Page 63 of Crashing the Altar
Since I didn’t have anything to tie off the end, I twisted the silky tresses into a knot. It would come undone eventually, but I only needed it to last long enough for her to cool down before our ride back.
I pressed a kiss to the exposed nape of her neck to signal that I had completed my task. Then, I gripped the edges of the curved rubber and pulled back before letting her fly.
“Did you braid my hair?” Humor filled her voice.
“Mmm. I lost count of how many times you lifted it, tryin’ to catch some of the breeze.”
“Is there anything youdon’tnotice?”
“About you? Nothing,” I replied honestly. I’d spent a lifetime learning all there was to know about this woman and was attuned to cataloging her every move.
“Most husbands don’t notice when their wife gets her hair done,” she teased.
“I’m not most husbands.”
“No,” she agreed. “You certainly are not.”
I pushed her in silence for a while, tracking the sun as it moved west, dipping toward the horizon. And, as always, when I spoke, the words came from a place deep inside my soul.
“The last time I was here, my heart was breaking.” The wind carried away my confession so quickly, I wondered if Penny had even heard it.
“Mine was, too.” Her voice wavered.
I knew I’d hurt her that day when I made it clear I wouldn’t be attending her wedding. It had killed me to watch her walk away, my brain screaming at me to take it back, to do anything it took to make her smile again. But my overruling need for self-preservation wouldn’t allow it.
“That day,” she began before letting out a heavy breath. “I was desperate for you to utter a single word of protest, to beg me not to do it.”
My eyebrows rose. “You were?”
“I was settling, Tripp. The one time I did tell you how I felt, I freaked out the next day. There wasn’t a chance in hell I was going to find the courage to do it a second time. And while I had a career I loved, I didn’t want to be alone forever. Being almost thirty, my options around town were pretty slim—with most everyone settling down young—so when the whole Jake thing happened, I figured it was my last shot.”
Mind racing, it took a minute to process Penny’s information dump.
“Wait. You’re telling me, after all this time, you remember what happened the night you turned twenty-one?”
She groaned. “Believe me, there are parts of that night I wish I could forget.”
Huffing in disbelief, I said, “I spent years replaying what you said over and over in my head. Convinced myself it was only the alcohol speaking.”
She raised a hand. “Nope, that was all me. And look at all the trouble I caused by not owning up.” Penny’s voice broke as she added, “But I was scared. I didn’t want to lose you.”
Bringing the tire to a stop, I spun it around so I could see her face. She was on the brink of crying for the second time today. Couldn’t say I blamed her; the pendulum on my own emotions was swinging too fast to keep up with.
“Why do you think I kept everything buried deep down, Lucky? I was fucking terrified that if you didn’t feel the same way, it would kill our friendship. As much as I wished we could be more, I wasn’t willing to risk not having you in my life.”
A watery laugh sounded. “You were there the whole time. Loving me.”
Bending, I pressed my forehead to hers, my eyes sliding closed. “Couldn’t stop if I tried.”
“Thank you for saving me from making the biggest mistake of my life.” Shaky hands landed on the sides of my face.
“Thank you for making mine worth living.”
Penny pressed her lips to mine, and all the sadness that had brought us to this moment washed away.
Chapter 16
Tripp
