Chapter 103 – Boys and Their Clothes part 1

"Boys." Gran said. "You are dismissed, please go take care of your clothes, then you are free until supper. Nathan and JP, don't forget the security meeting. JP please let Chris know that they can come anytime or wait for John."

"Yes, ma'am." Jack said.

They all stood up. Elizabeth got up to go with Jack.

"Elizabeth, dear." Gran said. "Please stay here for a moment."

Jack turned and looked at Elizabeth. He took a step closer, grabbed her hand and lifted it to kiss the ring that he had put there.

"It will be okay." Jack said. "I am sure it is nothing. We will be downstairs."

Jack then leaned forward and gave her a quick kiss. Gran waited until the boys were downstairs, before turning to Elizabeth.

When the boys got downstairs, Jack pulled his phone and sent Chris a text. Nathan pulled his phone out and sent Gabe a text that they were done and making sure that their clothes were ready for the next day.

"Nathan." Jack said.

"Yeah." Nathan said.

"Do you know if Gabe has dress clothes for tomorrow night?" Jack asked.

"I am not sure." Nathan said. "I do see a suit bag on his bed. He said he is on his way back so we can check when he gets back."

"If not." Doug said. "I have extra dress shirts because I didn't know about these new ones from Mr Thornton. We look to be about the same size, so he can always borrow from me."

"I have extra as well." Lee said. "We will make it work."

"Thank you guys." Nathan said. "Now let's see what Doug and Lee brought us from the city.

The men all pulled out their suit bags and opened them. The first thing that the boys each lifted out was a matching shirt. Nathan knew it was expensive and he could also tell that it was very high quality. Nathan let out a low whistle.

"You okay?" Jack asked.

"This is too much." Nathan said. "I have never had something this nice."

"Dad and Grandpa John do like their clothes." Jack said.

As the guys held up their shirts, Jack realized that they all had the same shirt. Each of the boys were holding an Anton Alexander one hundred percent Italian herringbone cotton shirt with brass ring double button design with unique French cuff design and double purl stitched buttonholes. The shirts were all white, with some silver/gray detail.

"How are we going to tell these apart once we take them to the laundry?" Nathan asked.

"Look at the inside back collar." Doug said.

"What?" Nathan said.

"Look at the inside back collar." Lee said. "Tell me what you see."

Nathan looked where Doug and Lee had said. He couldn't even speak as he ran his finger across the embroidered initials that were there done in a matching silver/gray as the detail on the shirt.

"Wow." Nathan said. "I have never had a shirt with my initials embroidered in it."

"Get used to it, if you are hanging around Jack and his grandfather." Doug said.

"Please try them on." Jack said. "Make sure that they fit. If not, I am sure that Abigail will be able to make minor adjustments."

Each of the boys tried on their shirts and they fit perfectly.

"I don't have cufflinks with me." Nathan said.

"Me neither." Doug and Lee chimed.

"Let me check something." Jack said.

Jack went and opened the bag that Molly had sent then he smiled. He pulled out a large case that held several smaller cases and set it on the bed. The boys all gathered around to see what Jack had.

"I think we are covered with cufflinks." Jack said. "But if not, we can talk to Grandpa, since I know that he has several sets as well."

The first pair that Jack opened were Oscar Heyman horseshoe cufflinks in eighteen carat yellow gold, set with twenty square rubies and twenty round diamonds. He turned it around and set it on the bed.

"I am not sure about these." Jack said. "I think the gold and silver might clash. But let's see what else there is."

Nathan wasn't sure what to say, he had never seen anything like what Jack had just set down. He wasn't going to even ask, as he knew that the diamonds and rubies were real. The next case that Jack opened were William and Clark executive cufflinks. They were silver and featured a horseshoe with a horse's head in the middle. Jack turned it around and quickly grabbed a second case and opened a second identical pair.

"I will look at the rest, but I think these are the ones that I want." Nathan said. "I think I would be too worried about losing anything else."

"Fine." Jack said. "But at least look."

