Barefoot

by Daisy Burton

  As Sal chatted to Marsh during the journey, she was transported back to the days before ‘it’ had happened. It felt like those times when they had been on the tour bus together, talking, laughing and pointing out beauty spots. He pointed out an eagle soaring into a cloud at one point and she almost drove off the road trying to see it. The only problem with driving such a route was that one of them had to miss the highlights.

  Sal knew that Glenwood Springs was famous for its spa waters, in which Doc Holliday had bathed during his last days, taking advantage of the spring’s alleged rejuvenating qualities. She’d booked them into a hotel right by the water, which also had a beautiful view of the imposing, grey, snow-capped mountains that surrounded the town.

  When they were shown to their room, Sal ran to the balcony. Looking down, she could see that the spa pool was hundreds of feet long, and surrounded by lounger chairs. She was mesmerised by the long plumes of steam that rose into the freezing air.

  “I need to get in there, Marshy,” she exclaimed as he joined her on their balcony.

  “You don’t need fixing, Sal,” Marsh said as he walked over to her and put an arm around her waist as they both looked out. “You’re in better shape than you’ve ever been, but you can get in there as often as you like - as long as I can watch you in your swimming cossie.”

  Her stomach leapt when he said things like that now, and she revelled in that feeling. She glanced at him with a coy grin, but reminded him that they had some exploring to do before any swimming could be done.

  Leaving their luggage in the room, they got straight back into the car and Marsh drove, so Sal could look around. The town’s squarish buildings looked to her as if they were from the early 1900s, with avenues lined with trees that were wearing white wigs of snow. She could easily imagine the town being portrayed on a sepia movie tape; crackly and jumpy, with people moving far too quickly.

  They eventually found an interesting looking eatery called The Cactus Café for a late lunch. It looked like quite a fun place and she’d been meaning to try some Mexican food, which was in rich supply in Colorado.

  Sal ate more than her fill of the goodies on the menu. She had a huge enchilada stuffed with meat and vegetables, with a side of spicy sweetcorn elote and refried beans. She could barely move after eating half of it, despite leaving the refried beans after one mouthful. It was effectively mashed up baked beans, but it was like eating thick, stodgy wallpaper paste, which was hard to swallow. She’d felt the same when she’d tried some grits in Boulder, but that had been like having crunchy savoury porridge with bits in, as a side dish. She had no idea how anyone could enjoy them, but at least she’d tried them.

  The rest of her meal was zingy, spicy and completely different to her attempts at Mexican food back home, but with the best will in the world and leaving the beans, she couldn’t finish it all. She decided to ask sheepishly for the remaining half to be put into a doggy bag. It was something she struggled to get her head around because it seemed rude to her, but it was apparently perfectly acceptable. She knew that if she didn’t fancy it later, Marsh would be hungry again in a few hours.

  Feeling quite queasy, she made it back to the car, and pleaded with Marsh to take her back to the hotel because after the last few days, the drive and that meal, there was no way she could do another thing that day.

  After a quick nap at the hotel for an hour or so, which gave her lunch a chance to go down, she decided that she could probably swim without sinking.

  “You coming?” she asked. She wasn’t hopeful that Marsh would join her, but she never knew these days.

  “Nah, you knock yourself out, Pumpkin, I’m going to stay here and watch Sally Jessy Raphael on TV. I’m knackered.”

  The outside air was cold as she walked to the pool, but as she eased herself into the steaming water, it engulfed her chilly body like a gentle hug. Similar to climbing into a gargantuan outside bath, it was warm, steaming and it smelled slightly of sulphur. There were dozens of people in there, but the pool was so large that it seemed quite empty around her. As she floated, she could feel every muscle in her limbs letting go. She tried to work out which room was hers from where she floated, and she was having some difficulty until she saw Marsh waving at her from their balcony. Grinning, she waved back and he disappeared inside.

  She melted into the water, and feeling the steam on her face as it rose, she wanted to stay there forever.

