Carter pulls away, then bends and throws me over his shoulder, carrying me to the en suite.
I don’t bother complaining. There’s no point in pretending I don’t want to be in his arms.
We take a leisurely shower that involves orgasms—one for him and two for me—then towel off.
“I’m going to go get dressed.” Carter kisses the tip of my nose and leaves the en suite.
His clothes are still all in the other room he was staying in. I’ve thought of telling him to move his things into my room for the rest of his stay, but I wasn’t sure if that would seem too forward.
Humming a Christmas carol, I leave the bathroom and choose a sweater and a pair of jeans from my dresser. I’ve just gotten dressed when my phone rings from where it’s plugged in on the nightstand. I walk over and frown, seeing my sister’s name on the screen. She should already be up in the air.
“Hello?”
“Where the hell have you been? I’ve called, like, five times!” My sister’s voice is frantic and has that stressed out tone I recognize.
My stomach sinks to the floor like falling snow. “Steph. What’s going on? What’s wrong?”
“Everything! Everything is wrong!”
I sit on the bed with the phone pressed to my ear. “Why aren’t you on a plane?”
“Because there’re no flights going into Vermont or the northeast at all.”
“What?” My head whips to look out the window, and yeah, the snow is still steadily falling.
“Apparently there’s some freak weather event going on. Like, a once-in-a-hundred-years kind of snowstorm.”
“Are you serious? I didn’t hear anything about that. I mean, I knew it was supposed to snow, and I thought you might get delayed, but that’s all.”
“I’m not delayed, Ash, I’m not coming. To my own wedding!” She cries and tears automatically form in my own eyes.
I know how much work and money went into this and how much she wants to be married to Doug. I feel horrible for the situation she’s in.
“Don’t cry, Steph. We’re going to figure something out.” I rack my brain to keep it together as my sister sobs. I put the phone on speaker and pull up my weather app. “It’s supposed to clear out the day before Christmas Eve. Maybe everyone can change their flights and come out then. You could have a Christmas Eve wedding.”
“I can’t ask everyone to change their holiday plans. Most people were just coming in and out for the wedding. Maybe it’s just not meant to be.”
My spine stiffens, and I straighten on the edge of the mattress. “You and Doug are meant to be, Steph.”
“I know, I know. I mean the wedding. Maybe we should’ve picked a tropical island to get married on like everyone else. I mean, first I can’t make it when I planned to because of work and now this. It just feels like maybe it’s not meant to happen the way I envisioned.”
I’m quiet for a beat, not sure what to say. I feel devastated for her. “When and how it does happen, it will be magical.”
“I feel awful though. You and Carter did so much work for us.”
“Don’t worry about that. It should be the least of your concerns.”
“God, why is this happening to me?”
Tears track down my face as Carter comes back in the room. When he sees the state of me, he stops in his tracks before rushing over and sitting beside me on the bed.
“What do you need me to do?” I ask, trying to pull it together.
“Everyone flying in needs to know the wedding isn’t happening,” Steph says, and Carter jolts beside me on the bed and widens his eyes. “They probably all assume that, given they can’t get there, but I don’t want to leave anyone guessing.”
“I’ll handle it.” I sniff and wipe my cheeks with the back of my hand. “I’ll call all the vendors too.”
“You’re the best, Ash.” Her voice wobbles, and the sound is a punch to the gut. “I’ll call later when I’m calmer.”
