One Perfect Honeymoon (Bellingwood) (4 page)

CHAPTER SEVEN

During the trip north toward the Grand Canyon, Polly found herself transfixed by the vistas.

"Look at that," she gasped and pointed.

"I see it. What do you suppose it is?"

She rolled down the window and shot a few pictures with her phone. "We aren't there yet, but wow."

A few minutes later, she announced, "Well, we missed it."

"What?"

"The scenic overlook. That was the Little Colorado River Gorge."

"Do you want me to turn around and go back?"

"No, that's fine. Just keep going. We're getting so close I can hardly stand it."

Henry put his hand on the console and Polly absentmindedly took it in hers. They drove and drove and then Polly heard Henry audibly take a breath. He pulled into a parking spot at a lookout point. She looked up and began to sob.

"Are you okay, honey?" he asked.

"Look at that."

He parked the truck and she sat there, looking at the grand vista in front of her, tears flowing freely. Though she'd seen plenty of pictures, nothing could compare to the reality.

"Are you going to be okay?"              Henry asked.

"I'm fine. You go on ahead. I'll be right there."

"I can wait."

"No really. Just give me a few moments alone with this."

He glanced at her again and then took the camera, got out of the truck, and walked to the fence. In a few moments, Polly gathered her emotions and popped the visor down to look at herself in the mirror. Great. Splotchy, red face and bright red-rimmed eyes. There were a lot of people wandering around and she wasn't prepared to share her emotions with all of them, so she put her sunglasses on. One last check on the puppies and she wandered to where Henry was standing.

He put his arm around her as they stood together, looking out over the grand vista. "Can you imagine what the first people who came across this must have thought?" he asked.

"It's bigger than I could have ever dreamed," she breathed out.

"Makes you realize how small we are."

"All of this," she swept her arm out. "I can barely form words."

"Majestic," he whispered.

"That's it," she said softly. "I will never see anything so awe-inspiring again in my lifetime."

He looked at her.

"I know, I know. I'll see more amazing things in my life, but this moment, right now, takes my breath away."

"How long do you want to stay?"

"I don't care. Do you think we'll find other places to stop?"

"I suspect so. It's pretty big." He grinned at her.

"There are a lot of people here. Let's move on."

They stopped quite a few more times at overlooks throughout the park. Polly began watching people. There were Buddhist monks at one stop, she heard people speaking German and French, and there were families from India and various other Asian countries. She could tell who was seeing the sight for the first time. They stood in silence, taking it all in and as they walked back to their vehicles, they would begin talking again.

It took four or five stops before tears stopped filling Polly's eyes when she saw the vista open up in front of her. She wasn't sure how she could ever process the details of the canyon with such an overwhelming vista everywhere she looked.

Henry finally pointed at the clock in the truck. "We've been here for about three hours," he said. "What if we check into the hotel and find supper. We can come back and watch the sunset."

"I'll probably cry again," Polly said.

"I'm counting on it. How are the kiddos doing in the back seat?"

She unbuckled and turned around to check on them. They were finally becoming unique to her and she knew who was who. Their little personalities were growing and it occurred to her that as she had become overwhelmed by the hugeness of the Grand Canyon, the details of these little puppies brought each one of them into focus for her. What a dichotomy.

"How are they?" he asked again.

"Oh, they're fine. They'll be ready for some play time. What would you say to just grabbing McDonalds and resting at the hotel before we come back? We can let them play in the room."

