“Same,” was all he could say because when Debbie smiled at him like that, his brain turned to mush.
Cheyenne ran her hand along the arm of the love seat as if inspecting the quality of the upholstery.
Austin had no idea what kind of furniture this was other than it looked nice and was comfortable. It easily rivaled anything that had been in Cheyenne’s parents’ house though.
“I’m surprised you even looked twice at a woman with this kind of wealth, Austin.”
As if she actually knew how rich Debbie was. Austin didn’t even know that.
Cheyenne’s better-than-you-attitude grated on Austin’s nerves. “Oh, I looked twice alright, and even a third time, before I found out how wealthy she was. Good thing Debbie has a lot of redeeming qualities.”
He meant it as a joke, refusing to let Cheyenne and Tucker get to him, but when Debbie quirked an eyebrow at him, he feared he’d offended her. He should probably apologize later.
“Your engagement ring is beautiful, Debbie. Did Austin actually buy that for you?”
Scowling, Tucker leaned toward Cheyenne. “That’s not a very appropriate thing to say.”
Cheyenne just scoffed and waved his comment away.
Engagement ring?
Austin didn’t buy Debbie a ring, engagement or otherwise. Even if he had the money to do so—which he didn’t—he hadn’t had the time since getting engaged last night. It hadn’t even crossed his mind that Debbie should have a ring.
Debbie tensed beside him. She held out her left hand and admired the ring on her third finger; a sparkling solitaire that had to be at least a carat sat surrounded by a delicate weave of white gold strands and additional tiny marquis-shaped diamonds.
No way could he afford a ring like that. Did she splurge on it today on her shopping trip? Or had one of her previous husbands given it to her? His chest tightened at the thought, and acid crept up his esophagus.
Debbie lowered her hand. “We haven’t had the chance to go shopping together since we got engaged, but I was so excited to make it official that we picked this ring from my collection of jewelry for me to wear until he can buy me one.”
At least she stuck mostly to the truth. If the ring was part of her collection, it was probably from one of her previous marriages. He doubted her jerk of a first husband could have afforded a ring like that when they got married at eighteen. So that left Peter, the billionaire.
Cheyenne snorted. “You may as well get used to that ring, because Austin is too much of a penny pincher to buy anything close to that nice.”
“Cheyenne!” Tucker hissed through clenched teeth.
Austin tensed, his heart thundering in his ribcage. He was about to let loose a few choice words when Debbie put her hand on his chest. The action only made his heart race a little faster.
“I don’t need a fancy ring, I have plenty of those. I’ll count myself lucky to wear whatever ring Austin gives me. I know he’ll provide me with something beautiful as soon as he’s able.”
She said the words with such sincerity, he wanted to do exactly that.
Except this isn’t a real engagement.
Debbie continued, “You know, after he finishes paying off the debt he got stuck with in the divorce.” Debbie’s voice was syrupy sweet but there was an undercurrent of hardness there that Austin did not want directed at him.
Cheyenne gave Tucker a brief, tight smile before dropping her gaze to her hands.
Amy stepped into the doorway of the sitting room. “Dinner is served.”
They all made their way to the dining room where Debbie pointed out Savvy’s artwork. “Savannah has been painting a mural for me.”
Tucker’s gaze drifted from the mostly finished area to the part that still needed a lot of work. His brow furrowed. “It’s uh…”
“It’s not finished yet,” Austin said before he could pass judgment on Savvy’s skills.
“It reminds me of this coastal village we stayed at in Sicily a couple of years ago,” Cheyenne said, turning away from the wall. “It was so beautiful there. I loved the white-sand beaches with water so blue you couldn’t help but fall in love with the place.”
Heat filled Austin’s chest. Cheyenne hadn’t changed one bit. She only ever thought about herself. She couldn’t even appreciate how gifted their daughter was. He was glad he’d insisted the kids not be here this evening. Savannah would have been so disappointed by her mother’s reaction—or lack of—to her painting.
