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TITLE: Racing The Rain
AUTHOR: Finey_McFine
RATING: PG-13
DISCLAIMER: Willow, Tara and any other BtVS characters, as well as some random dialog, belong to Mutant Enemy. ALL other original characters belong to me! This includes: Willow’s siblings and teammates, plus Tara’s friends and co-workers. Mention of any ‘real’ people in this fic is brief and pure fantasy.
SUMMARY: Totally AU! Set in LA with lots of W/T fluff and some angst, but no Hellmouthyness; just good old regular day-to-day drama. Willow is attending college on an athletic scholarship and Tara is Hollywood royalty. They meet and fall in love, of course, but will they be able to survive the pitfalls of a public romance? Well, you’ll just have to read and find out!
FEEDBACK: Yes! Any glaring issues…please send me a PM!
AUTHOR’S NOTE: Hi Everyone and Happy Sunday! The chapter below begins Thanksgiving Day and I’m splitting it into at least 3 chapters. On the bright side, I’ll have another update ready for you next week! I hope you all enjoy, because things are about to get interesting.*********
Chapter 48: Pangs Thanksgiving morning came quickly and the girls found themselves up and out at the stables early. Willow volunteered to take on horse duties so Eli didn’t have to make two trips out to the ranch, and Tara volunteered to keep her girlfriend company. It took about an hour to get the horses fed, out to pasture, and stables mucked. Returning to the house they showered, dressed, and ate a light breakfast before setting out in Sheila’s car to pick up Willow’s Aunt Gertrude.
“So, this Aunt is your Mom’s sister?” Tara asked.
“She’s actually Nanna Addy’s sister, so I guess that makes her my great aunt? I dunno. Anyway, she’s about five years older than Addy and not quite firing on all cylinders…if you know what I mean,” She said with a chuckle.
“And she still lives by herself?”
“Umm hmm, refuses to move. She’s lived on that property for a million years and flat out refuses to leave. It’s actually the house my Mom grew up in.”
“Really?”
“Yep, it’s
the family estate. See, my grandparents bought the property when they moved here from Pennsylvania back in the fifties; Gert was a toddler and my Mom was born in the house a few years later. Anyway, there is another small house on the property that Gerty lived in until my grandparents moved to Florida, about twenty-five years ago. Since then, she’s lived in the main house.”
“She never married?” Tara asked, quirking an eyebrow.
Willow smiled, “I know…I’ve always wondered. She always had lot’s of
lady friends, but I never asked; I just figured it was none of my business. Different generation, ya know?”
“So, if all you guys were here, why did your grandparents move to Florida?”
“Oh um, Grandpa Leo’s company transferred him. He worked for Kovar Pharmaceuticals and they moved their head quarters there, so he had to go or give up his pension. Anyway, by the time he was ready to retire they’d fallen in love with Florida and decided to stay.”
“What about your Dad? Are his parents close by?”
“Umm hmm, about twenty minutes away.”
“So, w-who all is going to be there today?”
“Willow sighed, blowing her hair off her forehead, “Well, let’s see, my aunt and uncle that you already met, the twins, both sets of grandparents, Gerty, and all of us…about 22 people in all.”
Tara nodded silently and sank back in her seat; her eyes drifting to the passing landscape. “Hey, are you ok?” Willow asked.
“Yeah, I was just thinking how lucky you are to know your family history and actually have a family estate. It’s pretty cool.”
Willow nodded and smiled, turning onto a dirt road and pulling up to an old farmhouse. She threw the car in park and shut off the engine. She knew that Tara’s past and family history was a touchy subject, so she simply brought Tara’s hand to her mouth and reassuringly kissed her knuckles, “You’re my family now Tare and we’ll make our own history.”
Tara’s face flushed and she suddenly felt tingly, “I love you so much Will, I…I look at you and my heart feels like it’s going to burst; like I can’t possibly love you any more. Then you say something like that and…and I fall even more in love with you.”
Willow’s bright green eyes shined with love as she pulled Tara close and hugged her tightly, “Love you too baby…very, very much.” Willow finally pulled back and removed the keys from the ignition, “I guess we need to go in and get my aunt. Ready to get your crazy on?”
Tara was curious about the house that Sheila grew up in and examined it intently. The house was typical of the time in which it was built; a white, wood frame, southern style two-story home with an expansive wraparound porch that was decorated with aging wicker furniture.
