Chapter 9 – Reflection and Future Plans
Saturday morning dawned overcast and wet in Hope Valley. Overnight rain had brought much needed moisture. Things had gotten pretty dry with no rain for almost six weeks. People knew that the threat of a wildfire had been high, so the rain was a relief. As Nathan stood at his bedroom window, he could see that the sky held a threat of more rain throughout the day. While everyone wanted a nice day for the baptisms the next day, the rain was very much needed and welcome.
Nathan stretched and tried to work a kink out of his low back. He wondered what he had done and then remembered the activity of the previous night and blushed. He grabbed some socks and put them on before wrapping his robe around himself. Nathan dropped a light kiss on the temple of his sleeping wife and padded out into the hallway. He stood there for a moment and then went to check on Allie. He found her sleeping soundly. As he stood in her doorway, he remembered when she was little and there were thunderstorms. Allie had always insisted on sleeping in his bed when it was storming. Nathan wondered if his future children would be that way.
"Future children." Nathan muttered to himself.
He loved the thought and couldn't wait. If only Nathan knew how close his dream was to becoming a reality, he would be over the moon with excitement. Nathan continued downstairs, where he put on a pot of coffee. While he waited for the coffee, he grabbed his journal and Bible and set them on the table. He then grabbed a banana muffin and set it in the oven to warm for a minute. Once it was warm, he slathered it with fresh churned butter. He took the warm muffin and coffee to the table. He said a quick prayer and enjoyed his food as he read some in the Bible.
Once he had finished eating, Nathan flipped his journal open and poured out his feelings onto the pages. He wrote about loving Maggie and missing Colleen. He wrote about how he thought Colleen and Maggie would have been great friends. Nathan wrote about his fears and dreams of being a father again. He wrote about how he felt so unprepared and undeserving to be PJ's godfather. He also wrote about the enormous responsibility he felt given PJ's start in life. Nathan stopped and said a prayer for Lee and Rosemary and their willingness to open their hearts, lives and home to the eighteen month old little boy. Nathan was even more impressed knowing that they would have another child before PJ turned two. Nathan was happy for the Coulters because he knew that they were going to be great parents. He had seen it the way that they cared for Little Jack. He also had heard some of the struggle and heartbreak that they had gone through to get to where they were. He couldn't believe how much they had suffered in silence for years.
Nathan sat back and thought back to his first day as Constable in Hope Valley. He thought about how Lee had been so open and welcoming to him. It was only recently that Nathan learned that Rosemary had just suffered another miscarriage just days before. Nathan thought about how he had no clue that there was anything wrong and how Lee had masked his pain so well. It might have taken a while, but Nathan was glad to count Lee and Rosemary among his close friends. He was also glad that their lives would forever be intertwined going forward. With that thought Nathan got up and went to the shelf behind his desk and grabbed the house plans which included the plat map. Nathan loved the property that Bill had given them. It was plenty large enough to build what they wanted and still give them lots of outdoor space. Lee and Rosemary were building less then a half mile away and between the two of them they owned all the property in-between the two houses. Nathan was also grateful that it had a great water source as it was close to the river, but high enough to be safe from moderate flooding.
Nathan unrolled the house plans. There were the original plans that Nathan had done two years prior as well as the new plans that he had drawn up. It might not be the final layout, but it was pretty close. While Nathan had kept many of the same inside elements from the original plans, he loved the new plans much more. Especially the look of the house. The new plans were more of the emerging craftsman style that Nathan loved, while the original plans leaned much more into the Victorian. He had done the original plans with someone else in mind. While Maggie liked some of the detailing in the Victorian house, she agreed with Nathan that the combination of the craftsman with an old fashioned farmhouse was much more in line with their tastes. The house that Nathan was staring at was much more who he was and not who he was trying to impress.
As Nathan was looking at the picture of the house that had been drawn, Maggie came down. She stood behind Nathan and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"I can't wait to see that become a reality." Maggie said.
"Me too." Nathan said.
