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"All jokes aside," Reece says, dropping the humor from his face, "I'm happy for you, man. You guys kind of give me inspiration. You know I love to live the bachelor life, but now I'm thinking maybe I need to slow down and enjoy the good life."
I tilt my head and give him a knowing look. "The good life it is, Reece. Take my word for it. Get yourself a woman who knows you and loves you more for it."
Sipping my drink, my brows crease when I see Aubrey reach for Natalie's arm only for Natalie to yank it back and whip it behind her back.
"Mind if I have one dance with your wife?"
I snap my eyes back to Reece. He's got a good poker face, but I know he's dying inside holding the laughs in. "Don't even fucking try it."
"But I didn't bring a date."
Eyeing him, I raise my hand and point my pinky at him. "Not my problem." I finish off the cognac then place the sniffer on the bar counter. "I'll be back in a bit. I need to see what my wife is up to."
"I'll be here scoping out the room, hoping to find my own cradle to rob."
I shake my head. Reece is such a douche bag. I laugh because he's a good guy at heart and I know he's not serious. He has wedding fever right now. The phase won't last long. Come next week, I'll get a call from him wondering why he was acting like a pussy on my wedding night. I bet he’ll say the bartender drugged him or something equally as dumb.
I stride to where Natalie and Aubrey are standing, still deep in conversation. Just as I reach the little corner they're in, Natalie lifts her hand to Aubrey and I catch a sparkling reflection under the chandeliers. It happens again, and harsh frown lines fill the space between my brows. My stomach sinks as I close the distance between the three of us.
"What the hell is that?" I blurt out as I stare at a fucking yellow diamond ring on my daughter’s left hand.
She snatches her hand away and places it behind her back. Natalie's eyes are round and wide, like blue marbles ready to pop out of her head.
"You got engaged and didn't tell me?" I say, slightly hurt.
I'd only gotten a quick look at it, but I'd say it's close to the size of Aubrey's, if not a little bigger. Not something that's easily overlooked, especially since it's a rare yellow diamond at that. I wait, hoping for a solid response, but Natalie watches me with guilty eyes knowing she’s been caught red-handed.
Something dawns on me. "How come I didn't notice the ring before?"
"She had it turned around," Aubrey says, and my eyes shift to her. "I didn't see it either. All you see is a thin gold band. When she was dancing with Luca, I spotted it. She'd unconsciously turned it around with her thumb to the right side up."
"Is he wearing one?" I ask.
Aubrey frowns. "I don't know. I didn't look."
I glance back at Natalie, who's looking guilty as sin but with no remorse now. My chest is feeling a little tighter at the thought of my only daughter getting married. I'm not upset, but I'm shocked as hell and need time to process it. Right now, I just want to dance with my wife. Natalie being engaged is a discussion we'll all have over brunch tomorrow.
"I'm not engaged." Natalie drops her arm. "But it's not what you think either."
"Oh, boy. Here we go," Aubrey says, then lifts her palm up, waving her fingers at Natalie so she can see the ring. "What did you do?" Truthfully, I want to see it too. Few people in the world can buy a rare gem like that. If Luca bought her a fake stone, then I’m putting a fucking stop to whatever bullshit this is until I get to the bottom of it.
I snake an arm around Aubrey's waist and pull her to me as the engagement ring appears before us.
Fuck.
It's the real deal.
I'm stunned to the bone. The clarity is blinding, there's no way that's a fake one. Aubrey shifts Natalie's hand and the stone glistens. It's a nice one, and now I'm wondering what the fuck this guy does for a living.
"What do you mean it's not what we think?" Aubrey says, still admiring the stone. "I didn't know you guys were serious."
"We're not… I'm not… We… He’s not." She pauses, and I look up at her, hearing the nerves in her voice.
"Aww," Aubrey says, delivering a sugary sweet smile. She lets go of Natalie's hand. "You like him and you can't admit it. Typical Natalie. Kind of like the way you didn't like that naked musician from back in the day."
She chuckles and it causes Natalie to release a little of the tension, but she shakes her head and gives Aubrey this look in her eyes that makes me think it's a girl code look. Now I'm confused.
Women. I'll never understand their language.
