"Hi!" Allie exclaimed when Elizabeth opened the door.
"Hi, Allie. Constable." She gave Jack a little nod, not quite meeting his eyes. She was unsure how to interact with him after the previous evening, after he essentially admitted to having feelings for her.
"I'm so sorry to spring this on you at the last minute. Allie was supposed to spend the day with the Montgomerys, but Miles and Emily have both come down with something, and I don't want her catching it. Normally, I'd take her to Abigail's, but she's busy today, and—"
"She's welcome to spend the day here, Jack," she assured him before he could finish his thought. "William and Emma will be thrilled to have you here, Allie."
"Thank you so much, Elizabeth. I should be back before dinnertime, but I'll send a wire if that changes. And Allie has a key to the house in case she needs anything."
"Don't worry about rushing back. She's welcome to stay as long as she needs to," she promised.
"Okay. Allie-girl." he crouched down, opening his arms for her. She happily entered his embrace. "You listen to Mrs. Spencer and Mrs. Thatcher, okay?"
She nodded. "Yes, sir."
"I love you, Allie-girl." He kissed her cheek. "I'll see you later this evening."
"I love you, Uncle Jack." She gave him one last hug before he stood back up.
"Travel safe," Elizabeth quietly told him.
"I will." He placed his hat on his head, tapping the brim in her direction before heading out the door.
"Where are William and Emma?" Allie glanced around the room, noticing the other children weren't around.
"They're playing out in the backyard with their grandparents. Would you like to join them?"
She nodded.
"Go ahead." Elizabeth nudged her toward the back door.
She ran off, and Elizabeth could hear squeals of excitement when her children realized their friend was there. She smiled, grateful that they had ended up in such a welcoming place, a place that felt more like home than anywhere else she had ever lived.
...
The children knelt around the circle that Allie had drawn in the dirt. William took his turn, flicking a marble toward those gathered in the middle of the ring.
"Where did Mr. Mountie go?" he asked as he gathered up the marble he pushed out of the circle.
"Union City. He's talking to a judge, because he's going to adopt me." She smiled proudly. "Then he'll be my dad for real, 'cause my dad didn't want to be my dad anymore."
"My daddy died," Emma said sadly, her gaze dropping to the ground as she hugged her doll tighter to her chest.
"You know," Allie explained, sending her marble into the circle, "if your mommy married my uncle, then he'd be your daddy, too."
"I want my daddy back," Emma whined. "I don't want a new daddy."
"I do," William stated. "I want a nice daddy."
"My uncle is really nice. And I think he likes your mommy. He smiles at her a whole lot."
"Allie?" William questioned. "If my mommy married Mr. Mountie, would you be my sister?"
"I don't know." She shrugged. "But I'd like that. I never had a brother and sister before."
William gasped with a sudden realization. "If I get a new daddy, mommy could give me a brother."
"Here," Allie lowered her voice. "How about we do something to show my uncle and your mommy that they should get married?"
"Like what?"
She sighed. "I'm not sure. We should ask Mrs. Coulter. I heard my uncle says she likes to play matchmaker."
"What does that mean?"
"I don't really know," she admitted. "Just that she likes to help people get married. Maybe your mommy can invite Mrs. Coulter to dinner tonight. Then we can ask her."
"Okay! I'd like to have Mr. Mountie as my dad."
...
Grace wandered into the house, finding Elizabeth writing in a notebook she had propped in her lap. "Doing some writing, dear?"
"Oh." Her cheeks warmed. "Yes."
"Good for you." She smiled at her daughter. "You deserve some time to do the things that you want to do."
"It's just…difficult to let myself do this, though." She sighed. "I tried to write a few times when I first married James, but he always said it was a frivolous pastime. I never even told him I dreamed of being a published author one day."
Grace put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't let his words stop you now. You should never have felt the need to give up your dreams for that man."
"I know, he just really got in my head."
"Well, it might take some time, but you'll find yourself again." Her eyes misted over. "I just feel so terrible that we thought you would be good together. Your life would have been so different if we didn't…"
"It isn't your fault, mother. None of us knew what he was truly like." A smile started to play on her lips. "But I'm free of him now, and we can rejoice in that."
Grace leaned down to drop a soft kiss on her cheek. "That we can. I'll leave you to your writing now. I'm going to make a grocery list, and your father and I are going to the mercantile later. Let me know if there's anything that you need."
