Page 130 of The Doctor's Irreplaceable Love

Trip chuckled.“I wish I could say I was the one who thought of it—but Cash asked if he could come along.And making the most of him being here means I also get to rope Mav and Blane in too.”

“And Emmett,” Travis added with a smile.“I can’t believe you got him to come.”

“I doubt I would’ve—except he has to be in town this morning anyway.He’s bringing Alana to her rehearsal.And when he got home last night the girls insisted that since I hadn’t invited them to come with us, he had to come so that he can report back on what I chose.”

“That works out well then, doesn’t it?”

“It does,” Trip agreed.

He had to laugh when they got to town and saw that almost all the parking spots along the block where the jewelry store stood were already taken—by his friends’ vehicles.Emmett’s truck.Deacon’s sheriff truck.He had to hope that it was Ace who was driving Ari’s Navigator—and that she hadn’t invited herself along.He relaxed when he spotted the black Suburban that Cash used whenever he was in town.

He laughed harder when he saw a traffic cone sitting in the middle of the space closest to the jewelry store door—and Deacon stepped out to remove it as they approached, waving Travis into the spot.

A rush of warmth filled Trip’s chest as he greeted his friends.He thought of himself as more of a facilitator.He didn’t need the limelight—not usually—but he couldn’t deny that it felt good to be the reason all the guys were together.

As they all filed into the jewelry store, the woman behind the counter—a warm, sharp-eyed woman named Loretta, who he remembered from school—looked up.Her eyes grew wide as she watched them.

“What’s going on, gentlemen?”she asked with a smile.“Are we putting the band back together?”

Cash laughed.“Not exactly, darlin’.What we want to do is put a band on a woman’s hand.”

“Oh, wow.Which one of you’s getting married?”

Trip inhaled sharply as he stepped forward.“Not married,” he corrected her.“What I’m looking for is an eternity ring.”

“Oh, that’s perfect.Shelley’s a wonderful woman.”

“What’s an eternity ring?”asked Blane.

Emmett turned to him with a smile.“According to my girls, it’s a promise to love someone forever and ever.”

Blane made a face, and Mav muttered something under his breath.

Loretta went to a display case and unlocked it, returning to set two trays of rings on the counter in front of Trip.

“Is this the kind of thing you’re looking for?”she asked.

Ace let out a low whistle.“Damn.And I thought one big-ass diamond was shiny.Look at those things.”

Trip looked—and although he could see what Ace meant, he couldn’t seethering.Some of them didn’t have enough stones.The ones that did had smaller ones.Nothing jumped out at him.

He shook his head, and Trav came to stand beside him, slinging an arm around his shoulders.“What are you looking for, bud?”

He shrugged.“I wish I could tell you.Tanya and Alana showed me the different styles online last night—and all I can tell you is that I know the ones I like when I see them.But I couldn’t tell you why I like them.”

Blane grumbled in the background, and Cash turned to slap the back of his head.“Just because you can’t find a woman who’ll put up with you…”

Blane shrugged and shot Trip an apologetic smile.“I’m happy for you, bud.I really am.I just…” He shook his head.“You know, shopping’s not my thing.”

He stood back next to Mav—and looking at their faces, Trip could totally see why Cash called them Grumpy and Grumpier.

“Maybe you should bring out the really expensive stuff,” Cash suggested.

“Yeah—spend his money for him, why don’t you,” said Mav.

Trip smiled at Loretta.“I don’t mind what it costs.I just need to find the right one.”

Blane groaned behind him, but Trip just laughed.He didn’t care how much it cost.