Hey guys! Sorry for kind of being on a hiatus for a while, school's just been kicking my ass a little and I just needed a bit of a break.
Anyway, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!
Gail turned off the road and onto the unpaved driveway of the Peck family cottage. It had been a couple of years since she'd been here, but her memory of the place seemed to stay true to its beautiful features. The unbelievably tall pine trees, cascading their branches above the car as it drove through, was always one of her favourite sights; with the help of the long winding path, the wooden structure up ahead remained hidden, concealing it's complete magnetism from the rest of the world until the dirt was met with simple river rocks and the lodge came into view.
She brought the car to a stop and put the gear in park, the light illuminating the building in front of her. 12:46 AM. For a while she's quite, and as Holly sleeps in the seat beside her, she stares at the place where she spent so much time as a young girl; the place where many childhood memories were made, but not forgotten. The majority of her stays would mean looking forward to being with her grandfather – her dad's father, not the chief who is her mother's father – or going on adventures with Steve, but most of the time on her own because her brother would run off to find girls on the beach and his summer buds that lived down the street. And no matter how often she complained about the outdoors and nature, this place had been and would always be the most treasured.
Turning the engine off, she let out a heavy sigh, repressing the thoughts of her childhood. Gail unbuckled her seatbelt and turned to her right, facing Holly before the sides of her lips raised into a loving smile. She watched in awe as the brunette's chest slowly rose and then fell again, unable to pinpoint how exactly someone could be so perfect and hers at the same time. It had only been a couple of hours before this moment when Gail told her that she loved her, but she knew much before then that it was Holly that she'd been waiting for and only Holly all along. Reluctantly, she woke her girlfriend from her deep sleep, telling her that they were finally at the cottage.
Holly stirred and slowly opened her eyes, awoken by Gail's soft hushed voice and her warm gentle palm resting on her cheek. "Hey" she whispered, finding the blue eyes that she adored so much before placing an innocent kiss on her lips.
Gail grabbed a hold of the car door and opened it, nodding towards the structure "Come on sleepyhead, let's go inside".
Holly followed, exiting out of the opposite side of the car and into the crisp of the winter air. She raised her arms towards the starlit snowy sky and yawned away the lethargy as she stared ahead. The pine trees that encircled the area were slightly blanketed by the white of the snow, giving them the complete winter look. The porch appealingly wrapped around the sides of the two-story cabin and was protected by intricately designed railings that trailed along its edge. The windows were large and plenty, only adding to the gorgeousness of what she already saw. The exterior surrounding the towering wooden double-doors was faced with stone, and it hit Holly that surely the designer was aiming for something that would be high on the market, which only made her more curious to see the inside. "Gail, this is incredible" she said, only realizing that she must've been stating the obvious.
"Meh, it's alright" she shrugged, closing the trunk and hoisting the bags onto her shoulders.
Three Days Earlier…
"Such a swell morning, isn't it Steven?"
Steve looked up from his paperwork only to find his sister leaning across the doorframe of his office, arms crossed and standing her ground as always. Gail never visited his floor of the division, and if by some chance he was blessed with her presence at work it was because she wanted something; it was only out of work which they would actually get along and go for coffee once and a while to catch up on each other's life.
He grinned at her and moved his focus back to the report on his desk, scribbling incomprehensible words over the page – Gail always told him that his penmanship was atrocious. "Alright, cut the sophisticated nice sister crap, what do you want and what are you willing to do for it". Over the many years of giving her whatever she wanted, he slowly learned to ask for things in return. It wasn't that he wouldn't do anything for her, because he would, it was just because it was the big brother thing to do.
"I'm hurt, why must you always assume I covet something from you?" she said theatrically, her hand resting on her chest as she gasped in shock.
This is how it always started, she played the 'dumb blond' and he would have none of it. He gave her a 'cut the crap' look, pressing her to spill whatever she was thinking in the dark and odd head of hers.
She averted her eyes to the ground, an act he hadn't seen often. "Welllllll, Holly's birthday is in a couple of days, as you know, and I'm taking her to the Leafs' game, as you also know, but I also want to take her to the cottage in Muskoka for the weekend…"
Steve became confused throughout her rambling, which to him only meant a large request was to follow. "Ok, so you want me to give you the key?" He dug the keys from his pocket and began to take off the cabin key from the ring. "Here" he said, holding it out to her.
