Delayed Gratification: The Honeymoon Read online

  And if she thinks she’s getting laid while we languish in some shitty Midwestern hotel room when we could’ve been on a plane to Venice, she’s got another think coming. Willa remembered Rae’s light comment about spending the delay making love and frowned. How can she expect me to get in the mood when our entire honeymoon is being derailed?

  Listening to Rae explain their travel plans to Lynn—haphazardly, with a lack of detail that made it obvious she hadn’t bothered to actually read the itinerary Willa had spent months meticulously piecing together—did nothing to quell her simmering anger. Logically, she knew it wasn’t Rae’s fault that their plane was delayed. She also acknowledged that Rae had made a good-faith effort to drive them to the Detroit airport for their early morning, hail-Mary backup flight. The problem was how easily Rae had accepted this deviation from their well-laid plans, even after all the work Willa had put into crafting them. It wasn’t as though Rae didn’t know how desperately Willa wanted to experience every aspect of this trip she’d dreamed about for so long. And yet she’d given up already. Just like that.

  Was it wrong to wish Rae would fight for her happiness? Selfish or not, she wanted to see Rae demonstrate a willingness to do whatever it took to get them on that plane, no matter how hopeless their situation seemed, simply because Willa’s contentment was more important than her exhaustion, or the bad weather, or even her own libidinous aspirations.

  “Here we are. It’s not Venice, but…”

  Lynn’s cheerful voice pulled Willa out of her rumination, redirecting her focus to an absolutely gorgeous log cabin surrounded by strings of white lights that outlined various walkways and staircases. The property boasted a number of enormous oak trees, and Willa spotted a closed barn and a fenced paddock in the distance. Her inner Okie speculated that there could be horses inside, and despite herself, she cracked a smile. It faded at the sound of Rae’s enthusiastic reaction to their accidental digs.

  “This place is amazing, Lynn!” Rae turned in her seat, looking this way and that as they rolled up to the main house. Willa spotted two smaller buildings on the property. Guest cabins? Rae shot her a grin as their gazes intersected momentarily, but Willa quickly looked away. She wasn’t ready to relent just because they’d happened upon a particularly charming place to spend the night. “Isn’t it, babe?” Rae asked.

  Willa cringed at the accidental term of endearment, which she knew Rae hadn’t meant to utter. Their decision not to advertise the nature of their relationship—matching wedding rings aside—had been unspoken and largely strategic. There was no telling how Lynn would feel about hosting a pair of lesbians versus two close-but-platonic friends. After encountering the asshole who’d muttered at them in the Chicago airport, Willa felt particularly sensitive about the potential for a homophobic response to their newly legalized union. She would hate for their only source of transportation and shelter for the night to cast them out or, worse, try to convert them.

  “It’s gorgeous.” Willa studied Lynn’s face for any sign that she’d registered the pet name falling from Rae’s lips and, if she did, whether she had a problem. Lynn wore the same smile she’d sported the entire drive. “Thanks again for inviting us to stay.”

  “I’m glad you girls like it.” Lynn caught Willa’s gaze in the rearview mirror and winked. “Hopefully you won’t have to stay very long, but you’re certainly welcome to hole up here until the weather passes, at least.”

  Willa nodded, resigned. “We appreciate that.” Her fists tightened in anger at the clear look of pleasure that passed over Rae’s face. She’s thrilled about this. Willa’s mood darkened further. “And I agree, I hope we can get out of your hair soon.”

  “Until then, my husband and I will enjoy the company. We love having a full inn…whole reason we started it, honestly. To be around people. After our eight children grew up and left home, life got far too quiet for both of us. So believe me, Paul will also be glad to see you.” Lynn parked and cut the engine. “Winters are the worst. So lonely, at times.”

  “I know exactly what you mean.” Rae unhooked her seatbelt with a smile. “I remember one winter when school got cancelled for a full week and a half. I didn’t live near any of my friends, and all the roads were closed…By the tenth day, I was desperate to go sit in my classroom again.”

