Save the Date, page 18
The mention of his name made Casey’s blood boil. “What an asshole.”
Elise let out a long sigh. “You can say that again. Thanks to you, I’m free of him.” She waved a hand around the cottage and her glorious brown eyes bore into Casey. “Life here with you…it’s, I don’t know, idyllic. Sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure it’s not all a dream.”
A lump formed in Casey’s throat. The last of the thick ice around her heart melted away. For the first time in a very long time, it thumped freely. She rested one hand on Elise’s waist and slipped the other into her hair.
Their kisses were tender at first, but Elise opened her mouth and welcomed Casey inside. Pure joy shot through Casey. It was as if she’d been pumped full of helium. She pulled Elise tightly against her, afraid that if she didn’t, Elise might float away. They fell onto the couch and she kissed her passionately. Elise pulled back slightly and stared into Casey’s eyes with such intensity, it took her breath away. Gentle fingertips ran over her collarbone and up the nape of her neck. Warm lips found hers again. Elise hummed when Casey slipped a hand under the back of her shirt and roamed the soft warm skin beneath it.
“Knock, knock,” a tentative female voice called.
Casey jerked back and squinted toward the front door. It was Bernice from the front desk.
“I’m so sorry to, uh, interrupt,” Bernice said, “but there’s a guy at the front desk who’s throwing a hissy fit and insisting to talk to you.”
“I’ll be right there,” Casey said. She gave Elise one last kiss. “I’d like to finish this later.”
“Hurry back,” Elise said.
Casey trotted over to the inn with a spring in her step but froze when she stepped inside. Charles paced back and forth in the lobby. Casey’s mind went to Elise. She had to warn her. She spun on her heel and made for the side door of the inn, but it was too late. Charles had spotted her.
He stormed across the lobby. “Where is she? Where’s Elise?”
“I don’t know what—”
“Save me the theatrics.” Charles jabbed a finger in her face. “I saw a photo of Elise on the Swizzle-Telemark Facebook page.”
Casey had no idea what he was talking about. Bernice handled all the social media for her two inns. Had she unwittingly posted a photo of Elise? She cringed at the possibility. “You must be mistaken. Elise isn’t here.”
As if on cue, Elise strode through the front door of the inn.
“There you are!” Charles lurched toward her and grabbed her arm.
“Get your hands off me!” Elise jerked away from him. “I don’t know who you are.”
“Bullshit!”
“I’ve never seen you in my life.”
Charles snarled at her. “Smile,” he barked.
“What?” Elise asked.
“I said smile.”
She obliged, brandishing her two perfectly straight front teeth.
Charles seemed thrown off guard. Casey held her breath as she waited to see if it was enough to convince him it was a case of mistaken identity. Elise’s hair was a lot shorter than the last time he’d seen her, and the Florida sunshine had lightened it considerably.
“So, you got your teeth fixed. I’m not fooled. I know it’s you.” Charles reached for her arm again.
Casey’d had enough. She pulled Charles away from Elise and pressed him against the wall. “This is private property. If you don’t leave right now, I’ll call the police.”
Ricky and Bernice came up beside her and Charles threw his arms in the air. “Fine, I’ll leave, but you haven’t seen the last of me.”
Casey released her grip and he shoved the door open.
Before he stepped outside, he spun back to face her. His nostrils flared and saliva bubbled from his lips. “You stole my wife!”
Casey planted both hands on her waist. “I did no such thing. And newsflash, she’s not your wife.”
Charles grunted and let the door of the inn slam behind him.
* * *
Elise pushed through the door after Charles.
Casey followed behind her but Elise waved her off. “Please, stay here. Give me a minute alone with him.”
“The hell I will.” Casey’s eyes glowed with fury. “I don’t trust that asshole as far as I can throw him. I’ll let you do the talking but I’m standing guard.”
Elise stepped on the porch and called after him. “Hold on!”