The girls stood side by side as Willow opened the screen door and rapped on the interior door, “Aunt Gert! It’s me, Willow!” The redhead shouted.
“I’m coming, I’m coming…keep your britches on,” said the muffled voice from somewhere inside.
The door swung open and an older woman with long grey hair greeted them. Tara smiled to herself at the woman’s appearance. Where Adele had been perfectly kempt; from her head to her toes, Gertrude seem the exact polar opposite. Willow’s aunt was wearing bright orange tennis shoes, green polyester pants with a black Thanksgiving themed sweater, and a white long sleeved shirt underneath; even though it was nearly eighty degrees out. Topping off the horribly mismatched ensemble was a red and gold knit cap. The woman, despite her age, was slender and seemed fit; Tara could clearly see where Willow got her build.
They were greeted warmly and introductions were made. Aunt Gerty invited them in and then proceeded to scurry about the cluttered interior rambling and giggling to herself. She picked up random items and handed them to Willow and Tara until they were completely bogged down; then asked them to change several light bulbs around the interior and out on the porch. Willow was exasperated trying to chase the woman down in an attempt to get her out of the house and into the car, when Tara, sensing her girlfriend’s frustration, graciously intervened.
“Aunt Gerty, the casserole smells wonderful. Can I help you get it ready to go?” She said as she took Gerty by the hand and led her into the kitchen.
Willow quickly finished the bulb replacement mission and then put Gerty’s bags into the car before joining them, “Ok ladies, are we all set to go?” She asked as she watched Tara covering the last of three plastic containers in foil, at Gerty’s insistance, even though they all had matching lids on them already. Stacking them on top of each other, she handed all three to Willow. Then took Gerty by the hand and led towards the front door.
“Willow dear, did you bring that pretty horse of yours? Gerty asked.
Willow glanced at Tara with a goofy look on her face as the blonde bit her bottom lip to stifle a laugh, “No Aunt Gerty, I drove my Mom’s car.”
“Oh it’s just as well,” she said looking up at Tara and smiling sweetly, “I’m not wearing the proper riding boots anyway. Papa gave me the most wonderful boots for Christmas a few years ago.”
Tara caught Willow’s eye and the redhead just shrugged her shoulders and made another face; knowing full well that her great grandfather, who had passed away years before she was even born, had never celebrated Christmas a day in his life. Willow knew from stories that Nanna Addy had told her about her parents being devout Jews and how they had migrated from Germany in the 1930’s.
“Maybe I should go get them just in case…” Gerty mumbled.
“NO!” Both Willow and Tara shouted in unison; having finally gotten the old woman out of the house. “I mean, it’s just that everyone’s waiting and Artemis always gets Thanksgiving off...” Willow’s voice trailed as she fumbled for an explanation and rolled her eyes.
Once in the car, Willow engaged the child locks on the back doors and windows…just in case. As they drove, Gerty rambled on about mailboxes, Easter eggs and wire hangers until they finally arrived back at the ranch. Willow practically leapt from the vehicle; she’d never been happier to be home before in her entire life.
***********************************************
By noon the house was filled with relatives and the festivities were in full swing. Willow’s paternal grandparents, Solomon and Miriam Rosenberg, arrived and it turned out that Grandpa Sol was also a Grant’s Park fan and chewed Tara’s ear for the better part of an hour. She was finally able to escape to the kitchen under the premise of getting a drink when the back door flew open and Milo charged through.
“Hey Milo!” Tara called out cheerfully.
“Hi,” He replied with an angry pout on his face.
Tara kneeled down in front of him to adjust his little bowtie, “Well, aren’t you a handsome little devil.”
“You have no idea!” Grayson grumbled as he limped through the door behind them.
Milo whipped his head towards his uncle and glared; ripping himself away from Tara and angrily marching towards the living room.
Tara stood and brushed herself off, “Wow, what was that all about?”
Grayson simply stared at Tara with a big goofy grin on his face, “Hi Tara, Happy Thanksgiving.”
Tara looked at him quizzically, “Hi Grayson and Happy Thanksgiving. Are you alright?” She asked.
Grayson nodded, “You look really nice today. That color-”
Before he could finish, Bambi entered through the door behind him, “Grayson honey, now I need you to take this dish before I break a nail!”
Grayson glanced at Tara sheepishly as he turned to take the baking dish from his girlfriend.
Once divested of the offending corningware, Bambi set her sights on Tara, “Well hey there darlin!” She shouted and pulled the blonde into a hug; as if they were long lost friends.