  Willa tuned them out and hopped out of the truck after Rae. She shouldered her backpack, then trudged toward the house behind the two gleefully chatting women. If only Rae didn’t seem so goddamn tickled to be marooned in the middle of nowhere, Willa probably wouldn’t feel so mad about the decision to stop for the night. But the more she thought about it, the more it felt like the entire first day of their honeymoon was ending exactly like Rae wanted. Not on the eleven-hour flight her wife had been admittedly anxious to undertake, but rather, trapped in an isolated room with nothing to do except each other.

  She’s loving this, isn’t she? After all Willa’s hard work to make this trip something they would both remember forever. To make their honeymoon worth the small fortune it cost. Willa seethed inside.

  Lynn let them in the front door, where they dutifully kicked the snow off their shoes and dried the soles before venturing inside. The interior of the cabin was every bit as impressive as the lush countryside on which it sat. The furnishings were elegant, old-fashioned without seeming aged. From the foyer, Willa spotted a dining room with a massively long, wooden farmhouse table with at least sixteen chairs. On her other side, a sitting room featured a fireplace surrounded by cozy love seats and recliners. Were this an intentional visit, Willa would have been unabashedly delighted by the accommodations. Tonight, she worried that their dumb luck had rendered Rae perfectly content to settle in and stay for a while.

  “I’m sure you two must be exhausted.” Lynn led them up the staircase to the second floor. “How about I show you to your room?”

  “When you said you owned an inn, I never imagined you would bring us someplace so beautiful.” Rae glanced over her shoulder as she ascended the steps behind Lynn. “Isn’t it beautiful, Will?”

  “Gorgeous,” Willa repeated flatly. Don’t get attached.

  Rae frowned at her, then looked back at Lynn. “Did you and your husband build this place or buy it from a previous owner?”

  “Paul and our three eldest built it seven summers ago.” Lynn beamed with obvious pride, about both the structure and her family. “It was an ordeal, at times, but also quite the bonding experience.”

  “I can only imagine.” Rae stared up through a skylight that offered a clear view of the night sky. “Good for all of you.”

  “We’re very blessed.” Lynn shot Rae a beatific smile that only raised Willa’s hackles further. She was in a bad mood, plain and simple, with an unusually low tolerance for good cheer. She stared at the floor as they followed Lynn down the hallway to a door at the far end. “So, here’s your room.”

  Willa heard Rae gasp when Lynn opened the door and begrudgingly looked up to take in the sight of an immaculately made king-size bed topped by a plush comforter, a large Jacuzzi tub next to the bathroom, a sliding-glass door that led to a private wooden deck, and even their own electric fireplace. It was as close to perfect as the last place on earth she wanted to be could possibly get. “Wow,” she said, despite herself.

  “Wow is right!” Rae spun in place as she took it all in. “Lynn, you have to let us pay for this room. I don’t think I feel right taking it for free.”

  Willa resisted the urge to elbow Rae in the side. That’s easy for the woman who’s never tried to manage our meager budget to say. Luckily, her good manners prevailed. “We certainly wouldn’t want to take advantage of you, Lynn.”

  “Nonsense.” Lynn stood in the doorway, hands planted on her hips, openly enjoying Rae’s agog reaction. “I know you’re both disappointed about getting to Venice later than planned. This can hardly make up for missing a day or two of Carnevale, but I hope it helps.” She hesitated, then asked, “Is this a trip to celebrate a special occa
sion, or…?”

  Irked by Rae’s obvious glee at their unexpected detour, Willa was suddenly spoiling for a fight. With anyone. She blurted, “This is supposed to be our honeymoon, actually. We always said that when they legalized same-sex marriage, we’d finally go on the trip to Europe we’d talked so much about in our twenties. Unfortunately, despite all my careful planning, I managed to book a flight with a layover in Chicago. In February. Stupid move on my part, I guess. So…” Now she was the one to leave her thought unfinished. In her peripheral vision, she saw Rae staring at her with wide, surprised eyes. “Whatever.”

  Lynn winced sympathetically. “I’m so sorry, darling. I can’t blame you for being unhappy about having your plans upset by the weather. Sounds like this trip was a long time coming.” She smiled at Willa, then at Rae. “Also, congratulations! My eldest daughter—one of the builders I mentioned—proposed to her girlfriend last month. We’re planning to host the wedding ceremony here at the inn this summer.”