As he marched back toward her, she thanked her lucky stars that her mother was still up in New Jersey. She held her head high and looked him straight in the eye. “I’m begging you, please walk away and leave us alone.”
When he opened his mouth to argue, Elise held up her hand. “Do I have to spell it out for you? I don’t love you and I don’t want to be your wife.”
He stared back at her, like he couldn’t believe the words had come from her mouth. He jammed his hand in the pockets of his perfectly pressed khakis and hung his head. For a second, she almost felt sorry for him.
When he finally spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper. “I’m sorry.”
She wasn’t sure what she’d been expecting him to say, but it wasn’t that.
“I wanted to be with you so badly…I hope someday you can forgive me.”
Before she could respond, he turned and trudged down the front steps of the inn. She watched him slink down the sidewalk. He never looked back. When he was out of sight, she collapsed against the railing and sunk to the ground.
Casey picked her up and carried her back to the cottage.
As soon as they got inside, Elise burrowed her head into Casey’s shoulder and cried until she had no more tears. When her sobs abated, she lifted her head and sought out Casey’s kind blue eyes. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For being my rock. For protecting me.”
“You’re welcome, baby, but based on what I just witnessed, you don’t need protecting. You were so strong. The way you stood up to him. It was epic.”
Pride shot through Elise. “I don’t know what came over me. I got this burst of courage. And God, it felt so good to tell him off.”
“I’m sure it did, but his showing up obviously opened the emotional floodgates. I need you to talk to me, tell me how you’re feeling. We can’t brush this aside and move on.”
Elise took a few deep breaths as she thought about her answer. “Right now, I think I’m in a state of shock, but I’m also relieved. Life here with you…It’s like living in a cocoon. Safe and warm. It’s been easy to pretend the outside world doesn’t exist but deep down I knew this day would come.” Elise took both Casey’s hands in her own. “Because of you, I had the strength to face it.”
“Together we can get through anything.”
“I know we can.”
* * *
“Morning,” Casey said when Elise’s eyes blinked open the next morning. “You sleep okay?”
“Like a rock. I don’t think I’ve slept that soundly, well, probably ever.”
“How about we have breakfast and then go out on the boat. It would probably do us both good to spend the day outside. Just you, me and the sea.”
Elise propped her head up on her hand. “That sounds perfect. But what about work?”
“I’m the boss. Let’s play hooky.”
Elise gave her a quick kiss on the lips. “Who am I to argue with that?”
After they ate, they drove to the marina and climbed onto Casey’s twenty-three-foot Grady White. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and the water was like glass. With Elise nestled next to her on the captain’s bench, Casey piloted out to her favorite shoal. They tied up to a buoy and jumped into the warm shallow water. Given it was a weekday morning, there wasn’t another soul around.
Casey didn’t think she’d ever been happier than she was at that moment. She sought out the sandy bottom with her feet and bounced into the air, splashing down into the water like a dolphin. She found the ground again and backflipped into a handstand. When she surfaced, Elise giggled and swam toward her. “If I didn’t know better, I’d guess you were born in the sea. It’s wonderful to see you so playful.”
Casey plunged her head back into the water and circled Elise with just the point of her elbow sticking above the surface.
“Oooh, I’m so scared.” Elise let out a mock squeal. “A big bad shark.”
Casey popped out of the water and pulled Elise into her arms. “Don’t worry, I’ll save you.”
“You already have.”
Casey bent down and kissed her saltwater-slicked lips. An ache burned between her legs when their tongues met. She ran her hands up Elise’s bare torso and slipped a hand beneath the cup of her bikini top. Elise’s nipple hardened at her touch. Casey yanked the string of Elise’s colorful top loose. It fell to the water, and her full breasts floated just below the surface.
Casey brushed her lips over Elise’s ear and waved in the general direction of the nearby spit of sand. “I want nothing more than to drag you to the beach so I can have my way with you.” She pulled back and twisted her lips into a pout. “But with my luck, the second I get your sexy naked body beneath me, a pleasure craft full of tourists will appear on the horizon.”
