CHAPTER ONE

Jack had been back in Hope Valley for exactly one week, and Elizabeth was almost beside herself with excitement. As she sat by her bedroom window that night, she kept replaying in her mind his entrance back into town. The two of them had grown much closer over the past few days, and both were looking forward to their upcoming nuptials. There was so much to plan, and Elizabeth had already started a list of tasks and upcoming dates. Cake, dinner, dress, vows…Elizabeth's journal was almost full! There had been so many things that had changed for her. Who would have ever thought she would be marrying the same Mountie who she had initially hated upon his arrival. What an amazing journey…

The following day, Elizabeth was outside enjoying the summer heat. It felt good to feel the vitamin D just soaking into her pores. The children were in the midst of playing games at recess, and she could see Jack walking over to her in the distance. He wore a playful smile on his face, one that she looked forward to seeing up close. Before he could utter a word, Norman Walker came up to them both and cleared his throat. "Uh, hello Jack. Elizabeth."

"Hello Norman, what can I do for you today?" Jack said.

"Well, I hate to ask this, but I need a favor. See, many of the vegetables on my farm are almost ready for harvesting. If they're not properly harvested, the whole crop could go bad, and I'll have no way to support myself for the next year. Sadly, I just received a wire from my niece in Waycross. My wife's been up there for a while with her sister, but it sounds like whatever illness she had was contagious. I need to go up there and take care of things. I can't let this keep going on, and the timing has me in a pickle".

"Well I'm sorry to hear that Norman, is there anything I can do?" Jack asked sincerely.

"Jack, is there any way you can tend to my harvest for a few days while I go up and get Martha? I'll never be able to work as long as I know that she's ill. You can stay in my house, and there is plenty of food to keep you going until I get back."

Jack thought carefully before answering, "Well, I'll have to check and see if Bill could take over for me for the next few days, but if everything pans out, I'd be happy to help".

"Thanks Jack" Norman said, "And if you ever need anything, I'd be happy to help" he smiled.

As Norman walked away, Elizabeth smiled feeling both proud and inspired. "That was very sweet of you" Elizabeth said.

"Well Norman's had it hard over the past few months. It's the least I could do" Jack smiled.

That night, Jack came over to Elizabeth's house for dinner. As they sat down to eat, Jack talked about his upcoming venture. "His farm is actually pretty amazing. Norman has this great rose garden that runs around the entire front of the house. I imagine Martha keeps that house smelling pretty good. Did you know there is a lake pretty close to the house? It's probably a pretty good way to cool off after a long day's work."

"Yes, I'm sure it is" Elizabeth laughed. "But in the mean time you should eat up. I wouldn't want you working on an empty stomach. In fact, why don't I bring you lunch tomorrow? It's Saturday, so there's no school…"

"That's true" Jack said. "Alright, I'll see you at lunchtime tomorrow".

The following morning, Elizabeth had a tingling feeling in the pit of her stomach. She was so excited to go to the farm, and see what exactly happened when it came to harvesting vegetables. And of course, she always enjoyed sharing a meal with Jack. Elizabeth finished cleaning her row house, changed into a new set of clothes, and carefully packed a picnic basket full of sandwiches, potato salad, and fresh fruit. When she was done, she glanced at the clock to see what time it was. 10:15. Well, it's a 45-minute walk to get to the Walker farm. I'll be a little early, but I'm sure Jack won't mind.

As Elizabeth walked toward the Walker farm, her anticipation grew. She was excited to see Jack hard at work. Days on the farm begin at 5am, so by the time she arrived, he would have been working for six hours already. She was thankful she packed a little extra food just in case he was famished. When Elizabeth finally arrived, Jack was nowhere to be found. Had she gone to the wrong place? Had he left early? Maybe he was in the house. A few moments later, Elizabeth opened the front door, and placed the picnic basket on the kitchen table. Well he was definitely not in the house. After walking outside, she heard a splash from a distance. Ah yes! He said there was a lake nearby. He must have been thirsty and decided to drink some water.

Elizabeth walked through the woods, and saw the reflections of the crystal clear lake coming into view. What she did not expect was to see Jack without a shirt on. She had never seen any man without a shirt on in fact. She had seen diagrams in health textbooks, and seen photos in her college science classes, but nothing like this. He was standing in waist deep in the water, wiping the excess water of his face. He could not see her yet, and she wanted to keep it that way. For just a few precious seconds, she took in the view of his even tan, his arm and chest muscles, and the way his hair was sticking up in every direction. He was beautiful, and it stunned her into silence.