"And you are sure that it is not too big?" Maggie asked.
"While it will be larger than most houses in Hope Valley." Nathan said. "It will meet our needs for years to come."
Nathan turned and pulled Maggie into his lap.
"You still want a large family?" Nathan asked.
"Yes." Maggie said. "But eight bedrooms, plus a library and office?"
"It will be fine." Nathan said. "Besides, it has nine bedrooms and three stories. It is not like we are building it in the middle of town. You won't even really be able to see the house from the road. The only people that will see how big it is, will be those we invite. Just imagine in thirty years when all of our children and grandchildren are home for the holidays. We will love having a big house to have everyone."
"Sounds amazing." Maggie said. "But I was more worried about the cost."
Nathan leaned forward, putting his hand on Maggie's abdomen and then kissed the tip of her nose. Maggie loved the feeling of Nathan's large hand on her body. She thought about how much she wanted to give Nathan a whole bunch of kids. If they realized how close they were to that happening they would both be over the moon.
"It will be fine." Nathan said. "My first three books have done very, very well. I also have my portion of the money from the sale of the ranch. I have never touched any of that money and it is just sitting there growing. Allie and I have always lived off my salary. Even then, we lived well below our means. So I have always been able to save and there is quite a bit in that account as well. Housing has always been a part of my salary, so once we are in the new house, I will receive that portion back in my actual paycheck each month. Besides, the land itself was a wedding present from Bill. The only stipulation was that we could never sell and must pass it down."
"Wow." Maggie said. "I didn't realize."
"I told you that I was building our family a forever home." Nathan said. "And I meant it."
Maggie kissed Nathan.
"I love you." Maggie said.
"I love you." Nathan said.
Maggie then reached over and turned the page from the front view to the overview floor plan for the first floor.
"What is that?" Maggie asked, pointing to something. "It is not marked like the others."
Nathan saw exactly what Maggie was pointing at. It was part of a surprise that he was working on for his wife, especially after he had a conversation with her sister, Erin.
"I am not sure yet." Nathan said. "I needed to add the room to square off the house and support the room above it. I thought if all else failed it could be a storage room."
"Oh." Maggie said. "I guess that makes sense."
"Why?" Nathan asked. "Was there something that you were thinking of using the room for?"
Erin had told Nathan that Maggie would never ask for a dedicated sewing room, especially after hearing Erin's husband berate her for asking for the same and him calling it a waste of good space. Nathan thought how awful that must have been. He also thought it sounded perfectly reasonable to want a dedicated sewing room, especially if you did a lot of it. From speaking to Erin, it sounded like both women did a lot of sewing so they could make their own clothes or at least make the clothes that they bought fit them better. Erin said she was slim like Maggie, but not as much after the kids, but enough that it was still hard to find clothes that fit right. Erin had shared how first their mother and then their grandmother had taught them to make or alter clothes. Nathan thought that if he could have a woodworking shop, Maggie could have a sewing room.
Maggie continued to look at the different floor plans as it was really the first time that she could visualize how things were going to be. She knew that they had talked about things, but to actually see it laid out helped it make a lot more sense. She was still surprised how big the bedrooms were and how spacious the rest of the house looked. She knew that they had grown up in a good sized house, but the bedrooms were barely able to fit a queen size bed and a dresser. Maggie wondered if it was because Nathan was so tall that he liked bigger spaces, because it looked like everything had twelve to fifteen foot ceilings. She knew that they had talked about eight to ten was the standard, but with Nathan standing over six foot, he said he always felt cramped in the rooms with a lower ceiling.
As Maggie was looking at the plans, she asked about adding some additional windows in certain places. Nathan said he would ask, so they marked where Maggie wanted the windows with the red marking pencil so Nathan would know when he talked to the architect. Nathan knew it would be next summer before the house was ready, but he was getting more excited as Maggie got excited about the plans and they talked about their future. After she was done looking at the plans, Maggie turned back to her husband.
"What are your plans for today?" Maggie asked.
