“Love you, babe. Don’t overdo it while I’m gone.” He kissed her again, a gentle brush of lips at her brow. It was a tender moment that made Maria feel like a voyeur, but she was glad she had witnessed it. It was obvious that Dee was a good man, and that he loved his wife very much.
Rob snickered and pointed at Rowan’s hair. She transferred her scowl to him, giving him a surly look and sticking out her tongue before wisely hiding behind her mother. Maria bit her lip to keep herself from laughing out loud. Rowan was a firecracker. And cute, she thought, and at that age cute gets you pretty far. She was going to be a heartbreaker when she got older, that was for sure, one that would be the cause for many a gray hair once she noticed boys.
“I’ve got to get the horses in for the night and put out some hay. Come on, Rob, you can help me,” Dee said, heading for the door. Rob’s face fell. Caught in the act when his sister hadn’t been, it looked like he was stuck with chores now.
“Little brother?” Maria asked, noting the faux hostility between the two children that only close siblings exhibited.
“No, we’re twins. Rob likes to say he’s older, but Momma says only by 5 minutes so it doesn’t count,” Rowan said.
“Rowan, why don’t you go see if you can tag along with your dad and brother today, okay?” Josie asked, pointing her child towards the door.
“Aw, Mom. Do I have to?” Rowan whined.
“Yes. Now go before you miss them,” Josie said, as she leveled her best ‘mom’ glare at her daughter. Rowan did as she was told without further argument. She took off like a flash, only stopping to wave to Maria before slamming out the front door.
Josie chuckled, then turned her attention back to her guest. “You never appreciate silence as much as you should, until you have kids and a husband.” She spoke wryly as she walked across the kitchen. She pulled down two cups and held them up. “Coffee?”
“Yes, please.”
“Black or?”
“Sweet and blonde,” Maria answered automatically, then blushed when Josie did a double take, arching one gingery eyebrow at her. “I mean, cream and sugar, thank you.”
“Of course,” Josie said, then continued to talk while her back was still to Maria while she hunted around in the refrigerator for a small carton of half and half. “Stacie usually takes her coffee black. She thinks it’s practically a sin to add sugar to it.”
Stacie? Why is she telling me about Stacie’s preferences in coffee? Maria busied herself with her coffee, adding enough half and half and sugar to make Stacie squirm if what Josie said was true.
“So, Maria, tell me about yourself.”
Straightforward and to the point. That was something Maria could respect. The sensation of being interviewed, however, returned with a vengeance. She cleared her throat and took a sip of coffee before answering.
“Well, I came here from Arizona to work at The Oakes…it’s a retreat about an hour north of here. Mostly women coming in for a few weeks to get away from it all, but there are some who are looking for something more, like me. I’m teaching there and taking some classes of my own. Sort of a cultural exchange of ideas if you will.”
“Will you eventually move back to Arizona?”
“Possibly. I really don’t know yet. Abuela is getting old and I worry about what will happen if she gets sick,” Maria admitted.
“Your grandmother?” Josie asked after a moment. “But you say Abuela like it’s a title or something.”
“Yes, she’s the local Curandera, a healer. I’m not sure what our neighborhood would do without her. You speak Spanish?” Maria asked, delighted that Josie had been able to translate.
“Not really. Just what I remember from High School Spanish class,” Josie said. “It helps with some of the cowhands that don’t speak much English, although I’m not sure if they aren’t just humoring me when I murder their language.”
“I’m sure you do fine,” Maria said, with a nod. “Is that how you heard about the Hopi Tea?”
“Yes. From one of our foremen, his wife suggested I talk to Bianca about some natural remedies, oh…gosh, years ago when I was pregnant with the twins. I was having a terrible time with nausea and swelling, but I didn’t want to take medicine because of the babies.”
“You know, you have to be careful even with the herbal remedies. They are still medicine, even if the doctor’s don’t believe in it.”
“Yes, Bianca said something like that. Are you a, what did you call it—a Curandera as well?”
“I guess I am, although I still feel like a child compared to my Abuela. There is always more to learn.” Maria put her cup down and leaned back in the chair. “Is this why you asked me here today?”
Josie shook her head, opened her mouth to speak but then seemed to think better of it. She worried her lip and stared into her cooling coffee before trying again. “No, not really. I have to admit, I feel weird about all of this. I wanted to meet you, but not for the reasons you might be thinking.”
Maria watched Josie fidget but remained