  15

  They fell into a wonderful routine during their days in Glenwood. They’d get up early, have a good, solid breakfast in town, then head out to see somewhere new within driving distance. Then, Sal would have a long dip in the luxurious, warm spa for an hour or so before heading out to dinner.

  One evening, Marsh revealed over dinner that he’d planned a little surprise for Sal. Holding her hand across the table, he whispered, “We’re going to Cortez tomorrow!”

  “What?” Her face lit up. “You’re joking, right?”

  He shook his head, laughing. “No, I’m not joking.”

  “Oh my GOD!” she squealed. “Isn’t it a bit far?”

  “We’re going for a couple of days, so we can see it all properly,” he grinned. “The Mesa, Four Corners, the lot. The hotel has said we can leave our luggage here, too, to save us carting it down there. They’ve been lovely.”

  Sal knew it was a good five-hour drive to southwest Colorado, and that was why she hadn’t considered suggesting they go. She’d figured that it was too far away and that he wouldn’t be interested.

  She’d seen a TV programme years before, about the Mesa Verde, and she’d fallen in love with the place through the TV. She had remained a little obsessed with it ever since. To her knowledge, she had only told Marsh about it once, years back, so she was amazed that he had remembered, especially as he had absolutely no interest in history.

  Not only that, he’d arranged the whole trip in secret, and booked for them to stay in Durango. It was a town less than an hour’s drive from Cortez, so they would be well-placed to see everything from there. Sal was blown away by his thoughtfulness and kindness.

  What a difference a week makes.

  She was up with the lark the next day, getting in her swim at dawn, and she’d showered and packed up their things before Marsh had opened one eye. By 9.00am, though, they’d stowed their big suitcases with reception, tucked into a huge, sustaining breakfast of pancakes, bacon and maple syrup with orange juice, and set off. It soon became apparent to Sal that Marsh wasn’t entirely sure what was at Four Corners, even though he had arranged to go there.

  “I only included that in the plan because you mentioned it a couple of years ago and I know you wanted to go. It’s not far from the Mesa and I know how much you wanted to see it.”

  “Thank-you, Marshy. It’s nothing huge or exciting, but it’s the only place in the states where the corners of four states, Arizona, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico, all come together perfectly at one point.”

  Sal remembered that it had sounded fascinating on the TV years ago, but she thought her explanation had made it seem rather dull. Marsh tried to look excited, but Sal knew it wasn’t his thing, and the fact that he was trying so hard made her stomach flip with happiness.

  They drove through heavily wooded mountains, and the picturesque San Juan National Forest, and despite the heavy snow, the roads were relatively clear. They had to drive carefully, not only because of the icy conditions, slush and settled snow, but also because brown bears were commonplace in the forest. She kept her eyes peeled for one, and was somewhat disappointed when she saw no sign.

  They made good time and reached their B&B in the beautiful town of Durango by mid-afternoon. To start with, it didn’t look that much different to Glenwood Springs, but a quick look around the town showed her the place was stuffed to the gills with eateries. This was her kind of place! They drove around to take it all in, and passed the station for the Durango-Silverton Narrow Gauge Railway, which she’d heard about. She knew they wouldn’t ha
ve time to fit a ride into their schedule, so she didn’t mention it to Marsh or he might have tried to fit it in. They had a large dinner, as they hadn’t had lunch, and went to find their B&B.

  When they arrived, the friendly couple who ran it greeted them loudly on the doorstep with gesticulation, hugs and kissed cheeks. They were shown into the small but quirky house and in the middle of the living room, Sal was surprised to see a spiral metal staircase leading to a mezzanine loft-type floor. It seemed to be very open plan, with a simple rail across it to stop them falling over the edge and into the living room. The woman pointed up the spiral stairs. Apparently, their room was on the mezzanine floor.

  Once up there, Sal pulled back the heavy curtain that hung across the stairs and rail, to show a double bed and chest of drawers. She looked around, incredulous.

  She could see that, despite pulling the curtains together behind her, they were still visible from the living room, because the curtains didn’t quite meet in the middle. As they discovered later that evening, the gap lined up perfectly with a rocking chair below, giving the man who owned the place a direct view.