A wicked grin crossed Elise’s face. “Boat!” she hollered, and took off swimming toward the Grady White. “Last one in is a rotten egg.”
Laughing hysterically, they both hoisted themselves over the stern of the boat and landed on the floor next to the outboard motor in a heap.
Casey peered over at Elise. Her chest was still bare and although a broad smile adorned her face, her eyes were hooded. Casey crawled on top of her and pinned her to the floor with a searing kiss. The throbbing between her legs became almost unbearable as Elise tugged at her faded tank top and yanked it over her head. Her jog bra went sailing after it and the cool breeze tickled her bare chest.
Elise rolled on top of her and guided Casey’s hand to her breast. Casey caressed one and then the other before taking a hardened nipple into her mouth. When Elise moaned, Casey sucked harder. She trailed a hand down Elise’s side and slipped a finger under the waistband of her skimpy bikini bottom. Elise rocked against her thigh and Casey got an idea. She rolled to a sitting position.
“What are you—”
Casey held a finger to her lips. “Shhhh.” She pulled Elise to her feet, picked her up in her arms and carried her to the captain’s bench in the middle of the boat. She gently set Elise on the white leather cushion and knelt before her. She spread Elise’s legs and ran her hand along the inside of her thighs. Elise squirmed when Casey skimmed her fingers over the cloth of her bikini bottom. Casey pulled the fabric back and teased Elise with her tongue before stripping the garment down her legs and tossing it toward the hulking engine.
With both feet planted on the dashboard, Elise guided Casey between her legs. When Elise’s middle began to tremble, Casey grabbed her ass and intensified the swipes with her tongue. Elise’s whole body shook. “Oh, yes! I’m so close.”
Seconds later, Elise’s knees squeezed Casey’s head before she crumbled across the bench. Casey gazed into her eyes. “That was the sexiest thing I’ve ever experienced.”
Elise tugged her up on to the bench and circled Casey’s bare nipples with the tips of her fingers. “Start the engine.”
“What?”
“I said, start the engine. I want to do you while you drive the boat.”
Casey obliged. She released the boat from the buoy and shifted it into gear. As she navigated away from the shoal, Elise untied her swim shorts and let them fall to the floor. “Drive faster,” she whispered into Casey’s ear.
Using one hand to massage Casey’s breast, Elise scratched the other down her back. She pressed Casey against the steering wheel and entered her from behind, first with one finger and then with two. She wound her other arm around Casey’s waist and worked her clit as she drove into her matching the rhythm of the boat bouncing over the waves. When Casey clenched around her fingers, she doubled down, moving with the thrusts of Casey’s hips.
Casey stilled. Her head fell back, and she let out a long low moan. “Jesus Christ. I’ve never come that hard in my life.” She collapsed against Elise. “Remind me to take you boating more often.”
Elise came up beside her and took her hand. “This has been the best day of my life.”
“You mean it?”
Elise nodded and reached up to run a hand through Casey’s hair. “Yeah, I do.”
Casey slowed the boat and snaked her hands behind Elise’s head. Much to her surprise, she didn’t even hesitate to say the words. Perhaps because they had been so much on her mind. “I love you, Elise. With all my heart.”
After the glorious day out on the Grady White, Elise officially moved into Casey’s cottage. The two women became inseparable and the dwindling weeks of winter in Key West sailed by. Before Casey knew it, Easter was upon them and it was time to head north, to her inn in Vermont, to prepare for the impending wedding season.
Elise’s mother opted to stay in Key West. She’d moved in with Dora and volunteered three days a week at the animal shelter. Spending the next five months in Vermont was out the question, but she promised to visit. Elise and Casey loaded up the RV and meandered up the east coast together.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Casey asked as they crossed into Vermont. She’d been anxious about bringing Elise back there after the events of the previous fall.
“Yep.” She rested a hand on Casey’s thigh. “I’m excited to build new memories with you in Vermont.”
