“You OK?” he asked in his older, more mature voice. I managed a nod and opened my eyes.
“Sun’s a little bright. My eyes are adjusting,” I lied.
Tripp frowned and walked over to adjust the shade. “Better?” he asked.
“Mmm-hmm,” I replied, hoping my guilty thoughts weren’t all over my face.
He walked back over to the table and pulled out a bar stool, then motioned for me to take it. I mumbled a thank you and climbed up. My wrap rode up my thighs and fell open, revealing almost all of my legs. I grabbed the edges to pull them together but not before Tripp noticed. My breathing hitched as I watched his eyes lock on my thighs. His nostrils flared, and his entire body tensed.
If the veins on his neck popped out, I was done for. I had to get control of things. Grabbing the edges, I tucked them around me. He tore his gaze off me and moved over to the other side of the table, faster than normal.
Clearing his throat, he slid a plate filled with eggs, fruit, some cheese, buttered toast, and a few slices of bacon toward me. “As promised, the eggs.”
My face was warm from the many emotions whirling around in my head. In an attempt to make things less awkward, I smiled at him. “Thank you. But I don’t need all the eggs. I can share.”
He shrugged. “I’m good. You eat what you want, and I’ll finish off what you don’t eat.”
Like we used to do.
Ugh. Why was I doing this? He hadn’t meant that. He was just referring to the eggs. He wasn’t trying to remind me of how things had been once. That was all me. Stupid dream had me all hot and bothered.
“OK,” I replied, hoping my reaction appeared normal.
He took a bite of his toast. As his jaw moved, the muscles in his neck flexed. Shit! What was wrong with me?
I dropped my gaze and grabbed something off my plate. I didn’t even care what. Luckily, it was a strawberry. I popped it into my mouth and began to chew.
We ate in silence for a few minutes. I wasn’t sure what to say and hated that it was just getting more awkward. But every time I looked at him, I saw my dream replaying again in my head.
“Is everything OK? I just thought you might want to eat. If you want me to, I can take my plate and go next door.” Tripp’s eyes were on me, and I had to meet his gaze to respond.
I started to say that it was OK but realized that wasn’t the truth. Tripp knew me well enough to know I was lying. If we were going to be friends again, or at least attempt it, then I had to be honest with him. Well, not completely honest. I didn’t want him knowing I’d dreamed about our first time in extreme detail. “This is going to take some adjustment,” I said as I finally met his gaze. “I want to move on from everything. Like we discussed. But I’m not sure how. I’m trying to figure it out.”
Tripp pulled his bottom lip through his teeth as a frown creased his brow. He didn’t need to bite his lip; that was taking an unfair advantage. He had to know that was sexy. I didn’t need sexy Tripp faces. “Fair enough,” he replied. Then a naughty grin touched his lips, and he dropped his eyes from mine to look at the table. “Maybe next time, I’ll give you a sec to put on something other than a little silky piece of fabric.”
He was teasing me. Friendly teasing. I could do this. “Maybe next time, you could wear a shirt,” I countered.
His gaze shot back up to mine, and for a second, I wasn’t sure if I should have said that. I might have given him the wrong idea. But then he surprised me and laughed. The deep chuckle that used to set butterflies off in my stomach and make me light-headed.
And it still did.
“Fair enough. We’ll dress more appropriately next time.”
I nodded as a smile settled on my lips. I relaxed and reached for my fork so I could eat my eggs.
Tripp
Keeping my focus on Woods and Della during the ceremony was difficult. The pale blue dress Bethy was wearing clung to her curves, which proved extremely distracting. I had the ring, and I didn’t want to miss my cue, but damn, it was hard not to watch Bethy.
The loose curls that hadn’t been pulled up on her head brushed her face as they got caught in the breeze. I wanted to walk over and pull out whatever was holding her hair up and watch it all fall down in a tangle of curls. I had never seen her hair curled before, and although I liked it just fine when it was straight, I wanted to wrap those curls around my fingers.
“You became my safe place after you stole my heart.” Della’s words brought me out of my Bethy fog. That was my cue. I slipped my hand into my pocket and pulled out the ring, then handed it to Woods. It was his turn to say the vows he’d written for her.
Grant had tried to get him to rehearse them earlier in front of us, but he wouldn’t. He’d said he didn’t need to rehearse. He didn’t even have a cheat sheet to give me in case he needed any help.
“My life lacked purpose and meaning. I was going through the motions, unaware that I was hollow inside. Then one night, this gorgeous brunette lit up the bleakness within me. She was only in town for a night, but luckily, fate gave me a second chance and placed her in my path one more time.
“You changed everything for me, Della. When you’re beside me, I can do anything. I can face any challenge and walk through any fire. As long as you’re the one holding my hand. You tell me I’m your safe place, but you have more strength and courage than anyone I’ve ever known.
“No one will ever come before you. I’ll spend forever making sure you always feel safe. Never doubt for a second that you own my heart. You’re my life.”