The next case that Jack opened was another pair of gold and diamond cufflinks. They were from Bennett fine jewelry. They were fourteen carat gold and diamond horseshoe cufflinks. Each horseshoe had a point five carat center stone and a total of point nine carats set in the shoe. The next set that Jack opened was an eighteen carat pink gold Vermeil Gia diamond horse set from Tiffany's and done by Thomas Kurilla. There was a twenty-two millimeter diamond set in each eye.

Nathan let out another low whistle.

"Like those?" Jack asked.

"I love them." Nathan said. "But I would be afraid to wear them."

"I got those when my first horse placed at a race." Jack said. "They were a gift from Grandpa John."

The next set that Jack opened was a pair of sterling silver running horses. Then Jack opened a diamond and sapphire shamrock set that were set in platinum. He also opened a set that was diamond and black onyx. The last set that Jack opened up was a platinum and diamond double horseshoe set. Once Jack had set the cufflinks out, he turned the group in front of him.

Gran looked at Elizabeth.

"Let's go sit on the couch." Gran said.

Elizabeth and Gran moved over to the couch. Once they were settled, Gran reached over and took Elizabeth's hand.

"Are you alright, dear?" Gran asked.

"I think so." Elizabeth said. "It was hard to sit there and hear Charlotte say those things."

"I am sure that it was." Gran said. "I am not happy with my daughter. I am sure it was also shocking to hear some of the things that JP has done."

"Not really." Elizabeth said. "At this point, I understand that there are a lot of things that I don't know about Jack, but I also know that is okay. I know the important things – we love each other and I feel safe with him."

"I am glad about that." Gran said. "I would still like you to slow down and take it easy, but I also know what I see. Just be careful and don't cross a line that can't be erased."

"I promise." Elizabeth said. "Both Jack and I realize that we need to be careful. Like I said, I trust Jack. It is hard for me to explain this and I haven't even talked to Jack about it, but I was hoping to talk to you about it. I know I also need to talk to Jack about it."

"I promise that whatever we talk about." Gran said. "It will be between us, as long as it isn't something that security needs to know. Even then, I will let you know what I would share."

"Thank you." Elizabeth said.

"So now what was it that you wanted to talk about?" Gran asked.

Elizabeth took a deep breath and looked at Gran. Before Elizabeth could answer, there was a knock at the door. Gran got up and answered. She was surprised to see Kevin standing there.

"Was there something that you needed?" Gran asked.

She was a little annoyed that she had been interrupted, but then again, she knew it should have been expected since it was Friday and the day before a large event.

"There was a delivery from the city." Kevin said. "I told the driver that I would bring it up."

Kevin handed Gran a large relatively flat box with Jack's name on it.

"Do you know what this is?" Gran asked.

"Not sure." Kevin said. "The driver said that it had been delivered to the airport and he was tasked to bring it out. He also handed me a note that came with it. He didn't know more and I didn't ask more questions as he wasn't coming up to the house. I know that this is the clothing store that John Thornton Sr uses so I figured he had something delivered for the weekend."

Gran took the note and smiled.

"Thank you." Gran said. "I am sure that is what it is as well. When Chris comes back, please come sit in on the meeting about tomorrow."

"Thank you, but no need." Kevin said. "I have been informed by Devin that we are all to stay here tomorrow and let those that came today to handle security with John's team."

"Thank you." Gran said. "Please let James know."

"I will." Kevin said. "But I believe that he already knows."

With that, he turned and left. Gran sat back down with Elizabeth after putting the package on the table.

"Sorry about that." Gran said.

"No problem." Elizabeth said. "There is a lot going on."

"But you are important." Gran said. "I can have the boys listen for the door and we can go to the library if you want."

"No it is okay." Elizabeth said. "Like I was saying, I haven't even told Jack this. It is nothing bad, but after what has happened I think I need to tell you."

Gran didn't say anything, but nodded her head.

"It started when we were at church on Sunday." Elizabeth said. "Now, I have always gone to church, Sunday was different then anything I had ever experienced before. It also wasn't the first time I had been in a Catholic Church, but it was the first time that I had ever felt comfortable in a church. See we were constantly changing churches. I might have told you this, but my mother was always chasing the latest thing – the latest pastor or message, the latest trends. It didn't matter, if it was new or trendy she wanted to try it.