"After all the Mexican and Indian food we've had the last couple of days, I could go for something bland and unexciting," Henry said.

~~~

Sunset at the Grand Canyon was everything Polly expected. Watching the canyon walls change color as the sun lit it from different angles was glorious. From pinks and rose hues to deep purples and oranges, the place seemed to come alive. Shadows began to prevail and as it grew dark, Henry drove away and headed back to the hotel.

"Do you want to do sunrise too?" he asked.

"Since we're heading to Utah tomorrow, let's," Polly responded. "We can sleep another night."

"We'll just carry in the pups and a few things. That way we can get going early."

"You're the one who has been a slug the last few mornings," she said.

"I'm the one doing all the driving," he grumped.

"I told you that I would drive any time. You aren't getting away with that one."

"Not even a little bit?"

"No way. I'm perfectly able to drive this truck. All you have to do is say something."

"If you were driving, I'd have to take care of the puppies, wouldn't I."

In answer, one of them let out a small yelp, then there was whining.

"What just happened?" he asked.

"I have no idea." Polly flipped the overhead light on, quickly unbuckled her seatbelt and turned around to look in the tub. Little Khan had managed to climb up on top of his brothers and sister. In his attempt to crest the top of the tub, he'd gotten a paw stuck in the handle. Polly unstuck him and took him into her arms.

"He's fine, but I think I'll be glad this one will be Eliseo's responsibility," she said, turning around and pulling the belt back across her. The puppy licked her face. "Yeah, yeah," she said. 'You're cute."

Henry turned the light back off. "Have you told anyone that you are bringing them bigger presents than t-shirts and coffee mugs?"

"No," she said, dropping her head. "But surely they won't kill me."

"No one will kill you, but I have this horrible feeling that we're going to end up with four more dogs in the house."

"That won't happen," she said. "I promise. They'll be with us for a while, but as soon as Mark says they can go out on their own, I will find them families."

"I'm holding you to that."

"I kind of like this little guy, though. He's got a lot of spunk. I thought he was the runt, but all he needed was a little love."

"I thought you just said you were glad he was going to Eliseo."

"Well, yeah, you're right, but still." The puppy licked her face again. "You're going to be a challenge, aren't you?"

Henry parked in front of their hotel room and came around to unload the puppies. "I won't miss hauling them in and out of the truck every day."

"Can you believe we're doing this?" Polly started to laugh. "How insane are we?"

"Will you get the door?" he asked, jutting his hip out at her.

"What are you doing?"

"The key is in my back pocket."

"Oh." Polly laughed at him. "I thought we might be starting a new dance."

"Get the key and unlock the door. You're a crazy woman."

"You married me. What does that make you?"

"The talk of the town, that's for sure."

Once the door was shut, Polly put Khan on the floor and helped Henry lift the others out. She opened a package of piddle sheets and scattered them around.

"Doug and Billy did me such a huge favor getting Obiwan trained before he moved in," she said. "I have no idea how to even start."

"Don't look at me. The first dog I ever spent any quality time with was yours."

"It can't be that hard. Everyone does it."

"Well, I suspect that these little guys will need to be on a more regular schedule than we can give them on the road."

Polly sat on the floor in front of the bed and Padme waddled over. Pretty soon all four puppies were playing in front of her, coming in for a little affection. She snuggled with each of them and then after making sure they'd done their business, put them back in the tub and nodded for Henry to turn the lights down.

Before long, everyone was tucked in and asleep.

"I'm exhausted," he said.

"This has been a long day."

"Are you sure you want to do sunrise?"

Polly snuggled up against him in the bed. "Yes. I want to see it one more time before we head north into Utah."

He sighed. "Okay. I was just checking."

"I can make it worth your time," she whispered.

"But I need sleep."

"Seriously?"

"Nope."

CHAPTER EIGHT

Polly poked Henry at five o'clock the next morning. "Are you sure?" he asked, attempting to sound pitiful.

"I'm sure. We said we were going to see the Grand Canyon at sunrise and we're going to do it. We can sleep late tomorrow morning."

"You're mean."

"Yes, I am," she replied. "Now, you take a shower while I deal with the pups."

"Please make coffee too?"

"My goodness, you're a whiny butt. It's not like this is going to kill you." Polly jumped out of bed and flipped on the light beside the sink.

As soon as she was mobile, she heard noises coming from the tub and when she turned back, four little noses were peeking up at her.

"I see you all," she said, smiling. "You're so darned cute I can hardly stand it. Let me make coffee for grumpy man and then it's time for your breakfast."

Henry patted her bottom as he walked past into the bathroom.

"You're still a grump," she said, flicking water at his back. "But it's going to be a great day."

~~~

They arrived at a lookout point that they'd scoped the night before. The sunrise should light up the canyon in front of them.

"I thought the park sign said sunrise was at five forty-five," Henry said.