“H-Hi Bambi,” Tara stammered as Bambi squeezed her tighter.
“Hey, what’s going on with Mi…lo?” Willow asked with a shocked expression crossing her face as she tried to comprehend exactly why the cleavagly slut bomb was squeezing her girlfriend.
“I asked him to help me carry something in from the car and the little bugger kicked the shit out of me,” Grayson said.
Willow quirked one side of her mouth sarcastically and tilted her head, “Gray, come on, he’s just a little boy and obviously something is bothering him.”
“Well, I’d say ask his parents, but they’re too busy…arguing,” Grayson said as he and Willow moved towards the window at the same time.
Willow let out a long sigh, “What are they arguing about now?”
“No idea, but it looks pretty intense,” He said as he craned his neck to see if Eli and Stella were still at it.
“And so it begins…” Willow mumbled as she turned around, to find her girlfriend still cornered by the platinum blonde. Bambi was telling Tara all about her ‘acting’ abilities and asking if maybe Tara could put in a word for her. She pulled some modeling shots out of a manila envelope and thrust them into Tara’s hands; making the actress promise to give them to the ‘right’ people in hopes that she could get a guest spot on Tara’s show.
A horrified look briefly flashed across Tara’s face and Willow knew it was time to rescue her from Bambi’s crazed rambling.
“Hey baby, can you give me a hand with this stuff please?” Willow asked.
“No problem sweetie. Um, excuse me,” She smiled sweetly and made her way across the kitchen to Willow; mouthing
‘thank you’ along the way.
Willow handed Tara a spoon and instructed her to stir something in a pot on the stove. She had no idea what it was or if it even needed stirring or not, but she had to make good on her initial request of needing Tara’s help. The ploy worked and Bambi grabbed Grayson by the shirtsleeve and dragged him out of the kitchen; lest her assistance be necessary as well.
Once they were out of sight, Willow lifted the lid on the dish that Bambi brought and scrunched up her face, “Ugh, gross!”
“What…?” Tara asked as she turned to see Willow’s face scrunched up cautiously sniffing and examining the putrid dish, “What is it?”
“I’m not exactly sure, I…I think it’s some sort of…Shepard’s pie?”
Tara leaned in with Willow and pointed, “Well, that looks like a cranberry and I think those are mashed potatoes with…spam? It’s hard to tell with all the bacon on top.”
“Good God, it’s horrible!” Willow chuckled, “Kinda reminds me of the crazy meat trifle that Rachel made on Friends.”
“Oh yeah! When the pages of the cookbook stuck together and she put sautéed onions and meat in with the jelly and the whipped topping!”
“And Joey loved it!” They both said at the same time as they burst into a fit of giggles.
They were completely caught up and didn’t even notice the backdoor open or the person that entered.
“Uh hello, hope I’m not interrupting anything,” The young man stammered.
Both girls looked up in unison and the smile instantly fell from Tara’s face. “Oh, Robby…hey. We um, we didn’t hear you come in,” Willow said.
“Hey Will…Tara. Happy Thanksgiving,” Robby said as he stood awkwardly with a bottle of wine in his hands, “This uh, this is for your parents.”
“Ok, thanks. I guess you can just put it over there,” Willow pointed to her left.
“Wow, everything smells great!” He exclaimed as he relaxed a little and casually leaned against the counter. “Did you make your world famous Sweet Potato Casserole?”
Willow smiled slightly and nodded, “Tara, I bet you didn’t know that our little Willow was such a fine cook!”
Tara’s eyes narrowed and she couldn’t help but glare as pangs of jealousy began to consume her.
Our Willow?! Our Willow?! Correction: MY Willow. Tara thought indignantly. He may have known details from Willow’s past, but Tara’s knowledge of the redhead ran deeper, more intimate, and there was no way she was going to allow him the pleasure of making her feel like an outsider.
Tara’s mind began to churn, coming up with all sorts of things she knew about Willow that he would never know; like how she knew exactly where to touch Willow. She knew that when she wound her tongue around to the spot just behind Willow’s ears, that it drove the redhead insane. She knew other things-simple things like, how Willow preferred to sleep on her left side and that the pattern of freckles across her stomach resembled a crescent moon; a pattern that Tara had explored thoroughly. Yes, Tara knew things about
her Willow that no one else on the planet knew and would never know; especially not
this man.
