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Sure, I can afford it, but Callie in a tiara?
I chuckle out loud. The look on her face would be worth all the money to buy it. She would truly get a laugh out of it, but then what would she do with it? Does anyone actually wear such a thing?
But the rings…
There are nine altogether. One is all diamonds. One is a large sapphire that looks a lot like the ring that once belonged to Princess Diana.
Two are emeralds—or green stones—not that I would know. One is a beautiful ruby. I’ll have to mention it to Uncle Ryan, as his and Aunt Ruby’s wedding anniversary is coming up next month.
They’re all beautiful, and all unique.
But not one of them is as beautiful or unique as the ring Drew is appraising now.
I need to know what kind of stone it is. What kind of metal.
But more than that…I want to know its history. Why did it end up in my hands? Whose is it? Because if I have to return it, I’ll do so.
But if I don’t have to return it…it’s going on Callie’s finger.
A pair of earrings catches my gaze. They’re screw-on, which you hardly ever see anymore, but their beauty astounds me. The metal is silver, clearly, and the cabochon looks like some kind of black enamel. A silver figure is etched onto it—perhaps a harlequin or a dancer of some sort.
I can’t take my eyes from them.
“That’s Siamese silver,” Drew says.
I look up. “I didn’t realize you’d come back in.”
“Yeah… I have some interesting information.”
The Siamese silver ejects from my mind.
“What did you find out?”
“This ring is worth a hell of a lot of money, Don.”
Although I’m not surprised, my jaw drops anyway. “What kind of stone is it?”
“It’s a diamond.”
“An orange diamond?”
“Yeah. Sometimes they’re called pumpkin diamonds. They are the second-rarest type of diamond.”
This time my jaw does drop. “What’s the rarest type?”
“Red.”
“Oh my God.”
“Let me put this in perspective for you. I’ve been in the precious stone business and jewelry business for thirty-five years, and my father before me fifty years. I’ve never seen a pumpkin diamond before.”
“Have you ever seen a red one?”
“No, I haven’t. I have nothing to compare this to to appraise it.”
“Okay. I’m slightly disappointed, but I’m not selling it, so the price doesn’t actually matter. What else can you tell me?”
“The white stones are diamonds, as you probably guessed, and it’s set in fourteen-karat gold.”