  Rae beamed like a spoiled kid surveying her bounty on Christmas morning. And why not? They’d somehow landed luxury accommodations in the middle of a blizzard, courtesy of a perfectly tolerant PFLAG mom. As much as Lynn’s unexpectedly staunch acceptance also warmed Willa, it made the struggle to let go of her resentment about Rae’s lack of concern regarding their predicament even more difficult. No matter how nice this place was, no matter how friendly Lynn seemed, Michigan wasn’t where they were supposed to begin their honeymoon. Not even close.

  “This would be a stunning location for a wedding.” Rae peeked out the window at the snow-covered countryside. “Tell your daughter congratulations, from us.”

  “I sure will.” Lynn clapped her hands. “So, the bed’s already made up. Extra linens and towels are in the closet next to the tub. Breakfast will be served in the dining room at eight. Please feel free to join us. Otherwise we’ll end up with heaps of leftovers.” She winked. “That said, don’t worry. If you don’t make it down in time, I’ll send your meals up.”

  Rae nodded gratefully. “Thank you so much, Lynn. I can’t tell you how much we appreciate all your help.”

  “Not a problem.” Lynn turned, then snapped her fingers as she appeared to recall something. “What type of cell phones do you have?”

  Rae told her, and Lynn announced that she had a spare charger they could borrow, as well. When she left the room to go find it, Rae turned to Willa with an excited, shit-eating grin. “Can you believe this place?”

  Willa shrugged, noncommittal. “It’s really nice.”

  “I’ll say.” Rae dumped her backpack by the foot of the bed and collapsed onto the mattress with a loud groan. “Oh, it feels good to lie down.”

  Willa rolled her eyes. “Great.”

  From her prone position, Rae shot her a beseeching look. “Please, Will. Please make the best of this. This could be so much worse.” She lowered her voice, mumbling, “We could be dead.”

  Willa sighed. She knew she was being unreasonable. Really, what could Rae have done to change their situation? What could she have done? They’d rented a car, attempted the mad dash across the state in poor driving conditions to catch a long-shot, back-up flight, and she’d begged Triple-A for help only to be told that it wouldn’t come swiftly enough. But were they really out of options? Perhaps if Willa could locate a taxi service willing to ferry them to the airport despite the slick roads, they could still salvage their trip. Once her phone charged a bit, she could make calls to that effect. It would feel better than simply giving up.

  “Will…”

  Lynn’s return cut off Rae’s quiet entreaty. “Here you go, ladies. Unfortunately, I only have the one.”

  Willa stepped forward and accepted the wall charger with an amiable nod. “Thank you, again. I don’t know what we would’ve done without you tonight.”

  “It’s no problem at all.” Lynn backed out of the room. “I’ll see you girls in the morning. You can meet Paul at breakfast.”

  “Sounds wonderful,” Rae said. “Have a good night.” She followed Lynn to the door, closing it behind her. Then she turned and smiled cautiously at Willa. “There are definitely worse places to get stranded…”

  “For sure.” Willa knelt next to the bed and plugged the phone charger into the wall. Then she dug through her bag until she found her dead mobile. “Once I’m able to turn my phone on, I’ll see if I can call a taxi—or something—that will take us to the airport tonight.”

  “Seriously? Willa, stop.” Rae crossed the room, took the plugged-in phone from Willa’s shaky fingers, and set it on the nightstand. “Sweetheart, you’re dead on your feet. So am I. We need sleep.” As if to illustrate her point, Rae swayed slightly on her feet. “We’d have to leave here within the next three hours to even think about making that flight. You really believe you’re going to find a cab that will drive us one hundred and fifty miles in blizzard conditions at two in the morning?”

  “Maybe.” Willa stared down at her phone’s display until the battery symbol appeared. Charging. Finally. Her vision blurred, and she blinked her stinging eyes. “We have to try.”

  “Fine,” Rae said. “But not until we sleep for at least a couple of hours.”

