Page 10 of Clashing Moon

“Right. It’s time for me to meet the right person and get married.” He flushed and reached under his collar with hisfingertips as if he were suddenly hot. “I’m feeling a little behind if you want to know the truth.”

“All your brothers marrying? Having kids. Except for you.”

He flashed a sheepish grin. “I know, it’s not a contest or anything. But I didn’t think I’d be the last one. Not a prospect in sight, either. It takes a special woman to want to move to the middle of nowhere. Not to mention my obnoxious family.”

“They’re not obnoxious.” I couldn’t keep the wistfulness out of my voice. The Moon family had long been a source of envy for me. When I was eleven, I was in town with my father when I saw them all enjoying breakfast at the diner. I’d stood outside the window, looking in on the happy clan sharing a meal, and had filled with aching jealousy. My father had come to town that morning to buy a part for his tractor, and he’d been angry all morning about one thing or another. Cursing about his run-down tractor, then giving me the silent treatment as we drove into town as if I’d been at fault for his troubles. I’d learned how to make myself as small as possible at home. Despite my father calling me a fat pig, he’d made me feel insignificant and small. At school, I’d kept to myself, focusing solely on my studies so I could get out of here. Funny how things turned out.

“My sisters-in-law seem to be holding up so far,” Rafferty said. “So, I guess we can’t be that bad.”

“Actually, I was surprised to hear you were still single.”

“Yeah?”

“I figured you’d have met someone during school,” I said.

“I had a few girlfriends, but medical school’s rough on relationships.”

“Same for veterinary school. No time for romance.”

Rafferty got up to put another couple of logs in the stove and then closed the vents. “Let me know if you start to feel cold, but since we don’t know how long we’ll be here, I figure it’s best to conserve wood as best we can.”

I nodded but didn’t say anything. Outside, the wind continued to howl.

“This place is pretty cool,” Rafferty said. “I never knew it was out here.”

“My great-grandparents built it the first summer they settled here.” When I was up here, I often thought of the two of them sharing this small space during a Montana winter. One room plus the tiny bathroom must have been tough. Had they gotten on each other’s nerves? I couldn’t imagine otherwise.

Rafferty went to the window, peering out. I got up to stand slightly behind him. Not much had changed. Snow continued to fall heavily. It looked as if about a foot had accumulated. If it kept on like this, it would be three feet before long. Still, we could walk through snow to get home if we had to. As long as it stopped at some point, we could get out of here. But what about my dad? Was he lying somewhere in the woods with a blanket of snow over him?

We left the window and returned to our spots. I curled into the fetal position, feeling suddenly more weary than I’d ever felt in my life. This was not how I’d expected to spend my day.

“You should take a nap,” Rafferty said as he examined the stack of books on the desk.

“Why do you say that?” I asked, irritated. He was so bossy.

“Because you look tired. You always do.”

“Thanks a lot.”

“I don’t mean it that way,” Rafferty said. “You’re beautiful. But I know you burn the candle at both ends.”

Beautiful?

“My dad’s like having a toddler. Last night, he was up three times, thinking there was someone in the house, not remembering the time before.” I sighed and closed my dry, stinging eyes. “Maybe I’ll just sleep for a minute or two.”

“Get inside the sleeping bag and rest. There’s nothing we can do about anything at the moment.”

“What will you do?”

He wandered over to the stack of books that were now on the floor. “I’ll find something to read.”

“There’s nothing but romances,” I said, feeling sheepish.

He grinned and looked as if he was going to say something to tease me, but didn’t. “I love romance.”

“I didn’t see that coming.”

He sat at the table, opening a book.

---