With This Heart(63)

“ So why did you want to go to Marfa?” I asked, handing him the bag of candy we’d purchased at the rest stop. He picked out three green Sour Patch Kids and then handed it back over. He knew to leave the orange ones for me.

Beck drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and thought for a moment. “I’ve heard it’s a cool town, but I mainly wanted to check out The Lights.”

I stared out the window, trying to discern the meaning of his sentence, but I eventually gave up. “The Lights? Of the town?”

Beck’s mouth hung open like I’d just fessed up to the fact that I didn’t know the name of our current President. Hello, Mr. Obama, if you’re reading this.

“ What?” I asked with a smile.

“ Abby. The Marfa Lights! They’re famous! No one knows what they really are. Some people think they’re aliens and skeptics argue that they’re just car headlights really far off in the distance, reflecting off the hills.”

I nodded, trying to imagine what he was talking about, but all I could picture were little UFOs flying around. “So we’re going to check them out?”

“ Absolutely,” he answered with confidence.

I couldn’t stop thinking about them. I’d never heard of such a thing. “Are they small? What if we go and we can’t see them?”

Beck shot me a skeptical glance. “We’ll see them, Abby. I bet they’ll be there.”

But what if they weren’t?



The remainder of our drive went by quick, and by early evening we were pulling into a camp ground that had come highly recommended by the owner of one of the gas stations in town. He said we had to rent one of the teepees. So we followed his directions and pulled into El Cosmico Campground. It was like a hipster’s wet dream. There were genuine teepees set up next to propped up tents. Abstract sculptures dotted the landscape and punctuated the fact that we were not in a run-of-the-mill campground. There was a communal kitchen and an outdoor shower that had a rock wall for privacy. We lucked out. They had one teepee still vacant and we snatched it up before someone else could.

After we’d parked our car outside the campground, we trekked with our backpacks toward the center of the desert oasis. The sun was setting behind the shrubbery and cacti, illuminating the teepee in a golden glow. We untied the flap and hesitantly stepped inside. The decor was minimalist and awesome. There was a simple bed with a multi-colored quilt sitting on top of an animal hide rug. A vintage American flag hung over the bed. Some hippie architects had definitely designed the place.

“ This is the best place we’ve stayed so far,” I grinned, spinning in a circle in the center of the teepee. There were massive poles that merged at the center, almost twenty feet above my head. The sun was shining through gently, creating patterns across the pale canvas covering the entire space.

“ I agree,” Beck answered, tossing the stuff down on top of a vintage trunk at the foot of the bed. “I think I saw a bar and grill on the drive over. Should we check it out and see if they serve dinner?”

“ Yeah, but do you mind if I freshen up a little bit?” I felt light headed and I wanted to change into something more appropriate for a bar. I hadn’t put make-up on once since meeting Beck, but I’d packed a few random things in case the occasion called for it. Tonight seemed like as good a night as ever, especially considering the fact that a headache had developed in the past half hour and I felt less than sexy. But maybe if I freshened up and put some makeup on, my body would get the hint.

Beck went to scope out the campground while I got ready. I pulled out a wrinkled, but still pretty, aqua dress that had thin spaghetti straps. The cut was low in the front and normally I skipped over it so that my scar wouldn’t be on display, but I didn’t seem to mind that when I was around Beck.

I pulled out my bag of makeup that was stocked full with no help from me. My mother had done her best to provide me with things she thought I should use, but most of it looked like foreign torture devices. I skipped over the eye shadows and opted for some mascara, a touch of bronzer, and some cherry-red lip stain that brought out the bright red tones in my strawberry-blond hair. Mostly I felt like a little kid playing dress up, but I tried to talk myself up as I slipped on my strappy sandals.

When I pushed the flap of the teepee open, I didn’t see Beck right away. The sun had dropped lower toward the horizon, finally allowing the temperature to hit a tolerable ninety degrees. My sandals clapped against the rocks and dirt as I wandered toward the center of camp and spun around looking for him. The abstract sculptures and teepees blurred by and then I saw him walking toward me. I stopped my spin and waited for him to get closer. He must have snuck into the teepee after me and changed because he was wearing a vintage Dallas Cowboys shirt that hugged his chest, over a pair of worn, sexy jeans. His hands were stuffed in his pockets and his eyes were locked right on me. That crooked grin was ever present.

When he stepped closer, he whistled, low and sweet. “Wow.”

I looked down at my dress. There was a hint of cleavage and the bottom cut off well above my knees.

“ How’d you sneak in without me seeing you?” I asked with a bemused smile.

Beck winked and shrugged before placing his hand above my heart, right over my scar. He leaned in and gave me a quick kiss, and I could feel my heart fluttering beneath his hand. “You look beautiful.”