Rose stretched under the covers. She was feeling very sleepy and did not want to get up. Jack was sleeping quietly next to her. The light was coming in between the gaps in the shade at the window. Judging from the brightness it looked to be a nice day.

She stretched again and yawned, snuggling under the blanket. While she tried to fall back asleep, she recounted all the things that had happened to her in the last month. Just 34 days ago, she and Jack had been strangers, and now sharing everything with him, seemed as natural as breathing.

She rested her hand on her stomach. Some days she felt so good that she could not imagine being pregnant. On other days, the tiredness and the queasiness made her sure. Another week or so and she would be positive. At first the idea had scared her, but now it was something that she wanted desperately.

The past few days had gone by in a blur. They had been traveling almost constantly. Except for an overnight stop in Minneapolis, they had spent most of the time since leaving Chippewa Falls either on a train or in a train station. Fortunately, they had stopped long enough in Minneapolis to find a laundry where the kind owner had done a rush job on their clothes.

The quiet hours on the train had passed with them discovering more about each other. What they liked to read, their favorite food and what they had done as children. They had filled in a lot of the gaps of what they did not know about each other.

Jack had told her that nothing would prepare her for the spectacular scenery of Yellowstone Park. And he had been right. When the train pulled into Gardner, Montana, a large stagecoach pulled by six powerful horses had met the train. The ride to the Lake Hotel, where they were now, had taken almost 5 hours.

Rose was speechless when she saw the unusual vistas of the park. At every turn there was something beautiful to look at. But there was no sign of civilization. The only thing that had greeted them at the park entrance was a small herd of elk. They were among the first visitors to the park this season. It had been an unusually mild winter and a warm spring. Most of the snow was gone. Only a few drifts lingered here and there in the shady spots.

The coach stopped and let them out to eat some sandwiches around lunchtime. The driver told them that the area they were in was called the Hayden Valley. As far as she could see were hills and grassy meadows. Just barely visible in the distance were the snow capped peaks of the mountains that she was told bore the name Grand Tetons.

Everywhere Rose looked was one breathtaking scene after another. She took out her camera and began snapping pictures.

The coach driver told them all to look down in the little valley below them. There appeared to be a round brown boulder. Suddenly there was a small cloud of dust around the shape. It started to move, to stand up. It was a large, lonely bison. As the bison moved closer to the bottom of the bluff atop which they stood, they could see how big it really was. The lumbering animal headed for a small pond.

Jack had been watching her reaction to all of this. He smiled to himself, thrilled at her excitement at being in this special place.

Rose had been delighted and surprised when they pulled up in front of the Lake Hotel. It was a new building and was painted a bright and cheerful tone of yellow. The reception area had beautiful wood floors, numerous potted plants and a charming conservatory with rounded windows and comfortable, padded window seats, affording a lovely view of the lake. Their room had a big brass bed, and a wicker chair with a pretty flowered cushion. The bathroom had a tub that last night they had proved was big enough for two.

Rose giggled to herself. This part of the trip was proving to be better than she had ever expected. Finally she decided that she was not going to fall back asleep. She got up and tiptoed to the window. Rose raised the shade expecting to see the lake. But a large object was blocking her view. She blinked and looked again. Outside of their window, not more that 6 feet away, were two gigantic bison quietly munching on grass.

"Jack, Jack, come here quick. You've got to see this," she cried.

Jack sat up, somewhat startled, hoping that Rose was alright.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine, but you have to see this. Hand me my camera."

He picked it up and joined her at the window. They watched these two peaceful looking animals for awhile.

"Jack, they look so tame, so quiet," commented Rose.

"Don't be fooled Rose," said Jack seriously. "A person can badly hurt by them. You have to be very careful. When I was through here a few years ago, I saw a guy who was trying to hand feed one. The bison got spooked and charged him. He was seriously injured. This is a wild and beautiful place Rose. But remember to be careful around the animals. Don't go messing with any bison."

She looked at him affectionately and caressed his hair.

"Don't worry. I have enough trouble with you," she said as she kissed him. "I think I'll go and get ready."

"Why don't you do that," he said, with an amused look on his face.

Rose went to the closet and looked inside.

"Jack, where are my clothes?"

"I couldn't tell you," he answered.

"Jack, where are they?" she asked again with distress in her voice.

"Why don't you look in there," he said, inclining his head toward the dresser.

"What would they be doing in there," she said sounding totally exasperated.

Rose pulled open the drawer. The only things she could find there were the dark pants and flannel shirt that Jack had made her buy in Chicago.

"Jack, these are the things we bought in Chicago. You really don't mean for me to wear these in public do you?" she asked with an irritated tone in her voice.

There were still times, once in awhile, when a little touch of her Philadelphia persona returned to her voice.

"Rose," Jack said warningly.

Rose knew immediately what he meant.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound like THAT. But Jack, I have never seen anyone dress like this.

"Listen Rose, do you trust me or not. If you want to put on one of those dresses, it will get all ripped and torn and dirty. If that's what you want fine. I am not going to stand around all day discussing this. If you really want to have a good time, then put that stuff on.

Rose looked at him and gave up. Jack definitely had something up his sleeve. Well, what did it matter. It might be an interesting experience to wear these clothes and besides, none of the people here would ever see her again.

Finally they were ready to go. While she had been in the bathroom, she thought that she had heard someone at the door of their room. But Jack said nothing, so she forgot about it. Jack grabbed his sketch book and she took her camera and they headed down the hallway to the dining room. She felt terribly self-conscious in this outfit, although Jack had told her how great her legs looked in pants.

While they were eating, several women came into the dining room dressed in their spring finery. She had to admit that they looked somewhat out of place in this rustic setting. And so far, no one had commented on her attire.

"So, just what are we going to do today?" Rose asked, as they were finishing their breakfast.

"Well, this morning, I thought we'd take a nice walk along the lake. Maybe I'll do some sketching and we can look for some birds and animals. Then later, after lunch, I've rented a small boat. Do you think you'd mind going out on the lake?"

Rose thought for a minute. She had sat on the shores of Lake Michigan in Chicago and she'd had fun playing in the creek with Golden Moon. Her fear of the water would never go away, unless she kept trying to associate it with pleasant experiences.

"No, I'll be alright," she said with a bit of hesitation.

"Good," he said, giving her a strange smile.

As they made their way down the front stairs of the hotel after breakfast, they ran into the same properly dressed ladies they had seen at breakfast. They were not in the best frame of mind.

One of them looked at Rose and said, "You are the first intelligent person we have seen here," pointing to Rose's attire. "Look what happened to our clothes."

Rose looked down and noticed their muddied skirts and torn hems.

"Oh, I'm sure you'll be able to fix that," she said politely.

As the women passed and entered the hotel, Rose looked up at Jack. He was not going to say anything, but he had an "I told you so" look in his eyes.

"Alright Jack Dawson. I get the point. Where are we going?" she asked laughing.

"This way Rose," he said, as he took her hand and led her to the shore. "I think I would like to draw you like this, on the beach here. Come on....."