  This creepy element wasn’t helped by the fact that there was lace everywhere. Around the bed, the rug, the lampshade, the bedside cabinet, and upon inspection later, around the toilet roll holder, the bath, the towel rail, the wash basin and inside the shower curtain – even around the soap dish on the shower wall. Odd did not cut it.

  “Marsh, this is weird,” Sal whispered, as they were getting changed that night. “What the hell am I supposed to do about getting undressed? He’s sitting in his rocking chair, smoking and … he’s looking right at me!”

  “It’s a tiny gap, Sal, he’s probably hoping to see a flash of ankle or something. Get changed in the bathroom if you’re that worried. You’ll be fine.”

  Sal hopped around trying to get undressed with a large hand towel wrapped around her most important bits. Trying to get one leg out of her jeans, she almost fell through the curtain and into the rail. Marsh roared with laughter watching her.

  “MARSH! It’s not funny!” Sal whispered, scowling.

  Nevertheless, once she was in it, the bed seemed incredibly comfortable. They were shattered from the long drive and wanted to be up early for the next day’s exploration, so they turned in early. As she switched off the lace-lined bedside lamp, she half-expected to hear someone climbing the metal staircase, so she pulled the sheet and blanket up to her chin and snuggled up close to Marsh. Despite her worries, there seemed to be no inkling of footsteps close by and she soon fell sound asleep.

  *****

  Next morning, breakfast was available from 7.00am and they were up and ready for it, having slept surprisingly well. As they sat down, they were presented with sweet waffles, eggs, sausages, maple syrup and strawberries, all on the same plate. Sal looked at Marsh, wondering if he thought it was as strange as she did, but he was already digging in. She decided that it might be the only full meal they got all day, so she gingerly ate each part separately, and washed it all down with copious amounts of black, sugary coffee so strong that she felt like she could run to the Mesa.

  Thankfully, Marsh had only booked them in there for one night, figuring that they would start the drive back to Glenwood that day and find a motel to stay in overnight on the way back.

  “Do you think our car’s going to start?” Marsh whispered to Sal at breakfast, grinning broadly. He was winding her up, but she could do without him implying that someone might have fiddled with their hire car – she was already seriously creeped out.

  “Can we go now? I really want to get out of here,” she whispered, shuddering as they climbed the spiral stairs.

  Thankfully, and to her surprise, no one had immobilised the starter motor in the night to keep them there, and they drove away. They were in Cortez by 9.00am.

  Sal was in her element, and the day passed in a blur of happiness for her. They were at the Mesa Verde National Park when it opened, and they spent several hours on a tour around it. They learned about the place and the history of the Ancestral Puebloan people that had settled there in the twelfth century from their guide and Sal was mesmerised. These people had carved incredible dwellings into the side of steep cliffs, which had to be seen to be believed.

  Sal hadn’t realised they’d actually be allowed to walk around the dwellings and climb up the 30-foot-high ladders, exactly as the natives had done in the eleventh century. She hung on for dear life as she climbed, and as she was clambering up one particularly steep ladder, she caught sight of Marsh talking animatedly to the tour guide. He was actually enjoying it! Wonders would never cease.

  Although it was relatively cool, the sun was still strong and by early afternoon they were hot, shattered and they’d both seen enough. Sal was ecstatic to have been able to visit this place and still found it hard to believe that Marsh had all done this for her. He bought her a late lunch in a small cafe, before getting on the road to see the Four Corners Monument as part of the long journey back.

  It was less than an hour’s drive from Cortez, and they were still in Colorado, but the difference in landscape as they drove was immense. The ground was extremely flat and quite desert-like; the road they were on was the only structure in sight; the land stretched for miles in either direction with nothing more than the occasional shrub poking up. The Rockies seemed to have stopped quite suddenly, and the whole feel of their surroundings had changed.

  They arrived at Four Corners in good time, and thankfully there were only a few dozen people there. Sal was fascinated by it, but Marsh seemed distracted. She knew that this wasn’t his kind of thing, and that he’d be wondering what the big deal was, so she decided not to be too long looking around.

