Chapter 90- A Shared Journey
Nathan's voice had broken in multiple places while reading Charlotte's beautiful letter to Allie. When he had finished, he returned the letter to the envelope and just held Allie close, as a few tears streamed down their faces. Nathan hadn't held her like this in so long. Allie had always been fiercely independent. What his family had long ago termed the "I do it myself" phase. While that personality trait had been a hidden blessing living the nomadic life with the Mounties as a single father, Nathan always felt like he had missed out on this. Just him and his girl. Providing comfort to one another.
"I never thought that someone could feel like that about us. After all these years it just didn't seem possible," Allie sniffled into his shirt collar. "That someone would… care for us. So much."
"Oh, Allie," Nathan turned to the girl and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "Charlotte doesn't only care for us. She loves us. Completely."
"Have I told you how happy I am that you asked her to marry you?"
Nathan smiled. "I think a time or two."
"Speaking of getting married," Allie pushed herself up and out of the chair. "We got a wedding to get to and you need to finish getting ready. You're running late. What have you been doing all day?"
What haven't I been doing today? Nathan thought.
"Don't worry," Nathan rose out of the chair. "I won't be late to marry Charlotte, I can promise you that."
"Good," Allie reached up and placed a kiss on Nathan's cheek, before pivoting on the heel of her boot and heading back out the door almost as quickly as she had come in earlier.
"Allie," Nathan called out, stopping the girl at the entry. "I love you."
The smile she gave him was the same one she always had. The one that was so big, her eyes seemingly disappeared. "I love you, too, Dad."
After Allie had left, Nathan turned back to the chair and picked up his letter from Charlotte when a knock sounded on the door.
"Now what did you forget, Allie?" Nathan asked, pulling open the door to reveal not Allie, but his mother.
"Oh good," Maise said, walking into the house past Nathan. "Allie got you your letter."
"Hi to you too, mom."
"Hi, dear. I don't have much time," Maise turned to face Nathan. "And you don't either. Why aren't you dressed yet? Where is your suit vest and jacket?"
"I've been a little busy."
"Well, you better hurray."
"I'll be fine," Nathan came over and placed a gentle kiss on his mother's forehead. "What are you doing over here?
"Charlotte forgot to send this over with your letter," Maise produced a small leather pouch from inside her coat pocket. "It's your wedding gift from her."
"I thought we had said we weren't exchanging any wedding gifts."
"You both listened to that about as well as you listened to not getting Christmas presents," Maise rolled her eyes slightly as she reached forward to fuss with the collar on Nathan's deep blue button-down shirt.
"There," she said, taking a step back to analyze her work on the garment. "You look very handsome, son. Charlotte is going to be over the moon when she sees you at the end of that aisle."
"You think so?"
"I know so," Maise squeezed Nathan's hand before turning towards the door.
"Wait, mom!" Nathan exclaimed as he dashed up the stairs to his room and returned a few moments later. "Last night, when I couldn't sleep, I wrote a letter to Charlotte. About all the things I feel for her. Will you give this to her before the wedding?"
"Of course," Maise took the envelope and placed it in the pocket of her coat. "I'll see you soon, Nathan."
Nathan took a deep breath as he sat back in the chair and opened the envelope from Charlotte.
My beloved Nathan,
Soon we will stand before God, our family and our friends and vow our love to each other.
From the moment you came into my life, you had captured my heart by being exactly who you are. The sweetest, most loving, compassionate, and sensitive person I have ever known.
You have been my very best friend through the good and the bad. You have been the reason I smile, and you have given comfort beyond measure when I've cried.
You have believed in me, and you have shown me how to love with passion, purity, and unconditional acceptance. You will always be the best part of my day.
I love the way you make me laugh. And that you give me and Allie so much of your time instead of sugarcoating your love with material gifts. I love the way you make me feel safe when I lay my head on your chest and you stroke my hair when I'm having a bad day. I love the way you let me dream and how you want to help me fulfill those dreams by being right by my side.
I knew since day one that there was going to be something special between us. Slowly, you felled my walls, first as friends then as… more. I was comfortable with you in a way I have never felt, nor will ever feel with anyone else.
