Her

by Heywood, Carey

  The shop is not well lit, and there is a distinct musty smell to the place.

  “Hey, Petey!” Sawyer calls out. “You here?”

  A mumbling sound precedes the short thin man who wanders out from a back room. He adjusts the thin framed glasses on his nose before looking at Sawyer.

  “Well, I’ll be. Come here and give an old man a kiss.”

  “Way to sound pervy, Petey.” She grins before kissing his cheek.

  He notices me. “Bringing a boyfriend for me to meet?”

  She follows his gaze to me and laughs. “Nope, ‘fraid not. Will here is about to ask my best friend to marry him. Brought him here to look at some rings.” She hooks a thumb at the cabinet behind her. “How’s about you bring out the good stuff?”

  He tilts his head to the side as he appraises me, pretty sure the places at the mall would only care about my credit card. He looks back at Sawyer. “Be a dear and flip the sign.”

  She bounces back on her heels, rubbing her hands together before reaching behind me to flip the sign on the door from open to closed.

  “Get the lock too.” He calls out over his shoulder as he heads back to the back room.

  After the door is locked, we follow him, waving our way through randomly placed cabinets full of orphaned keepsakes. There is a curtain functioning as the doorway. Sawyer pulls it to the side and slides it into a brass half circle. Petey sits at an old Presidential oval office style desk in a rust shaded swivel chair. His back is to us as he pulls three trays, stacked one on top of another, from a safe. Sawyer motions for me to sit in one of the two mix matched wingback chairs that face the desk.

  Petey sets the trays on the desktop, separating them and pushing them closer for us to see. My mouth drops at the rings in front of us. They look like museum quality pieces. My eyes flick up to the amused look on his face. We both know I was not expecting this. Sawyer’s grinning next to me.

  “What if the ring I pick doesn’t fit her?”

  He shrugs. “Having a ring sized is not a big deal.”

  I start to look at the rings. I know Sarah will want something simple, elegant. That eliminates the meteor sized rocks right off the bat. I’m looking at the rings on the third tray when I see it, the perfect ring. I pick it up and hold it toward the light to get a better look. Petey describes it as I look at it.

  “That’s a beaut, platinum band and setting. It’s square cut, one carat, with eight smaller stones set in the band. I have the matching wedding band for that ring as well.”

  I look at Sawyer. She nods.

  I frown and look back at Petey. “Do you know the history of this ring? It seems like something that would be passed down in a family.”

  He smiles, swinging his chair back to the safe and pulls out a royal blue velvet box. He passes the box to me, and when I open it, I see the matching wedding band. “This ring belonged to a sweet woman named Whitney Stone. She was married to Samuel Stone for sixty five years before they passed. They never had any children. They were animal lovers. When they died, their estate went to the charities they supported in life. I purchased this ring and band at an auction and have had it for the last fifteen years.”

  I pull the band out of the box, and my jaw drops at its inscription W & S Forever.

  “I’ll take it.”

  The box feels weird in my pocket. The only thing I’ve spent more for at one time was the down payment on my condo. I hope she loves the ring. I’m not sure Petey has a return policy. We’re halfway back to the house when Sawyer clears her throat a couple of times.

  On the third time, she adds. “Anything you’d like to say to me?”

  Shit. “Sorry, Sawyer. Thank you. That place was different, but the ring is perfect. I think she’ll love it.”

  She smiles and glances at me out of the corner of her eye. “You’re very welcome. Petey’s a cool dude. I had a feeling he would have what you were looking for.”

  “How’d you know that guy anyway?”

  She shrugs. “Long story.” Then she turns the radio up, effectively ending the conversation.

  Once we’re back at the condo, she asks if I have plans for dinner.

  I must look confused. “Not really. You and Sarah are the only people I know here.”

  “And Amanda,” she snorts.

  Great. I guess Sarah told her about her. I smirk.

  “Want to meet our friend Jared?”

  That name sounds familiar. “Sure. But how will we explain my meeting him to Sarah?”

  She waves me off. “Tell her I told him to come make friends. You need a friend, Will.”