  She was grateful that he’d bothered to build a visit into this tour, and he did try to feign interest. At one point, he even laid on the metal plate showing the four states and the point where they converged, so that he had each hand and each foot in a different state.

  That was all there was to see - a big square in the middle of nowhere, with the metal plate and some flags. So, after ten minutes of photo-taking, she suggested they should make a move.

  “Hang on,” Marsh smiled, catching hold of her elbow.

  By that point, a coach had left so there were only twenty or so people milling around. Marsh led Sal back to the middle of the metal plate and asked her to stand there.

  What the hell…?

  He dropped onto one knee on the metal plate, produced a ring out of his top pocket and held it up to her. She looked down at the ring in amazement; it was a beautiful pale, peachy-pink coloured gem, surrounded by diamonds and set in rose gold. It was stunning.

  “Is that … Morganite?” Sal stuttered, holding her hands up to hold her shocked face.

  She’d always loved the colour of that gem but had never imagined that she’d own one. She couldn’t remember telling him she loved it, but she must have. It was the most beautiful ring she’d ever seen and she was overwhelmed.

  “Yes, it is, I remembered. Sod everyone else, Sal, I only want you. How about it? Will you marry me?” he beamed.

  She looked at him, quite unable to believe what he’d done. They were both divorcees, both had said they didn’t want to get married again, and he’d been messing around with another woman only a couple of months before.

  Two people spotted what he was doing and started clapping. Everyone else heard that, looked around to see what the fuss was about, then joined in. A mass of applause, whooping and yells of ‘yeahhhhh’ closed in on them, and Sal prickled with discomfort and embarrassment.

  It soon became apparent to the crowd, and to Marsh, that there was no big smile, no declaration of love and no throwing of arms around necks. The spreading awkwardness was palpable.

  Sal looked Marsh in the eyes and smiled softly at him.

  “Where’s all this come from, Marshy?” she whispered. “Is it to make up for what you did? You don’t have to do this.”

  The whoopers a
nd clappers quickly went quiet and dispersed, so they were left to their own devices. Marsh got up, looking confused. She’d never seen him look awkward before, but he obviously didn’t know what to do.

  “I did it because I love you,” he snapped, standing with his hands on his hips, still holding the closed ring box. “And because all that business with Maire made me realise that I don’t want anyone else except you. I thought this would help to fix it.”

  “A ring can’t fix it, Marshy, you must know that. I love you too, you know I do. I’ve wanted only you since the moment we met. And it’s the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen, but I can’t marry you. Not ‘til we’ve sorted this stuff out.” She tried to be as kind as she could be in the situation.

  “But that’s what this holiday was for, Pumpkin. I thought you’d forgiven me. Haven’t you?”

  “Oh God, Marsh. It’s not only a matter of forgiving you, I have to learn to trust you again. Can’t you see that? I trusted you with everything I have, and you threw it back in my face.”

  Her voice was soft and not accusatory; she needed him to understand her. She reached up and stroked his cheek, which was red and flaming with the heat of the sun, and acute embarrassment.

  “Well, I got that one wrong,” he snapped, and putting the ring box back in his pocket, he stormed back to the car alone.

  *****

  To start with, the return journey to Glenwood Springs was uncomfortable. Sal kept trying to talk about nothing, even when Marsh turned up the car radio loudly to drown her out. Eventually, he calmed down and seemed to accept her explanation and assurance that she hadn’t meant to humiliate him. Her head was a mess though. Had she ruined everything they were trying so hard to mend?

  That night, they crashed in a cheap, basic motel that was right on the roadside. They were so exhausted that they would have slept in a garbage can if that was all that had been available. Their small, musty-smelling room had a shared bathroom, a chair and a king-sized bed in it, which you could put a quarter into to make it vibrate. The mattress had been stuffed with pebbles as far as Sal could tell, but it felt great to be horizontal and they slept deeply, curled up in a spoons position with Sal nuzzled in to Marsh’s back.