"I need to check it at the office later." Nathan said. "But I had planned to work mostly from home. Why?"
"Just wondering if you will be needing the table?" Maggie said.
"I can work at my desk." Nathan said. "I set up here before because I was eating while I read the Bible."
"Okay." Maggie said. "I went to work on a new jumper for Allie. I noticed that a few of her old ones were getting worn and also a little short in the legs. I know how that is, so I thought I would make a few new ones for her. I picked up the pattern and the material came yesterday."
"Thank you." Nathan said. "You don't have to do that. We could have had Rosemary make or order some through the dress shoppe like I normally do."
"I know." Maggie said. "But it is something I can do and I thought it would be special. Rosemary did after to let me use her sewing machine. However, mine should arrive on Monday or Tuesday, along with another trunk of items from my sister. I just thought if I got the pieces cut now, I could be ready once my sewing machine is set up."
"Sounds good." Nathan said. "While I am thinking about it, please let me know which Friday you want to go to Union City. I need to go some time before the end of October and spend part of the day in meetings at headquarters. I thought we could leave on the early train and make a day of it and if you wanted, we could spend the night in a hotel and come back Saturday if you wanted."
"I will have to see." Maggie said. "We have Frank and Abigail's wedding next weekend. You also told Gabe that we would go to Brookfield for Thanksgiving weekend."
"I know." Nathan said. "I already thought about those things. I was looking at either the first Friday in October. Or one of the last two weekends. You let me know and I will talk to Superintendent O'Reilly and schedule the meeting."
"Okay." Maggie said. "If it works with Superintendent O'Reilly, I would prefer the first weekend. Then I could do some shopping for the children at the orphanage and take it with us."
"I will talk to him about that Friday then." Nathan said.
Nathan stood them up, cleared his stuff off the table and refilled his mug of coffee before taking a seat at desk. Allie had wandered down as Maggie was making breakfast. She had the girl set the table and then said she could sit.
"What time is your shift?" Maggie asked.
"Mrs Yost wants me there by eleven." Allie said. "I will be done about one. That is my typical Saturday shift, especially during the school year. Summer and school breaks can vary depending on what is going on. In the summer, I can work most days over lunch time so she can watch the store and they can each have a chance to eat. I can also pick up an afternoon or evening if it is busy in town. I worked a few extra shifts this past Christmas during the festival because Mr Yost was needed in the store to help."
"Okay." Maggie said. "That will at least help me plan. I am going to add those to the calendar so I can keep track. So if you add a shift, please add it to the calendar so I know where you are going to be and so I can plan meals."
Maggie started to put breakfast on the table, so Nathan grabbed his mug and came over to sit with Allie.
"Okay." Allie said. "I will try to remember to do that. Dad, since my homework is done, am I free to hang out this afternoon? Harper said something about wanting to go fishing if the rain held off. Cody was also talking about going for a ride and said Emily and I could join him."
"Let me or your Mum know." Nathan said. "Especially if you are going down by the river. You also know my rule about riding. No galloping and you need to take your survival kit in your saddlebag."
"Okay." Allie said. "Mine is still at the livery, right?"
"Yes it is." Nathan said. "It is hung up with your saddle in the tack room."
"Don't forget to let us know your plans." Maggie said.
"Why?" Allie said. "I have never had to before, especially if Dad and I talked about it before."
"One." Nathan said. "Because you were asked to. Your Mum is still learning the area and getting to know people. Also she is not used to her siblings being so independent. And two because there have been several Pinkertons spotted in the area and you need to be careful. And three if something were to happen, I would like to know where you are. Especially with the Pinkertons around."
"Yes, Sir." Allie said. "Sorry Mum. I am used to Dad letting me do what I want, especially since he knows most people. We talk about plans and I usually only have to check in if something drastically changes."
"It is okay." Maggie said. "Maybe once I am more familiar with the area and the people as well as your routine it will be different. But do you understand why he asked?"
"Yes." Allie said. "I am just not used to it unless Dad has something planned or he is going to have to go out of town."