  I shrug. “Okay.”

  She shimmies over to her purse and calls him. They talk for a couple minutes, and she flashes me a wink and thumbs up combo. I pick up my phone and text Sarah that I miss her. She replies almost immediately that she wishes she was sleeping in my arms tonight. Me too, I reply.

  When Sawyer hangs up, she comes and sits cross-legged on the ottoman-styled coffee table. “We’re going to meet Jared for sushi. You like sushi, right?”

  “Sushi’s good.” I pull the velvet box out of my pocket and open it.

  “So how are you going to propose?”

  I smile. I’m not sure where or when, but I do know how. “You’ll just have to wait and find out from her.”

  She crosses her arms over her chest. “No fun. I think I should get to know because I helped you find the ring.”

  I snap the box closed and stand. “I’ll think about it.”

  I walk to Sarah’s room and hide the box in the drawer she cleared for me. I turn around to see Sawyer in the doorway. “I’m going to shower and change. Be ready to go in an hour.”

  She turns and walks away after I nod. I look down at what I’m wearing. Jeans and a dress shirt should be fine for dinner. I lie down on Sarah’s bed, pulling her pillow to me and inhaling. I wish she was here. Sure, her being gone helped with the ring purchase, but now that it’s safely hidden, it’d be nice if she were flying home today. I hang out while Sawyer gets ready. When she walks out of her room, she looks pretty dressed up for dinner.

  “Should I change?” I ask, suddenly feeling undressed.

  “Nope. I just felt like dressing up. No reason.” Sounds like she’s trying to convince herself.

  On the white-knuckled, gripping-on-to-the-door-handle ride over, she talks about my mom. She’s vague. She tells stuff I already know; my mom is stubborn. She’s temperamental, and I enable her. She won’t get more specific than that. I figure I’ll just wait and talk to Brian tomorrow. While we walk up to the restaurant, Sawyer fidgets with her purse. A guy in jeans and a polo waves as we approach.

  He pulls Sawyer into a hug and kisses the top of her head, making her blush. He cocks his head at me but addresses her. “So this is him?”

  She nods, bouncing back on her heels, and he reaches out his hand to me. “Nice to meet you, dude.”

  His grip’s solid. I’m tall, but he has at least a couple of inches on me and is built. Sawyer looks tiny next to him. Inside, we’re seated in a booth. Sawyer sits next to Jared, and they face me. I don’t know Sawyer that well, but there is definitely something going on with them. Whatever it is, they use me as a distraction. I now understand what an inquisition might feel like. None of the questions are out of line. I’m just not used to it. I can tell he’s just looking out for Sarah. That makes him all right in my book.

  We exchange numbers. He has a flexible work schedule and knows a bunch of cool places I can take some pictures. Having someone to hang out with while Sarah is at work will be cool too. When it’s time to leave, Sawyer surprises me by handing me her keys and saying Jared will drop her off later. I make no comment.

  Sarah calls right as I’m parking. The conference dinner is over so she’s back in her hotel room missing me. I spend the next hour going into detail of just what I would do to her if she was with me right now. It’s like high school all over again, neither of us wanting to hang up the phone. I fall asleep with
the sound of her breath in my ear.

  I wake up with a stiff neck and drool on my phone. At some point overnight, my phone died. I’m surprised its low battery chirps didn’t wake me. Maybe her phone died first. I get up and plug it in before hopping in the shower. I’m not sure what time or even if Sawyer came home last night. I’m making coffee when she saunters out of her room. I offer her a cup, but she shakes her head, opting to make herbal tea instead. She doesn’t need to be at the airport for a couple hours, so she spends the morning telling me cool places around town where I can propose.

  What she doesn’t know is I have it all planned out, but I humor her anyway. I want to ask her what her deal with Jared is, but I don’t know her well enough and she’s Sarah’s best friend. I’ll let her figure it out. Sawyer lets me drive to the airport. Which is a relief. I drop her off instead of parking but do get out to thank her again for helping me find the perfect ring. She punches my arm and salutes me before heading into the terminal.

