Milkshake Hearts

Chapter 58: Pillow

The start of their relaxing holiday is anything but. There's an uncharacteristically persistent summer thunderstorm hitting LA on the Monday morning when they fly out, and it catches them as they dash from their Uber into the airport. It's not enough to drench them or their luggage, but it's enough for the humidity to frizz up their hair and make everything feel uncomfortably damp. There's flights being delayed all over the place, too, but they figure the storm will pass and they'll be fine.

The storm doesn't work in their favour, and when they're meant to be boarding 45 minutes after they arrive, they're still sitting at the gate watching the delayed time of departure be pushed further and further back.

When they finally take off – an hour late – they have an equally rough start to the flight, turbulence throwing the plane to all sorts of uncomfortable, jolting angles. Neither Shayne nor Courtney are particularly uncomfortable with flying, but it's still less than ideal.

It calms as they fly further away from the coast and California, though, and the death grip Courtney was holding his hand in slowly relaxes into gently playing with his fingers. They land in Colorado just over two hours later, and they pray for no more drama as they step off the plane and head to collect their luggage. It works, the drama seeming to be over as their bags turn up quickly and their rental car sits ready and waiting when they collect it.

"Okay, this is already gorgeous," Courtney sighs happily, looking around as they start heading further up into the mountains not long after leaving the airport. The forest gets denser and the air cooler as they drive, the landscape dotted with patches of clear meadows, wildflowers, full-flowing rivers and mountain vistas. The resort they had booked is a thirty-minute drive further into the forest from a small mountain town, the town itself an hour from the city they flew into. They stop in the town on the way through to grab some basic groceries so they can stay in and cook a little when they don't feel like going out, before continuing on to the resort itself.

"Damnnnn this looks good. Can't wait to do a whole lot of relaxing nothing with you here all week," Shayne muses, pulling into a parking space out the front of the resort's main office when they arrive. It's not a huge place – there's only 30 rooms, although calling them 'rooms' really undersells it – but it's built up and full of all the amenities they could've wanted. They check in with ease, happy to note their standalone suite sits off near the edge of the resort.

They're only a few steps away from the next suite over, truthfully, but the area is set up in a way that feels totally private. A combination of wooden slat fencing and carefully planted gardens insulates their space from their neighbouring suite and the pathway running between the accommodation opposite it. The space they step inside feels expansive and open, though, a mixture of minimalist white details and dark, rich wood inside giving way to wide glass doors open to a patio looking over the river opposite. They stash the groceries they'd bought back in town in the small kitchenette, off to the side of the spacious living area complete with a small dining table, TV, plush sofa, and a huge gas log fire. It looks warm and comforting, although they figure being the height of summer, they're probably not going to need the fire even up in the mountains like this.

The bedroom sits off to the side of the living room, bi-fold doors kept open to make the space into one. The king-sized bed has way more pillows than is probably necessary, but it looks comfy, and Shayne lets himself fall back onto it in a starfish pose after they set their things down. Courtney, for her part, continues on to peek into the bathroom – connected to both the bedroom and living room – nodding to herself, impressed by the large jacuzzi tub. Plus, their private patio over the river has its own private hot tub, too.

"So, like, I'm tired as fuck and travelling today kinda sucked – you up for ordering room service dinner and trying out either the hot tub or jacuzzi for some chill times tonight?" Courtney suggests, standing beside the bed as he shifts onto his side and looks back up at her.