It wasn’t as cold as I first thought, but after about 45 minutes of walking, I couldn’t feel my fingers through the gloves and kept dropping Tonto’s lead. Then a light snow began to fall, covering the crunchy snow in a dusting of powder. Occasionally there would be a thump of falling snow from the heavy fir trees, or a bird might have flown out from a nearby bush, but other than that it was totally silent. Our talking was down to minimum since it was hard to converse when we were traveling single file, and the llamas barely made any sound as they glided through the white.
As nice – but cold – as the journey was, the cabin was a sight for sore, snow-blinded eyes. Though it was smaller than Rigby and Christina’s cabin, I thought it was better. It was just so classic, a one-level with snow-covered flowerboxes beneath the windows and shiny icicles hanging from the roof above the porch. It immediately reminded me of the cabin my family and I used to stay in when I was a little girl. The memory of cross-country skiing with my mother and coming home to my father stoking a roaring fire made my heart split open.
“You all right, kiddo?” Dex asked softly, placing his hand on my shoulder and squeezing it.
I sucked in a breath at the memory and flashed him a quick smile. “I’m fine. Just…reminds me of something.”
He nodded, eyes kind and knowing.
“So this is your new home base,” Rigby said. He and Christina were tying their horses to the nearby hitching post.
“It’s lovely,” I told him honestly.
Christina came over and took the llamas from us. “There’s no TV though. Kinda sucks if you ask me.”
“I’ve got porn on my phone, I’m fine,” Dex answered.
I elbowed him while Christina giggled at his remark.
“No reception,” Mitch countered with his hard face trying to suss Dex out. He didn’t realize Dex was joking. Then again, I wasn’t sure either.
I gave Dex a sharp look making sure he didn’t say anything else controversial. It was fine when he was acting like this around me, I was used to it, but Mitch looked like he’d pound his head in over nothing.
“Where do the llamas stay?” I asked, trying to change the subject. Christina and Rigby were quickly removing the packs from the animals.
“I’ve got a little paddock set up for them around the bend. Actually I could let them roam free, they’re so well trained they’d never leave,” Rigby boasted, looking proud of himself. “That’s why they’re called the dolphins of the land.”
“More like assholes of the land,” Dex muttered, showing me his sleeve which was covered in gobs of llama spit.
I grimaced which melted into a laugh. “I thought you were the asshole of the land?”
He didn’t find it as amusing.
Christina handed us our stuff and took the llamas down the path a few feet and around the corner of the cabin. I noticed Mitch was removing a formidable looking shotgun from his belongings, looking it over like it could have gotten damaged during the journey.
His eyes caught mine for a second and they narrowed faintly. I looked away quickly and picked up my pack, heading into the cabin.
It was just as cold inside as it was outside but Rigby was quick to get the fireplace going. He also threw some kindling in the wood stove that was located in the teeny tiny kitchen. The cabin was sparsely furnished and bit cramped but I guess that added to its charm. The living room was small, consisting of a leather couch and a rocking chair, the walls covered with landscape paintings and stuffed animal heads. There was a small hand-carved table in the corner with two ancient looking chairs and the floor was hardwood, covered in several animal hide rugs that spread from the couch to the fireplace. I had a wicked image of having sex on one of those rugs, the fireplace warming my ass. It was no surprise that I was picturing being on top of Dex.
I felt ashamed at the thought and turned my head away from him, making sure to keep my eyes on the rest of the room. This was one of the many times I really hoped he couldn’t hear my thoughts.
Unfortunately, all that remained were the bedrooms. There were two small ones, one with two twin beds and the other with a full. Old-fashioned wash basins sat in one corner and a Swiss-style wardrobe sat in the other. And when Rigby told us he and Christina would be taking the room with the double beds and Mitch was taking the couch, Dex shot me a cheeky grin.
Yeah. This trip was making my heart race in more ways than one.
“We’ll just be staying the night,” Rigby explained. “We’ll be off in the morning. After that you’re welcome to use the double beds and Mitch can take the other room.”
“Oh, it’s not a problem,” Dex replied quickly.
“You sure?” Mitch questioned, those steely eyes focused on me. He looked like he was waiting for me to make a fuss.
“No, it’s cool,” I said firmly. I tugged off my jacket. “I should get unpacked.”
I went into the room with Dex trailing behind me.
“Make sure you hang your wet things in front of the fire after,” Rigby called out.
I smiled and quickly shut the door. The room had a single window that was letting in the late afternoon light. Soon it would be totally dark and there was no electricity.
Dex walked past me to the bedside table where a kerosene lamp sat. He picked it up and started playing with it. “Looks like this will be it for tonight.”
I put my pack down on the bed, pressing my hands down on the cold duvet.
“How are you feeling about all of this?” he asked, putting the lamp back down and coming up to me.
“Weird,” I admitted.
“I promise I won’t snore anymore,” he said.
I tilted my head and looked at him dryly. “I don’t feel weird about sleeping with you. I survived last night.”