"The New Bed" For at least the first few seasons, KItty's bed had a wooden frame. This story tells how Kitty ended up with a brass bed in her room.

It was Saturday morning and Kitty was stripping the bed clothing off her bed. She always washed her bed clothing on Saturdays. As she was gathering the sheets in her arms, one of Matt's socks fell to the floor. Dropping all the bed clothing, she wanted to make sure another one of his socks wasn't lost in there. Ma Smalley usually helped her with the washing, and having Matt's socks in the sheets would be hard to explain. Kitty could not find the sock's match and wondered when and how Matt managed to leave with just one sock on. Then the memory came flooding back to her, and it was a memory that made her smile and feel all warm and tingly inside. Kitty let her mind wander back to a few nights ago.

A Few Nights Ago...

Matt had been gone for over a week. He had to take a prisoner to Hays and then stay for the trial. When he finally made it back to Dodge, it was after midnight. It had been a long ride, and he was extremely exhausted. All he wanted to do was crawl into bed and go to sleep. As he rode past the Long Branch, he saw the light in Kitty's window. She was expecting him to come to her. He would go. He wouldn't let her down. Besides, being in bed with her sounded more appealing than the jail or his bed at Ma Smalley's.

Matt took care of everything with Buck and then went to climb the back stairs of the Long Branch. He pulled his key out of his pocket and unlocked the door. Opening the door and walking in, Matt saw Kitty sitting at her mirror taking her hair pins out of her hair. She must've gotten out of work not too long ago. Kitty had a routine after she left work. She would put on her nightgown, wash her face paint off, and then sit at her mirror and take out her hair pins. Matt loved watching Kitty do her nightly routine, but rarely got to see it. After he walked in, he just stood there and watched.

When she heard Matt walk in, Kitty turned and saw him looking at her. She knew why he was staring at her. Matt had shared with her that he loved watching her get ready for bed. When Kitty asked why that was, Matt's answer was that he felt that she was getting ready for him. Kitty never thought of it that way, but she guessed Matt was right. She was getting ready for him.

"Welcome home, Cowboy. I've been waiting for you. Why don't you go and extinguish the window lamp." Kitty finished taking out her last hair pin and then stood up.

Matt turned out the window lamp and walked over to Kitty, gathering her in his arms. "Kit, it feels so good to hold you in my arms. I've missed you so much. Even though I can't stop myself, I try not to think too hard about you while I'm gone."

"I would hope that you would want to think about me when you're gone," Kitty pouted.

"Let me explain, sweetheart. When you're the only thing on my mind, my heart and body aches for you, and that makes my trips seem that much longer. I realized if I don't think of you as much, the trips seem to go by a little faster. Trust me. You're always in my heart."

"I think I understand. I have to keep myself busy while you're gone or I'll go crazy thinking about you. Now that you're here, I don't have to use my imagination," Kitty said, pulling Matt towards the bed.

"Let me get out of these dusty clothes before I join you in bed," Mat said as he started to remove his clothes.

He placed his boots by the door, his hat on the peg by the door, and his gun belt on the dresser. Matt sat down on the bed to remove the rest of his clothes, placing them on the floor. Kitty had removed her nightgown and was under the covers. Matt joined her. Once they were both in bed, Kitty scooted towards Matt and placed her head on his chest.

"These last ten days have been so tiring," Matt said as he rubbed Kitty's back.

"You're not too tired for us?" Kitty asked.

"Honey, I'm never too tired for us. Being with you gives me life," Matt answered.

Kitty rolled onto her back and pulled Matt on top of her. At one time Matt was afraid that when he was on top of her, that he would crush her. But Kitty reassured him that he wasn't going to crush her. She told him that she loved the feel of his body pressing her into the mattress. It made her feel loved and safe. Now that Matt was on top of Kitty, their love making began. They pleasured each other in a way nobody else could. Neither one was disappointed. A couple hours passed before they fell asleep.

Matt was usually dressed and out of Kitty's room before the first morning light, but not today. Kitty's room faced the east and the first slivers of morning light started to come through the window. Kitty stirred and that woke Matt up. He opened his eyes and realized he should have been gone by now. "Darn, I've gotta go."

"Are you sure, Cowboy?" Kitty asked. She gave Matt a sensual smile and pulled down the covers, exposing her nude body.

"Don't tempt me, woman." Matt said. He hurriedly got dressed. Matt had one sock, but couldn't find the other. Realizing he didn't have time to look for it, he gave Kitty a kiss, put on his boots, gun belt, and hat. He then walked out the door.

Present day…

Kitty let her mind wander back to the present and placed the bed clothing into a large basket. She walked out her door, down the back stairs, and towards Ma Smalley's. On her way there, she met Matt. Matt knew where she was going, but asked anyway. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to Ma Smalley's to wash the bed clothing from my bed," Kitty replied.

"That reminds me of something I've been thinking about. Instead of having your bed and my bed, wouldn't it be nice if we could have our bed?" Matt asked.

"Our bed, I like the sound of that. Where would we have our bed?" Kitty asked.

"I was thinking we could have it in your room. Maybe we could give Ma Smalley the bed you have now. She could use it in her boarding house," said Matt. He hoped Kitty would agree.

"That's a great idea. Do you have any preference on the type of bed you want?" Kitty asked.

"Definitely something that's long enough for my frame, and not too soft," Matt answered.

"That seems reasonable. I'll go to Jonas' and look through his catalog. I'd ask you to help me search, but that wouldn't look right."

"You got that right. Since this is going to be our bed, I want to help pay for it. I've been saving money for it," Matt told Kitty.

"You really have been thinking about this," said Kitty.

"I have. Anyway, I have to get back to the jail," stated Matt

"I need to go too. I want to get these laundered." Matt and Kitty went their separate ways.

Kitty eventually went to Jonas' store to look through the catalog for a new bed. She saw a brass bed and thought that was perfect. It was long enough for Matt's frame and it didn't say anything about it being too soft. She had Jonas order it for her.

The bed arrived four weeks later. Matt and Kitty couldn't wait to try their new bed for the first time. They couldn't explain it, but there was something about making love in their bed. It made their relationship feel that more permanent. It was funny what a piece of furniture could do. Kitty then reached under her pillow and pulled out the sock. "Have you been missing something, Cowboy?"

Matt shook his head and laughed. "The matching sock will be happy to have its partner back."

The End