Anyway, when I was sitting in church on Sunday, I felt this peace that I had never felt before. I looked around and I saw Jack and I standing at the altar getting married. I saw us with our children getting baptized. Everything was suddenly so clear and it felt right. It felt like I was exactly where I was meant to be for the first time in my life. Honestly it scared me. The more I have thought about it this week, the more I am sure of my future. I mean beyond where I am going to school this fall.

If you would have asked me three weeks ago what I saw for my future the only thing I would have been able to tell you was that I was going to Columbia in the fall and the rest would come when it came. I had no idea what I wanted beyond my dream of teaching. My plan for the summer was to hang out with my best friend, get some sun and maybe see if I could get back on a horse. Now all I want is to spend every minute with Jack and his friends. Jack is my first thought in the morning and my last thought at night. It scares me how much I care about Jack. When we were dancing at the bonfire while Bill, Nathan, Doug and Lee sang a song the only thing I could see was the four of them singing at our wedding and Jack and I sharing our first dance. ….."

Gran and Elizabeth were interrupted by Gabe coming in.

"Sorry." Gabe said. "Nathan told me to just come in when I got back to the house."

"No it is okay." Gran said. "Please take that box downstairs and show JP your clothes for tomorrow. If anything needs to be steamed or pressed, please have it in the laundry room by three. James will also have a Coal Creek/Thornton Thoroughbreds polo for you to wear during the day. You can wear that with jeans as long as they are clean and not ripped."

"Thank you." Gabe said. "I will take this down and show Jack. I bought a dress shirt and vest, but I doubt it is anything fancy like you guys have. I just don't want to embarrass you. You have been more than generous in allowing me to stay here and help my friend."

"I am sure whatever you have is fine." Gran said. "If you feel it is not enough, talk to the boys and I think that they may be able to help."

Gabe nodded, set the access card down, grabbed the box and took the note off the table to take downstairs. Gran waited until she was sure that Gabe was down the steps. She also used that time to think more about what she wanted to say. She felt bad that Charlotte had been so rude, but she also knew that there wasn't much that she could say to make it better. Gran knew that it would take time for the sting of her words to fade and in the meantime, Gran was going to make sure that Elizabeth was okay.

"I am so glad that you felt comfortable on Sunday." Gran said. "Having that clear vision of your future is a gift. I will tell you again, JP will never stop you from pursuing your dream. However, you may find that some of your dreams change as you move along in your relationship. I think that you need to sit down and talk to JP. I would suggest that you wait until after the show tomorrow. So much has happened and we need him to have a clear mind tomorrow. I know that my saying sorry will do little to remove the sting of what was said, but please know that I am sorry that you were treated that way in my house. I want you here and more importantly, JP wants you here. He loves you and you are good for him. All that I ask is that you just continue to love and support him. He has been through a lot and taking on Coal Creek is a big deal. I know that he can do it, but it is still a lot. He knows what he wants, but I don't think that he was expecting the resistance from others if you know what I mean."

Elizabeth nodded as she understood exactly what Gran meant.

"Thank you." Elizabeth said. "I will."

"Now what are you going to do the rest of the afternoon?" Gran asked.

"I wasn't sure." Elizabeth said. "I still have to pick which dress I want to wear and make sure that I have everything else ready."

"How about you be up here at the house when Abigail gets here at three." Gran said. "That gives you an hour and half to do what you want. She and I can help you with that. Otherwise you are free to do what you want as long as you don't leave the property right now."

"I was thinking of going and laying down for a bit." Elizabeth said. "I am still feeling the effects of the emotional rollercoaster that the last week plus has been."

"You do that." Gran said. "I have some things I need to take care of, but if you are not up when Abigail comes, I will wake you."

"Thank you." Elizabeth said.

Elizabeth headed downstairs and Gran sat on the couch for a moment and offered a prayer. She was glad that she had put her foot down and not let Charlotte continue to push Elizabeth away and try to drive a wedge between Elizabeth and JP.