An Ounce of Prevention

She softly whispered, "Not with the children in the room."

"They're asleep," he responded in an equally soft whisper. His lips were close to hers and he gave her no opportunity to respond before he kissed her again. It was impossible not to respond to his kiss.

She reluctantly pushed him away. "What if they wake up?"

"We could go into the bathroom and shut the door."

She started to giggle. "In the bathtub, Alex? That would certainly be something new."

He released her and chuckled. "You know how to water down a romantic moment, don't you?"

Actually, that wasn't her intent, but the result was what they needed. At home, they often made up after an argument with lovemaking. The last few days had been tense with their disagreements. Still, the children were in the room and they might wake up.

The next morning they dragged their things from the hotel and put them into the van, hopefully for the last time. When they went to the office, Carmen asked if there was a place to rent a camper and was told that the nearest place they could probably find what they were looking for would be Tucson.

After breakfast they headed for Tucson. Jonathan had his cactus books out and was excitedly divulging his considerable knowledge about the different kinds of cacti.

All day they were awed by the contrast of flat desert and naked mountains. All kinds of cactus adorned the desert, some of them sporting beautiful yellow and red blooms.

"Those tall ones are Saguaro cactus," Jonathan informed them. "That short fuzzy looking one is a Cholla cactus, also known as a jumping cactus. It doesn't really jump, though."

Carmen glanced at Alex. His eyes twinkled with humor and his lips turned up at the corners, but he didn't say anything. This was why Jonathon had chosen Arizona. He couldn't wait to see the desert and the cactus. He had identified the century plants and yucca in the mountains, but the succulents didn't impress him as much as the thorny cactus.

When they reached Tucson, they consulted the Chamber of Commerce and were directed to a reputable camper dealer that rented campers. The camper they wanted was being cleaned and wouldn't be ready until the morning. Carmen was tempted to get something else, but Alex convinced her that it would be a good idea to spend the rest of the day researching where they wanted to camp, spend the night in a hotel and start out refreshed in the morning while it was cool. He was right, of course. Still, almost half their time had been taken up in getting this far.