And when we kissed that first time, I felt all the sparks. All the electricity that could light up a blackened night sky was found right at that moment. Something stirred inside of me, and it was the feeling of being in love and being loved back.
We met halfway, I was yours and you were mine. And nothing felt more liberating than experiencing such unconditional love. That love extinguished the hurt and pain of my past. My entire being has been awakened with a new soul, knowing that from this day forward, you will be right beside me from the moment I open my eyes in the morning to when I close them at night.
Today I give myself to you.
I promise to encourage and inspire you. To laugh with you and to comfort you in times of sorrow and struggle. I promise to love you in good times and in bad. When life seems easy and when it seems hard. When our love is simple and when it is an effort.
I promise to cherish you and to always hold you in the highest regard.
These things I give to you today, and all the days of our life.
I'm not sure a lifetime is long enough to return all you have given me, but I promise the rest of my days I'll spend by your side. To laugh with you and cry with you. To believe in you and support you. Together we are better than we could ever hope to be alone, and today I give you my love, my trust, and my forever.
There is so much more I could say, but I'm unsure if there are words that could ever fully express my love for you, so I will happily spend the rest of my life showing you what you mean to me.
I love you with everything I am, everything I've been, and everything I hope to be. I love you with my past, and I love you for my future. I love you for the children we'll have and for the years we'll spend together. I love you for every one of my smiles and even more, for every one of yours.
Today I am ready, willing, and excited to become your wife. To be Mrs. Nathan Grant. I am so happy and grateful that God has placed you and Allie in my life. I truly believe that you were specially chosen just for me. I could not have asked for a better life companion. You are my soulmate. My lifetime love.
I swear I couldn't love you more than I do right now, and yet I know I will tomorrow.
Because there is no journey like a shared one and I am so incredibly blessed my journey will be shared with you.
Forever and Always,
Charlotte
A wet teardrop spread across the page Nathan held in his hands. A shared journey. For so long Nathan believed that he could survive in life alone. Without someone, but the moment Charlotte came into his life, he knew that was no longer possible. From this day forward, through the highs and the lows. The joys and despairs. Her hand would be in his. It would always be them together. And like John Bartlett, Nathan believed, together, was all that mattered.
He picked up Charlotte's gift, the small leather pouch Maise had left on the table and pulled open the drawstrings. Nathan tipped the bag into his hand and out tumbled the most beautiful brass compass he had ever seen. On the front of the compass was an engraving that said:
Nathan + Charlotte
Christmas Eve 1920
The Beginning Of Our Journey
When Nathan released the clasp to open the compass, he was taken aback by yet more engraving on the inside lid of the instrument.
May our love forever guide us
through life's unknowns.
May we always find our way
back to one another.
And may we never again
feel lost or alone.
Love, Charlie
"Charlotte," Maise's voice was breathless as she stood in the doorway of that little hospital room and looked upon her soon to be daughter. "You look… stunning."
"It's not too much?" Charlotte questioned, her unsteady hands fussing with the lace at her waist.
"It is perfect," Maise came over and took Charlotte's hands into hers, calming the girl's fidgeting fingers. "This dress is simple and timeless. And it has this way of accentuating your natural beauty in ways I could never describe."
"Really?"
"Really," Maise smiled gently as she reached into the pocket of her coat and produced Nathan's letter. "It seems my son didn't sleep much last night either and wrote you a letter as well."
Charlotte chuckled. "I should have known."
"We're going to head over to the church now and make sure all the last-minute details are handled. Archie is waiting downstairs to walk you over when it's time."
"Thank you, Maise," Charlotte squeezed the older woman's hand. "I don't know what I would have done without you the past few months."
"I feel the same way, Charlotte," she smiled and touched Charlotte's cheek before leaving her to read Nathan's letter by the soft light streaming in from the window.
My dearest love, Charlie,
To quote your favorite book- Today 'I ask you to pass through life at my side- to be my second self, and best earthly companion'.
Today we officially become the Grant family. Since the day I met you, it's been something I've dreamed of and now that it is coming true, I find myself simply overcome with emotions.
