JENNY WOKE UP to Travis’s gentle nudging.
“Hmm,” she murmured. She was in his arms, and she didn’t want to move. “What time is it?”
“A little after six.”
She yawned and snuggled deeper into his arms. “My internal clock is off.”
“Good for your internal clock. I like feeling you next to me.” He kissed her long and hard.
She responded with enthusiasm, even as a worrying little voice in the back of her head had questions. “What have we done?” she asked when his lips relinquished hers.
“I think they call it making love,” he said lazily.
“And it was splendid but...”
“You want more than splendid?” he asked. “Greedy little devil, aren’t you?”
“Practice makes perfect,” she said suggestively.
“I think it’s already perfect, but I’m up for more practice,” he retorted.
She ran her tongue over his chest, and his body reacted immediately.
“Dammit, woman, you’re playing with fire,” he said. “And I woke you for a reason.”
“What better reason could there be?”
“The most spectacular sunrise you’ve probably ever seen.”
“Even better than yesterday?”
“Yep.”
“That’s a big promise.”
“And I have a surprise.”
She broke into a huge smile. “I love surprises.” Still, she couldn’t decide between his arms or the sunrise, but then her curiosity won. They were leaving in a few hours. She might never again have a chance to decide whether a Sedona sunrise would be the most spectacular she’d ever seen.
He knew she could never resist a challenge. She rose and peered out the balcony door and was instantly beguiled. She couldn’t remember seeing anything quite as beautiful. The sun’s rays bounced off the spectacular red rocks, spreading an artist’s palette of gold and bronze and every possible shade of red.
Travis joined her, wearing his blue jeans. He held her long T-shirt, reminding her she was utterly naked. Before she could slip it on, he kissed the back of her neck, sending tremors down her back. “That was not fair,” she said, “but nice.”
He disappeared again and, in several minutes, showed up with coffee he’d brewed in the room’s coffee machine. She gratefully took a sip and, now at least partially clothed, opened the balcony door and stepped out. The view was wider outside, even more spectacular. She knew now what he meant.
The colors, the rock formations and the pure deep blue of the sky made her soul sing. She doubted whether the energy of the place had anything to do with it. But Travis certainly did. He knew her. Despite the short time they’d been together, he knew her better than anyone ever had.
And he still liked her. Maybe even more than liked.
“We have so little time here,” he broke into her thoughts, “and there’s so much to see, I thought maybe you would like to take a Jeep trip up into the hills. It goes off-road and it’s about two and a half hours. The drivers are great, really knowledgeable about the history of the area, wildlife and flora. You can learn a lot about the area in the shortest possible time. I checked, and we can get one at nine thirty.”
“What about Anna?”
“Since we’re the only passengers, we can take her.”
“How did you arrange that?”
“I have my ways,” he said.
She eyed him suspiciously. This was probably a very expensive Jeep ride, but it sounded wonderful. Just the kind of adventure she loved.
She stood on tiptoes and kissed him roundly.
“Do we have time for anything else?” she asked suggestively.
He grinned. “I can always make time,” he said.
And he did.
* * *
JENNY COULDN’T STOP talking about the Jeep trip during the two-hour drive to the Grand Canyon. It had been a wild off-road trek over rocks and through trails with a humorous guide who was a retired banker. It had been scary, educational and fascinating.
“How did you know about the Jeeps?” she asked, petting Anna in her lap.
“That Ranger buddy of mine took me on one years ago. As a teenager, he used to help in their office and filled in as a guide when necessary. Each guide does his own thing, although there are some central musts.”
“They seemed to enjoy scaring the wits out of passengers,” she said of the hair-raising ride up and down giant rocks without roads, but she got a close glimpse of the trees and plants, and even some wildlife. She loved every moment of it. Anna, on the other hand, slept all the way through the experience.
“That’s part of the attraction, I think,” he said. “You should come back sometime and take the hot air balloon tour. It’s always early in the morning, when there’s usually less wind.”
“You’ve done that, too?”
“Yeah. I have good memories of Sedona, although it’s changed a lot since I’ve last been here. It’s a lot larger, and the traffic is a hell of a lot worse.”
She’d wondered how he’d arranged the Jeep trip for just the two of them on the spur of the moment, but suspected a lot of money was responsible. She would insist on paying half. It was worth every cent.
She stopped talking then and concentrated on the drive up to the Grand Canyon.
It was a two-and-a-half-hour drive. They stopped for a quick lunch in Flagstaff, at a restaurant with a dog-friendly patio, and then they were off again.
She was in awe of it all. The drive was spectacular, and Travis pointed out the golden aspen, the giant pines and the majesty of the ponderosa giant oaks.
She’d been in the Alps and the German Black Forest and the Scottish Highlands, and all had their individual beauty, but there was something about the majesty of these red mountains that took her breath away.
