“Of course not.” Her faces scrunches like she can’t believe I asked her that.
“I’m sorry. I know. Just panicked a little.”
“Ryan thinks it’s mine, and he’s been on my case about it.”
“So he thinks you’re pregnant? You didn’t tell him you weren’t?”
A sheepish look crosses her face “When I dropped the bag in front of him and I saw how pissed he was about it, I might have let it hang out there.”
Of course she did.
“Then tonight he cornered me. Said I should be on desk duty if I was in fact pregnant. Then I went ahead and told him to mind his own fucking business.”
That isn’t shocking either. “And that led to a kiss?”
She shakes her head. “He started pushing, asking who the father was. He was pissed, Mal. Like, seriously pissed. Then he said there couldn’t be anyone, and I asked him how he knew.”
“They know everything,” I say, confirming what she already knows.
“Yeah, but then...” She shakes her head again like she can’t believe what she’s about to say. “Then he said that if there was someone else, then he must not be around and that Captain’d be around if I wanted him to be.” She takes a step toward me. “Even put his fucking hand on my stomach, Mal.” I’m not sure if she’s pissed about this or in awe.
I’m definitely melting at how sweet that is, because I see the way Captain watches her. He wants her, but to step in on something like that—her possibly being pregnant with another man’s baby—and he wants to be involved. That’s big. That’s saying a lot about how he feels if you ask me.
“Then we kind of started going at it. Like full-on. He picked me up and pushed me against the wall, like this is a fucking movie or some shit.”
“I’m not following why we’re mad about this, because you look pissed.”
She brings her hand to her mouth again, like she’s still feeling the kiss. “I don’t know. All I can seem to feel is mad, and I’m not even sure who I’m mad at. Fuck, Mal, I could really fall for him.”
“What’s wrong with that?” I take a step toward her.
“He’s not right for me. And if he knew the real me, he’d be gone. Think about it. He’s like Mr. Perfect, does everything by the rules, and well—” she looks down at the floor “—I’m not, and I don’t have any plans to be. In fact, I’ve got plans that...” She trails off, and my heart clenches for her.
I want to tell her to let whatever plans she has go, but I know that will get me nowhere fast. In fact, it might get me pushed away from her in areas of her life I’ve been trying to push in on lately. Ones she’s been keeping hidden. The part that makes Paige, well, Paige.
The door suddenly opens, making us both turn to see Oz and Captain standing in the doorway. Paige freezes. I walk over to Oz. “Sorry. Needed help fixing something on my dress,” I say, making my way toward the men. I take Oz’s hand.
“Will you show me the auction now, or are you going to keep me in the corner all night?”
He pulls me toward him once again, gluing me to his side.
“As long as you don’t leave my side again.”
“Deal.”
We walk past Captain, who steps out of the way for us.
“Got a little something.” I point to my mouth, and he reaches up, wiping it away. I have to bite back a smile as he removes the lipstick. Paige follows us out, then pushes out in front of us, putting as much space as she can between her and Captain.
As we make our way over to the auction tables, Oz has to stop a few times to talk to various people as we look at the different items. He seems so much colder and more clinical with others. I hadn’t really noticed it before. Probably because it’s usually him and me, and we can be ourselves. It’s amazing to me to see the difference in him. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t like that only I get the sweeter side of Oz. As we move down, we get to an antique ring, and I can’t seem to pull my eyes away from it. The center stone is square and deep blue. There are small diamonds surrounding it, and it sparkles under the light. The blue is the exact same color as Oz’s eyes. It’s got to be the most beautiful sapphire I’ve ever seen.
“You like it?” he asks.
“It’s beautiful.” I almost choke when I pick up the information card about it. The bid starts at four million dollars.
The card proclaims it to be the Devotion Stone, and I flip it over to look at the other side. There’s a note about the history of the ring.
This ring was given to Abigail Richmond by her beloved, Baron Frederick de Mandeville. They were married in secret in 1885 because she was the daughter of a farmer, and his family didn’t approve. Frederick gave Abigail the two-carat sapphire before renouncing his title and choosing to live a modest life in the country with his wife. After 44 years of marriage, Abigail passed away on October 2nd, 1929, and Frederick de Mandeville is said to have died the next day of a broken heart. The ring has been donated by the surviving estate.