Chapter 324 – After Church

The group sat there for another moment then decided to go face people out in the yard. They could hear people moving around behind them and knew that Frank was still at the doors greeting people.

"Have a good day." Abigail said. "I am going to go join my husband. Again, please let me know if there is anything that you need."

"We will." Jack said.

After Abigail left, Jack looked at Kate.

"I would like to try and introduce the girls to a few people." Jack said. "But please stay close. If they get overwhelmed, Albert can take you three back."

"Yes, Sir." Kate said.

"Thank you." Jack said. "I know that we really didn't talk about it, but I hope that you can call me Jack. I don't mind the sir, but it is not necessary."

"I will try." Kate said.

"That is all I ask." Jack said.

The group got up and went out to the church yard, stopping to thank Frank for the wonderful sermon as they went. When they got to the yard, Jack could tell that there were a number of people watching them. He spotted Joe and rune so he waved them over. The two men made their way to Jack. Before they got there, Lee and Rosemary joined them.

"How are you?" Lee asked.

"Doing good." Jack said. "Lee, I would like to introduce you to Beth and Sarah. Girls, this is one of my best friends Lee and his soon to be wife, Rosemary."

"Hi." Lee said.

Beth just waved at Lee, but Sarah buried her face into Jack's chest.

"They are being a little shy this morning." Jack said.

"That is okay." Lee said. "There will be plenty of time to get to know them later."

"So how long are they visiting?" Rosemary asked.

"They aren't visiting." Jack said. "Elizabeth and I are adopting them. They are the daughters of a Mountie that was killed in the line of duty and we have been asked by the grandparents to take them. He felt it would be easier to adopt them, so we are in the process of doing just that."

"What about the babies Elizabeth just had?" Rosemary asked.

"What about it?" Jack said. "We knew we were expecting when we agreed to take the girls. So we have four children instead of three."

"What does your mother think?" Rosemary said.

"She will keep her mouth shut or she won't see her grandchildren." Jack said, a bit of ice in his tone.

"Understood." Lee said, putting his hand on Rosemary's arm. "Please let me know if there is anything that you need."

"I will." Jack said.

"You can still stand up with me at the wedding." Lee said.

"I wouldn't miss it." Jack said. "Elizabeth might not be there, we will have to see. Also no matter what, the kids won't be there. We are keeping the twins home with limited contact until Carson says otherwise."

"Understandable." Lee said. "I will talk to you later this week."

"I will make a point of coming in and talking to you on Tuesday or Wednesday." Jack said.

"Sounds good." Lee said.

Lee and Rosemary left as Joe and Rune stood there. Beth looked at Joe and smiled.

"You are a Mountie, too." She said.

Joe knelt down to Beth's level.

"Yes, I am." Joe said. "My name is Joe. I am very best friends with your Daddy. I am looking forward to getting to know you. I am hoping that you feel comfortable calling me Uncle Joe. There is also going to be Uncle Doug. The two of us were the ones that painted that wonderful mural in your playroom."

"I love that." Beth said, with a big smile. "Princesses and Mounties are the best."

"We thought so as well." Joe said.

Beth gave Joe a hug. She didn't understand it all, but she was realizing that she was getting a big family and that was good. She missed her old Daddy, but her new Daddy was wonderful and it sounded like she had lots of Aunts and Uncles. She never really had that before and liked it. Once Joe stood up. Beth waved at Rune. He smiled back at her.

"I have my horse." Rune said. "What to come to see him. A ride will have to wait, but at least you can see him."

"Daddy?" Beth said.

"I will take them." Kate said.

"Sounds good." Jack said. "You may go with Miss Kate, but stay close to her."

"Okay." Beth said.

"Sarah want to go see the horse?" Beth asked.

Sarah shook her head and hugged Jack tighter.

"She is fine." Jack said.

"Okay." Kate said.

Joe, Rune, Kate and Little Beth walked off toward where Joe and Rune had their horses tethered. Jack knew that he was going to have to look for a horse for his daughters because he knew at that rate, there wouldn't be much to keep his oldest daughter off one. When Jack turned back to look over the yard, he saw Florence and a few other women he couldn't recall, standing over off to the side. They were whispering and trying to discreetly point at people. Jack was sure that they were talking about him and the people with, but he was going to try and not let it bother him that morning.

Several other people came up and talked with Jack or welcomed the Delaneys back. There were questions about Elizabeth and the babies, but mostly Jack didn't give details. He would say that she was home resting and the twins were too small for visitors when asked if someone could come out to the new house. At one point, Frank and Abigail joined Jack and his group. Jack knew that Sarah was getting overwhelmed, but he could see that Kate was busy with Little Beth as Opal and Emily had gone up to talk to Beth. Everyone in the group was glad to see Little Beth want to run and play with Opal and Emily. He knew that it would make it easier to convince Little Beth to go to school if she knew a few of the children there. As they were watching, they saw Maggie join the group of girls playing.