"I will." Elizabeth reached out for her hand, gently squeezing her fingers. "I'm really glad you and father are here, mother."
"So am I, dear."
She watched her mother walk away before returning her attention to her notebook. She had written a few sentences down, but found herself scratching them out.
She tossed the notebook aside. "This is silly," she said to no one. "Why am I doing this?"
"I don't think it's silly."
She was startled by Jack's voice in her mind, sounding so clear it was as though he was sitting beside her.
A flush filled her cheeks. It was enough that she often imagined him in her mind's eye: the sparkle in his eyes, his slightly crooked smile, the way he stood, tall and proud, in his red serge. But now, she had his voice in her mind, too.
She shook her head. It wasn't appropriate to be thinking of him so frequently. He was just her friend. Her kind, handsome friend, who made her feel more alive than she had in years, who encouraged her and believed in her dreams. Regardless of whatever feelings may be developing there, she couldn't pursue anything.
Could she?
...
"Beth, dear. We're home," Grace called out as she and William came through the door with the children.
She looked up from her notebook, a little startled by their return. "Oh, I must've lost track of time." She closed the notebook and set it aside. "How was everything in town?"
"Good." Her mother set a basket of groceries on the kitchen counter. "Abigail sent over some cookies."
"That was nice of her." Elizabeth shifted, wincing slightly at the ache in her casted leg.
"Oh, and there was a telegram for you." Her father retrieved the paper from his pocket and handed it to her. "From the Constable."
"It's from my uncle?" Allie asked, moving to stand beside Elizabeth.
"Yes." Elizabeth read over the telegram. "It seems he needs to stay in Union City a little while longer, so you'll need to spend the night here. You don't mind that, do you?"
"A sleepover?" Her eyes lit up. "That sounds fun!"
Elizabeth chuckled. "Okay. We'll put some extra pillows and blankets in William and Emma's room for you, and my parents can take you to get some things from your house."
"Allie's staying with us?" Little William climbed onto the sofa with Elizabeth.
"Just for tonight."
"Is Mr. Mountie okay?" Concern filled his voice.
"I think so." She took his little hand to reassure him. "I'm sure his meetings are just taking a bit longer than he expected."
"Good. I don't want Mr. Mountie to get hurt."
"He's the best Mountie," Allie stated confidently. "He always tells me he'll do his very best to come home safe."
"I'm sure he does."
...
"They're still asleep," Grace said quietly as she came down the stairs after checking on the children.
"I'm not surprised." Elizabeth smiled. "I heard them giggling up there late last night."
"It's wonderful that they get along so well."
Elizabeth nodded. "They've gotten very close. I'm glad that Willie will have Allie in class with him when he starts school in the fall."
"She's almost like a big sister to him." Grace raised her eyebrows.
"Mother…" Elizabeth warned. "Please don't put those ideas in his head. I don't want him to get his hopes up for something that probably won't happen."
Grace took a seat beside her daughter, placing a caring hand on her knee. "I know you deny that anything is there, but it seemed as though things were different between the two of you after dinner the other night. And you're suddenly writing again? My Beth is coming back, and I just have a feeling a lot of that has to do with the Constable."
She fidgeted with her fingers. "Well, it doesn't matter, because there can't ever be anything between us."
"Why not?"
She shrugged, tears filling her eyes as she was brought back to something Allie had said the previous evening. "What if I opened up my heart just to lose him? I can't do that. I can't do that to the children."
"Ah," Grace patted her knee understandingly. "Well, your father may not have a dangerous job, but one thing I've learned in life is that there's a risk to loving anyone, but it's more than worth it. And you deserve to experience love, my darling."
...
Jack slowly meandered down the lane toward Elizabeth's house, smiling at the thought of seeing her again. His trip to Union City had given him a chance to think, and he had come to a conclusion. He could no longer imagine his life without Elizabeth in it.
Whether they just remained friends or perhaps decided to pursue something more, he knew he needed her in his life.
"Uncle Jack!" Allie called out from the front steps of the house, interrupting his thoughts.
He grinned crouching down and opening his arms as she ran toward him. "Hi, Allie-girl. I missed you."
"I missed you, too."
He picked her up, carrying her on his hip up to the house. "Did you have a good time with William and Emma?"
