When Reba opened her eyes, the sun was going down. She yawned and glanced at the car's digital clock. It was seven twenty-nine in the evening. She had slept the whole way there just like she had hoped.
She sat up and stretched her arms and legs out as best as she could in the cramped car and rubbed her neck.
"Where are we?" She asked Brock, taking a drink from a warm bottle of water.
"We just got into Branson," Brock responded with a yawn. Reba tried not to notice how cute he was when he yawned. "Van's ahead of us," He continued. "since he knows where the hotel is. Should be there in about fifteen minutes."
Reba nodded and sat up in the seat, glancing out the window, trying not to think about how awkward this was.
"You sure slept a long time," Brock said, trying to break the silence.
"Yeah," She responded and put her hands in her lap. "Just tryin' to pass the time."
"I hear ya. We took only a ten minute break three hours ago at a Wendy's drive-thru. Which reminds me, there's some fries for you in that bag down on the floor-board."
Reba glanced down and saw the bag but left it where it was. "No thanks," She said. "I'm actually a little car sick."
"Oh. Well, you'll be able to lie down soon. I'm sure the hotel will have a gift shop. We'll get you something to help with it."
She nodded and looked out the window, watching the Branson Strip go by. She saw the Ripley's Believe It Or Not museum, the Wax Museum, the Boat Tours, The Grand-Country-Inn Hotel, the seven-story Go-Kart track and the kiddie amusement park. She assumed Celebration City and Silver Dollar City, the big theme parks, were further into the city.
Minutes passed and before she knew it, they were pulling into the parking lot of The Holiday Inn. Luckily, there were two parking places right next to each other. The two cars parked and everyone filed out, grateful to be on solid ground.
Reba stretched and yawned as soon as her feet touched the pavement, still trying to wake up from her nap.
"Hey, Mom," Cheyenne said, walking up. "Have a good nap?"
"I sure did," Reba said, putting on a fake smile.
"I would hope so. You slept for eleven hours straight, sitting up. Seriously, you didn't move. Not even when we stopped at a Burger King, went in, ate, and came back out an hour later."
Reba smiled, thinking she'd keep the thing about the sleeping pills to herself and said, "Well, I've been pretty stressed lately. Sleeping helps."
"Oh, yeah. I bet it does. You know what else helps stress?" She asked, trying to trick her mom into spilling information. "Kissin' on your man."
Cheyenne hooked her arm around Van as he walked up dragging a suitcase behind him.
"What honey?" Van asked, smiling.
"Oh, nothing," Cheyenne said. "I was just telling Mom what a great stress reliever love can be."
"Oh!" Van said, catching on. "She's right. For the past five years, I have been stress free."
Cheyenne frowned and looked at him. "We've been together for eight years and married for six, Van."
Van froze and tried to get out of the trap. "Oh, no. No, see. What I meant was well, we-we need to go." He began to shuffle away, Cheyenne right behind him.
That was when Reba stepped away. She walked over to help Brock unload the back of his Lexus.
"Oh, I got it," He told her as she grabbed her suitcase from the trunk.
"No, no," She assured him. "I got it."
"Reba, you don't feel well. Let me get it." He tugged on it.
"I'm fine. Give me the suitcase." She tugged back.
"You're sick. Give it to me."
"Brock, let go!"
"Just let me carry it for you."
"Quit tryin' to butter me up! Now, give me the dern suitcase!" She jerked it away as Brock held up his hands.
"Fine," He said. "Carry it yourself."
"I will."
"Fine."
"Fine."
Brock slammed the hood of the trunk closed and waited for Van and Cheyenne to get their stuff together. When they did, all six of them walked into the hotel.
Inside, it was huge. Twelve stories tall with two glass elevators. There was a restaurant and even a bar. The place had chandeliers hanging from the ceilings and luggage carts lining the wall. The Hart-Montgomery family looked rather out of place.
Van stepped over to get the rooms all lined out while the rest of the family waited nearby, marveling at all the things in the grand hotel.
Just as Reba was thinking about how she'd just love to be in the bar, Van finished up at the check-in desk and walked over, room keys in hand.
