Chapter 325 – Frank's Birthday
The rest of Sunday was quiet for the Thorntons and Delaneys. Jack and Elizabeth were able to get some sleep, while Wynn and Elizabeth Rose cared for the twins. When Wynn checked on them, he smiled as he saw them curled up together in bed, with Jack tenderly holding Elizabeth. He decided that he was going to let them sleep as long as they wanted. He knew that they needed it. He knew how hard it was having one newborn, he couldn't imagine what two were like and then add in everything else that Jack and Elizabeth were going he knew it wasn't easy.
Wynn went back to his wife and let her know that Jack and Elizabeth were sleeping so he was going to let them sleep as long as they could.
"That is fine." Elizabeth Rose said. "We have plenty of formula for bottles. We do need to do a load of diapers, but that is fine."
"I can get that started if you want to continue to rest." Wynn said.
"I am fine." Elizabeth Rose said.
"I know that you have been more tired than usual." Wynn said. "So you sit with your feet up and I will get the diapers going. I want you to rest as much as possible if you are going to insist on teaching."
"Yes, dear." Elizabeth Rose said.
"I am only saying this because I worry." Wynn said. "I want you to take care of yourself. I don't know what I would do if I lost you. You are the light and love of my life. So please take care of yourself. I know that you have been struggling with something all summer. I also understand if you don't want to talk about it, but don't think I don't notice things."
"Okay." Elizabeth Rose said. "But you worry for nothing. It is just life and I am getting older. It happens. I will get through it. Women have been dealing with this for generations, I will be fine. I promise if I feel something is off, I will let you know. I will also go see Carson if I feel it is necessary."
"Fine." Wynn said.
Elizabeth Rose sat back with her feet up and little Andrew on her chest. She smiled. She loved the two babies. If she was honest, it really made her want another one, but she was pretty sure that time was passing her. Then she thought about starting over with a baby and wondered if that was fair. She knew that she and Wynn would love a child like no other, but to have a baby at their age would definitely draw some talk, not that she really cared. She figured if Frank and Abigail could do it, she and Wynn could do it if the opportunity presented itself. She said a prayer and left it in God's hands. She knew in her heart that her time as a mother was not over by a long shot, but she just wasn't sure how it was going to happen. She did however trust God that if He gave her that strong of a feeling, she would trust that He would provide.
Wynn stood there watching his wife for a moment before he went to the kitchen to get the diapers going. He knew how much she was loving snuggling and cuddling with the twins. He wished that he could give her a child, but he feared that their time had passed and he wasn't sure how to comfort his wife. He knew that she felt that her time as a mother wasn't over and that there was going to be another little one or two in the house, but at the same time, he wasn't sure how that was going to happen. Wynn stopped at the counter and said a prayer. He prayed that somehow, some way that his wife was correct. He hated to see her get her heart broken again. He knew that it never really healed after they had lost Jonathan. Wynn knew that kind of heartache never went away, but at the same time, he prayed to God that He wouldn't break their hearts again. Wynn knew how strongly his wife felt that their time as parents was not over and the last thing he wanted was for her to be disappointed.
… … … …
After they left the churchyard, Frank and Abigail went back to the cafe. Since they no longer had someone to work on Sundays, Abigail had made the decision to stay closed for the time being. She knew that it would be good for her to be open, considering how busy it was in town before and after the services. She was hoping to sort things out, but at least she had a day to sort of catch her breath. She knew that with the Delaneys and Patty there, and Dee's fiancée coming, that there would be help if she wanted it. She also thought that with their circumstances changing, that if she couldn't find two regular people to work on Sunday mornings into the early afternoon, she would just stay closed. She knew that it would be a bit of a financial hit, but she didn't see any other way around it. She needed time to catch up and to take care of herself. She was already closing early during the week when it was nasty out.
When they got back to the cafe, Abigail insisted that Frank take it easy while she made him a lovely lunch. Frank said it wasn't necessary, but Abigail insisted. She felt it was the least that she could do since she hadn't known about his birthday. He explained again that he hadn't told anyone about his birthday and that was fine. So Frank relented and let his wife take care of him and pamper him on his birthday. Cody came in about thirty minutes after Frank and Abigail got home, asking what was for lunch. When Abigail said she could make him something, but they had just finished eating, Cody seemed upset.
"We didn't know where you were." Frank said. "You said you were going to hang out with Robert. You know that we eat right away when we get home from church. So you only have yourself to blame."
Cody just grabbed some cookies and an apple and left again with his glove. Abigail was going to follow him, but Frank stopped her.