  Sarah’s flight won’t be landing for another three hours. I kill time by swimming some laps. I’m relieved when I don’t see Amanda, until I see Paul. He waves and walks over as I towel off.

  “Did I see Sawyer today?”

  I don’t know. How many pink-haired girls does he see on a daily basis? “Yeah, but she took off today.”

  He rubs his jaw. “That girl’s a wild one.”

  And my soon to be fiancée’s best friend. “Excuse me?”

  “Sarah’s out of town, right?”

  I’m not sure what his point is. I shoot him a confused look.

  He lifts his hands and starts to walk away. “If you’re into that kind of thing.”

  I stop him. “I know you are not implying something happened between Sawyer and me.”

  He shrugs. “Pretty convenient she comes into town while Sarah’s away.”

  I shake my head. “Not that it’s any of your business, because let’s be clear it’s not. She flew in to help me pick out an engagement ring for Sarah.”

  His jaw drops. Fucking douche. Once I get back to Sarah’s, I start cooking. I want to surprise her so I’m making dinner for her. She sends me a text when she lands, and I watch the clock until I hear her keys in the door. She’s barely in the door before I pull her into my arms.

  “This is a nice hello,” she whispers against my lips.

  I check the timer on the oven before sweeping her into my arms. “I’m just getting started.”

  Later, when the buzzer goes off, it’s a struggle to untangle myself from her. I manage, and after pulling on my boxers, jog into the kitchen to turn off the oven and set my chicken dish on the stovetop. The smell brings a robe clad Sarah to investigate.

  “Smells good,” she says, wrapping her arms around my waist and resting her cheek on my back.

  I rest my hands on top of hers. “Your mom gave me the recipe, said it was foolproof. Want to eat on the deck?”

  While the food cools, I pull on a shirt and some shorts, and she slips on a strapless sundress.

  As she carries a bottle of white wine and some glasses outside, she tells me about her conference. “It’s a good source for potential clients. I almost ran out of business cards to give people.”

  Her face is glowing, but it’s not hard to tell she’s tired. “Did we stay up too late talking last night?”

  She pours us each a glass as I set her plate in front of her. “Maybe. Is it cool if we crash after dinner?”

  I nod. “We can sleep in tomorrow too, stay in bed all day.”

  She sighs. “That sounds perfect.’

  She has to hire someone to help her handle all the traveling. This week has gone by, and she’s only been home one night. Part of me feels like what’s the point of my being here if she isn’t. What’s worse is I don’t even feel like I can say anything about it without making her feel bad about the whole situation.

  I have this ring burning a hole in my pocket and no girl to propose to. Only good thing that happens all week is the talk I have with Brian. When he went to check on my mom, she actually talked to him. Which is kind of a big deal. And not just that. She gushed over Sawyer. Seriously, didn’t see that coming.

  So here I am. Things are going good at home with my mom so I know I should stay here, but here sucks since Sarah is gone all the time. Jared and I have hung out a couple of times, played basketball, gone hiking. He seems cool. I’d just rather be with her.

  At least it’s Friday. She’ll be home for the weekend. Sawyer told me the name of her favorite restaurant in town. If she’s not too tired, I want to take her out to dinner tomorrow. Her flight lands late tonight, but I make her promise to wake me up.

  When she does, it takes me a minute to figure out she’s real and not a dream. She’s undressed and straddling me, kissing my neck. Best damn wake up ever.

  “Hey, babe.” She smiles down at me when my hands slide up her legs to grip her hips.

  She squeals when I flip her over and dive into her lips. This right here, these moments with her, make it all worth it. Sure, I go crazy missing her while she’s gone, but having her in my arms reminds me of what we’re working for. She tugs at my boxers, and with her help, I push them down.

  Tonight is all about needing her. It’s a reminder for the both of us. We’re desperate, frantically pushing deeper, harder. I lose my fucking mind when she bites down on my shoulder. After that, I’m like a man possessed, and she’s right there with me. I’m amazed at where all this energy comes from. I was asleep twenty minutes ago. Now I’m feeling invincible. She screams my name, and I’m gone. She pulls me down to her and holds me.

  “Damn, I missed you,” I breathe against her neck.

  The next morning, on our way to a trail, I stop by the grocery store to grab a snack.

  “Want a root beer?” I ask as I drape my arm around her shoulders.

  She beams. “We should buy a two liter and make floats when we get home.”

  Damn, that was not part of the plan, but that sounds good. “Sure, and a couple for the road.”

  She shrugs. I grab a box of granola bars and the sodas, using a ten to pay.

  Before we walk out, I stop at the gumball machines. “I have an extra quarter.”

  She rolls her eyes and spins her ring. “Can’t get anything better than this ring.”

  “Oh, really?” I ask putting my quarter in the slot.

  When the plastic bubble case rolls into my hand I switch it with the one that has the engagement ring in it. I hold her hand as we walk back to the car.

  “This looks pretty cool.” I say holding it up before I drop it down her shirt.

  She half glares, half laughs at me as she pulls her arm into her shirt to retrieve it. “William Price, you are the biggest…” Her mouth drops when she opens it.

  She goes to look up at me, expecting me to still be standing next to her. Instead I’m on one knee, in front of her.

  “Sarah Louise Miller, you are the beginning and the end of me. I don’t want to spend one day without you by my side. You’re all I’ve ever wanted. Will you marry me?”

  She covers her mouth with one hand as she nods. I take the bubble from her other hand and slip the ring onto her finger. I just asked the love of my life to marry me in the parking lot of a grocery store, and she said yes. I stand up and kiss her, picking her up and holding her to my chest. Her arms rest around my shoulders as she shakes in my arms.

  “I love you so much,” I say against her lips.

  Her voice wavers as she tells me she loves me too. I open my eyes and gaze into hers, lifting my thumb to wipe the tears from one. The hiking trip had a ploy to get her out of the house and an excuse to stop by the grocery store. I drive back to her condo, my hand on her thigh. She sits quietly next to me, holding her left hand in her right, her thumb brushing back and forth across the top of her ring. She’s so distracted she doesn’t even notice we’re back at her place. I park the car and walk around to open her door. She looks up at me confused.

&nbs
p; I hold out my hand and help her out. “Let’s get you upstairs.”

  “I thought we were hiking.”

  I pull her to me, snaking one hand around her waist and the other to the back of her neck, my lips a breath above hers. Her lips part, her hands gliding up my arms to my grip my shoulders.

  “Seeing as how you’re my fiancée now.” I curve the hand on her waist down to cup her ass. “I think we need to get reacquainted.”

  She nods and lifts her lips to mine. I hold her tightly, deepening our kiss. We kiss and grope our way up the stairs until we’re inside her condo. A trail of clothes marks our path to her bedroom. She’s naked beneath me. The only things she’s wearing are the two rings I’ve given her. We make love, slowly at first, eyes locked as I move inside her. Things escalate when her nails bite into my skin, and she urges me to go harder, faster. I move my hand between us and rub her until I can feel her start throbbing around me. I’m close before but that pushes me over the edge. My whole body tenses before relaxing with my release.

  “Fuck,” I pant, looking down at her.

  “Come here,” she commands, pulling my face toward her eager lips.

  I turn her onto her side, my hands in her hair.

  “Want to stay in bed all day?” she mumbles against my mouth.

  “Mm hmm.”

  She eventually gets up, only to grab her phone and call her parents, then Sawyer. I sit up and lean back onto her headboard and watch her. She pulls on a robe and sits at the end of the bed, phone in one hand, her other, now ring clad, hand held up in front of her as she describes the ring to her mom.

  She looks back at me, smiling, “Yes, I’ll tell Will you say hi, and I promise I’ll text you a picture of the ring today.”

  I crawl forward until I can rest my cheek on her thigh. Her hand drops down to my head, and she gently combs her fingers through it. She calls Sawyer next. I’m not sure if she’s going to tell Sarah she helped me find the ring or not. They don’t talk long before her hand stills in my hair, and she smacks my shoulder.

  It wasn’t hard, but I ask “What was that for?”