18. 18
18
“So why are we waiting outside in the middle of January?” Ava’s words came out in puffy billows of steam as the icyair nipped at her lungs. Despite the mid-afternoon sunshine, the unforgiving cold lingered.
“You’ll see soon enough. If we wait inside,it would spoil the surprise. They announce it over the speakers once every few minutes. It’s worth the cold,I promise. That’s why I wanted you to dress warm.”
“I did,” she added, gesturing to her puffy coat, boots, beanie and gloves. “None of it doesdiddly-squat for thisWyoming wind, though.” Her teeth chattered violently.
Will chuckled, wrapping a strong arm around her. “Is that better?”
“Not really,” she answered honestlywith a shrug.
“Here.” He positioned himself between her and the wind, unzipped his coat,and held it open for her. “ Come . ”
Ava grinned andobliged, burrowing beneath his coat like a down-clad tick. Her face rested against his chest, and he closed his coat around the both of them.
“Better?” he asked as the shiveringagainst himslowly subsided.
“ Much .”
Will smiled, resting his chin against the top of her head. “I never realized how short you were until right now.”
“These boots don’t have heels,” Ava’s muffled voice muttered.
Horses clompedin the distance as Ava basked in Will’s radiant warmth like a lizard on a hot rock.
Will finally spoke, vibrating her face with his low voice. “Your carriage awaits, my lady.”
“Carriage?!” Ava echoed, prying herself from Will’s chest to see two horses approaching with adecorativewooden cart, every edge laced with faux flowers in various colors.
“Oh my God! I know where we’re going!”
“No, you don’t,”Will said incredulously.
“Yes, I do! There’sonly one reason for a cart in JacksonHole. The National Elk Refuge!”
Will was stunned that she guessed the surprise. “Ever been?”
“No!” She beamed. “I’ve always wanted to see it, though! Just never made the time. ”
Will walked to the carriage and extended a hand to her, “You first, gorgeous.”
Ava’s cheeks were rosy from the excitement and cold as sheclimbed aboard. Will followed. As they took their seats, the cart took off.
“I can’t believe you did this!”
“I actually bought all the seats so we could have the carriage to ourselves.”
“Aww!”
“Thought it would be a little more romantic that way.” Will shrugged with a smile.
Ava scooted closer to him, and hewrapped his arm around her, pulling her inuntil their legs touched each other.
“Howdy folks!” hollered the coachman. His gravelly voice was that of apack-a-day smoker. “It’s a cold one today. We have blankets on the other side if you want to bundle uptogether. That wind is givin’you a real Wyomin’welcome .”
Ava pulled her beanie down over her rowdy, wind-blown hairand smiled brightly.
“You folks from around here,”the man asked over his shoulder.
Will spoke up over the wind. “We both live here. Just thought it would be a fun experience. This is her first time.”
“You’ve been before?” Ava asked, scooting so close that the heat from his breath warmed her ear.
“Yeah. But it’s always a treat.”
Hopping off the paved road onto a snowy path, the cart rumbled toward a massive herd of elk. Ava watchedin wonder, mouth openin amazement at the sheer amount of four-legged creatures strewn throughout the field beyond.
Theelk barely stirred at the sight of the cart as it dipped and swayed with the uneven ground.Thewagonapproached a large herd, passingby a full cart of passengers snapping photos and excitedly chattinglike two ships on the open seas. The drivers nodded to one another.
As Will and Ava’s carriage hobbled closer,the elk turned to look at them. White puffs of steam tumbled from their nostrils as they cautiously watched the cart rumble by. The majority of theanimalsremainedunbothered, bedded down in the melting snow, hides twitching with the breeze.
“Holy cow, they are massive !” Ava gaped over the side of the cart as the living mounds of muscle stood still and stoic beside them. In the distance,cowsbutted heads, mewling as they battled. A beastly elk with massive antlers lay down amid a cluster of females .
Settling into his role, the coachman spoke over the wind. “The females, or cows, are the ones without antlers. A group of them together iscalled a harem . Bull elks, like those two back there,can be challenged for thepossession of theirharem at any time. The males clash antlers, and if one antler gets mangledor busted, they lose their appeal andbecome less desirable to the females.”
Ava watched two cowsbutt heads in the distance.
“What about them? Those are females,right? Why are they butting heads?”
“For a higher spot in the harem. They bicker over men just like women do.” The coachman laughed, tickled by his own comment.
Ava gazed at the animals. Countless eyes staredback as though Will and Ava were the creatures really on display.
“They’re gorgeous ,” Ava cooed, turning in her seatto watch the elk. The carriage got soclose to some that Ava could see the burnt-orange hue of their irises.
Will spread his arms across the top of the cart behind them and took in the incredible viewof the snow-dusted mountain range and colorful, wide-open Wyoming sky.Rolling hillsdipped down to the largevalley that hundreds of elk called home. Pristine fields of undisturbed white snow surrounded themin nearly every direction.
“It’s incredible that they know this place is safe,” Ava mused. “They’ve learned totrust peopleandallow the cartsto pass.”
Will smiled, overjoyed at the childlike wonder on Ava’s face. She looked like she was watching a magic act.
The coachmen laughed.“These elk are here because they know this is a refuge. Hunters scare them to this place, or they come in search of food.Don’t touch their calves, keep a wide berth, and you’ll be fine.”
Will chuckled. “They’re just like us. All they want issalt, safety,and sex.”
“ Salt ?” Ava asked, trying to keep her mind off ofthe latter. Or lack thereof…
The coachman hacked and cleared his throat. “Ever heard of the saying ‘ antlers still in velvet’ ?”
Ava nodded, studying the man as if she would be tested on the subject.
“Well,those antlers take a lot of minerals to grow. Theelk areattracted to salt lick stands and seek a variety ofnutrients to regrow their antlers after they fall off. The ‘velvet’ is actually thousands of tiny blood vessels. They eventually die off and itch, so theelkrub ‘em against tree bark and branches to get ‘em off. ”
“ Cool .” Ava stared at one of the thick sets of antlers and wondered how many minerals it must’ve takento grow onesthat massive.
“Another little-known fact: their teeth are valuable. Besides being hunted for their racks and meat, certain elk teeth are made of ivory andare used to make jewelry.”
“I tried to get into hunting,” Will admitted, “but something about their eyes … I could never pull the trigger. They’re not dumb animals.They have their own language, their own customs. I respect the hell out of hunting, but elk…I just can’t do it.”
Ava nestled into the crook of Will’s armand smiled contentedly.
Will and Ava enjoyed the rest of theride in silence, soaking in the breathtaking viewof awilderness that stretched miles ahead.