I look out the window, getting my bearings. The University of Arizona campus is on my right, the first building a terra cotta brick structure lined in tall, skinny palm trees. A metal sign reads Architecture & Landscape Architecture.
"If an oopsie is unintentional, and you wouldn't call us an oopsie, does that mean you intended to marry me, Dominic?"
We slow for a red light. The car in front of us has a bumper sticker that says Free Hugs.
Dominic presses his forearm on the center console, leaning over it to capture my gaze. It's like he wants to make sure I see him when he says, "In the moment, yes. I did."
CHAPTER 27
Dominic
Hand to God,I do not know if I should have told Cecily that.
It takes our actions and removes every shred ofwe were drunk and didn't know what we were doing.
For me, anyway.
Cecily grew quiet after that, and I don't blame her. I know she wrestles with everything that has transpired between us. The good date that soured, that night in Vegas, waking up to find out we'd married. And now this road trip, underscored by the certain loss of her grandmother in the not-too-distant future. It's a lot to handle.
The city of Tucson, with its traffic and restaurants and people, yields to desert scenery. Bigger homes, spaced further apart. A wildlife center. When Cecily was in the bathroom at the gas station, I took a minute to tap on the map she'd text me and look at where we're staying and the surrounding area. There wasn't enough time to look at street views of anything, so I have only a basic idea of where we're headed.
It's a two-lane road all the way there, interrupted once in a while by a yellow road sign showing a man on a horse. It's not asif I've never seen these signs before, some parts of Scottsdale still have them, but it's a reminder of how far out of Phoenix we are.
"Almost there," I tell Cecily.
She reaches for the binder, flipping it open to the first page and reading from a printout. "Nestled among the Rincon Mountains and adjacent to Saguaro National Park and Coronado National Forest, Tanque Verde Ranch is one of America's old-time cattle and guest ranches." Cecily looks up, an excited twinkle in her eyes. "It's a dude ranch."
A dude ranch? I could get into that.
My phone, propped up in the center console, spouts a direction I no longer need. "I'll close out the map," Cecily says, grabbing my phone. Finger poised, she pauses. Her eyebrows tug together. "My grandma sent you a text."
"Read it, please."
Cecily taps the text notification, and our conversation opens. "She says they are an hour away. Kerrigan refused to use the bathroom in the motor home, and it took everyone a long time to choose snacks at the convenience store."
"I wonder if Duke had to defend anybody's honor while they were at it." We come to a fork in the road, and I go right, following the unassuming wooden sign for Tanque Verde Ranch. "This is?—"
"You talk to my grandma?"
"What?" I come to a stop in the parking lot for a family to walk past. They wave a hand in thanks, and I wave back.
Cecily's finger drags the length of the screen. "Dominic, you talk to my grandma! Enough that I had to scroll three times to reach the beginning."
"Of course I talk to her, Cecily. She's my supplier."
Cecily turns her head to me slowly, sending me a look that could curdle milk. "No getting high on this trip. I need you on your A-game."
"It was a joke," I mutter, making my way to the far end of the parking lot. I don't want Bernice next to any cars, or more accurately, car doors.
When we're in Park, I turn to Cecily. "You can read every text I've exchanged with Ophelia, ok? It's not like I've said anything bad about you, because there is nothing bad to say about you. And I haven't told her about our marriage, because that's our business. She asked me for my number that day at her house because she wanted to include it in the information she was putting together for the trip. And then she sent me a message the next day, asking about food allergies and preferences." I gesture at the phone. "Look for yourself."
Cecily skims the phone. "You asked her how she was feeling."
"Should I not have?" I'm so confused.
Emotion floods Cecily's voice. "It was nice of you. Thank you for doing that. For checking on her." She takes a deep breath and replaces my phone in the console, then looks around. "Why are we parked so far from the entrance?"
"Away from cars that could dent Bernice, but also where there's enough space so that giant motor home can park near us."
