“That’s the one.” Linc tapped his finger on the glass at the ring.
“An excellent choice, sir.” A woman in a white, button-down blouse with a navy jacket appeared from nowhere.
“Jeez, you should wear a bell!”
The woman smirked, but otherwise ignored Russ’s rude remark.
“And I’m the jumpy one?” Linc rolled his eyes at Russell and turned his attention to the selection of rings the sales assistant pulled from the cabinet. She plucked the ring from its red cushion and handed it to him.
Other than the fact it was a silver-toned band and a teardrop-shaped diamond, it looked like every other ring in the case.
“What’s the metal? White gold?”
“This one’s platinum, but if you’d rather, we have a similar diamond in white gold available too.”
“Platinum’s perfect. I’d rather she didn’t need to get it replated in the future.”
Russ’s jaw dropped. “You’ve researched these? Since when?”
“Since the night at the gallery when she met Emily, and I knew I was never letting her go for the rest of my life.”
The sales clerk swooned. “That’s so romantic.” Her hand covered her chest. “I love my job.” A nervous giggle rippled around the room as Linc inspected the ring pinched between the tip of his thumb and index finger.
“Good diamond? I mean, I’m not looking for a flawless diamond, but I kind of see it being an heirloom for our kids, so I’d rather it was something half decent.”
“Yes, sir.”
He turned the ring to see the price tag and Russ whistled.
“That’s quite the price tag, Linc.”
“Like I said, I’ve been working on this for the last two and a half years. I’m good. I’ll take it. Will I need to bring her in to get it resized? She’s an 7.”
“This ring must be destined to go home with you. It’s an 7 too, that hardly ever happens.” The woman behind the counter beamed as she took the ring to box it up. Linc pulled his credit card out of his wallet and slid it across the display case.
“You already asked her dad, right?”
Linc nodded.
“But not doing it today?”
Linc shook his head. “Know what we are doing today though?”
“What’s that?”
“Chocolate cupcakes.”
***
Half a dozen chocolate cupcakes in one hand, a bottle of her favorite crappy wine in the other, and an engagement ring burning a hole in the inner pocket of his blazer, he let himself into their new home. “Cleo?”
“In the kitchen!”
The smell of paint lingered in the air, and stacks of precariously balanced boxes crowded the space. The house wasn’t huge, but it was theirs, and they’d both worked incredibly hard to be able to afford the down payment.
“Lemonade?”
He nodded, suddenly parched.