Charlotte, you have a way of bringing out the best in our family. You've made us complete. You are such a gift not only to Allie and I, but also to my parents and that is something I will forever be grateful to you for.
Your heart is unlike any I have experienced before. It is a heart I never expected to find.
You're funny and strong. Fierce and kind. But most of all you are so incredibly generous, considerate, and loving to all those around you.
For a year and a half, I have thanked God every day for leading our hearts to one another. For letting Allie and I become a part of your life and for you becoming a part of ours.
I know it has been far from easy for us, but it's always been right. Because when you meet the right person, you know it. You can't stop thinking about them. They're your best friend. And your soulmate. You can't wait to spend the rest of your life with them. No one and nothing else can compare to the love we share.
You are the one I want, Charlotte. The one I want to come home to after a bad day. You're the one I want to roll over to in the middle of the night and wake up next to everyday, for the rest of my life. You are the one I want to go on both exhilarating adventures with and quiet evening walks. You're the one I want to make happy and smile with. You're the one I want to love and to hold when times get tough. You're the one I want to be there for when everything in your world comes crashing down. All my good days and all my bad days, you're the one I want to spend them with. It's you. You're it. You're the one. And I swear to you, I have never been so sure about someone or something in my entire life. It's you, and I say this without a single doubt in my mind.
I cannot name just one thing that I love about you, about us, because they are all interconnected. The love. The desire. The laughter and the silent way we speak to each other that is beyond words and beyond anyone else's understanding. They are all joined together somehow and impossible to feel separately.
Thank you for giving your heart to me and trusting me with yours. Thank you for walking beside me and for wanting me at your side. Thank you for thinking of me and for always staying on my mind. Thank you for making me smile and for smiling along with me. Thank you for being who you are and for helping me be me. Thank you for each day and night we share. For now, and always.
And I can't even imagine what loving you forever will feel like, because I am just simply overwhelmed with the love I feel at this very moment.
Today and every day, I promise you shall no longer walk alone.
May my heart be your shelter and my arms always be your home.
Yours Forever,
Nate
Charlotte released a shuddering breath she hadn't realized she had been holding while reading Nathan's letter. For a man who sometimes struggled with words, Charlotte felt every emotion Nathan had poured forth on those pages. She was more than ready to be his wife. In every way.
"Archie. It's time," Charlotte said, as she met the older gentleman in the downstairs hallway of the hospital.
Archie turned to face Charlotte and his eyes instantly filled with tears. "Charlotte… You look…"
Charlotte placed a gentle kiss on Archie's cheek. "Thank you for agreeing to do this for me. My legs feel all wobbly and unsteady this afternoon. I'm unsure I'd be able to make it down that aisle on my own."
Archie smiled gently. "Thank you for asking me. I don't know if I'll ever forgive myself for not being there when Colleen got married. I'm thankful that I can be here when Nathan marries the love of his life. It's just icing on the cake that the woman he is marrying has the kindest heart I think I have ever met. You two are a good match."
"I never had the opportunity to meet Colleen, but from all I've learned about the type of woman she was… she held no ill will over anyone. Especially her own father. Forgive yourself, Archie. Don't carry that burden anymore."
Archie worked to swallow the lump in his throat. "Your parents would be so proud of you, Charlotte."
Her eyes instantly misted. "You believe that?"
"I don't just believe that… I know that. There is no way they couldn't be proud of you. After everything you've experienced in your life. To have overcome it and still have found a way to love. And love a man like Nathan… And I'm not just saying that because he's my son. He is the finest person I've ever met. He makes me want to be a better father. A better husband. A better man."
"Nathan certainly has that effect on people, but Archie, you need to know…" Charlotte made sure she had his attention before continuing. "You are a good man. Maise, Allie, Nathan, and I are so proud of how you've changed your life around. We are thankful we can all be a family now."
Tears came down Archie's cheeks as he took hold of Charlotte's hand and looped it into the crook of his arm. "Ms. Thompson. What do you say we make it official and get that last name changed to Grant?"
Charlotte tilted her head back and laughed. "I think that sounds like a wonderful idea, Archie."