Was this what she’d been looking for? She’d found so many stories on this trip. Stories that weren’t about death and destruction and starvation and the murder of children.
But then who would tell those stories?
“You’re very quiet,” Travis said as he pulled into an overlook.
“I’m just soaking it all in,” she said. “It’s breathtaking, and I don’t use the word often.” She petted Anna, who repositioned herself on her lap. Anna’s whiskers signaled approval.
“I like that dog,” Travis said. “She has good taste.”
“I knew you would,” she said with satisfaction.
She started to ask a question, when her cell phone rang. Except for using it to record conversations, she hadn’t used it much. She hadn’t expected anyone to call, but saw it was Lenore. “Hey there,” she answered, surprised at the call.
“Where are you?” Lenore asked.
“Nearing the Grand Canyon.”
“I thought you were on a business trip.”
“I am. We’re on the way back, and since I’ve never seen the Grand Canyon, we’re making a stop. I’ll be back in Covenant Falls by Monday night.”
“Someone called for you. A David Brent. He wants you to call him.”
“He didn’t say anything else?”
“No. He called Mother because that was the only number he had. Your old number apparently isn’t active. He wants you to call him.” She hesitated. “I didn’t give him your number. I thought you might want some warning first.”
David Brent was the executive editor of the largest news service she’d submitted articles to. He’d called her when she was in the hospital, and she’d told him she would contact him when she was ready to return to work. It wasn’t a matter of if; it was a matter of when.
She didn’t think it was a social call now. David didn’t do social.
She didn’t have to write the number down. She knew it well.
“How’s Charlie?” She didn’t want to think about the implications of David’s call yet.
“Fine. She likes the new school and is already in accelerated classes. She’d dying to meet Anna. The photos were great. So you will be back in Covenant Falls Monday night?”
“That’s the plan.”
“Are you going to stay in Covenant Falls longer?”
“Yes. I’m not sure how long.”
“Charlie has a school holiday coming up in two weeks. Teacher Training or something. She’s dying to go down there. If you’re still going to be there, I thought we could drive down on Friday morning and stay the weekend if you’re not too busy.”
She didn’t know whether she would be or not, but she knew Charlie would love Covenant Falls. Jenny wanted her niece to visit Jubal’s ranch and learn to ride. “Of course not,” she said. “I’ll make reservations for you at the inn. You’ll love it. It’s loaded with personality.”
“Great,” her sister said. “I’m looking forward to it.” She paused, and then she added, “And don’t forget about Mr. Brent. He seemed anxious.”
“I won’t,” she promised and hung up before Lenore could ask another question. She didn’t want to talk about the future in front of Travis. She didn’t want to talk about it at all now.
Wasn’t that what she wanted? Her shoulder was getting better, or at least she thought so. The pain wasn’t quite as sharp when she did her exercises. Was it well enough to return to the Middle East? Did she want to go back? She’d always been so sure before. Always known every step she would take.
“Charlie’s your niece, right?” Travis asked.
“Right.”
He didn’t ask any more questions. Of course he wouldn’t. He didn’t pry. She was relieved he didn’t because she didn’t have any answers. A month ago, she would have returned David’s call immediately. Now...she wasn’t sure. She didn’t want to spoil this weekend. She didn’t want to think about next week, or next month.
They saw signs indicating the approach to the Grand Canyon entrance gate. Travis paid the entrance fee and obtained directions for the lodge. The roads were crowded, but she suspected not as much as they were yesterday. She’d discovered that Sunday night was usually less crowded in popular attractions. Still, traffic had slowed to a crawl.
He found the lodge, and they checked into their room. Then he grabbed her hand in his good one, and with Anna in tow, they took off for the rim.
It was about a mile away. A shuttle existed, but it didn’t take dogs. That was all right. They were both stiff from the car, and there was a clear sky and cool breeze. And she was a people watcher. There were certainly a lot of people to see. Many were foreigners who had come long distances to see what had been in her backyard.
As they neared the main rim area, she saw more and more of the canyon. The afternoon sun painted the cliffs in gold. They took her breath away.
They reached the outlook and glanced down. A long, steep trail led downward, and she would have been on it a year ago. Now she wouldn’t trust her shoulder to catch her if she slipped.
She looked at Travis’s face. It was so damn strong, but she saw the same wistfulness she felt. She remembered him saying he walked down into the canyon with his friend. His leg probably wouldn’t allow it now. Her hand tightened around his, and she leaned into him.
She knew she wanted to come back, maybe ride a donkey down into the canyon or raft down the river, or just bask in the wonder of the sheer majesty of the place.
“Thank you for bringing me here,” she said simply as her heart seemed to overflow with so many emotions, she didn’t really know how to contain them. Wonder. Joy. Warmth. Possibilities.
