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“That sounds good,” I said, happy to hear he hadn’t gotten Lucille’s or my father’s approval first, that this was entirely his doing.
“I will confess that the way you sounded on the phone today sped up my plans. I knew you were terribly unhappy, and I wanted to do something to please you and cheer you up. I wasn’t going to wait too many more days, anyway. As soon as they called me into your father’s office and promoted me, I felt I could propose to you.”
“Our love shouldn’t depend on how much money you make or how important you are in the Heaven-stone Corporation, Ethan.”
“And it doesn’t, but it doesn’t hurt, either,” he said. “Hey, don’t blame me for being a bit intimidated by all this. Look at what you’re used to having. Any guy would think, Who am I to assume she’d care enough?”
“I never flaunted anything.”
“You never had to. It flaunts itself. But I do think we see each other now for who we really are, don’t you? And that is truly love. Am I right?”
“Yes,” I said, smiling. “You can’t have love without honesty.”
When I looked at the mirror, I saw Cassie dwindling, but I didn’t care. This was more important than fighting Lucille over maids and cooks and the running of the house. This was my future, my love.
“Okay,” he said, rising. “I’m going to get showered and dressed for our first so-called gourmet dinner. Let’s both wear something special. Lucille will think we’re doing it because of the changes she has made, this gourmet chef, and so on, but we’ll surprise her. And of course, your father as well.”
“Yes,” I said. Now it did sound more like fun.
He fixed his eyes on me with that serious, deep look that made my heart skip beats.
“I’ll always think of you first, Semantha. I hope you’ll always believe that.”
He hurried off. I didn’t move for a few moments, and then, looking at my ring, feeling a new surge of excitement and energy, I, too, hurried to prepare for the unveiling of our future. Maybe my father and Lucille wouldn’t be as quick to approve of it as Ethan obviously thought. Maybe Daddy would say it was a bit too fast and we should wait. Maybe Lucille would be very annoyed with how we had stolen her thunder. None of these possibilities frightened me.
First, it would be a good test of Ethan’s sincerity. If Daddy or Lucille told us to put our engagement on hold and he retreated, I would know that their approval, his career, was more important to him than our love and our lives together. Second, I had never looked forward more to shaking up my father than I did at this moment. If he could disregard all prudence to bring Lucille into the Heaven-stone world so quickly and firmly, I could do the same with Ethan.
Most important, perhaps, it would truly be declaring our independence. Our lives, what we did now and in the future, would be our decision. Heaven-stone wasn’t a puppet theater, and we weren’t puppets.
I chose one of my more formal dresses and bedecked myself in my most expensive necklace and earrings. I worked on my hair and my makeup the way I would have if I were about to attend my own debutante ball. When Ethan returned, dressed in a new black suit and tie, he looked at me as if he had lost his breath.
“You’re absolutely beautiful,” he said.
“You’re not so bad yourself. When did you get that suit?”
“Yesterday. Lucille picked it out.”
“Lucille? She’s picking out your clothes now, too?”
“Oh, she just knew we had some new styles and told me to try it on. I’m wearing it because I thought I looked good in it and you’d like it.”
“I do.”
He held out his arm. “Okay, then. Shall we make some Heaven-stone history tonight?”
“Absolutely, Mr. Hunter.” I took his arm.
“I’ll tell you why I really proposed,” he said as we started for the stairway.
“Why?”
“I want my portrait up on that wall below someday.”
He laughed. I laughed, too, but sometimes, as Cassie would say, there is more truth in a jest than you’d expect. Anyway, so what? Why shouldn’t he want his portrait on our wall? It wasn’t a bad ambition to have. Besides, it was the house. Heaven-stone had an undeniably powerful effect on anyone who lived within it.
Cassie was the one who had told me how much influence the house had on us, so she shouldn’t be critical of Ethan’s half joke.
Daddy and Lucille were already at the table when we arrived. Mia was pouring Daddy some red wine from a bottle she had wrapped in white cloth, taking great care not to permit a drop to escape.
