Chapter Sixteen
This was thefourth official year El Dorado Jewelry was a sponsor in the Assistance League of the Sierra Foothills Dinner, Dancing, and Silent Auction. The purpose of which was to raise money for the at-risk youth of El Dorado County. For the other three years, Luna had been the primary contact for the store, but this year it was Ross. He wasn’t above commending himself for managing it all on his own. He submitted the financial donation on time and remembered to provide the donated jewelry for the auction.
In the past, he and Luna would make a brief appearance together. Correction. He would make a brief appearance to show his support and to grab a dinner of fancy appetizers. Luna was more of the wine-and-dine kind of person and made fast friends. She would stay longer to be the official ambassador of the store, letting Ross off the hook and giving him the ability to snack and run.
Appearing solo was uncomfortable for him, but it was for a good cause, so he dug deep and forced himself to circulate with the general population. If Ross was lucky, Aanya would make an appearance as well. She had been open to the idea when he was hanging the promotional flyer in the shop window.
People filled the old Masonic lodge, which was decorated with a half-hearted amount of blue paper streamers and balloon bouquets. A local country band played on stage, providing the proper mood for mingling. Not him though. Ross had never been a mingler.
One side was filled with finger foods and drinks. The other half of the room had tables set up with the many items available for auction. People loitered between the two sides, socializing as the atmosphere encouraged them to do. Ross’s plan was to go straight for the food and breeze past the auction tables. He wanted to make a quick escape to spend more time with Hermes, who had gone through another round of treatment and was recovering at home.
“El Dorado Jewelry, right?”
Ross turned and was faced with a woman. He recognized her as one of the organizers of the event. Her gray hair was pulled in a tight bun, which seemed to pull her features along with it. The woman’s name escaped him.
“Uh, yeah, that’s right,” Ross said.
“I’m Carol. You dropped off your item with me.”
“Of course. Sorry, I’m Ross.” He offered a hand, but she didn’t release the handshake after what was the appropriate length of time. She held onto it as if settling in for a long conversation. It wasn’t a good sign for his plan. This was what he didn’t want to get roped into: a conversation.
“We’re always so happy to have your jewelry store as a sponsor of this event. You know, it’s such an important cause.”
“Uh-huh.” Ross tried to reclaim his hand without appearing as if he was competing in a game of tug-of-war.
“Well, I’m happy you decided to attend. But there was one thing I was hoping you wouldn’t mind doing since you’re here.”
“Okay.” The faster he agreed, the faster he would be free.
“We always like the businesses to fill out a thank you card to go with their item. You can just list the item that they won and then write a small word or two of thanks. I should have said something when you dropped the item off, but I forgot. Luckily for you, I brought a card, and you can just leave it next to your donation.”
She released his hand. In its place was a small white thank you card and pen. The woman belonged on stage performing magic. Where had the card and pen come from? Carol came prepared and, at this moment, Ross was feeling the opposite. He remembered Luna filling out a similar card the previous year, but it hadn’t crossed his mind at all until this moment.
Ross could do it. Of course, he could do it. But it didn’t stop the anxiety from inching its way into his gut. With texting and typing, Ross managed fine. Handwriting a note…well, this wasn’t as easy as Carol assumed. First of all, there was no auto-correct or spellcheck to depend on with handwritten words. He tended to give words their phonetic spelling, and, thanks to the complexities of the English language, he was wrong more than he was right. Even worse, Ross hated his handwriting, which rivaled grade school kids in its sloppiness. A simple thank you card was easily his worst nightmare.
As Carol turned away from him to speak to another attendee, his mind fell into its regular habit of searching for an exit, both figuratively and literally. How could he get out of this? Ross could call Aanya and see if she was planning on stopping by. He could conveniently forget to fill out the card. The person was getting jewelry. Did they care if they got a handwritten note on top of it? The whole thing was pointless, and he was annoyed to be bothered by the task when all he wanted to do was enjoy a selection of mini quiches and stuffed mushrooms.
“Hi, Rosso.”
He turned.
Mia.
She stood there, wearing his earrings, and her presence was more welcomed than a table full of appetizers, like a golden light sweeping into the old lodge.
Her brow furrowed together with a slight tilt of her head. “Is everything okay?”
Hadn’t he said hello to her? Had Ross only been blankly staring at her? He tried to pull himself together. “Mia. Hi. Did you just get here?”
“I’ve been here for about ten minutes. I was hoping my ring was going to be part of the silent auction. And it is, so I decided to put in a bid.”
“Your ring?”
“Yeah, the pearl ring. It’s my favorite. What’s that? Is it secret bidding tips that’s being hidden from me?” She indicated the card and pen in his hand.
Ross’s eyes dropped as he ran his free hand through his hair. “They…uh…” He cleared his throat, trying again. “They want me to fill out a card with the details of the item and leave a quick note of thanks. It’s silly. Whatever.”
“You’re kidding. They’re already getting the most beautiful ring in the world for a good cause, and they need a thank you card on top of it? People can’t just donate to charity, but they have to be patted on the back?”