"It lied." Now it was Polly's turn to be grumpy. She swiped through a weather app on her phone. "We're barely seeing dawn. Apparently, the sun will arrive at six forty-five."

She stepped out of the truck and quickly shut the door, pulling her jacket tight around her. It was cold this early in the morning. Henry joined her with an extra blanket, which they wrapped around themselves.

When she looked up into the sky, Polly had to rub tears out of her eyes again. "Look at that," she whispered. "Have you ever seen so many stars?"

Henry looked up into the sky and then pointed. "There's the Big Dipper, but I've never seen it like that. It's so bright. Look at all of the stars surrounding it."

He hugged her tighter. "Thank you for waking me up. We'd have missed this if we'd stayed in bed."

A few other cars had pulled into the parking area, yet there was quiet as they took in the beauty of the morning. As the sun came up, layers of pinks and blues hovered above the canyon walls until light brought them to life.

"The colors are amazing," Polly said. She leaned into his chest. "I'm so glad I got to experience this with you."

"I don't think Mom and Dad have been here yet."

"But they're so close."

"Dad said they had plenty of time to come up here, but they just haven't done it."

She shook her head. "Why would you wait?"

They stood and watched the sun rise in the sky and when the initial impact had worn off, Henry pulled her close. "Are you ready to head up to Monument Valley? I can't wait to see those formations."

"I suppose," Polly said. "I'm a little surprised you know what it is."

"Anyone who watched old John Wayne movies knows about Monument Valley," he said, laughing.

Polly kept the blanket and jumped back in the truck, thankful they'd left it running with the heat on. She was frozen.

When Henry had buckled in and pulled back on to the road, she asked. "John Wayne movies? I didn't know that about you."

"You didn't watch those with your Dad?"

"No. Honestly, we didn't watch that much television when I got older and hardly ever when I was a kid. There was too much to do."

"Even in the winter when he wasn't in the fields? What did he do?"

"I don't know. He read books and magazines after he finished the paper. I always had school activities and homework and I also read a lot."

"Weird."

"What's weird?"

"That explains why you're a librarian."

"Maybe. So, back to you. John Wayne movies?"

"Yes. Don't make fun of me."

"I wouldn't dare. Did you watch them with your dad?"

Henry looked at her and smiled. "Dad watched the movies, but Mom was the John Wayne junkie. You know he was born in Iowa, don't you? She dragged me down to Winterset to see that little tiny house more than once. I think she was in love with him."

"That's awesome. Your mom has amazing depths."

"Yeah. I can't wait to show her pictures of this place. Before I left, she asked me if I knew what 'Fort Apache,' 'The Searchers,' 'Tie a Yellow Ribbon,' and 'Red River' all have in common."

"I suppose those are John Wayne movies."

"Uh huh. And John Ford directed them. And they were all shot here in Monument Valley."

"That's kind of strange to think about. It's a real live movie set."

He drove on for a while and Polly shut her eyes. The sun coming through her window warmed her until she could barely stay awake.

"Polly?" he said quietly.

"What? Do you need me to drive?"

"No. You have to see this. I think you'll be sad if you miss it."

She sat up in the seat and looked out at an immense plain bordered by a row of red cliffs that stretched as far to the right and left as she could see.

"Oh my," she said. "Everything out here is so vast. You look and look and there is no end to it."

"It's been that way for a while."

"Thank you. Have you seen any of the monuments yet?"

"Just some small things. We should be there any minute, though."

They crested a rise and before them were immense stone monuments jutting up from the flat plain, rising high into the sky.

"I can't imagine what the earth was going through when these things were created. And to think we're able to see it all of these millions of years later," she said.

"Look at that one," Henry said. "That's from 'The Searchers.'"

"How do you know this?"

"It's a little familiar," he said, chuckling. "As many times as I've seen that movie, I recognize these landmarks. And look there, that's where John Wayne hid in a cave."

"Seriously?"

"I should shut up?"

"No, we should pull over so you can get some photographs for your Mom. She'd be furious if you just drove past these and didn't share with her."

"How about you just take pictures and I keep going. There's no good place for me to stop right now."

Polly snapped photographs and finally emailed one to Marie Sturtz.
"Your son is in John Wayne heaven right now. We thought we'd share. Does your husband know about your crush on this man? And how come the two of you haven't traveled up here yet?"