"Looks like she is making friends." Frank said.

"I am glad." Jack said. "When I spoke to her about going to school, she wasn't sure. This might make it easier."

"True." Abigail said. "But it still might be hard, so don't be surprised if there are hard days still."

"I expected it." Jack said. "We weren't sure if we should send her or wait until after we got back from our trip in October. It was Elizabeth who decided that sending her would be better and much easier to establish a routine."

"She is not wrong." Deb said, coming up.

"Hi." Jack said. "Did Elizabeth talk to you about Little Beth?"

"A little." Deb said. "She told me that while she will be six soon, she hasn't been to school with other children."

"True." Jack said. "But it looks like Opal and Emily have befriended her."

"Then I won't worry." Deb said. "Please ask Elizabeth if she is still up to help with some grading."

"I will." Jack said. "But you have Mrs Delaney and she was arranging to get another teacher for you. I am sure that we will hear something soon."

"I can help Elizabeth Rose with grading." Patty said. "I did that when I was here this past spring."

"I will keep that in mind." Deb said. "Just with the way that things are, there are a lot more worksheets than I had planned. Which reminds me, Abigail, I will need a couple more reams of blank paper."

"I will take care of that for you." Dee said.

"Thank you." Abigail said.

"How many would you like?" Dee asked.

"I was thinking that two more reams would be plenty." Deb said.

"We will get you a case." Wynn said. "It is just easier and then you won't have to worry."

"Thank you, Wynn." Abigail said.

"Yes, thank you." Deb said. "So you are the Wynn I have heard about."

"Nice to meet you." Wynn said.

Deb shook hands with Wynn and introduced her husband. Wynn formally introduced Dee and Patty. After Deb and Dan left, Wynn looked at Frank.

"I guess you haven't told people." Wynn said. "But my wife would have my head if I didn't say happy birthday."

"Yes, happy birthday." Jack said. "I didn't know."

"Because I didn't tell anyone." Frank said, looking at Wynn. "I don't need to be reminded that I am in my mid-forties."

Abigail leaned up and kissed her husband on the cheek.

"But we love you." Abigail said. "If you had told me, I would have planned something."

"Which is part of the reason that I didn't tell you." Frank said, kissing Abigail back.

"Fair enough." Abigail said. "But I know now, so you won't get away with hiding it anymore."

"Very well." Frank said. "You and the kids can celebrate me later. But for now, I agree with Carson the less people know the better. Becoming a father for the first time in my mid-forties was not what I had planned. The last thing that I need is to give the gossips more to talk about."

"Ignore them." Wynn said. "And sorry for outing you."

"No problem." Frank said. "Honestly, I feel bad about not telling Abigail sooner. I just didn't think about it. I wouldn't have known about her birthday if Elizabeth Rose hadn't told me this spring."

"I am going to have to write these all down so I remember for the future." Jack said.

"Me too." Frank said.

The group talked for a bit longer before Jack excused himself saying that he should get the girls home and fed. Wynn, Dee and Patty excused themselves as well. It was just as well, as most of the people who weren't staying in town had started to clear out. Jack took one more look and saw Florence and her group still there whispering back and forth. He wanted to say something, but knew that he wouldn't be able to hold back. He was going to let others deal with her for the next two weeks and if things weren't better when he came back, then he was going to let her have it.

Patty went to get Kate and Little Beth while Jack went to the car. He felt bad that Albert had been at the car the entire time. He tried to tell him he was free to interact with people, but Albert said it was fine. He would meet people as needed, but preferred to stay to himself until he was more comfortable with his surroundings. Jack appreciated his dedication, but wasn't sure that there was any real danger in Hope Valley. Maybe a few troublemakers, but nothing that would require Albert to feel like he had to constantly be on guard. Jack also understood that Mr Russell was worried about his granddaughters and had faced real danger over the years. While Jack didn't know everyone anymore, he felt comfortable standing with friends in the church yard. Jack also knew that once he was back at work and doing rounds again, he would get to know the new residents.

… … … …

When Jack and the group got back to the house, they found Elizabeth, Elizabeth Rose and the twins all sleeping. Kate took the girls upstairs to change. Wynn and Dee started lunch, while Jack checked on the twins. He saw a clipboard sitting on the table near the twins. When he picked it up, he saw it had Amber and Andrew's names and when they were last fed and noted if it was a bottle or not. It also noted when they were last changed. Jack thought it was a great idea, so everyone would know exactly when the babies had last been fed and changed, so there was no confusion. He was actually surprised they hadn't thought of it before.

