Page 44 of Crashing the Altar
What I wouldn’t give to be in his daddy’s vintage truck with the bench seat right now so I could curl into his side and lay my head on his shoulder as we drove. We’d learned from a young age that physical contact had a calming effect on us both, and this heavy moment required more than just our hands.
How could he not see that he was everything to me? I didn’t care where we were or what we did so long as Tripp was by my side.Hewas the dream; none of the other details mattered.
My gaze shifted to peek through the windshield where the open plains stretched endlessly before us on the state highway we flew down.
Needing to lighten the mood, I remarked, “So, where does one go for date night in a place where livestock outnumber humans by over a thousand to one?” I let out an exaggerated gasp. “We’re not going cow tipping, are we? Because I’m pretty sure that goes against my oath as a veterinarian.”
That got a chuckle out of him, and he brought my knuckles to his mouth to dust a kiss over them. “Did you actually take an oath?”
I scoffed, pulling my hand out of his grasp to lay it over my chest and doing my best to look offended. “Of course I did. I’m a doctor, I’ll have you know.”
Tripp huffed out a wry laugh. “Certainly outkicked my coverage with you, didn’t I, sweetheart?”
“You’ve got it backward, baby. It’s a goddamn miracle you waited for me. You’re the catch of Rust Canyon. Any woman in town would have been lucky to have you.”
“Too bad for them the only one I wanted was you.”
Warmth curled through my insides. “I’ll get down on my knees every day and thank God for that.” I let out a sigh. “Guess He was listening after all. Every prayer I sent up for the past twenty years was asking that I could have you.”
The ultimate irony was that those prayers could have been answered far sooner had either of us been brave enough to share our desires instead of keeping them buried deep inside.
There was no point in dwelling on that now. Not when things had turned out exactly as we always wanted in the end.
“So, cow tipping?” I hedged, unable to keep a trace of humor from my tone.
Tripp’s eyes lifted to the roof for a split second. “If I didn’t know you were joking, I’d be offended that’s the best you think I can do.”
I shrugged, a grin splitting my face. “Wouldn’t hold it against you, baby. Not much else to do out here.”
A corner of his lips twitched. “That’s where you’re wrong, Lucky.”
His chin jerked toward the road ahead. Whipping my head around, I let out an excited squeal before turning back toward my husband, whose chest was puffed up with pride at having revealed his surprise.
“A drive-in?” I bounced in my seat, my earlier soreness from traveling all day long forgotten as excitement crept in.
“Mmm.” His smile grew. “You see what’s playing tonight?”
We were at the end of a long line of cars waiting to pay for admittance, so I had to squint to read the movie listed on the old-school marquis at the entrance.
My mouth popped open, and a disbelieving huff slipped out. “Seriously?”
It was my favorite early 2000s romcom, one I’d watched so many times I had every line memorized and couldn’t help but cry happy tears when they got their happy ending. Tripp had sat beside me at least a hundred of those times, handing me tissues when I needed them as if on cue.
And just maybe part of the reason I loved it so much was because the couple just so happened to be childhood best friends—living next door to each other—who went through a hell of a journey but found their way together in the end.
The parallels hit even closer to home now. Though in the movie, it was the male lead’s wedding day when the heroine begged him to choose her instead.
“Must’ve heard you were comin’.” Tripp’s voice brought me back to the present.
There was a good chance that hearts were shooting from my eyes as I stared at the man beside me in awe, my love for him growing until it felt like my chest might burst. “This is so great. Thank you.”
“I know it’s not much—” he began.
I cut him off quickly. “It’s perfect. My favorite memories are being curled up on the couch, either in your parents’ living room or mine, getting lost in this movie.”
Tripp’s cheeks pinkened a touch as he admitted, “Mine too. Those few hours when you’d let me hold you, I would allow myself to pretend that I was more than just your best friend, that we were a real couple. Because it felt so damn real when you were in my arms. You’d cuddle in close, your arms wrapped around my waist and your head laid on my chest, and I always wondered if you could hear how fast my heart was beating. For you.”
“Truth?” I asked.
