Double Dare(35)

“Looks okay,” offered Derek.

“Naw, I don’t like yellow,” grunted Mason. “Something bigger would be better.”

I looked at them both with astonishment. The diamond was huge, at least five carats, glimmering under the light.

“No, this is too big already,” I said, shaking my head. Suddenly, I didn’t want to be here. I didn’t want to wear another fake symbol of our impending union  , the pretend was getting to me. “No,” I said again, turning my head away.

The jeweler frowned.

“Sirs, Madame, I can see that one wasn’t to your taste. How about this one?” he asked, pulling another ring out like a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat. “Just as beautiful, seven carats, a pink diamond just like Jennifer Lopez,” he persuaded.

This one seemed to go over better.

“Yeah, this one looks nice against Katie’s skin,” murmured Mason appreciatively.

“Try it on,” encouraged Derek, taking my hand. “Let her try it on.”

But I pulled my hand back. I didn’t want to wear their diamond, it was like we were actors on stage, and I had lines to recite but suddenly the words were choking me. I wasn’t sure what was wrong. It was a dream come true being with these men, the way they spoiled me, doted on me, bought me everything I wanted. But still this was fake, and I couldn’t take it. So I tried to joke my way out.

“Maybe we shouldn’t do a pink diamond,” I smiled weakly. “Jennifer Lopez never got married to her fiancé, from what I remember. He married someone else.”

I was referring to J. Lo’s brief engagement to Ben Affleck, which lasted about two months. But it didn’t make an impression on either Mason or Derek.

“Who?” asked Derek, brows lowered. “Is that some celebrity?”

Mason just grunted.

“We don’t give a fuck what happened to another girl and her engagement. What does that have to do with us? Try it on,” he encouraged. “It’ll look beautiful on you.”

But I couldn’t. I just couldn’t.

“No, how about something else?” I said quickly. “Or nothing else, no one wears rings these days,” I rushed. “Honestly, the whole diamond engagement thing is the result of some clever advertising from DeBeers, that’s all. It’s not real,” I said, gathering steam. “It’s just good publicity.”

But that didn’t faze the men at all.

“Exactly, good publicity,” said Derek, fixing me with a look. “We want the world to know.”

Mason nodded.

“There’d be nothing better than you wearing our diamond, baby girl,” he said softly. “We’re engaged, remember honey?”

And it was those words that did me in. Because this was such a confusing situation. On the one hand, I was their fake fiancée. I was just a girl pulled out of nowhere, even put in chains at first, to satisfy some weird will. But suddenly it seemed so real. Here I was, with the men I adored, as we picked out a ring for me to wear as a marker of their love. Here I was, picking out the most sacred of sacred objects, something that would glint with light, drawing attention to my state.

And before I could protest again, the jeweler pulled out another ring.

“Ahh, this one is one of my favorites,” he said in a hushed tone, cupping the ring in gloved hands. “This is one that I only bring out for special situations.”

I wasn’t sure what to think at first, because we’d been speaking openly in front of the jeweler. He’d witnessed for himself how Derek was very much a part of the relationship, how they referred to me as “their” fiancée.

But the jeweler, in addition to being intuitive, was probably also discreet. Again, money buys a lot and in this case, I had no doubt that Mason and Derek were purchasing his silence with the gobs of cash they were about to spend. Because the jeweler nodded again discreetly, face bland.

“This one, Madame. What do you think?” he asked subserviently.

And I gasped because this diamond was different. Or diamonds, more accurately. There were two diamonds, both giant, gleaming at me from a metal band, like twins set flush against one another.

I gasped before melting.

“It’s beautiful,” came the whisper from my throat. “Absolutely stunning.”

The middle-aged man smiled, bobbing his head up and down, turning the ring left and right so that it glinted under the light.

“We call this one Dual Star,” he praised. “It’s a personal favorite because the two diamonds are just about identical except for color. Same carat, cut, and clarity, although of course, one is a chocolate diamond while the other is your classic bright white. But they play off one another brilliantly, working together to form a beautiful whole.”