After checking on the twins, he went to his office and made a note on his calendar about Frank's birthday. He had also marked down Abigail's and then their anniversary. He made a few other notes as well before heading back out to the living area. He wasn't going to wake anyone, so headed to the kitchen to see if he could help with lunch. He knew that Wynn and Dee knew their way around the kitchen, but felt that he should help as well. He found Patty, Wynn and Dee getting lunch ready. So Jack went to change out his suit and checked on the girls. He ended up playing with them in the playroom until they were called down to lunch. Jack had felt bad that he hadn't spent more time with the girls, but they didn't seem to notice. They loved Kate and seemed to be adjusting fine.

They sat and had a nice lunch. The twins started fussing about half way through the meal. Elizabeth and Elizabeth Rose both woke up when the twins started fussing. Elizabeth fed the twins before eating herself. Elizabeth Rose gave Amber her bottle and got her settled as her brother greedily ate at his mother's breast. Elizabeth couldn't believe how different the two little ones were. They had to coax Amber to eat and keep her awake. On the other hand, Andrew ate as fast as he possibly could. Elizabeth actually had to pull him off and to burp him a few times because of how fast he ate. She was doing what Carson said and letting him eat as long as he was suckling. If he still seemed hungry, they could offer him a bottle like they did Amber, but Andrew seemed to get enough from his mother. To keep things more even and easier, Elizabeth started to pump after feeding the twins, because Amber never seemed to eat as much. It was fine as they were able to give her the breastmilk in the bottle later. It was working, but Elizabeth wasn't sure how long that would go.

After feeding the twins and then pumping, Elizabeth joined the group at the table. While they were almost done eating, everyone stayed at the table while Elizabeth ate. They talked about church and Jack mentioned that it was Frank's birthday, but no one had known so there was nothing done. Elizabeth felt bad about that and Little Beth asked if she could make a picture for Frank because she felt bad that no one celebrated his birthday. Both Jack and Elizabeth thought that was a great idea and Aunt Elizabeth even said she would help Little Beth deliver it after school the next day. Little Beth had more questions about school, after playing with Opal, Emily and Maggie. The adults did their best to try and answer her questions. At least she sounded excited about going to school the following day.

Talking about Frank's birthday reminded Elizabeth that the following Sunday would be little Sarah's birthday. She would have to talk to Jack later about what they were going to do. They knew that they couldn't have a bunch of people over because of the twins, but inviting Frank, Abigail, Cody and maybe Carson might be manageable. Elizabeth let Jack know that she needed to talk to him about something later when they were alone. Jack nodded and wondered what was going on, but would wait to ask.

After they were done eating, Jack and Elizabeth spent some time playing and talking with Little Beth and Sarah while giving Kate a break. She took the opportunity to do some of her personal laundry. Wynn and Elizabeth Rose watched the twins while they talked. Dee cleaned up the lunch dishes and got supper in the oven, then went to the library. While he didn't mind spending time with the children or even his parents, he still was wanting some alone time to think. He wanted to spend some time reading some of the verses that Frank gave him. Not only was he going to read the verses, but the chapters they were a part of to get the context of what was being said. He had learned that the context was always important and sometimes was more important than the actual individual verses. He knew that Frank was trying to say something to him, so he wanted to see what it was. He also spent some time drawing. While he thought about lighting one of the fireplaces, it was quite warm in the library because it was still pretty nice outside. Dee was surprised because sometimes you never knew what the weather was going to be in the fall. But Dee was learning that the weather was much nicer in the shadow of the mighty mountains.

Once Sarah went down for a nap, Jack and Elizabeth left Little Beth to play on her own. Elizabeth checked on the twins and they were fine, still sleeping with her aunt and uncle, so Elizabeth went to pump and Jack went with to talk. Elizabeth talked about what she wanted for Sarah's birthday the following Sunday. They also talked about what to get her, especially after seeing the toys that she currently had. They decided to get her some crayons and a doll. They had already decided that just because they could spoil the children, they weren't going to. A few gifts for Christmas and their birthday were different, but even then they were only going to give one or two gifts. They also talked about what to get Little Beth for her birthday knowing it was coming up in October and they might be traveling. They also talked about how Jack wanted to get sleds for the girls for Christmas. Elizabeth thought that was a wonderful idea. She knew that the girls would love them and they would get a lot of use.

When Elizabeth was done pumping, Jack went to put the milk in the icebox and then left a note that they were laying down. He also let both Dee and Kate know that Little Beth was in the playroom and Sarah was sleeping. Kate said she would check on them, but wanted to finish her laundry. Dee said he would also listen for the children. Once letting people know the plan, Jack went to lay down with Elizabeth so they could get a bit of sleep while there was someone to keep an eye on the children.

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