Gregory decided today was going to be the day. Somehow he had let Kellan waffle out of it until there was only a week before the wedding, and he still had not bought her an engagement or wedding ring.
Oh, the excuses had been valid. First schoolwork had to be completed, then the paperwork for transferring, then looking ahead and signing up for next year’s courses.
But he was putting his foot down. She was due back at his town house in fifteen minutes. It was Saturday, and he was taking her to the most expensive jeweler in Old Towne Fredericksburg. She would select the ring he would put on her finger on their wedding day, where it would stay forever.
When she got back from dropping off an overdue library book, he kissed her and wouldn’t let her take off her jacket. “Time to go,” he said firmly, pushing her out the door, and Kellan, who already knew his intentions, could see there was no way out. A firm jaw squarely set told her so. He was determined.
She was touched, she really was, but this was the last thing on earth she wanted. She had no interest in going anywhere and spending lots of money for what in her mind was a shined-up rock. Pretty, yes, but still a rock.
She had to let him make the effort. She smiled back at him, linking her arm through his and was swept away again by his generous smile, his eyes snaring hers in frank admiration. How’d she get so lucky?
Two hours later, Gregory’s smile had slipped and the jeweler, Adam Sheffield, was trying to keep his intact.
“We could always custom-make whatever you would like, but that takes a great deal of time,” he explained yet again to Kellan, who nodded. “You could get your plain gold band to use for the ceremony, while we make your design for the engagement ring?” he offered, obviously worried over their dilemma, wanting to make sure all the details were tied up nicely for this young couple.
Kellan offered a startling smile and touched Gregory’s arm. “Gregory, why don’t we go get a cup of coffee and talk it over?” She bestowed an even brighter smile on the older man, who was obviously getting anxious. “Thank you so much, Mr. Sheffield. You’ve given me a lot of things to think about. I appreciate it.”
“If that’s what you want . . . ,” Gregory said, disappointed she hadn’t found anything she liked.
He couldn’t help thinking of Melanie. She had known exactly the kind of ring she wanted, and they had been in and out of here within the hour. And she still had it, he thought glumly. When he had broken off the engagement he’d told her she could keep it if she wanted to. Incredibly, she did.
Now he wanted something much better for Kellan. “You’re sure?” he asked again.
“I’m sure,” she said, giving his hand a squeeze.
“Thanks, Mr. Sheffield.” Gregory shook the man’s hand, who advised them he’d be open until 5:00 p.m.
Moments later they were seated in a small coffee shop fronting Main Street, not too far from the college. Kellan loved everything about this town. The history, the diverse shops that beckoned with antiques and art and clothing and crafts and cuisine. She took a small sip of excellent coffee and smiled.
“This is so good.”
Gregory didn’t touch his. “Kellan, we have to do something today. There are other jewelry shops around. Why don’t we go visit some; maybe they have what you’ve got in mind.” A thought suddenly alarmed him. “You do have something in mind?”
Her smile broadened, her eyes danced as she opened her purse. “Of course. I know exactly what I want.” And she pulled a small bag out and handed it to him.
“What’s this?” He could feel the shape of a box crinkling through the stiff brown paper.
“Open it.”
Puzzled, he pulled out the small box. Nestled inside were two silver rings with writing on the sides. “Kellan”—he picked them up, frowning—“I don’t understand.”
“The writing is in Latin.” She picked up the larger one and took his hand. “It means ‘I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine.’” She slipped it on his finger, already knowing it would fit perfectly. “It’s from the Song of Solomon. A very sexy description of what marriage should be.”
His frown remained, but his eyes were puzzled. “That’s nice, but . . . why are you giving me this now? We need to find the rings we’ll be using next week.”
“These are the ones I want to use next week,” she said softly.
He looked at the ring and then at her. “I bet these didn’t even cost a hundred dollars together.”
“With tax and shipping they did.”
“I must be a little slow, because I’m not getting this . . .” He glanced at the ring again. It was nice, but nothing in the class he wanted for her.
He watched her take another long taste of coffee. “It’s a bit of a story. I guess I should have told you before, but I was waiting for these rings to come. They finally did today. Besides the library, I also stopped by the post office. You know I rented a box at school the last time I was here.”
