Page 13 of A Winter's Wedding

“Convincing me, or you?” she giggled. “Like you said, it’ll be fine. Let’s just go see what it is.”

They traveled down the road for about a mile and crested over a small hill. Dozens of rustic structures came into view and a few RVs were parked in the shade of the only trees she had seen for an hour or more. “It’s like an oasis or something.”

Leo pulled up to the front of the only log style cabin in sight. A welcome sign, affixed above a small, covered porch indicated where to park. Leo was the first out and came around to open her door. She hopped down from her high position and shielded her eyes from the sun hanging low in the sky. On the porch, an empty rocking chair moved by its own volition and tumbleweed rolled past her feet. “Nothing to worry about, huh?”

Walking through the saloon style door was like walking back in time to the wild west. A long, polished wood countertop stretched along one side. Behind the counter, shelves overflowed with essential, yet modern, items from canned goods to band-aids. Seeing no employees, America dinged the brass desk bell sitting at the closest corner of the counter.

“Hello?” she called out without having waited for anyone to answer the bell’s ding and turned back towards the doors. “I guess no one’s here. We should just get back in the car and keep going.”

It was Leo’s turn to laugh. “Let’s just see what?—”

“Good evening, weary travelers,” a man said as he came out from a back room. “You need somewhere to stay the night?” he laughed, though America was unsure what was funny. “Just a joke. No one comes out here unless they need a place to sleep. I have the market cornered. It’s either this or whatever horse you came in on. Do you need a hook-up for a recreational vehicle, or do you need a hogan?”

“A what-an?”

“A hogan. It’s a traditional dwelling of the Navajo people. You’re not from around here, are you?”

“Is anyone?” Leo said.

“That’s rude,” the man with dark black hair said and turned to leave. “I’m just messing with you. This is tribal land, but even Navajo know better than to rough it in this harsh land nowadays.”

Leo wiped the mortification off his face and forced a grin. “A hogan will be great. Thank you.”

“Do you have one with two beds?” America asked and looked at Leo. In the year since being engaged, they hadn’t been intimate yet. She had wanted to wait until their wedding night. Their real wedding night. “I know we technically got married today, but it doesn’t feel right just yet.”

“Married? Today? Congratulations,” the man said. America and Leo nodded in unison. “But I’m afraid we only have rooms with one bed. King size, you can sleep on opposite ends if you need to, but I don’t know many newlyweds who would do that.”

America was officially embarrassed. “One bed is fine. Thank you.”

Leo slapped his credit card on the counter. “Do you take AmEx?”

The man nodded and took Leo’s card. “My name is Nahele. And let me know if I can make your stay any better.” He handed over a metal room key attached to something that looked like a scrap of a two by four. “Number eight. Can’t miss it, and you can park right in front of your unit.”

Leo thanked the man and tucked America’s shoulders under his arm as they walked out.

“There’s a community bonfire at eight o’clock and breakfast is at sunrise at the circle.”

After driving around a large circular road, Leo parked in front of the hogan numbered eight. They grabbed all of their luggage, including America’s dress tucked away in the satin garment bag, and went inside. The eight-sided structure was made of sticks and packed mud, but inside, light from several windows lining the outer walls of the one room house flooded the space. In the center of the room, there was one king size bed with loads of white linens and plush pillows calling to America.

Wasting no time, she dropped the luggage and flopped down into the center of the mattress. The fluffy covers seemed to hug her. “It’s almost as good as your beds back at The Foundry. Nahele is giving you a run for your money. You may be known in Christmas Cove for expertly made-up beds, but this one is pretty darn good.”

“I’ll take your word for it,” Leo said and walked behind a bulkhead that acted as the bed’s headboard and separated the bathroom area from the bedroom. He turned on the water and she could tell he was washing his hands. When he came back out, he looked longingly at the bed. “How am I so tired?”

America patted her hand on the covers beside her. “Come lay with me?”

“Are you sure it’s not too soon?” His words were tinged with annoyance.

She turned to her side and looked at him. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to sound hurtful, about the two beds. It’s just…. I don’t know.”

“A lot to take in?”

She nodded because tears were pushing at her eyes.

Leo swept the tear from her upper cheek and kissed her lightly on her lips. “We can take as long as you need. We’ve waited for fourteen months… Let’s just sleep. And attack tomorrow with everything we have.”

She kissed him back. “Thank you for understanding.”

Chapter8

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