Realizing that she hadn’t answered and suddenly feeling childish for letting him get to her, Tara smirked; wrapping an arm possessively around Willow’s waist. “As a matter of fact, I do. Willow cooks for me all the time, don’t cha sweetie? I especially love her breakfasts,” Tara said seductively as she pulled Willow a little closer.
Robby stiffened and was taken aback; crossing his arms across his chest, “Well um, I’m just gonna go see what everyone else is up to,” He mumbled as he quickly left the room.
Willow looked at Tara with arched eyebrows and a questioning smile.
Tara ducked her head. “Sorry,” She said sheepishly, “He’s just so damn smug and I can’t believe that he had the balls to show up; especially after what happened last time!”
Willow sighed and ran a smoothing hand across Tara’s back, “I know baby, let’s just try to relax and enjoy the day, ok?” Willow knew they were in for a Very. Long. Day.
*********************************************
A couple hours later, dinner was in full swing with everyone enjoying the huge bounty. Tara sat close to Willow, periodically resting her hand on the redhead’s thigh and doing her best to ignore Robby; whom she’d caught staring at them on more than one occasion. The atmosphere was laid back and comfortable; even Sheila seemed relaxed.
“So, who’s up for Turkey Bowl today?” Grayson announced rubbing his hands together as a rambling chatter broke out across the table.
“Oh man, I totally forgot!” Willow exclaimed.
Robby smirked, “Will, how could you forget about
our annual tradition?”
Willow answered Robby’s question; keeping her eyes trained on Tara the entire time, “I guess I just had other, more important things on my mind.”
Tara met Willow’s eyes and responded with an adorable lopsided grin, “So, what’s a Turkey Bowl?” She asked.
Robby snorted, “You don’t know what a Turkey Bowl is?” He said sarcastically.
Willow’s eyes flashed, it was the second time he’d made fun of Tara. She shot him one of her famous
you’re dead to me glares just as Rachael leaned in and whispered in Robby’s ear, “Can I see you in the kitchen, please?” She asked.
A few seconds later, Rachael and Robby were headed for the kitchen as Willow explained to Tara about their annual touch football Thanksgiving tradition.
Once in the kitchen, Rachael spun around, “What the hell is your problem?”
“What?” He responded.
“You know Goddamn well what!” She hissed, “You’re trying your hardest to embarrass and belittle Tara. What exactly do you expect to accomplish? Do you really think that’s going to get you in Willow’s good graces?”
Robby crossed his arms and rolled his eyes at Rachael’s questioning, “Come on Rachael, you think this is serious? What the hell is
Tara Maclay doing here with Willow anyway? I’m just trying to open Willow’s eyes, so she can see things for what they really are.”
“And what would that be Rob…in your extreme expert opinion, because you seem to have the inside track on Tara’s intentions. I mean, after having spent so much time getting to know her.”
“It’s not like you know her all that well either. What are you, star struck? You can’t see that this is all a game for her and when she gets bored…Willow’s out.”
Rachael straightened, trying to get a grip on her anger, “No, I don’t know Tara all that well, but I do know my sister and I trust her instincts. And I will NOT allow you to ruin this for her. Anyway, what are
your intentions Robby? Willow is
GAY.” Robby just stood; staring blankly at Rachael. “Ok, let me spell it out for you. She’s into girls and no matter how many stupid little
schemes you and my mother cook up, at the end of the day, she’s coming home to a woman. Period. So you need to get over it.” With that she spun and headed back to the dining room.
When Rachael returned to the table; her face was red and her forehead creased. Willow knew something was up and caught her eye. Rachael softened instantly, shaking her head, and gave Willow a soft smile. The redhead nodded in return and went back to her dinner. Several minutes later, a grumpy looking Robby returned, and Willow knew that her sister had pulled him aside to give him a stern talking to on her behalf. She found herself wishing that she had been a fly on the wall for that particular conversation.
******************************************
With dinner winding down, everyone began the task of cleaning up. The grandparents and Sheila were exempt; leaving it up to the ‘kids.’ Sheila retired to the back porch with Adele, her mother-in-law and Gertrude as Ira’s brother, Haskell, his wife and the twins had to leave early to attend another event; everyone said their goodbye’s and Ira walked them to their car. Tara grabbed Willow by the hand and pulled her into the family room, where they settled in on the couch to watch football with both of Willow’s grandfathers. Every now and then, Willow would wander into the kitchen and snap a picture of Grayson; clad in yellow rubber gloves, a pink apron and up to his ears in dishes. While Bambi stood next to him rambling and not
really helping to do anything. It was truly Willow’s best Thanksgiving ever.