“So why are we out shopping at all? If you’ve already made up your mind,” he said, a little hurt and irritated. “I meant it when I told you I wanted to buy you a ring you’d be proud of, something really spectacular. I mean, this should represent how I feel about you and this . . .” His voice trailed off. Yes, these rings were nice and he didn’t want to hurt her feelings by saying anything bad, but hell, this wasn’t at the top of his list.
“I know.” Kellan could see he was upset and thought about how best to explain. Honest and direct, that was probably the best. “This is the way I feel about diamonds and emeralds and all these other so-called precious jewels.” She stared directly, seeing he was still a little put out.
“They’re dressed-up rocks. Shiny, but still . . . just . . . rocks.” Impulsively, she reached over and held his hand. “But there’s a bigger reason, and it goes back to something that happened when I was a very little girl.”
An involuntary smile creased his face as he thought of her as a young child. Then he became attentive to her story about being at her grandmother’s house one day when she was about five years old.
“She used to show me her jewelry box and take out all these sparkly rings and bracelets and let me try them on. I loved watching the lights dance and ripple over those stones. She even had a tiara she would let me put on my head, and I’d look at myself in the mirror and pretend I was a princess.” Gregory watched the memory shimmer in her eyes and felt his heart melting; he could practically see the thrilled little girl.
“One day Grandmother was in the kitchen with the housekeeper, discussing the menu for lunch, and I wandered into her bedroom looking for something to do. She usually kept her jewelry box locked, but this time it was on her dresser and the lock was half open. I had to stand on a small stool to reach it, and as I tried to pull it off I didn’t realize it would be so heavy. So of course it fell, I fell, and all the jewelry tumbled out. They could hear the crash downstairs and Grandmother came running. She got to the door panting and shrieked when she saw what had happened. She strode in, hands clenched on her hips and started yelling, ‘You horrible child, look what you’ve done! Do you have any idea how much all this is worth? These are the jewels of my lifetime. My husband gave me these, some were from my mother’s mother—heirlooms, you bad, bad girl, and now everything’s scattered to high heaven. Kellan, how could you be so bad?’ She fell on the bed, her hands over her face, crying and muttering. Miss Maude the housekeeper came and chastised me again when she’d seen what I had done. She shooed me out the door as she tried to comfort Grandmother and started carefully picking up the jewelry. Then later my mother fussed with me terribly about touching those jewels. ‘Someday, if you behave yourself, some of them might be yours, Kellan. Now, don’t ever do that again.’”
Kellan still smarted at the memory and how it had made her feel. Through the years the memory still held the absolute shock; for the first time in her young life, she had not come first in her grandmother’s affections—the jewelry had.
At that moment she knew she never would want that jewelry or wear it. It was a certain knowledge that would permit no compromise.
“I also decided I didn’t want to own anything that would make me that unhappy if I lost it.” She paused and looked at him almost shyly before adding softly, “I think I’m taking a big enough risk loving you. If I ever lost you I—” Her voice caught.
Gregory reached over and covered her hand.
“Shhhh, everything will be all right. Everything will be just fine.” He kissed her and then grinned. He held up his finger with the ring. “I can’t think of anything nicer. I love it.” He kissed her again, ignoring the glances of the few other people at nearby tables.
After a moment of thinking, he wondered aloud, “Has your grandmother given you any of her jewelry?”
She grimaced and then laughed. “She’s given me several pieces, including my great-grandmother’s wedding ring, thinking I might use it next week. They’re all in a safe-deposit box at the bank.”
He nodded, impressed beyond measure by her integrity. How did he get so lucky, he wondered again. “What are you going to do with them?” It wouldn’t surprise him if she planned on selling them and giving the money to charity.
With a widening smile and mischief in her eyes, she looked up at him, loving the feel of his hands caressing hers. “Give them to my daughters one day.”
She watched as it took some moments before his smile started wavering as her words slowly were absorbed, and then his face went pale.
“Kellan?!” He jerked back, heart hammering, a swirl of confusing thoughts sweeping in waves as he suddenly realized they had never, ever talked about children. But he thought it was a foregone conclusion they couldn’t have any . . .
Then he saw the grin that widened into a smile as she reached up and tweaked his nose. “Just wanted to be sure you were paying attention,” she whispered before she kissed him.