“And you’ll never guess it,” she said with a smile. “So I need you to get out and let me drive.”
I raised my eyebrows at her from the driver's seat of the minivan. “You want to drive, Miss Passenger Princess?”
She chuckled heartily, “Don’t get used to it. This is a one-time thing.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less,” I teased before getting out of the car. Farrah and I walked around the front, meeting in themiddle. But before she could walk past me, I caught her hand, stalling her long enough so we could kiss.
Spending so long as a bachelor, it never escaped me how lucky I was to have this life with her.
Her hands linked behind my neck, and I deepened the kiss, thoroughly enjoying my wife.
But then the front door of Barry and Jenna's house opened, and our youngest, Tara, said, “Ew. Why do you guys always have to kiss in front of us all the time?”
I smiled against my wife's mouth before turning to my daughter. “Maybe because I love your mom, and I hope that one day you'll be with someone who loves you just as much.”
Farrah wrapped her arms around my waist and held on tightly. “Exactly.”
Jenna came to stand behind Tara. “Couldn’t even wait ‘til you got to the movie theater to start making out?” she teased.
Now Farrah’s cheeks flushed. “Mom.”
I grinned and lifted my hand in a wave. “See you later!”
Farrah and I gave each other one last kiss before trading seats. Once I was buckled in and she was out of the driveway, I asked, “So where are we going?”
She gave me a scolding look, “It's a surprise, silly. Do you want to stop for a little snacky on the way?”
“A snacky,” I replied, teasingly. “Of course.”
She swung through our most frequented drive-thru and got her favorite snack, fried pickles. We shared the batch as we drove down the road.
“You know what's fun about this age?” she said.
I looked over at her, curious. I could tell she’d been thinking before she brought it up to me.
“They're finally getting to the point where the presents they buy for us aren't just secretly presents for them,” she explained.
I had to laugh at that. “You know you could buy anything you want. You don’t have to place all that trust in a ten-year-old.”
“Sure, and I could also drive every time we go on a trip and get my water at bedtime,” she retorted.
“Touché,” I replied, laughing. “I have to say, the surprise thing is a little fun,” I said.
“Right,” she replied doubtfully. “I know the suspense is eating you alive.”
“Caught me,” I admitted, shifting in the seat. I’d been trying to guess with each turn she made. “So we're heading toward downtown?”
She shook her head at me and let out an exasperated laugh. “Can you just sit back and enjoy the moment?... Never-mind. I know who I'm speaking to.”
I grinned. I loved it when she ribbed me from time to time. “You know, you always say that the passenger gets to be the DJ…”
“No,” she complained. “Please don't play NPR.”
“I like to stay informed,” I replied.
“I don't. It stresses me out.”
I shook my head at her. We were two very different people, but somehow it worked. She was exactly what I needed when we first met and now, all these years later.
