"Oh, so I married a rogue?"  Giggling, Emeline pushed away, trying to roll up in the covers.  "I'm not ticklish!" she declared, pulling the blanket over her head.  "Just one place, and I'm not talking."  Her voice was muffled by the blanket.  "And it is late, maybe you should get up!"

She surfaced long enough to give him a playful shove, then dove back under cover again.  She had known that Barnabas would be a perfect partner, and so far he wasn't disappointing! 

"Dang! ALright, I 'spose I oughtta get myself washed up an' off ta work." He reluctantly agreed. "Speed'll figger somethin's wrong, I don't show. Like we went a honeymoonin', which we will, jest things I gotta take care of before that happens." He threw off the covers, swung out of bed, sitting for a moment, "Reckon ya never really figgered we'd get here, didja?"

The ceremony had been grand, well, on it's scale, and the reception had been fun, even though it tended to go on. Here they were, in the same bed, where they had made love and then slept together for the first time, and, as man and wife. It was amazing! Or, was it him who never figured they would be here?

"You mean he's going to make you go in today?" Emeline asked with a frown, sitting up behind him and wrapping her arms around his waist, her chin resting on his shoulder. "The scoundrel! I've a mind to march over there and give him a piece of my mind! Just like I am!"

Laughing, she kissed the back of his neck. "The least he could do is give you one day." Not that she would stop him if he had to go on patrol, she could use the time to make him something special for supper. "Besides, are you going to bring your things over today? I can get them all put away while you are working, that way you won't be able to find anything!"

"Oh, wait!" He flopped back down, "I'm off! I plumb fergot, Speed said 'take a couple days.' So, we got us a couple days ta do whatever we want. Like me washin' dishes for ya." He grinned. "I don't remember taken time off cuz I wanted to. He knows we'll be goin' off on our honeymoon soon's I take care'a some things. But we got us a couple days all too ourselves."

He rolled toward her, took her in his arms and kissed her.

"You will not wash dishes, Barnabas Pike!"  Emeline laughed as he tumbled her back into the blankets.  "And poor Speed, he's your friend, you're not going to let me run over there and tell him you won't be there?"

Giggling, she kissed his nose, then sighed and reached up to run her fingers over the stubble on his chin.  "You know my honeymoon is just time with you, it doesn't matter where."  They had discussed it before, but if he had something more in mind, she wasn't going to argue, nor was she going to ask.  Besides, a surprise would be nice, and give her some interesting insight into him.

"So," she muttered, kissing his cheek, "now that we are sleeping in," she kissed his nose, "I suppose we should go back to sleep."  This was followed by a proper, prolonged kiss on the mouth!

When the kiss broke he pulled far enough away to look into her eyes, "Now this here could become a real habit, 'cept when we get the ranch goin', it'll be up before dawn an' long hours working cattle and horses and whatever else there is aside from caring for the house, so, we bestt enjoy this while we can." He advised her.

Then added, "Oh, the honeymoon, yeah well, we may not be able to get at that til early July, but it'll be a time you'll never ferget, I promse ya that!" He grined and went back to a tight embrace, a long kiss, and the comfort of them.

"Yep, this here could be a real habit which means nothin'd get done by either of us." And then, he was lost in her.