"Mhmm." She nodded. "I showed them how to play marbles, and Mrs. Thatcher read us three bedtime stories." She leaned into him. "Uncle Jack? Are you my dad now?"
He sighed. "Not yet, Al. But soon."
"Hi, Mr. Mountie!" William greeted him at the door. "I'm glad you didn't get hurt."
"Were you worried I would get hurt?" he asked, a little confused. "I was just going to talk to a judge."
William shrugged. "Mounties get hurt sometimes. I don't want you to get hurt."
He set Allie down and knelt beside the little boy. "Well, I can't promise you that I'll never get hurt, but I'm good at my job."
William stepped in for a hug. "I think my mama would be real sad if you got hurt."
Hope welled up in his heart at the possibility that Elizabeth might care for him as much as he cared for her. "You do?"
"Yeah. She likes you."
"Well, let's go see her." He patted the boy's back. "I need to talk to her about something, and Allie here needs to go get her things so we can head back to our house."
Elizabeth sat up straight in her spot on the sofa, trying to will away the blush that had risen in her cheeks as she overheard the conversation between Jack and William. Butterflies rose in her stomach when she saw him step through the open door, her little boy in his arms.
She realized in that moment that what she felt for Jack Thornton was different than anything she'd felt before. Even in the early days with James, before she knew who he really was, she never once felt butterflies, she never once felt pure joy upon seeing his face.
"Hi," she breathed. "Welcome back."
"Thank you." He gave her a crooked smile and lowered William to the floor. "William, why don't you go help Allie gather up her things?"
"Okay, Mr. Mountie."
Jack watched them ascend the stairs, hearing their giggles as they went. Once assured they were on task, he took a seat in the chair across from Elizabeth.
"Um, I got something for William and Emma while I was in Union City. It's nothing big." He pulled a few small items from his pocket. "Just some taffy. It's Allie's favorite, and I thought maybe your children would like it, too."
She took the candies from him. "That's so kind of you, Jack. You didn't have to get them anything."
He just shrugged. "They're good kids. I thought they deserved a little treat."
"Well, thank you." She set the taffies on the coffee table. "So…how did everything go with the judge?"
"Things went okay." He sighed. "He said we need to find her father."
"Do you think he'll want to take her from you?"
"No." He shook his head. "I'm not worried about that. He has no interest in being a father. I was just hoping this would be a quick process, and now, who knows how long it'll take. I have no idea where Dylan is."
"I'll say a prayer that you find him quickly. Allie deserves to have a good father."
He nervously rubbed the back of his neck, a flush rising up his face. "Well, thank you. And thank you for letting her stay here last night. It made me feel a lot better knowing she was somewhere safe."
"She's welcome to stay here anytime. We enjoyed having her here."
"I'm glad."
"I got my stuff, Uncle Jack!" Allie announced as she came back down the stairs, a small bag slung over her shoulder.
"Well, we should get home, then. I wouldn't want to impose on Mrs. Spencer any more than we already have."
"It really was no imposition, Jack." A smile played on her lips. "Like I said, we enjoyed having her here."
He stood, returning her smile. "Well, I'll see you around, Elizabeth."
"You will," she promised, trying to tamp down the disappointment she felt as she watched him walk away.
"I wish Mr. Mountie didn't have to leave," William told her as he climbed up beside her.
Elizabeth wrapped her arms around him. "We'll see him around town. He just lives down the street."
"Mama?" he said hesitantly. "Is it okay that I wish he was my daddy?"
"Oh, Willie." She kissed the top of his head. "I'm so sorry that you didn't have the best daddy. I wish you could have a good daddy."
"Allie said you could marry Mr. Mountie, and then he'd be my daddy. He'd be a good daddy."
"He would be a good daddy," Elizabeth agreed, remembering how easily Jack interacted with Allie, with Willie and Emma, remembering all of the times she imagined what their life could be like as a little family. "But Willie, your daddy really hurt me. That makes it hard for me to want to marry somebody else."
"Oh." His face fell. "I thought you liked Mr. Mountie a whole lot."
"I do," she admitted. "I know it's hard to understand, but just because I like Constable Thornton doesn't mean I'm ready to marry him, or anybody else."
"But maybe someday?" he asked sweetly.
"Maybe someday." She tightened her arms around him. "But no matter what, you and Emma will always have me. And I love you both so very much."