, and my mom and Tom to help me. And now I have you." He brushed a strand of damp hair back from her face. "You are such a blessing to me, Elizabeth Thornton. And to Harrison. I know you think I spoiled you too much today, but I just want to show you how much you mean to me, how grateful I am to have you in my life every single day."
"Jack…" She wiped away the tears pooling in her eyes. "I love you."
He leaned his forehead against hers, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. "I love you. Happy anniversary, Beth."
"Happy anniversary, Jack." She smiled, snuggling as close to him as her belly would allow. "And here's to many more anniversaries together."
...
"Hi, nana!" Harrison ran up to Charlotte, throwing his arms around her legs. "Happy Thanksgiving."
"Happy Thanksgiving, Sonny boy." She squeezed him before nudging him into the house. "I think Uncle Tom has something to show you inside."
"Cool!" He ran off, leaving Charlotte chuckling as she watched him.
"Hello, Charlotte," Elizabeth greeted her.
"Look at you!" Charlotte pulled her into a hug as she stepped through the door. "You look wonderful! How are you feeling?"
"Pretty good. Just getting more uncomfortable as she runs out of room in there."
"Well, she'll be out here with us soon enough," Charlotte reminded her. "Now, come in and have a seat."
"I can help in the kitchen."
"Elizabeth," Jack walked up behind her, carrying a box that held a few pans of food. "You really should be resting."
"I was fine getting the desserts ready this morning, and I'm fine now. I promise. I'll take a break if I need one."
"There actually isn't a lot left to do," Charlotte admitted. "I just need to put a few more things in the oven to heat up, and then we just have to wait."
"Oh. Well in that case, I'll just unload these desserts."
"I'll meet you in the living room," Elizabeth told him.
A few minutes later, Jack took a seat on the sofa beside Elizabeth. Charlotte was finishing a couple of things in the kitchen, and Harrison was sitting on the floor with Tom, scrolling through pictures on Tom's computer.
"Daddy! Uncle Tom was in the rainforest, and he got pictures of monkeys like the ones at the zoo!"
"Oh, that's very cool."
"Yeah, and he saw a jaguar!" he exclaimed.
"I hope he didn't get too close."
Tom rolled his eyes. "I was very far away." He flipped to a specific picture, showing a jaguar drinking from a stream. "This is zoomed way in. He was nowhere near me."
"That's pretty cool, little brother." Jack glanced at the picture. "Where are you going next?"
He shrugged. "Not sure. I have a couple jobs around here, and I'm hoping I won't have to go anywhere far until after my niece is born." He looked over at Elizabeth and smiled. "I'd be happy to do some pictures of her for you guys."
"That would be great," Elizabeth responded. "We would love that."
"It would be nice to get some family photos, too. All we have right now are our wedding pictures," Jack added.
"Can Simba be in the pictures? Uncle Tom is good at taking pictures of animals."
Tom chuckled. "I'd probably handle the dog better than I handle Salem."
"We'll see, Harrison."
Charlotte joined the family in the living room, taking a seat beside her younger son. "Everything should be ready in about half an hour."
"I can't wait, ma. Everything smells great."
...
Just over a week after Thanksgiving, Elizabeth woke to intense pressure in her abdomen. She turned to her other side, waiting to see if the pain would stop. It returned a few minutes later, and then again a few minutes after that.
"Jack." Elizabeth gasped, nudging him. "Jack, honey."
He yawned, rolling over to face her but keeping his eyes closed. "Mm, what is it?"
"I'm having contractions."
"But you aren't due for another month."
"You're a doctor. You should know that due dates aren't exact."
He blinked sleepily, sitting up in the bed. "How far apart are they?"
"I don't know. I just know I'm having contractions. We need to go to the hospital."
"I'll call my mom and let her know we'll drop Harrison at her house." He touched her hand. "Let's go have a baby."
"I can't do this, Jack," she whispered. "I'm not ready. She's not ready."
"Hey." He put a hand on her stomach. "You can do this. We're going to meet Salem very soon, and I'll be by your side the entire time." He smiled, leaning in to kiss her. "I love you so much."
