Shoe Strings

Miraculously, it was dry.   “I’ve made arrangements for us to stay
overnight in a cabin not too far from here.   We’ll head home in the morning.”
    The idea of a warm cabin and hot shower almost had her
skimming his explanation.   “When did
you arrange this?”
    “It’s dark and you’re freezing, Angelita.   I can see your teeth chattering.   Let’s go warm up and we’ll get some
dinner.”   He tried to lead her to
the car and she pulled her arm free.
    “I asked you a question.   We’ve been on the river all afternoon
and I’ve been with you since seven this morning.”   She shook her head at him and wondered at
the depths of his manipulations.   Even though she’d never admit she was thrilled to hear they didn’t have
to drive home sopping wet, she couldn’t believe he’d done all this before
they’d even left.   “You set this up
from the beginning.”
    Jesse ducked his head, looked up at her with a rueful
shrug.   She wasn’t fooled for a
second.   “I figured it’d be late
when we got off the river and didn’t think you’d feel comfortable driving back
in the dark.   But if you’d rather
head home now, I’ll towel off the seats and we can get going.”
    “Uuuurrrrrr, you’re infuriating.   Why didn’t you just tell me what you’d
planned?   Were you so sure I’d say
no?”
    “Would you have said yes?”
    “We’ll never know now, will we?”   She marched to the car and got in.   She buckled her seatbelt and folded her
arms across her chest like a spoiled child.   She didn’t care how she looked; she was
freezing and irritated.   “I’m
showering first,” she declared.   “And there’d better be hot water.”  
    ***
    The cabin looked just as Jesse remembered it, small and
alone in a thick stand of trees.   The rain had stopped and when they stepped out of the Scout, he could
hear the river churning along the bank in the distance.   Angelita was still mad; he could tell by
the irritated look on her face as she got out of the Scout and looked
around.   He knew she’d calm down as
soon as she warmed up and had some food.  
    “Is that the river I hear?” she asked as he pulled his bag
from the back of the Scout.  
    “Yes, we may be able to see it from the deck if the leaves
aren’t blocking the view.”   He
pulled her wet clothes from the back and wrung them out like a rag.  
    Angelita watched him and scowled.   “Great, I’ve got nothing dry to wear.”
    “I packed some extra clothes in case yours got wet.”
    She turned to face him on the front porch.   “If you’d told me we were staying
overnight, I could have packed my own bag.”
    “Good thing you didn’t.”   He watched her brow furrow.   “Your fancy luggage would’ve been ruined
in the rain.”  
    Jesse opened the door and stood back so Angelita could go inside
first.   The air smelled damp and
woodsy.   With a flick of the light
switch, he saw a huge stack of firewood by the hearth and blessed Jerry for
following his instructions.
    Angelita walked to the bathroom, clicked on the light, and
turned around to face him.   “This is
it?” she asked.   Her eyes darted
between the bathroom and the bedroom on the opposite wall.   “Who gets the bedroom?”
    His plan necessitated only one bed and very little
sleep.   But he wasn’t about to own
up to it.   Yet.   “You do.”   He began stacking wood in the
fireplace.   “I’ll crash on the
futon.”
    Angelita walked over to the pea green futon and pushed it
with her fist.   “This thing is hard
as a rock.   Hope your back’s up to
it.”   She turned in a circle,
considered the place through narrowed eyes.   He tried to see it as she would and
thought she’d pronounce it unsuitable.   It had always met his needs just fine.  
    “It’ll do,” she said.   “As long as the water’s hot and the pressure’s good.”
    Jesse lit a match for the fire starter.   “Look through the bag and dig out
whatever you want to wear.   There’s
a pizza place that actually delivers here from town, so don’t worry about
impressing anyone.”
    She lugged the entire bag into the bathroom and shut the
door with a slam.   He could only
shake his head and wonder how long she’d shower and what she’d emerge
wearing.   Once he got the fire
started, he found the beer he’d asked Jerry to get in the refrigerator and
plopped on the floor by the hearth to wait.  
    They’d had fun today and he’d seen her let