"Let him go." Frank said. "He is just mad and taking it out on us. I will talk to him. Joe and Rune are out and about. If he took his glove he couldn't have gone far."
"I know." Abigail said. "I thought we had a few more years before the moody teenager showed up."
"I think it is hard not getting to spend time with his best friend." Frank said. "They are in different groups and on different days. Even if they were there on the same days, they would be in different classrooms and wouldn't get to spend much time together."
"I know." Abigail said. "It is not ideal, but it is what it is right now."
"I know and you are not to blame." Frank said. "You, Deb and everyone else are doing everything that they can. Didn't Mrs Delaney say that she had sent for someone to help teach."
"Yes, she did." Abigail said. "But she wasn't sure when they would be here. She was hoping for it to be this week. She said she would let me know when she heard back and I haven't heard any word from her since she sent the wires the first day."
"I am sure that she will let you know as soon as she knows." Frank said. "I know that she has been helping at the schoolhouse, but I don't think that she was actually in town since they went out to the house. I know that when Rune and I went out there yesterday, that Jack explained that they were trying to limit their contact with people to keep the twins safe. He said that even when Elizabeth Rose comes back, she immediately changes clothes and washes up before going further into the house and they would all be doing that when they got home today. I know that Carson was worried about exposing the twins to things with them being so small. He didn't say much, but did ask for me to continue to pray for them because he was really worried, especially about little Amber. He said that it would be months before she was out of danger. I don't think that he realizes that Jack, Elizabeth and everyone is going back to Hamilton in October."
"That is right." Abigail said. "They were invited to some big party there."
"It is not just some party." Frank said. "They are going because Jack is being honored by the king of Norway for saving the girls. They are truly princesses and the granddaughters of a prince. Jack doesn't want them treated any differently, but it doesn't change the fact that they are real life princesses. He is being honored for what he did to save those girls. That is why they are going back and the only reason that they are going back."
"Oh, I guess I didn't realize that." Abigail said. "Elizabeth didn't say much, other than that they had to go back to Hamilton for a few days in October and they had a formal event to attend. I guess I just assumed it had something to do with her family or even something that the Delaneys had invited Jack and Elizabeth to."
"They didn't want to say much." Frank said. "But Jack talked to me about it because he was worried about going back to Hamilton with everything going on with Elizabeth's family. I told him that he needed to talk to Wynn about his concerns and that he was Mountie. He should be able to expect his brothers-in-arms to keep him and his family safe, if he would just let the right people know."
"Good advice." Abigail said. "Maybe mention something to Wynn, just in case."
"Sounds like a plan." Frank said. "Now what do you want to do with our day? Sounds like Cody is going to be gone for a while."
"I was thinking of a horse ride." Abigail said. "But I don't know if that is advisable."
"We can go ask Carson." Frank said. "I know that he said he was going to be at his cabin this afternoon."
"Don't bother him." Abigail said. "I just don't know it has been so long since I have been in a family way. I also know that Noah and I did a lot of things that probably weren't advisable for a woman in my condition, but we didn't have a choice. I had to take care of things and there were few people that were able to help me. It wasn't the greatest place where we were living when I was pregnant with Peter. The conditions that we lived in and the way that management treated the men were reasons that Noah left that mining company and came here."
"I am sorry that you had to go through that." Frank said, coming over to wrap Abigail in a hug.
Frank stood there and held Abigail for a few minutes, then leaned down and kissed her.
"I have a few ideas of what we can do." Frank said. "It would even involve me unwrapping one of the greatest gifts I have ever been given."
Abigail looked up at Frank, who raised his eyebrows a few times. Abigail swatted his chest.
"How about we finish up the laundry first." Abigail said. "Then we can let Rune know that we want to go on a picnic alone and he can be around if Cody comes back."
"I guess we can do that." Frank said.
Frank gave Abigail one more kiss before going and pulling the washing tub out before getting water heating. Abigail went to gather all the laundry from the storage area as well as upstairs. She knew that it needed to be done, as much as she would have preferred to sneak off and spend the afternoon with her husband.
Frank and Abigail ended up having a wonderful afternoon. They were able to talk about a lot of things while they got the laundry done. As they were finishing up the laundry, Rune did come back. They told him that they were going fishing and wanted to spend some time alone. He told them that it was fine and he had plans to just stay around the cafe. He also let them know that Cody was playing with a group of boys over on the far side of the lot that Frank had purchased. It was one of the few green spaces big enough for the boys to still play baseball. Abigail felt bad about that, but it was what it was. They needed housing and while she wished she had been more aware so things could have been better planned, she wasn't and there wasn't much that she could do about it at the time. She did mention that the town needed to find a dedicated spot for the children to play, so parents didn't have to worry. Frank agreed, but told Abigail that was a problem for another day and she didn't need to solve it at the moment.