A couple hours later, with the dishes behind him, Grayson collapsed onto the loveseat in the family room and glanced in Willow’s direction.
Sitting cross-legged on the couch next to Tara, Willow smirked, “All done bro?” She asked.
Grayson pursed his lips and nodded his head, “Yeah, with the dishes, and now I’m ready to work off a little pent up energy. Ya’ll ready or am I dealing with a bunch of pussies here?”
Tara raised her eyebrows as Willow covered her gaping mouth with her right hand, “Such language! Especially for a guy that just took off his apron,” she quipped with mock indignation.
“Touché little sis, touché,” He replied raising his hands in surrender.
“Do we even have enough people?” Willow asked, “Rachael can’t play and the twins had to leave…”
“I think so, Robby and Jeff are a go, so as long as Tara and Molly play we should be good with four each.”
“What about Dad?”
“He’s gonna ref.”
Willow turned to her girlfriend, “Tara?”
Tara smiled and nodded, “I’m in.”
Willow flashed Tara a patented 100-watt smile and leapt from the couch, “Come on then, let’s go change!” She exclaimed as she pulled Tara up and towards the stairs.
By the time they reached Willow’s room, the redhead was babbling a mile a minute, “…so then Hunter threw this awesome pass that Eli caught and then tossed to me for the winning touchdown. It was epic! You should’ve seen the look on Grayson’s face…priceless. He thought they had the win locked up, but NO WAY were we gonna let his team win again.” By the time Willow wrapped things up, she noticed Tara sitting on her bed with a visible pout on her lips.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Willow asked, quickly dropping down next to the blonde, “Hey, I’m sorry. Did I scare you? I didn’t mean to scare you with all the crazy talking. You don’t have to play baby, you don’t have to feel...what?”
Tara’s lips were curved in an adorable half smile, “Will, I want to play. I just…I wish you didn’t have to change out of that outfit. It’s um…it’s incredibly sexy.”
Willow’s stomach did several flips as she took in Tara’s words and then pressed their lips together; happily surprised with the results of her ensemble. When she put the outfit together, she had no idea the effect it would have on her girlfriend. She just wanted to be comfortable.
Tara, on the other hand, had to physically wipe the drool from her chin when Willow had bounced down the stairs in a knee length lacy cream colored skirt with a studded waist band, brown v-neck blouse and matching brown cowboy boots. It was the third time Willow had worn boots, with shorts or a skirt and the third time Tara thought she’d died and gone to heaven. She wasn’t even sure why it was such a turn on; it just was, and she couldn’t stop staring.
“Ummmm,” Willow moaned, “It’s been entirely too long since I got to kiss you.”
“I second that,” Tara mumbled as she captured Willow’s lips in a steamy kiss and ran a hand up her thigh and under that lovely skirt.
Willow squirmed and grasped Tara’s wrist before it had the chance to slide inward, “Ummm Tare, if you do that we’ll end up playing our own special game of
touch football.”
Tara began pressing kisses across Willow’s jaw and nipping at her neck, “I know…that’s the whole point.”
Willow giggled when Tara’s warm breath tickled the sensitive spot near her ear, “Not quite the reaction
I was fishing for,” Tara said.
“Mmmmm, I know baby but, everyone is waiting and they’ll know what we’re doing if we don’t go back and-”
“Shhhh Will, I was just teasing you.”
“Oh, duh…sorry,” she said sheepishly.
“It’s ok love, come on,” Tara said as she rose; taking Willow’s hand and pulling her off the bed, “Let’s get changed and go kick some ass.”
by Grimm » Sun Oct 09, 2011 4:31 pm 
. You can only find that kind of humor in a Finey_McFine production!!
I have absolutely loved it ever since I stumbled across it and have eagerly awaited every update since. Onto this current update...
Glad you liked!
It’s one of my all time favorite John Hughes movies and those scenes with the grandparents from were some of my very favorites. Yeah, poor Willow. There’s really nothing worse than public family humiliation.
Hurray for an update! 
Eli and gf arguing, nasty Robby and evil Sheila plans, mercy! The hits just keep on coming!
! There are no words to describe how clueless and sleazy Robby is 
. It's a fricking Holiday!! I hope Ira, Eli, Grayson and Tara put their feet so far up his ass that he'll be coughing up shoe laces til Easter!