Casey smiled. “That we can.”
“No need to dwell on the past anymore. Charles has consumed enough of my life. I don’t intend to let him gobble up any more of it.”
Two hours later, when Casey pulled her RV up next to the barn behind the Telemark Inn, Elise jumped out and ran through the grass waving her hands in the air. “I’d forgotten how beautiful it is here.”
The first wedding of the season was only two weeks away, and even though the Telemark stayed open through the winter to cater to the skiers, there was so much to do to get it in tip-top shape. But Casey was sure, no matter how hard they worked, the bride would find fault in something. She’d been a serious bridezilla every step of the way.
For that reason, Casey wasn’t surprised when the groom called two days before he and bridezilla were due in Vermont. The wedding was off. She shared the news with her friend Freida as they caught up over coffee at the bakery in town. As the only Episcopal priest for nearly thirty miles, Freida presided over most weddings at the Telemark. “Well,” Freida said, “better to get cold feet before the wedding rather than after.”
Casey raised her coffee mug to that.
“I once had a bride who asked me to ‘undo’ her marriage an hour after she’d said, ‘I do.’” Freida leaned back in her chair. “You happen to know anyone who wants to get married this Saturday? I suddenly find myself free.”
Casey bolted upright. “Actually…don’t go making any plans quite yet. There might be a wedding at the Telemark this weekend after all.”
Frieda gave her a blank stare. “What do you—”
“Elise!” Casey sprung to her feet. “I’m going to ask her to marry me.”
Frieda jumped up and pulled Casey into her arms. “I’d be honored to marry you two.”
“Hold your horses, I’ve got to ask her first. She might say no.” The anxiety hit Casey like a freight train. She gasped for a breath of air as she thought back to the last time she’d been about to propose. This time is different. This time is very different.
Frieda rubbed Casey’s back and slipped a finger under her chin. “Look at me.”
Casey complied.
“I see the way you and Elise look at each other, it’s like nobody else exists.”
Casey knew she was right. What she and Elise had was something Casey hadn’t known was imaginable. She grabbed her phone off the table. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a wedding to plan.” She kissed Frieda on the cheek and ran out of the café. First she called the owner of the local ski area. He was an old friend and he agreed to fire up the chairlift. Next, she called the florist. Assuming Elise said yes, Casey needed blue flowers and lots of them.
The next afternoon when Casey watched Elise walk up from the barn, her heart threatened to leap out of her chest. She grabbed the picnic basket and blanket off the counter, pulled the champagne from the fridge and dashed out to greet her.
“Where are we going?” Elise asked.
“You’ll see.”
The chairlift swayed as it glided up the mountain. Tall oak and maple trees flanked its path, their branches dotted with small green buds. The leaves on the ground rustled in the breeze.
The safety bar was lowered and Casey curled her hands tight around it as the chair crept further and further up the mountain. In her head, she recited the words she would soon utter to Elise.
“What a beautiful evening,” Elise said.
“Yes, yes, it is.” Casey sought out Elise’s dark eyes with her own. She’d intended to pop the question when they reached the top of the mountain, but she couldn’t hold the words back. “Will you marry me?”
Elise blinked a few times and tears welled up in her eyes. “Oh, my God. Yes. Yes! Nothing in the world would make me happier.”
Casey took both her hands and kissed her softly on the lips. Her heart thumped. She felt certain that if she tried, she could fly. Thankfully, the safety bar held her firmly on the seat.
When they reached the top, Casey whipped out her phone.
“Who are you calling?”
“Your mom. She and Dora are all packed. They’re just waiting for the thumbs-up.”
When they wandered into the Telemark’s dining room the night before the wedding, Elise burst into tears. Beautiful bouquets of blue flowers adorned every surface. Hanging baskets overflowing with delicate forget-me-nots circled the front porch of the inn.
“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” Casey asked.
“Nothing’s wrong. Everything’s right. The flowers are beautiful. I can’t believe you remembered.”