"No, well yes, but…" she stepped into the office and took the key from his hand. "Can you stock it with food and clean it up a bit before we get up there? I have a list of all the stuff and I'll pay you back, I swear. Frank has me working all these days and -"
There it was, the big inquiry that she needed him to understand. He knew he should've seen this from a mile away; Gail was never good with her feelings and right now, she was asking him to help her wow her girlfriend. "You're asking for a lot here little sis, but since I like Holly more than I think I like you, I'll do it for her benefit. You do owe me a ridiculously huuuuuge favour though"
This bargain was going to be easier than Gail expected. "I'll take Leo for a weekend" she offered, knowing that Traci was in need for a break of a little responsibility. Plus, she liked Leo and he loved Aunt Gail.
"Deal. We'll keep in touch about said arrangement"
Gail, satisfied with the result of the conversation, began making her way to the door.
"Gail, if you love her just tell her. It's Holly. She doesn't have to be showered with elegant things to know that you do" Steve said nonchalantly as he paid no mind to her, putting his pen to the paper again.
As they walked through the door, Gail dropped the bags and hung Holly's coat as well as her own, praying that Steve kept his end of the deal. If not, she promised that he wouldn't live to see how the rest of his Monday would pan out. She flicked on the lights and cautiously looked around the living area, so far so good seeing as how a film of dust wasn't splayed across the floor or on the table and air fresheners were plugged into the wall, giving the room a cedar smell.
Holly's jaw practically dropped as she slowly glanced around the open space, taking in as much as she possibly could while Gail made her way to the kitchen. In front of her were two winding staircases mirroring one another and leading towards the second level of the cottage. In between sat a wood burning fireplace, a wall of rocks rising around it and family photos on the mantle which she would be sure to take a closer look at later on. Situated closer to her were three sofas, all of which rested on a rug and were turned towards a dark wooden table. To the left of the room was the kitchen where Gail had retreated to, opening to refrigerator door and revealing plenty of food and drinks.
Gail scanned the contents of the fridge, hoping to make mental note of anything Steve had forgotten to buy so that she could harass him about not doing a good job, but she found everything to be quite perfect. She peeled a neon pink sticky note from the whipped cream can on the inside of the door and tried to make out Steve's chicken scratch. I hope this is for the strawberries. Try not to make a mess, it took me a while to clean the place up. She chuckled to herself and crumpled the paper into a ball, throwing it in the trash before Holly made her way to the kitchen as well. She made no promises about leaving messes.
She walked over to the wine rack and grabbed a bottle of her dad's favourite red wine as Holly leaned over the marble countertop, peering out the window. After pouring two glasses, she handed one to Holly and wrapped her arms around her, kissing her shoulder as she pressed into her back. "What are you thinking about?" she asked quietly.
"You" Holly smiled. "Us" she placed her glass onto the counter next to Gail's and spun around to look at the face she's always loved so much. "You're beyond astonishingly amazing, I hope you know that" Gail smiled back and looked into Holly's big brown eyes. She raised her palms and gently held her pale cheeks and continued, "Thank you. For this. The game. For not being the cat creating the emergency situation" slightly giggling at the last part, she pressed her lips against Gail's and for a moment let herself get lost in the slow rhythm of their kiss. "I think I've softened the austere Ms. Gail Peck" she quipped, pulling her closer and closing the gap between them.
"You know Lunchbox, I'd be extremely careful with your witty remarks tonight" her hands trailed from Holly's back to her hips and slightly grabbing a hold of her shirt.
"What is it this time Officer? Was 'austere' too much of a 'big word'? " she laughed.
"Well you see Holly, I was looking for that really sexy red lace thong that I left at your place a few days ago and I just couldn't find it"
Holly's smile turned into a grin as she watched Gail's demeanor change. "Maybe you just didn't look hard enough" she said, struggling to get her words out.
Her hands found the buttons on Holly's pants and she began to undo them as she leaned her lips inches away from her ear. "I think I need to punish the perspicacious Dr. Holly Stewart"
"Okay, I know I'm a giant geek, but that really turned me on"
Gail suddenly burst into a wholehearted laugh, removing her hand from the zipper of Holly's pants and grabbing her glass of wine off the counter. "Come on you concupiscent woman, let's change out of these clothes, go on the sofa, wrap ourselves in a crap load of blankets and sit by the fire"
"Heeeeeey!" she whined. Holly looped her finger through the side of the thong and with the other hand pulled her jeans slightly down to reveal the red lace. "But look! Your 'really sexy red lace thong'"
The blond began digging through the bags to find the shorts she packed. "It looks hotter on you anyway. Your punishment is having to wait for the euphoric sex I always give you"
The next chapter will be up sometime next week so keep an eye out for that. Thanks for sticking with the story.
Also, reviews are always welcomed!