“Thank you.” We reach the case with Kayne still clutching my hand. “I asked you to marry me, and you said yes. You need a ring. I may not know much, but I do know that. So, go ahead. Pick whichever one you like. I want you to be happy.”
“What?” I repeat again an octave higher than before.
“Ellie.” Kayne laughs at me as the salesman steps in front of us. His name is James, according to his tag.
“What can I show you?”
I look down into the glass at the shimmering diamonds and truly feel like a cat mesmerized by the light.
“Let’s see a variety,” Kayne answers for me, and the nice looking man with salt and pepper hair immediately pulls out several different rings. Some with round diamonds, some with square, one with an emerald cut. If someone told me when I got on that plane a week and a half ago that I’d be shopping for an engagement ring, I’d have laughed in their face—like cackled loudly. Yet here I am, staring down at some of the most beautiful jewelry I have ever seen, and it becomes a sobering reality.
“Hmm.” Kayne doesn’t seem impressed with any of them. “See anything you like?”
I’m overwhelmed. “Maybe you should just pick for me.”
“You deserve an opinion. You’re the one who has to wear it.”
“If I may,” James cuts in politely. “Not to offend you, but can you tell me your price cap?”
“We don’t have one,” Kayne tells him matter-of-factly. The salesman’s eyes glitter just as brightly as the diamonds in front of us.
“In that case,” he pulls out a ring from the far side of the case and places it in front of me, “you two seem unique. I can tell these things. I see many couples walk through that door, and I can usually read them pretty well.”
I glance at Kayne and blush scarlet. Are we that obvious?
“You should wear a ring that reflects your personality. Two-carat cushion-cut diamond with a half carat of pink sapphires haloing around the center stone,” he explains.
I immediately fall in love.
“What do you think, Ellie?” Kayne inquires.
I’m speechless.
He chuckles, taking the ring from the James’s hand, “I think she likes it,” and places it on my ring finger. “Will you marry me?” he asks softly, and my breath catches. I look at the perfect ring and then at the perfect man with tears forming in my eyes.Is this really happening?I reflect. First, Kayne was the man of my dreams, then he was a monster, and now he’s . . .everything.
“Yes,” I answer and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that regardless of what happened in the past, it’s the future that’s important now.
“We’ll take it,” he tells the salesman, then bends down to kiss me on the cheek, whispering, “Cupcake,” in my ear.
“There is also a matching wedding band. It’s a set if you’re interested?”
“Fine, yes, we’ll take that, too,” Kayne says still looking at me.
“And what about you, sir?”
“Me?” Kayne looks over at him confused.
“Yes. You’ll need a ring eventually. Would you like to take a look while you’re here?”
I cock an eyebrow. This guy has balls. He’s going to squeeze every dime out of Kayne he can, and Kayne totally knows it, too.
“I’ll take a look,” he says shrewdly.
“You look like a titanium man.” James pulls out a flat velvet board with a number of rings impressed in it.
Kayne looks them over and then shrugs at me.
“That one.” I point to a silver band with an extremely thin row of black diamonds.
