by Kate Whitsby
Light penetrated the thatch of the barn roof long before it eked under the door of the house, so Alma woke up first again. She managed to work herself out from under Jude without waking him up, and she hurried to the house.
When she opened the door, she found her father and sisters all still asleep. She halted on the threshold. Then she picked up the wooden bucket from just inside the doorway and went out again to the well.
She filled the bucket up, combed a handful of the cool water through her hair, and rearranged her hair. She could show up at the house pretending she’d just gotten out of bed. Jude could pretend he’d gotten up with her and gone out to the barn before the others woke up.
She hauled the bucket back to the house and stirred up the fire. As she mixed the dough for the tortillas, Jude’s silhouette darkened the door. He stopped on the threshold the same way she did. Then he tiptoed into the room and sat down in the chair by the fire.
“They’re sure sleeping soundly,” he whispered.
“They’ll never know we didn’t come in last night,” she whispered back.
“What about your bed?” he asked. “It hasn’t been slept in.”
“How can you tell?” she returned. “How can you tell I didn’t make it up this morning?”
Jude chuckled. “Good one.”
“Beside,” she continued. “We’re married. We can stay out all night if we want to. It’s none of their business.”
“But won’t they think….?” Jude swallowed the last words.
“Let them think whatever they want to think,” Alma declared. “Whatever they think, it’s probably the truth.”
“You mean,” he asked. “They’ll think I fell asleep before we had a chance to do anything?”
“I mean,” Alma shot back. “They’ll think we spent the night alone together because we wanted to be alone. We didn’t want to spend the night in the same room with three other people. Let them think. You can’t stop a person from thinking.”
A stir from the other side of the room put an end to their conversation. Allegra stretched on her bed and swung her legs over the side. Her boot heels hit the floor with a clunk. She scratched her head, furrowed her brow at Jude and Alma, and then at Amelia and her father still in their beds.
Alma smiled at her. Allegra scowled into every part of the room trying to fit the puzzle pieces together. But, in the end, she shrugged, walked out the door, and came back with her hair and face wet and her expression clear. She came over to the fire place and squatted down between Jude and Alma.
“What do ya say to cuttin’ a steer from the herd today?” she asked. “We’re running low on meat, and we’ve been surviving on salt tack for months now. I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for some fresh meat for a change.”
“You always liked salt tack before,” Alma pointed out. “It’s not like you to splash out on fresh meat. You’ve always prided yourself on getting by on the rough stuff.”
“A body can only get by on the rough stuff for so long,” Allegra replied. “Maybe I’m just seeing things differently since Jude came. We don’t have to serve him on the rough stuff right from the start. We could have a feast of fresh meat and honey candy to celebrate your marriage.”
Jude glanced sideways at Allegra. “You don’t have to go out of your way on my account.”
“Why not?” Allegra asked. “You’re married to my sister, aren’t you? That entitles you to a celebration, if nothing else does. You don’t have to keep a stiff upper lip all the time, you know. I saw the way you handled the food that first night you came home. It wasn’t exactly what you’re used to, but you sure minded your manners about it. That was well done, and I’m sure all of us appreciate it.”
“It wasn’t anything worth mentioning,” Jude muttered. “And your father didn’t seem all that impressed with me.”
Allegra waved her hand. “Don’t give him a second thought. He can blow a lot of hot air, but it’s nothing but a big noise signifying nothing.”
“That’s exactly what I told him,” Alma put in.
“Papa’s not exactly the man he used to be before his accident,” Allegra went on. “He spends more and more of his time in the past, in the war and in his married life with my mother. He doesn’t think so clearly about the present.”
“That’s exactly what I told him,” Alma said again.
Jude glanced at the sleeping form in the bed closest to the door. “Should you really be talking about him like that with him right over there across the room?”
“I’d tell him the same thing straight to his face,” Allegra replied. “All of us think the same thing. And all of us think you handled that first supper well, too. No one said so, but you could tell just from the way they acted. You deserve a break, and I don’t think I’m stepping out of line by offering to give it to you.”
“What are you suggesting?” Jude asked.
“Just what I said before,” Allegra returned. “We don’t have to eat boiled salt tack and grilled prickly-pears, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We can put on the good food when we want to, and you’ve earned it. Hoots, we all deserve it! Don’t you think so, Alma?”
Alma sniffed. “I think it’s a wonderful idea. Thank you, Allegra. That means a lot coming from you.”
“You’re darn tootin’ it’s a wonderful idea,” Allegra declared. “We haven’t had any kind of celebration in years. You didn’t think you could just go off and get married without one, did ya? Shucks, it’s practically mandatory around here. Some of the families around here spend a week after the wedding drinking and fighting and making idiots of themselves in the streets of the town. A big meal with a bunch of fancy, expensive food is the least we can do for the two of you.”
Her voice rose in pitch in the excitement of her plans, and Amelia rolled over in her bed.
“Just wait until we tell Amelia and Papa!” Allegra exclaimed. “Jude, you can help me rope the steer and dress it out. What do ya say? That will break up the day a little.”
“I’ll say,” Jude replied. “Are you really sure you want to sacrifice one of your prime steers for this? It seems awfully extravagant.”
“You bet it’s extravagant!” Allegra shot back. “That’s the whole idea. It wouldn’t be a wedding celebration if it wasn’t extravagant.” She clapped her hands and jumped up. “Come on, Alma. Get breakfast made so we can get out and get started.”
Alma laughed. “Alright. I haven’t seen you this excited in a long time. You weren’t as excited as this when I got married.”
“This is different,” Allegra replied. “I couldn’t really do anything for your wedding. This is something I can do, and it’s something I enjoy doing.”
She tripped out the door without waiting for breakfast.
Alma watched her go and laughed.
Chapter 27
