He stepped past me and turned on a light.
It was a small flame.
"How'd you light that so fast?"
"It's gas." He pointed at another oil lamp, but he didn't move to turn it on. "They're made to look just like an oil lamp. We have several of them."
"This is crazy," I said, looking around. "Is this seriously what they were like on the inside?"
"Yeah, I'm sure it differed a little, family by family."
"It's aliving room," I said, looking around.
"What'd you expect?"
"I don't know… completely full of supplies… impossible to move around. I don't know why, but I never actually imagined the people were in here. I thought they were walking alongside and these were just the supplies." I laughed at myself and shrugged even as I said it. "I don't know why I thought that. I just definitely didn't picture a living room. Is this real? Can this hold weight?" I asked, pointing to a rocking chair.
"Yes, would you like to sit in it?" he asked, stepping aside.
I sat in the rocking chair, anchoring it with my feet and being careful not to make it rock too much. Alex sat on a nearby wooden chest. Our legs were almost close enough to touch, and I wanted to scoot toward him and make it happen. The light flickered, and he was irresistible.
"This is unbelievable," I said, looking around. "I love it in here." I touched a piece of colorful cotton that was draped over a nearby box. "This fabric. It's vintage. I love it. Everything is so authentic."
"I'm pumped about how it came together," he said. "We gave a kid a blanket today with some other fabric Cameron found in here."
"I saw that kid. He was cute, dragging that blanket."
"Yeah, thank you, it added to the shot. And speaking of that, could you try to stay?"
"Stay where?" I asked.
"In Montana. Somewhere close. Somewhere that's accessible to me. For the immediate future."
"I was thinking of extending my trip," I said.
He grabbed a handful of fabric near the knee of my jeans and gave me a tug that made me laugh. "Come here," he said. "What were you thinking? Tell me, tell me."
I laughed and then shrugged. "My sister had mentioned me staying a few days longer so Lu can have me around. And I thought since I'm done with school."
"Oh, so it has nothing to do with someone you met?"
"I did sort of meet someone," I said. "He took me on a date to a covered wagon."
"Not sure how romantic that is, now that I hear it said out loud. Not to judge the guy, but…"
"Oh, no, it's romantic, trust me. You should have seen the way he set it all up. For two days, I watched him talk to people and draw these amazing performances from them. I watched as he made this beautiful artistic vision come to life. I watched himbe a total boss. And then we took a walk, and there was this unbelievable set piece—a wagon. A little jewel out in the middle of nowhere, like a gypsy caravan. There was a flickering light, and we were just hanging out."
"So, you liked that date?" he said.
"Yeah, I did. I liked it. It was, dare I say, one of the best dates I've ever been on."
I was being a little bit silly when I said it, and he put a hand on my thigh and gave me a tug.
"Josie, since I found you again, I've been having a good feeling in my bones. I know that's a weird way to put it, but it's all I have. I feel good with you being near me, and that feeling of goodness translates into… it trickles down to my crew and the cast, and… what I'm trying to say is it too much to ask for you to just be in Montana until we're done shooting?"
"Oh, no. That's fine to ask," I said, my heart pounding.
"How do you answer it?"
