Absolution by Regina Buttner

Author:Regina Buttner
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: SparkPress
Published: 2020-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

Perla agreed to have Becky and Nate stay overnight at her house. “A romantic weekend in the mountains!” she said.

“That is just what the doctor orders.”

I went to a chic Italian deli near Pike Place Market on the day before our trip. A Sophia Loren look-alike waited on me, and she nearly swooned when I told her my idea. “A picnic supper?” she burbled. “Fabulous.” She swooped through the shop in her long, filmy dress, plucking imported products from the shelves.

“You will love these.” She showed me a jar of stuffed olives and hugged it to her breasts before thrusting it into my basket. “Taste this,” she said and waved a pungent chunk of Fontina under my nose. She selected a stick of salami from the deli case and sighed orgasmically as she wrapped it up in thick white paper. Last, she chose a “seductive” Chianti to go with the food and sent me happily on my way.

I dropped the kids off at Perla’s on Saturday morning, then walked aimlessly around my house, resisting the impulse to call upstairs to Greg and tell him to hurry up. This weekend had to go off perfectly, without any friction. I turned on the news and watched a spokesperson from the Bush administration field questions about the “shock and awe” bombing campaign that had begun in Iraq.

Greg appeared, freshly showered and dressed, and carried our overnight bags out to the car. We drove north and then east on a highway that wound through the Wenatchee National Forest. I told him about the champagne and chocolates that would be waiting for us upon our arrival, and the spa appointments that I’d scheduled for later that afternoon. We were both getting hot stone massages that were supposed to magically reduce our stress. I was leery of getting undressed for a complete stranger, so I’d been sure to request a female masseuse. Or was it masseur? I had no idea. After our massages were done, I planned to surprise Greg with the picnic supper, and I had requested a dessert platter and coffee to be delivered to the room in the evening. Maybe I’d even ask him again about us having another baby.

The pressures of home slid away as we drove deeper into the woods. I turned to Greg and smiled. “I can’t wait to sleep in tomorrow morning, in that big feather bed.” He responded with only a nod. The highway had begun to climb in switchbacks, and his attention was on the road. I was talking too much. I thought I’d better shut up for a while so I didn’t distract him.

We emerged from the shadows of the forest, and the elegant stone-and-timber lodge appeared around a bend. A valet welcomed us on the circular driveway and whirred the Audi away. We walked into a high-ceilinged lobby with huge windows framing a vista of misty mountainside.

“Beautiful place,” Greg said, and I congratulated myself for my good choice. He chatted with the desk clerk and politely declined the bellman’s offer of assistance with our small amount of luggage.

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