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Not quite.
He went to his bedroom to fetch the velvet-covered box he’d taken from the bank that morning. ‘I thought... I mean, I’d be very honoured if you would wear this.’
She stared at him. Maybe this hadn’t been such a good idea after all. Alex knew Marie was nervous about tonight, and he’d reckoned this would maybe give her confidence. It was a bauble that would outshine anything that any of the society women might wear.
He’d committed himself now, though. He opened the box, taking out the exquisitely crafted platinum-and-gold chain, the delicate filigree strands of which were deceptively strong. They had to be, to support the large diamond that hung from it.
Marie backed away from him. ‘That must be... That’s... How big is it?’
‘Um...around twenty carats, I think.’ Thirty-one, actually.
‘It’s got to be worth an absolute fortune. Alex, I can’t wear this. We’re going to be asking people for money.’
‘That’s not really how it works. I couldn’t sell the Crown Jewels to raise funds for the clinic even if I wanted to. They’re held in trust.’
Marie shook her head, tears welling in her eyes. She blinked them away furiously, trying not to spoil her make-up, and Alex regretted his gesture immediately.
‘Marie, I’m sorry...’
His apology seemed to upset her even more, and a tear rolled down her cheek, leaving a thin trail of mascara.
‘You don’t have to be sorry, Alex. I just... I can’t wear this. It’s too good for me.’
‘Oh, no. I’m not having that. Nothing’s too good for you, Marie.’
She sniffed and he handed her his handkerchief. She dabbed at her eyes, trying to smile.
‘Alex, I really appreciate this; it’s a generous and kind gesture. But I’m not someone who wears diamonds. I can’t meet the people who are going to be there tonight on their terms, and you told me it was okay to meet them on mine.’
That was the crux of it all. Marie saw them as being stranded on opposite ends of a spectrum—so much so that she couldn’t even accept the loan of a necklace for the evening. Maybe she was right. Maybe asking her to fit in with the kind of people he’d known all his life made him just as bad as his father, demanding that Alex’s mother fit in with his grand aspirations.
‘Let’s forget about all this, eh? Go to the bathroom and fix your make-up and we’ll start again, shall we?’
She nodded, blowing her nose and then frowning at the handkerchief.
‘Don’t worry about that. They come in packs of two. I have another one.’
He propelled her out into the hallway, where she grabbed her bag and made for the bathroom.
She was back in less time than he’d thought, her make-up reapplied and flawless. Alex was standing in front of the mirror, trying to retie his bow tie after he’d pulled at it to loosen his collar a little.
‘Let me do that. I think I have the knack now.’
She got the bow tie right first time, and folded the new handkerchief, putting it into his top pocket. A second chance to do things right. Alex picked up the velvet box, ready to put it back in the safe in his bedroom.
‘Alex, would you mind...? Would you be able to perhaps lend me just the chain to wear? It’s so pretty.’
She was meeting him halfway. Alex decided this wasn’t the time to tell her that the workmanship on the chain was of such quality that it was considered a work of art just by itself.
‘I’d like that very much. I think it’s the better choice with that dress.’
He could go halfway too. Maybe that would be enough to breach the gaping chasm that seemed to have opened up between them.
He unclipped the fabulous stone from its place on the necklace, and then carefully fastened the chain around Marie’s neck. ‘There. What do you think?’
She walked over to the mirror. In Alex’s experience, women didn’t usually look this grave when trying on jewellery.
‘I really like it. I’d love to wear it...just for tonight...’
