He looked down at her with an impish grin."And yet, you’re willing to give me up.You’re a fool.An incredibly beautiful, headstrong, brilliant fool."
He kissed her deeply.The feel of his hands on her back and his lips upon hers had at one time made her weak.Back in those early, exciting days when they’d spent every moment exploring one another, basking in the glow of each new discovery.She lost herself in the familiar comfort of him, but only for a moment.
Clair pulled back.“I can’t do this, Calvin.”
In her mind, she’d already landed back in Texas, taking the next step in a life that didn’t include him.A return to herself and her own desires.
"We could be lovers,” he said.“You go to London and find yourself some loving, supportive nine-to-fiver.And when you grow tired of him and become incredibly bored—because you absolutely will—you'll still have me to fill in the gaps."
"I don’t think so.”she whispered.“I’m so sorry.”
Her voice cracked and he pulled her back into his arms.She held him close, memorizing his shape, knowing it would be the last time.
"Will you promise me something?"she asked.
"Anything at all."
"Find the woman who fits your ring."
“I still want you to try it on," he whispered.
"I don't think I should."
"Please?For me?”he begged.“I want to see if it looks as good on you as I think it will."
He retrieved the small box.Carefully, he removed the ring and slipped it in place.It all but swallowed her finger.She watched as the diamond fell easily from one side of her finger to the other.
“It doesn’t fit,” she said flatly.
"Do you feel anything?”he asked.“Anything at all?A tingle?A sensation of any kind?"
"You mean ‘the magic’?"Sadness filled her eyes."I wish I could say I did."
“If my last name were Klein?”He attempted a smile.“Think that might have done the trick?”
“I don’t think so,” she chuckled.
"It looks fabulous on you.Needs a slight alteration, size-wise.Here, let me…”
Calvin removed the ring with one hand and reached for the thin ribbon with the other.In seconds, he wound the ribbon around the ring and slid it back into place.A closer fit.Claire looked down at her hand.The ribbon didn’t show.She wondered if the heartbreak on her face did.
“There,” he said.“That’ll do it for the time being.”
The room quieted again.An uncomfortable, let-the-world-swallow-me-up kind of quiet.She studied the rock on her hand—the final scene in their play which summed up the last two and a half years with precise irony.
This is the absolute last style of ring you’d ever select for yourself, and it’s nowhere close to the right size.He’s Hollywood flash.You’re simple and understated.This would never work.Not in any real, lasting sense.
She replayed a montage of their moments in her mind, focusing on the night they’d met.She’d tagged along to a party in LA with an actor friend following a film premiere.She’d caught Calvin’s eye across the room.He called out, “Kate!”and waved her over to his inner circle, mistaking her for someone else.His bright smile grabbed her attention, but his intelligence and sense of humor impressed her most.They’d been on from the word go.A glass of champagne.A twirl on the dance floor.Heavy petting on the front seat of his Corvette.
“I’ll never forget the first time I saw you,” he said.“I had two thoughts: face of an angel, body of my dreams.”
His familiar ringtone filled the air, blasting a classic-rock tune that instantly killed the moment.The fact that he still used a musical ringtone while most people kept their phones on silent?A warning in itself.Calvin loved attention.Claire preferred to stay subdued, so she kept her judgments on silent mode too.
"Your pants are ringing,” she said, pointing to his faded jeans lying in a rumpled mass on the floor.
He quickly retrieved his phone, his voice and demeanor immediately switching to Hollywood mogul mode.Claire held her breath.
Diamond ring aside, it all comes down to this.This is the true test.