"Okay, everybody," He said, holding up the room keys. "Rooms 712 and 713 are ours. Mr. H, you and Jake, along with Mrs. H are in room 713 and me and Cheyenne and Elizabeth are in 712." He handed out the room keys. "Don't lose them," He warned.
"Will do," Brock said, sticking the key in his back pocket. Reba did the same.
"Okay, Jake," She said, turning to her son who was barely keeping his eyes open. "Ready to head up?"
He nodded and blinked slowly.
"Okay, then. Let's go."
"Right behind you," Brock said, to which Reba rolled her eyes.
"We'll be up in a minute," Cheyenne said. "We have to go to the gift shop to find Elizabeth a teddy bear to sleep with. She left hers at home."
"Alright," Reba said. "Good night."
"Night, Mom. Love you."
"Love you, too."
With that, the three made their way up to room 713. Reba dreaded having to spend a whole week with Brock. She prayed the whole time that nothing would happen between them although she didn't know why she couldn't finish the prayer with an 'amen'.
By the time they got up to their room, Jake was on the verge of being carried because he was so tired.
"Lead him to the bed," Reba instructed Brock when they got inside, and pointed to the queen size bed him and Jake would share.
Brock did as Reba asked as Reba closed the drapes on the windows. She turned around to see Jake conked out on top of the red and gold bed-spread. That was basically the color scheme. Red and gold everything. It wasn't very pretty but it was a place to sleep and right now, that's all Reba cared about doing.
She set her suitcase on the bed and grabbed her toothbrush and pajamas and made her way to the bathroom.
"I'll be out directly," She said to no one in particular and shut the bathroom door quietly.
In the bathroom, there were two sinks, a toilet, a coffee maker, and even a toaster. In addition to that, there was even a jacuzzi bathtub.
I can't wait to get in that, She thought as she changed into her pajamas.
She brushed her teeth and exited in a timely fashion. Brock went in after her.
As he did his business, Reba crossed the room to Jake's bed-side and got the sheets out from under him. She took his shoes off and rolled him under the covers. She kissed his forehead and brushed his hair out of his eyes.
As she whispered a good-night, she was painfully reminded of when he was in the hospital. Holding back tears, she switched the over-head light off and crawled into her own bed.
After thanking God that Jake was still doing fine, she closed her eyes and listened to Brock bustle around in the bathroom, but for some reason she couldn't understand, she anticipated him coming to bed.
Downstairs, a conniving Van and Cheyenne weren't in the gift shop getting Elizabeth a teddy bear, they were out in the parking lot, breaking into Brock's car.
"Hurry up, Van," Cheyenne urged. She carried a sleeping Elizabeth in her arms.
Van fumbled with the wire coat hanger. "I'm trying," He said.
"Just hurry. I wanna know what was in that box."
"I'm hurrying as fast as I can. Aha!"
"Did you unlock it?"
"No, I just got that joke Barbra Jean told me the other day."
"Van!"
"Oh, wait...wait. I think I got it...Got it!"
The familiar sound of a car door unlocking was like music to their ears. Van opened the door and crawled in as Cheyenne stood outside with Elizabeth.
"Now," Van said, switching on his pen-light. "What are we lookin' for? Small box. Dark in color."
"Square," Cheyenne offered.
Van stopped and looked back at his wife. "Of course it's square, it's a box."
"Just tryin' to help."
"Yeah... Man, I'm not finding anything-oh, here we go!"
"What? Did you find it?"
"No. Lemonheads." He held up the yellow box. "Want one?"
"Van!"
"What? I haven't eaten in four hours."
"Just keep looking."
"Fine. Hey, what if he's got it on him?"
"I doubt it."
"Oh, wait a minute. What do we have here?" He pulled his arm out from underneath the driver's seat and held up a blue velvet box. "This looks like it."
"Van, wait," Cheyenne said. "That's a ring box."
He opened it and revealed the glittering diamond engagement ring.
"Oh my gosh! Van, they're engaged!"
If I'm remembering correctly, this chapter wasn't posted on my old account. I hope you all enjoyed it. Review? Thanks for reviewing so far! I sure do appreciate it. (: