I stood there, my lips parted on a silent gasp as the man quickly jumped to do as ordered. “Absolutely, sir.”
The salesman took off, and I snapped out of my stupor and grabbed Jase’s arm, lowering my voice to a whisper. “Are you crazy? Two carats?”
“At the very least,” he stressed.
“Jase, I don’t need a fancy ring. I thought we’d just do plain gold bands.”
Reaching up, he sifted his fingers into my hair and trailed them down to the ends like he couldn’t help but touch it. “A simple gold band works for me, but you’re getting something more.”
“Really, that’s not necessa—”
We were interrupted when the salesman reappeared, placing a velvet tray on the glass case in front of us with several rings that fit Jase’s specifications. My lips clamped shut at the sight of all the shiny rings. “Oh wow,” I breathed, my eyes going big. “Those are . . .”
“Let’s see that one.” Jase pointed at the ring holding the biggest diamond of the whole lot. It also just so happened to be the most beautiful of all the stunning rings before us.
“Ah, good choice, sir. The center diamond in this one is just shy of three carats. The cut, color, and clarity are remarkable. You’ll be hard pressed to find a better stone.”
I watched, mesmerized as the man held the ring up to the light, causing it to glint and shimmer unlike any ring I’d ever seen.
“Jase, I couldn’t,” I continued to argue, but that didn’t stop me from holding my left hand straight when he took it so he could slip it into place at the base of my ring finger. “Oh, it’s so pretty,” I whispered, unable to take my eyes off of it.
“Perfect fit,” he said. “Do you like it?”
“It’s too much. I can’t accept this.” Even as I said it, I curled my fingers into a fist to keep anyone from prying that baby from my finger. In the blink of an eye, I’d gone from a woman who wasn’t a big fan of jewelry, to one who’d cut anybody who tried to take my precious ring.
“Poppy, look at me.” It took a lot of effort on my part, but I was finally able to lift my eyes off my hand to the man standing in front of me. “I didn’t ask if you thought it was too much. I asked if you liked it.”
“Well, yes. But this is too much for a”—I looked to see that the salesman had given us some privacy—“a fake engagement and marriage,” I finished on a whisper.
“It’s not too much. And there are no buts. I brought you here because I wanted you to have a beautiful ring, not because I thought it was what I should give you.” He saw me start to waver and slowly grinned. “So what do you say, Flower? Will you marry me?”
He knew that face would make me cave completely. I laughed and shook my head. Then I looked back to the salesman and informed him, “We’ll take this one.”
Chapter Ten
Jase
Standing in the open doorway with a cup of coffee—thank fucking God—I stared out into the sunny morning, watching as an old Ford Bronco led a line of trucks up Poppy’s drive. The Bronco turned off, coming around the curve just in front of the house while the others continued on back toward the rooms.
“He’s here! He’s here!” I heard Poppy’s excited shouts from upstairs just seconds before a fan of red entered my vision and she came running down at a fast clip. Her foot caught on the last step and she stumbled, almost crashing into me before catching herself.
I moved quickly, reaching out and grabbing her, jerking her to me before she could fall. “Shit, Pop, watch out. You could’ve broken your neck.”
She looked at me with a beaming grin and smacked me in the chest with both her hands, repeating, “He’s here!” before shaking free of my hold and racing out the open door. She stopped at the edge of the porch and clapped her hands, hopping up and down as Clay rounded the Bronco and started in her direction with a big smile on his face. I’d met the guy briefly at Farah’s Thanksgiving dinner last year, but we hadn’t really talked much. He seemed like a decent guy at the time, but as I studied him right then, I instantly disliked him.
The jealousy I’d felt at Bad Alibi came back, rearing its ugly head as he climbed the front steps and pulled her into a hug. The familiarity of that embrace pricked at my skin and set my teeth on edge. It was a feeling I wasn’t used to. I could count on one hand the number of times I’d been jealous, and this thing between Poppy and me wasn’t even real, for Christ’s sake.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” Poppy said, excitement brimming from her words.
The man’s easy laugh was like nails on a chalkboard. “Happy to see you too, Pop Tart.”
I finally came unglued from my spot and started in their direction, catching Clay’s attention. “Hey man. Heard you were back in town. Good to see you.”
“Yeah, you too,” I replied, the smile on my face feeling as hard as plastic. I stopped behind Poppy and wrapped my arms around her middle, pulling her back against my chest. With that one proprietary move, I’d just staked my claim, and he hadn’t missed it. Shifting my attention to the woman in my arms, I asked, “Baby, did you tell him the good news?” I didn’t give her a chance to respond as I lifted her left hand to flash the diamond perched on her finger.
Poppy’s whole body went stiff as a board as she looked over her shoulder and narrowed her eyes at me. “Jase,” she hissed, my name sounding a lot like a warning.
“You’re engaged? I didn’t realize you guys were a thing.”
“We—” Poppy started, but I cut her off.
“It happened fast. When you know, you know, right?”
Clay stared at us curiously. “I guess. But how’s this supposed to work, what with you bein’ up in Connecticut and all?” He gave us a good-old-boy grin that I was sure other people found charming as he finished, “You aren’t thinkin’ of taking our Pop Tart away, are you? Pretty sure the town would mutiny.”
My jaw ticked, my teeth clamped together so tight it was a wonder I didn’t break my molars. “You didn’t hear? Hyland Steel is opening a branch in Nashville.”
“Speaking of which,” Poppy spoke quickly, spinning around and giving me an overly chipper smile. “Shouldn’t you be on your way? Today’s your first day, after all. Wouldn’t want you to be late.”
Unable to help myself, I leaned in and pressed my lips to hers. In my head I said it was all for show, but the truth was, I needed that taste. The longer I spent in her company, the more the lines of this arrangement were starting to blur. It had only been a handful of days, and already I’d forgotten this whole sham wasn’t real more times than I could count.
“Don’t worry about that. I have plenty of time.” I turned my attention back to Clay. “Should we go take a look at the rooms? See what all needs to be done?”
Poppy offered a tight smile at Clay, saying, “Excuse us for just a second. Why don’t you head on back? I’ll meet you there.”
He did a terrible job at hiding his grin as he tilted his chin up. “Sure thing, darlin’.”
He started for the Bronco and Poppy grabbed me by the hand, pulling me back into the house. “What the hell was that?” she snapped.
“What was what?” I asked, feigning confusion.
Her eyelids lowered into slits that only worked to make her that much more adorable. “You know exactly what. Don’t play games. You did everything in your power out there to get him to enter into a pissing match with you.”
“I was only making sure the man knew his place,” I said simply.
“Oh my God!” She snorted loud and sarcastically. “You’re being ridiculous. Clay’s just a friend. There’s no need for you to worry.” Her voice lowered and her eyes rimmed with concern, turning the crystal blue dark. She stepped closer and took my hand. “If you’re worried about me doing or saying something that could mess up this arrangement, I promise I won’t—”
“I’m not worried about that, sweetheart.” I couldn’t stand that I was the one to temper the light in those gorgeous eyes, that I made her think I doubted her in
any way. “Like you said, I was just being ridiculous.”
She seemed to ease, but there was still some trepidation lingering. “You sure?”
“Positive,” I answered. After all, it wasn’t her fault I was letting my own issues get to me and, in turn, acting like an asshole. “It’s all good. And you were right. I should probably get to the office.”
The last of her worry slipped away. “Oh, okay. Well, drive safely. I’ll see you later?”
“You will.” I sucked back the last of the coffee from my mug, and she kindly took it from my hand. Needing to feel her lips again, I leaned in and gave her one last kiss before heading out to my car. “Have a good day, future wife,” I called back, twirling my key ring on my index finger as I shot her a wink.
“You too, future husband,” she returned, humor in her voice.
I beeped the locks, climbed in, and started the Audi, all the while thinking that I couldn’t remember the last time I’d dreaded going into the office. For as long as I could remember, work was the only thing I looked forward to. But it would appear I now had something else I’d much rather to fill my time with.
Real or not.
* * *
I stepped into the offices of Hyland Steel’s Nashville branch for the first time since it became operational.
While it had been in the works for a while, and the building had been purchased months back, it had only been up and running for a matter of weeks now with a skeleton crew who’d come from other offices around the country to get things off the ground.
Now that I was finally here for good, the plan was to get busy hiring the rest of the staff.
I rounded the corner toward my office and spotted my assistant, Wynn, already at her desk and hard at work. If there was one person from Connecticut I’d wanted here with me, it was Wynn, and I was grateful as hell that she’d joined me—even if it did take a pay raise to get her to agree.
“Good morning, Wynn.”
She looked at me, her face pinched into an unhappy frown. “Maybe it would be good if the cable man hadn’t bailed on me this weekend, leaving me without a TV or internet. Or if the movers I hired had managed to get here on time, but they didn’t, and now I have to wait another three days. I’m currently sleeping on an air mattress—with no sheets, mind you—and I have a grand total of three outfits, two of which I’ve already worn.”
I cringed at her bad luck. “Damn. I’m sorry. Anything I can do?”
“Remind me why I packed up my life and moved here for you?” she snarked, a smart-ass grin on her face. That was one of the things I liked about her the most. She’d been working for me for ten years, coming to the company when she was only twenty-one, and there hadn’t been a day in those ten years when she hadn’t given me shit or taken any from me in return.
Most people in the office back in Connecticut had been intimidated by me; by my name, my title, my wealth, and the fact that I could be demanding when it came to expecting the best from my employees. But not Wynn. She knew she did good work, that she was vital to my operation, and she wasn’t going to put up with anything less than my utmost respect.
“Because I paid you out the ass to do so, and I’m the best boss you’ve ever had?” I returned.
“You’re the only boss I’ve ever had. Aside from that dude that managed the Abercrombie store back in high school, but that doesn’t really count. I was only seventeen at the time, and he spent most of his shifts getting high in the stock room. And if you were a good boss, you’ve have shown up with a coffee for me.” She looked from my empty hands back to my face and quirked a brow.
“All right, all right. Lesson learned. I’ll have coffee for you tomorrow, okay? In the meantime, how about I have a talk with Poppy and see about having you over for dinner one night? How’s that sound?”
Her eyes bulged for a beat, then a wicked smile pulled across her lips. “You mean I’m actually gonna get to meet the illusive Poppy? Wow, boss, what a treat!” she teased.
Other than Ben and Farah, Wynn was the only one I gave the absolute truth. Spending so many hours with one person over several years’ time had created a bond that was more than just employee and employer. She was a friend, and I trusted her to keep such an important secret.
She couldn’t stand my dad, and disliked Titus even more than I did. She’d told me on more than one occasion that she’d be the first to hand in her resignation if I wasn’t named CEO.
That didn’t mean she didn’t get off on giving me shit for tying myself to one woman after years of witnessing my disdain for commitment. She found the whole situation absolutely hilarious.
“Keep it up, smartass, and no, you won’t.”
“Oh, too late for that! You already put it out there; you can’t take it back now. I’ll expect a home-cooked meal in the very near future.”
Chapter Eleven
Poppy
“This is so stupid,” I grumbled as Farah pulled her car into a spot right in front of the bridal boutique. “I don’t understand why we’re here.”
“Hey, you’re the one who said you needed a dress,” Shane stated from her place in the backseat.
“Yeah, but I don’t understand why we couldn’t go to the mall in Nashville or one of the shops in town.”
Farah killed the ignition and turned to me with a brazen grin. “It’s not our fault you didn’t specify where you wanted to go when you asked if we’d come along with you.”
I was quickly coming to regret that decision.
It had been a week and a half since Jase had officially moved in, and the wedding day was fast approaching. Even though we were only going to the courthouse, I’d still wanted to get a pretty dress to wear for the day, so I’d asked my two closest friends to come and help me pick one out for the occasion.
Huge mistake.
“Aunt Poppy’s gonna get a pretty dress!” Brantley shouted, bouncing up and down in his booster seat.
“Yes she is, sweetheart,” Shane said happily to her son as she unbuckled his seatbelt. “She’s gonna get such a pretty dress, she’ll look like a princess.”
We made our way into the shop, and I was immediately overwhelmed by all the clouds of tulle and silk. There were pearls and crystal beads everywhere.
“Welcome, welcome,” a woman chirped as she came skipping up to us. “What can I help you with today?”
“We’re here to look at wedding dresses,” Farah answered before I could.
The shop attendant squeaked happily. “Ooh, how exciting! So which one is the lucky bride?”
“She is,” my friends answered simultaneously.
“Oh, lovely! So tell me, did you have a particular style in mind?” She looked me up and down before continuing, not allowing me to get a word in edgewise. “With your figure, and all that beautiful hair, I’m thinking ball gown! Something with a big, full skirt that really makes a statement. You’d look like a fairy-tale princess walking down the aisle covered in crystal beads!”
Even if I had been in the market for an actual wedding gown, what she described sounded awful. It wasn’t me at all.
“Actually, I really don’t need anything that fancy. We’re just going down to the Justice of the Peace. I’m looking for something simple, nothing elaborate. Do you have anything like that?”
The woman instantly deflated, a look on her face like I’d told her Christmas would be canceled for the rest of her life. “Oh, yes. Certainly. Let me just see what I can find.”
For the next thirty minutes, I tried on one dress after another, and each time I stepped out for my friends to inspect, their reactions were completely devoid of enthusiasm.
“Oh come on, guys. You have to like one of these,” I finally snapped after the fifth dress they’d responded to with “Meh,” and “I guess it’ll work.”
“What about this one? It’s pretty, right? And I think it works with my coloring.” I ran my hands along my waist. The A-line dress came down to my knees. The bust was made of a pretty white satin, and the
tulle skirt swished and swayed as I moved. It was fancier than a simple cocktail dress, but not as dressy as a wedding gown. The perfect in-between.
“Yeah, sure. It’s pretty,” Farah replied flatly.
“If the look you’re going for is prom-night virgin,” Shane added unhelpfully after covering her son’s ears.
Standing on the platform, I planted my hands on my hips and glowered at Shane through the three-way mirror. “You know what? I’m getting this one. I like it, and I don’t care what you say.”
She waved me off, sipping from the champagne flute the shop assistant had offered while I was trying on dresses.
With a huff, I stomped off the platform and back into the dressing room, more than ready for this day to be over. I’d just hung the dress I was going to get back onto the hanger when I heard Farah’s voice from the other side of the curtain. “Poppy, I found another dress. Just one more. Pretty please? Then I promise, we can leave.”
I let out a defeated sigh and flung the curtain back. Then I saw the dress she was holding up. “Farah, really? I already told you—”
“Oh come on. We’re in a bridal shop, for crying out loud. We’re just asking you to try on one wedding dress. That’s all. What’s it going to hurt?”
“Fine,” I grumped. “But just this one, then we’re leaving. And you’re springing for Mexican for lunch.”
Her face broke out in a huge smile. “Deal!” She thrust the hanger at me and yanked the curtain closed.
I slipped the gown on and pulled the zipper at my ribs into place before stepping out of the dressing room and heading for the platform.
“Oh my God,” Shane breathed, her eyes going wide while Farah’s grew glassy with unshed tears as she whispered, “You look so beautiful,” on a sniffle.
Fully prepared to shoot them down, I climbed the two steps and spun around to face the mirror . . . and immediately lost my breath.
Crazy Beautiful: a Redemption novel Page 8