  Willa grumbled, but honestly, she wasn’t a hundred percent opposed to the idea. Rather than take the edge off her exhaustion, napping in the car had only deepened her need for rest. She’d be lying if she claimed to be at her peak problem-solving capabilities. “Fine.” She picked up the phone and tried to power it on. “I’m setting an alarm for ninety minutes from now. Then I’ll start making calls. If I find us a ride, I’ll need you to be ready to move.”

  Rae sleepily undressed herself without standing up. “’Kay.”

  “I mean it.” Willa frowned at her, perfectly aware of what a challenge waking Rae could be. “If there’s any chance of us getting on that plane, we need to take it.”

  “Gotcha.” Rae managed to pull her T-shirt off over her head, leaving her in only a snug camisole that hugged her breasts in the most perfect way.

  Despite her staunch no-sex-until-Italy stance, Willa couldn’t help but admire the sight of the woman she’d married. Ten years together, and Rae was even sexier than the day they’d met. She’d never tire of looking at her enticing curves. Abandoning her phone while it slowly booted up, Willa stripped down as well, until she wore only her T-shirt and panties. She was too tired to argue about leaving anymore, so she got into bed beside Rae, then picked up her phone to set an alarm for the appropriate time. “If you hear the alarm and I don’t, please wake me. Okay?”

  “Mm-hmm.” Rae crawled beneath the comforter, settling in with a happy sigh. “Feels so good to stretch my legs.”

  Willa blinked, surprised by how difficult it was to focus on the alarm’s settings, even with the screen mere inches from her face. She stretched out her own legs and groaned. “Yeah.”

  “I love you, baby,” Rae mumbled. “So glad we’re together.”

  Satisfied that her phone would wake her in a mere ninety minutes, which would hopefully leave plenty of time to make arrangements for their final, short jaunt to the airport, Willa lay down and cuddled into Rae’s side. She wrapped her arm around Rae’s waist, rested her head on the pillow next to Rae’s, and experienced a moment of true peace despite her best efforts to hang onto her fiery resentment. “I love you, too,” she managed to whisper before swiftly tumbling into a deep winter’s slumber.

  Chapter Four

  Rae awoke to the sound of pure anger.

  “What the fuck?” Willa shook her roughly, yanking Rae from a pleasant dream she only half-remembered. “Did you turn my alarm off without waking me?”

  Rae attempted to reconstruct the past few hours of her life. She opened her eyes blearily and squinted against the full sunlight streaming in through curtained windows. Judging by the sky, it had to be at least seven o’clock in the morning, if not closer to eight. She gazed at Willa, whose hands trembled as she stared down at her phone in an obvious state
of furious bewilderment. Had she turned off the alarm? She didn’t remember doing so, but she would’ve been half-asleep at the time…Rae shook her head. “I don’t think so?”

  Willa’s nostrils flared as she set the phone on her nightstand. “Well, the alarm says it was set for one fifteen, and the volume is supposedly turned up, but I sure as hell didn’t hear it go off.”

  “I didn’t either.” Rae rubbed her eyes, still attempting to sort through her fuzzy memories of the night before. “What time is it now?”

  “Eight fifteen!” Willa threw the comforter off her body and stomped out of bed toward the bathroom. “Which is just great, because that means the fucking plane took off over two hours ago! Without us!”

  Rae startled when Willa slammed the bathroom door closed behind her. Whether this was actually her fault, Willa seemed determined to blame Rae for her failure to conduct a most-likely fruitless search for a middle-of-the-night, blizzard-braving taxi. Groaning, Rae got out of bed and walked to the window to look outside. Snow was everywhere, lots of snow. On the ground, falling from the sky, still accumulating rapidly with no sign of reprieve. With a growing sense of dread, she wondered how long it would take them to actually board a flight to Italy. It might be days. How the hell is Willa going to handle this?

  The bathroom door swung open and an agitated Willa emerged. “Tell me the truth, Rae. Did you turn off my alarm?”

  Rae tried to remain calm despite Willa’s accusing tone. It wasn’t easy. “I already told you, Will, I don’t think so. At least not as far as I remember.”