“Hey, I got jewelry!” Maury protested. “Why didn’t you ask me?”
“The last piece of jewelry I got from you almost got me killed,” Jimmy grumbled, remembering all too well the drama surrounding the murdered don’s ring he’d unknowingly found amongst his mother’s pawned valuables.
“Oh, come on! One fuckin’ time!” Maury argued. “It’s not my fault I didn’t know what it fuckin’ was! I hadn’t seen the fuckin’ thing in like twenty years!”
“Fine,” Jimmy conceded. “Let’s see what you have, Maury.”
“Worth a look!” Rowena chimed in, wiggling her fingers excitedly as Maury brought out several large trays packed full of rings. “Mmmm, pretties!”
Jimmy glanced over them and did his best to stay positive. It didn’t hurt to look, but at first he only saw more of the same glitzy and tired baubles that all the other jewelry stores had.
Then he saw a flash of pearl and paused, picking up a thick silver-colored band with a gleaming pearl inlay. He was instantly reminded of Cold’s pearl handled guns and felt a shiver, feeling the weight of the ring in his palm. It was heavier than it looked, and it seemed old.
It was different than anything else he had looked at today, and there was something about the pearl that made him smile. It reminded him of how truly dangerous his husband was, and in spite of that he still loved him, monster and all.
“This one.” Jimmy paused, asking carefully, “As long as you’re sure it didn’t belong to any dead gangsters or anything like that?”
“Of course not!” Maury scratched his chin. “Pretty sure.”
“Oooh, it’s pretty!” Rowena cooed, gushing over the shiny band. “Hope it fits him! Trying to resize it with that inlay would be a bitch! Let me see it.” She stuck the ring on her thumb and nodded approvingly. “It’ll fit!”
“How do you know that?” Jimmy stared.
“Because I am the best sister-in-law ever, and I know that my brother’s left ring finger is the size of my right thumb!” Rowena smirked.
“You are amazing!” Jimmy gushed, taking the ring back and grinning at Maury. “So, how much will it be, Maury?”
“Meh,” Maury grunted, scrunching up his face. “How about you just take it? Consider it an early weddin’ present.”
“Maury, are you sure?” Jimmy frowned, turning the ring over between his fingers. “I mean, what is this even made out of?”
“Ehhh. Platinum,” Maury said casually.
“Maury,” Jimmy scolded lightly. “Are you really sure?”
“Damn! Does takin’ all that dick make you deaf or somethin’?” Maury scoffed affectionately, reaching out to ruffle Jimmy’s hair. “I said yes, you fuckin’ putz! Take the goddamn thing!”
“Thank you, Maury!” Jimmy beamed happily, clasping the ring to his chest.
“Rod is gonna love it,” Rowena promised, giving Jimmy a gentle nudge. She fixed her eyes on Maury. “Now, are you gonna try on your tuxedo and make sure it fits?”
Maury eyed the garment bag with a sour face. “Fuckin’ fine. Gonna be like puttin’ a fat ass ham sandwich in a tube sock, but fuckin’ sure.”
Despite all of his fussing, Maury looked quite dapper in his tuxedo and agreed to keep it clean until the big day. Rowena received a text message from Jules that preparations for the party were complete and to get their asses back to the house. They bid farewell to Maury and soon arrived back at the mansion, where the celebration was in full swing.
There was a large buffet of food set up by the pool, and music was blasting away while Thirdsies, Pym, and Lorre splashed around in the water. Valdemar was passing around drinks with umbrellas, and Tamerlane was quietly watching the festivities from a respectable distance despite how hard Lorre was trying to get him into the pool.
Dr. Queen was here, certainly in a personal capacity judging by how she was lounging in Jules’ lap, and Dario was working the blender at the bar to whip up another batch of drinks for Valdemar to distribute.
Everyone was having an awesome time.
Except Cold. He was nowhere to be seen.
“Upstairs,” Jules grunted with a jerk of his head, answering Jimmy’s unspoken question.
Rowena skipped over to greet Dario with a kiss on his cheek, calling out to Jimmy, “Hey! Tell my stupid brother to get his ass down here! He’s missing his own damn party!”
“Got it!” Jimmy slung the garment bags over his shoulder and hurried upstairs to find Cold. He heard the sink running in their bathroom and hung the suits up in their respective closets. He took a peek at the slick tuxedos, certain each one cost as much as a small car.