Well, not into complete silence. She must have sighed at one point, because Jack suddenly looked up and saw her. He looked back down, embarrassed that Elizabeth was seeing him in his current state. "Elizabeth…I'm uh…I'm sorry, I didn't expect to see you here so early. Is it lunch time already?"

"Oh…uh…no, I just wanted to see you" Elizabeth choked out. "I just didn't expect to see so much."

Jack chuckled. "Well, why don't you head back to the house and I'll meet you there in a few minutes."

Instead, Elizabeth stepped closer to the water. "You know Jack, you don't need to be embarrassed around me. I think you're beautiful". Before she knew it, she was standing at the edge of the water. Jack took a deep breath, and closed the distance between them. "Elizabeth you should probably go back to the house" his voice trembled. "It's not proper for you to see me like this". "Oh Jack" Elizabeth smiled and sighed, "We're almost married. You are the only person I ever want to see like this." Jack closed the distance between them, and kissed her softly. Elizabeth was overwhelmed with her feelings, and lost track of her surroundings. As their kiss deepened, Elizabeth's hands trailed from Jack's neck down to his waist. She was shocked at how natural it was for the two of them to be together. Jack broke their kiss at the feeling of her hands on his waist. His brain was foggy, and he was losing control. "Wait" he said quickly. He noticed how she couldn't keep her eyes off his chest. It surprised him. "Let's get back to the house, maybe we could have an early lunch."

"That sounds good" Elizabeth said. "As long as you keep the shirt off" she said with a smirk. "Oh yea?" Jack laughed. "Well I think that could be arranged". The two of them walked towards the house, each with a surprisingly mischievous grin.

After walking inside, Jack and Elizabeth felt acutely aware of their proximity. One on hand, they both felt an electrical attraction to one another. On the other hand, being in another family's house was awkward and uncomfortable. "Why don't we find a nice cozy spot outside to eat this delicious lunch?" asked Jack.

"Sounds perfect" Elizabeth smiled. Jack grabbed his shirt and a blanket. Elizabeth grabbed her picnic basket.

The sun was streaming into the woods, and the air had a bit more humidity to it than normal. As the pair walked into the woods, they were searching for the perfect spot; something that wasn't readily accessible for Hope Valley residents, and something with the perfect amount of shade. Eventually they found a spot, spread out the blanket, and placed the picnic basket on the ground. "Well this is certainly an adventure" Elizabeth said with a smile. "Yes, and I have a feeling we'll be having many more of them in the coming months" Jack said. The two shared a quick kiss before exploring the contents of the picnic basket.

After lunch, Jack and Elizabeth were relaxing on their blanket, looking up at the light streaming through the trees. "Well that was the best lunch I've ever had, though I think the company had a lot to do with it".

"Is that so constable?" Elizabeth put on her most flirtatious smile. Jack inched closer his finance, mirroring her look of flirtatiousness. The two slowly came together in a passionate kiss. But this kiss was different; perhaps it was because the two were sitting on the ground. After a few moments, Jack slowly lay Elizabeth down. For the first time in their relationship, the two were kissing horizontally, and they both knew it. "We should stop" Jack looked down and whispered. But for the life of him, he couldn't clear the fog in his head. Jack had put his shirt back on at Norman's house, but during the course of their escapade, it had come off again. He was determined to keep all of Elizabeth's clothes on, as well as the rest of his own. While Jack was balancing his resolve and his feelings, Elizabeth was focusing on learning as much as she could about Jack's physique. She was thrilled to explore every inch of his upper half. She loved feeling his strong muscles. Jack was just as excited to explore the little bit of Elizabeth's skin that was exposed. He kissed her neck, chin, lips, and any other piece of skin he could find. The two continued their kisses for several minutes, and it wasn't long before both of them were damp with sweat. Jack's hair was hanging down to his forehead, gleaming with moisture. "Jack, I love you so much" Elizabeth whispered.

"I love you so much Elizabeth, and I cannot wait to make you my wife" he smiled. The pair spent the better part of the day together. Elizabeth returned to her row house, planning to see Jack again at the farm the following day. She was ready for every new adventure the future would bring her, and she wanted to spend every moment with him.