* * *
AN IDEA HAD started to form in her mind from the seed that had been planted in Raton. It had grown throughout the week as they visited ranches owned by people who cared enough about veterans to spend all their resources in helping them. There were the small-town restaurants with good-hearted waitresses, the quirky museums and Karen who trained dogs for veterans with PTSD.
She envisioned a series of articles about the sublime to ridiculous that could then be made into a book. She wanted to share her own amazement and joy and appreciation of a country she barely knew. She even had a tentative title: “Exploring America through Fresh Eyes” or something similar, with the subtitle, “The Beautiful and the Wacky.” She might have to work on that a little bit.
She wondered if she could sell David on it. That reminded her of his call. She couldn’t believe she had forgotten it, that she hadn’t called him back.
She realized then she didn’t want to go back to war. It had slowly been killing her soul. She hadn’t really felt joy in a very long time. There had been satisfaction in writing a good story. Writing was her life’s blood, but writing about tragedy had also been draining her.
She took her eyes away from the canyon and looked up at Travis. He raised one eyebrow, recognizing that something had happened, had changed, and his arm went around her.
He smiled, and her heart cracked. It was that crooked smile caused by the scar, but she had come to like that face very much. Despite his career as a warrior, he was compassionate, with a desire to make the world better.
His ex-fiancé had to be one of the world’s greatest fools.
Her fingers tightened around his. Anna barked as if she sensed a change of some kind.
They walked around the rim, getting different views and stopping at one of the big telescopes to get a better look. “How does it look from down there,” she asked wistfully.
“Even more awesome than from here,” he said. “Maybe someday we can raft the Colorado through here.”
Someday. We. Implying a future.
But he didn’t know what he would do or where he would go next, and neither did she.
He broke the spell, as if uncomfortable himself with what he’d said. “I’ll treat you to an ice cream cone.”
They bought ice cream cones with chocolate fudge toppings and found a place to sit where they could watch the canyon walls change color as the sun headed west. Anna happily settled down under the bench where she could safely watch people go past, some of whom stopped to tell her what a charming dog she was and asked what breed. No one had ever heard of an affenpinscher before. The usually shy Anna seemed to bask in the praise.
Travis and Jenny stayed there until the sun went down in glorious colors, and they oohed and aahed with everyone else. Jenny started conversations with any number of the tourists, including a seven-year-old boy who wanted to take Anna home with him.
They bought two hot dogs for supper and watched the moonrise. She thought it amazing they could be silent and still so comfortable. She found herself leaning into him. His arm went around her, and she felt safe and happy and wanted. It was nearly ten before they left, Anna trotting happily alongside them. Jenny could barely believe she was the withdrawn dog of a week ago. She obviously felt comfortable. Safe. It suddenly hit her that she hadn’t had a flashback or nightmare since that first night. Because of Anna? Or Travis? Or both?
When they reached the room, he poured them both a glass of wine and they sat on a lumpy sofa, his arm around her, and Anna at her feet. “I don’t want to leave,” she said.
“I don’t either,” he said. “But we should be on the road by six in the morning. It’s going to be a long drive.”
“I think my shoulder is better,” she said. “Maybe I can relieve you in the long stretches without much traffic.”
He nodded and said, “We had better go to bed. It’s nearly eleven. I’ll take Anna out for a last walk.”
After he left, she eyed the two queen beds and tried one, and then the other. They didn’t compare with those at the Camel Trail Inn. She picked one, turned it down and went into the shower.
The water was perfect by the time he joined her. They soaped each other and then fell into each other’s arms, oblivious of the hot water. She’d never wanted someone so much.
She didn’t know who turned off the water, but they stumbled from the shower, grabbing towels and drying each other before falling on the bed. The first time they made love, he’d been a gentle lover, but now he was as hungry as she. He thrust again and again, sweeping them both into pure sensation that climaxed in one magnificent, blazing explosion. He fell on her, and together, they rolled to the side.
He wrapped his arms around her, and they went to sleep.
* * *
THEY WOKE AS the sun filtered into the room.
Travis looked at the clock. They were well behind the hour he’d expected to leave.
He didn’t regret a minute of it. Yesterday and last night ranked as the best in his life.
Jenny was still sleeping. She looked peaceful and had a smile on her lips, as if she’d experienced a wonderful dream. He leaned down and kissed her. Her eyes opened, and the smile widened.
“Good morning,” she said slowly.
“It is that, but we should leave. It’s after seven.”
“Oops,” she said. “I’ll be ready in twenty minutes.” She practically jumped out of bed and headed for the bathroom.
Nineteen minutes later, she met him in the car. And ten minutes after that, they left the park. She looked longingly back but knew that yesterday would always be vivid in her heart. It was the best day of her life.