Once they had talked to Rune, Abigail packed a picnic for them while Frank gathered their fishing gear. Once they left, they first went to the parsonage to talk for a bit more. With their fishing gear and picnic basket set aside, they sat on the couch that was in the room. What started as them finishing their conversation from earlier turned into Frank kissing his wife. She responded in kind and before they knew it Frank led his wife to the small bedroom that he kept there. After climbing the mountain several times together, Frank and Abigail lay wrapped up in each other's arms.
"Thank you." Frank said. "This has been one of the best birthdays I can remember in a long time. I am sorry I didn't tell you about my birthday, but before today, I haven't had good memories of my birthday. My grandfather passed away on my birthday and then when I was still Matt, my birthday wasn't a big thing. Even after I became Frank, I didn't celebrate my birthday because of the past."
Abigail turned to face Frank.
"I am sorry about your grandfather." Abigail said. "We all have painful memories from our past, but that doesn't mean that we stop celebrating the good things. Jack's father died the day after his twelfth birthday and he stopped celebrating his birthday and then when Elizabeth tried to do something this year, he got upset. I am going to tell you roughly the same thing that I told him – would your grandfather be happy that you stopped celebrating just because he wasn't there. I am sure that he would want you to be happy."
Abigail then took Frank's hand from under her hip and moved it to her midsection.
"You told me to believe and have faith." Abigail said. "I have. You need to believe and have faith that we love you and want to celebrate the good times with you. People understand hard times and painful memories, but most everyone still chooses to celebrate the good times. Please, we have a lot to celebrate. We are both getting something that we thought we never would get."
"You are right." Frank said. "Again, I am sorry. I should have told you, but at our age, you also understand why I didn't think it mattered."
"I know what the calendar says." Abigail said. "But you honestly make me feel like I am in my twenties again. I married Noah when I was fifteen and had Peter when I was nineteen. By the time I was twenty-one, I was a busy wife and mother who had also suffered several losses. When I lost Noah and Peter, I thought my life was over. I forced myself to focus to save the only thing that I had left – my home. While Noah was a great man and a good provider, he was never overly affectionate. So in many ways, what you and I share is so much more than what Noah and I had. I love you so deeply and I just want to be able to celebrate not only you, but our love. Does that make sense."
"Yes it does." Frank said. "Thank you for sharing with me. I hope that you know that you don't have to be embarrassed or feel bad about sharing about your past. I understand that Noah and Peter, and even the babies that you lost will always be in your heart. But I also know that love grows, it doesn't get divided. We all have a past. Some are worse than others, but the point is, we should be able to trust each other enough to share and I am sorry that I held something important back. You are right in wanting to celebrate me and our love. I also know that this little one is going to want to celebrate her daddy's birthday in years to come, so I just need to accept it."
Abigail leaned forward and kissed Frank.
"Thank you." Abigail said. "Maybe we should actually go fishing. We did tell Rune we planned on a fish supper."
"As long as I am doing the cooking." Frank said.
"But …." Abigail said.
"No buts." Frank said. "My fried fish is better than yours. Admit it. Besides, I love to cook, especially fish."
"Fine." Abigail said.
The pair got dressed and went down by the river to go fishing. They sat there along the bank, just enjoying their time together. They were able to catch enough fish for the four of them to have supper. They shared the lemonade and cookies that had been brought while they fished and before they went home. Once they knew they had enough fish and it was getting late, they walked back to the cafe arm in arm. Many people saw them and waved. No one raised an eye about the pair out on a lovely Sunday afternoon. While most people who paid attention knew that Frank and Abigail would sneak off to parsonage from time to time, no one was going to call them out on it. Most people knew that they were still newlyweds, no matter their age, and that it was difficult to find time together especially when there were other people in the house.
As happy as most people were for their mayor and pastor, they were going to be even happier when they learned of the pair's wonderful news. People who had lived in Hope Valley for a long time knew that Abigail deserved happiness after all she had been through. Those that had heard a little about Frank's past also felt that he deserved the happiness that he had found. While there were some that would question the couple about starting a family at their ages, the majority of people would be happy for the couple. Little did the people of Hope Valley know that there were many babies to come to their town and there would be many surprised parents in the next few years.