"Thank you." Nathan said. "I know it is an adjustment for all of us and it is going to take time for your Mum to be comfortable with how much independence I have allowed you to have. It happened mostly out of necessity, but still."
"I am not trying to stop you from hanging out with your friends." Maggie said. "But I don't know Harper and have only met Cody once. Also me and my sisters would never have been allowed to run off somewhere with a boy unchaperoned."
Nathan reached over and put his hand on Maggie's arm. Nathan had seen Allie's face when Maggie was speaking and was trying to end things before Allie got upset and her teenage attitude reared its ugly head. He knew that he was going to have to talk to both of them later, but at the moment, he wanted to finish breakfast in peace.
"Just please let one of us know where you are going after work." Nathan said.
Maggie looked at Nathan and realized that she overstepped somewhere. Nathan wasn't upset, but he would need to explain things later. After breakfast was cleaned up, Allie turned to her Dad.
"Can I go to the library?" Allie asked. "Mr Martin told us a bunch of new books arrived this week. I was hoping to find something new to read. He said a lot of new titles that had been published in the last couple of years had been included in the shipment."
"Yes, you may go to the library." Nathan said. "Can you see if either of the two new Zane Grey books are there? I have been holding off ordering either of them, but really want to read them."
"Which ones are they again?" Allie asked.
"The Desert of Wheat and Tales of Fishes." Nathan said.
"I will look." Allie said.
Allie left and Nathan turned to Maggie.
"I am not mad." Nathan said. "But I stopped you before Allie got upset. I also understand that things are different in the big city. I doubt that I would give Allie as much freedom as I do if we were in Cape Fullerton or even in Union City. Allie has proven herself responsible and has earned her freedom. I know the other teens that she hangs out with. Besides Allie and I talk about everything. If I had concerns, we would talk about them and why I had them. Right now Allie doesn't like-like any of the boys she hangs out with. She also understands that there will be no dating until she is at least sixteen."
"I was going to ask what like-like meant." Maggie said. "I have never heard my siblings talk like that."
"Essentially it is a crush." Nathan said. "The kids use it to differentiate from love, because they have been spoken to about how they are too young to declare they are in love with someone. That something that can happen later, but at this time, they are too young.
Most of the boys that Allie hangs out with are a bit older. They are all at least fifteen. Right now there is Harper Tucker, Robert Wolf and Cody Stanton. All but Cody are still in school. Cody finished when he was back east with his mother before they returned this summer. I have also spoken to the group of boys about respect and being a gentleman. I think they are more worried about upsetting me. They respect me and I know that Cody and Robert have talked about becoming a Mountie. They also know I will not hold back in punishment if they cross the line. They all saw that when Allie played a prank the first fall we were here and Opal got hurt."
"What did you do?" Maggie asked.
"Allie was grounded for two months." Nathan said. "She had to go help Opal with her chores since Opal's arm was in a sling. She also had to muck out Newton and Hero's stalls everyday. All while still going to school, doing her homework and regular chores."
"Oh." Maggie said.
"Allie learned when I said not to do something that I meant it." Nathan said. "The boys learned as well because Allie couldn't go fishing or play ball for two months."
"I guess Allie is not your typical fourteen year old." Maggie said. "She is more like my sister and I were when we were sixteen or seventeen."
"In some ways." Nathan said. "Allie has had to grow up fast. She had to take on responsibility sooner than most children. She has also learned about good and evil a lot sooner than most people. My mother calls Allie an old soul because she is wise beyond her years. She sees, hears and understands more than most people give her credit for."
"I will try to remember that." Maggie said. "But I wasn't wrong about learning her usual activities and routine."
"I agree." Nathan said. "So are we good?"
"Yes." Maggie said.
Nathan gave Maggie a kiss, then went to work at his desk. Maggie cleared off the table and wiped it down again. She then went to the trunk along the wall and pulled out the pattern, material, pins and scissors. Maggie worked on getting all the pieces of each jumper cut out.