It didn't take long for her phone to buzz with an incoming message
. "My husband thinks I'm silly. That's why poor Henry had to watch those movies with me. You tell him to enjoy them for me. We'll get up there one of these days."

"How are things in Bellingwood?"
Polly asked.
"How's Jessie doing?"

"She's doing great. The guys all like working with her and they know that I'll fire their rear-ends if they mess around with her. She saw Doc Mason this morning and he's pleased with her progress. She and the baby are doing fine. Obiwan misses you horribly. He's been sleeping with her since you've been gone. The cats are sleeping with Rebecca in her room."

Rebecca was still living in the middle bedroom upstairs in Polly and Henry's home. Her mother, Sarah Heater, had gone downhill due to a sudden onset of diabetes a couple of months ago and required more attentive care by a nurse. If there was one reason Polly had been hesitant to leave Bellingwood, it had been because of Rebecca and Sarah. Sylvie stopped by in the morning to take Rebecca to school with Andrew and promised to check on both before leaving in the evenings, and Jessie had assured Polly that she would be home every day after work to care for Rebecca.

There were plenty of people around Sycamore House and Polly had only worried for a very short time. Henry reminded her that she surrounded herself with good people, who kept a better eye on things than she did. She had wondered if he would be wary of leaving Jessie in charge of the household. She'd had a couple of mis-steps earlier, but he was influenced by his mother, who insisted that if you gave someone a second chance, you had to also give them enough room to grow.

"Tell Jessie to give everyone, including Rebecca an extra hug for me, will you?"

"Have a good rest of the trip and hug my boy for me."

"What was that?" Henry asked.

"I was messaging with your mom. She says everyone is fine and I'm supposed to hug you for her."

He leered at her. "That's not the kind of hug I want from you."

"Oh, stop it. You be good. This is your mom we're talking about."

"Yeah. That's just weird, isn't it. Fine. You can hug me later. And then we can be done with that and onto other things."

Polly swatted his arm.

The landscape had begun to change radically as they crossed from Arizona into Utah. Colors were transforming from deep reds to oranges, whites and yellows with deeper greens filling in around the sage. They drove along the San Juan River and then Henry pulled off the highway.

"What do you see?" Polly asked.

"What's that?"

She looked at the map she'd been watching. "That's the Mexican Hat."

"I want to see it up close. That's really something."

He drove in closer until Polly put her hand out. "Stop," she said.

"What?"

"This is as close as we're going." She looked out of her window to the loose dirt and gravel. The closer they got, the looser the rock became.

"But the truck can get us in further than this. Come on. I have four wheel drive."

"I'm not kidding. This is far enough. That doesn't look safe."

"You're no fun."

"I'm fine with being no fun. Let's stop and walk around. We've been in the truck for a long time and I want to check on the pups, but this is as far as you're driving."

He scowled at her, but stopped the truck and stretched before opening his door. The pups sensed movement and Polly lifted them up into the front seat with her. "Here, take a couple of these guys and let them get some fresh air."

Henry tucked Khan under his left arm and held Padme in his other hand. They were still quite small. "I feel like I should put them in a bag and tote them around."

"Yeah. That's all John Wayne macho," she said.

There were a couple of accidents in the bottom of the tub on the piddle sheet, so Polly changed things out and got it cleaned back up.

"How far to the hotel?" Henry asked, putting the two pups back on his seat. Khan toddled across to Polly, who scratched his head.

"I don't know. We have to be getting close. Maybe a half hour."

"I want a nap."

"And some food."

He looked at his watch. "It's nearly two o'clock. We missed lunch."

"Nap and food. That sounds like a wonderful plan." Polly put the four puppies back into their tub and smiled down at them as they played with each other. "And maybe time for the pups to play and run around the room. I'd like to have them completely worn out before we go to sleep tonight."

"Why's that?" he asked, winking at her.

"Because I'm going to sleep like a log."

"Oh. Sure."

"Did you have something else in mind?"

"Well, it's our honeymoon, you know."

"You'll try anything, won't you?"

"Are you complaining?"

Polly smiled at him. "Not on your life."