Chapter 7

Their honeymoon night made them so exhausted they slept through until ten o'clock the next morning. Jarrod woke first, found his wife in his arms with her head against his chest, and he never felt so happy in his life. This was it, this was real, this was what he knew was coming his way when he first felt human again after that bullet in the back. He now had taken his first step into that beautiful future he dreamed about.

And it was Beth in his arms. Beautiful, sweet, delightful Beth. Beth who loved Shakespeare and Mozart. Beth who knew the names of stars and even knew the name of the one he claimed as his own. Beth who had made love with him over and over and made him feel like the best lover God had ever put on this earth. Beth who would share his home and have his children and grow old with him, all in a beautiful future.

"You're purring," she suddenly said.

He had to laugh. "Purring?"

"Like a cat," she whispered. "Like a very contented cat."

"That's the first time anyone, anywhere, ever said I purred like a cat."

Beth smiled. "No one was ever listening this closely before."

"Or maybe I just never was this content before. You make me very, very happy, Mrs. Barkley."

Beth looked at her rings. "Mrs. Jarrod Barkley. Oh, my goodness – "

"What?" Jarrod asked. She sounded alarmed.

"I don't know your middle name!"

Jarrod laughed. "Thomas."

"Mrs. Jarrod Thomas Barkley," Beth said, sighing.

"I don't know your middle name, either," Jarrod said.

"I don't have one," Beth said. "Elizabeth Randall was all I ever was."

"Well," Jarrod said and kissed her, "now you're Elizabeth Randall Barkley, for the rest of your life."

"We have a lot to learn about each other, don't we?" Beth asked.

"And a lifetime to learn it," Jarrod said. He kissed her head against his chest. "But I suppose we ought to get up and get something to eat."

"Not yet," she said, and ran her hand over his body, just the way he liked it.

Now he was the one doing the shivering. "You best be careful there, Madame, or you may find yourself in bed all day with no food."

"Well, I know we can't do that," she said, "unless you intend to grow a beard."

"I know, I need a shave. Real life always has a way of muscling in."

"But we have each other in our real life," Beth reminded him. "You're the one who told me this wasn't a fantasy."

"It's a real life fantasy," he said. "But yes, you're right, in real life fantasies men have to shave. We need to make another decision, too. If we catch the train tonight, it will still take us almost three days to get to Stockton. Do you want to leave tonight, or shall we stay in Denver longer?"

Beth sighed. "As long as we're together, I don't care where we are – but I suppose we should spring the surprise on your family before too long. I hope they like me."

"They'll love you," Jarrod said. "You are sweet, you are magical, and you love me. They will love you." He kissed her again. "But now, I best get down to the bell staff and have a private car arranged on the train for us. I do not intend to make love to my wife in a Pullman."

Beth laughed. "Can you imagine even trying to fit the both of us into a Pullman?"

Jarrod laughed. "Let's just say I suspect we'll be a lot more comfortable in our own car." He got up to dress and dash downstairs. "You go ahead and start to get ready. I'll go down and arrange for the car, and then I'll come back up and shave and be ready for the day."

"Promise you'll come back," Beth said.

Jarrod leaned over and kissed her. "I promise I will always come back, my darling. Now that I've found you, I don't plan to give anyone the chance to take you away."

Jarrod was back up just as Beth was fitting herself into her dress. She had not yet done up her hair, but she had applied her make-up. Without a word, Jarrod came to her, helped her do up her dress and then ran his hand through her hair. "Hm," he said. "I think I like you best with your hair down."

"Perhaps partly up?" she said, and pulled some of her hair toward the back, leaving most of it falling down on her shoulders. She handed Jarrod a barrette when he looked at her approvingly.

He faced her, reached around and put the barrette in place. Then he kissed her. "Beautiful."

"Your turn," she said. "You need to shave."

Jarrod rubbed the stubble on his face. "Ah, yes, my dirty little secret. I really ought to shave twice a day. In fact, when I'm working, I do. I just got a bit busy with something else yesterday." He leaned in and gave his wife a long, deep kiss.

She giggled when he moved away. "The beard already tickles."

Jarrod shaved and by then, they were hungry and ready for lunch. Jarrod took his new wife to his favorite restaurant in Denver, where the wait staff knew him and were all agog at the beautiful woman he was bringing in. As soon as he mentioned to one that Beth was his wife, the news went through the staff like wildfire. The next thing the happy couple knew, the owner was beside their table, wishing them all the luck in the world, and letting them know their lunch was his wedding present to them.

"Do you know people everywhere?" Beth asked after the owner left.

"I know people in many places," Jarrod said. "My profession takes me all over the place."

"I've married a celebrity," Beth said, teasing.

Jarrod chuckled. "Hardly."

After lunch, Jarrod took Beth to a spot where they could get a beautiful view up into the mountains in the west. The sky was blue and clear and Beth said, "I never imagined mountains could look like this. But they really don't look as high as I expected them to."

"That's because we're already nearly six thousand feet up," Jarrod said. "All the while we came across the plains, we were climbing in elevation."

"So gradual I didn't notice it," Beth said. "I suppose we go through these mountains when we leave Denver, don't we?"

"Yes," Jarrod said. "It will be dark, so we'll feel it rather than see it. By the time the sun comes up, though, we'll be deep into the mountains and traveling through one of the most beautiful canyons in the world."

"Will you point out everything to me – everything we can see, anyway?" Beth asked. "I don't know when we'll be back this way again."

"I will show you everything that captivates me whenever I come this way," Jarrod said. "That is, if I can take my eyes off my beautiful wife."

Beth sighed and smiled as she looked up at the mountains. "It's like going up to heaven on a train," she said.

"I'm already in heaven," Jarrod said.

Beth smiled and rested her head against his shoulder. "So am I."