“No, no, no, that’s not what I meant at all.” He was panicking, and he had no idea how to stop this car crash from happening.
“I’m not old-fashioned, as you know,” his grandmother continued. “I’m not embarrassed at all. But never mind about the champagne. I’ve got something far more special.” Her smile broadened as she pulled something small out of her pocket. She stepped toward Lex and Jacinta, holding the object to them.
Lex eyed the square, brown jewelry box like it was a rattlesnake.
“My engagement ring.” His grandmother pressed the box into his hands. “I haven’t worn it in years. I want you to have it so you can put it on Jacinta.”
Frigging hell. A rattlesnake would’ve been preferable. He couldn’t manage to speak a word. A stunned silence filled the conservatory.
“Go on,” his sweet, meddling, irrepressible grandmother urged him. “Open it.”
His hands felt stiff and clumsy as he popped the lid. Nestled on a velvet cushion, a huge, princess-cut diamond surrounded by sapphires winked at him. He stared down at the ring, his heart surging and pumping with emotion, not all of it panic.
“Lex? Don’t you like it?” Some of the bubbling excitement had ebbed from his grandmother’s voice, and now she sounded hesitant and troubled.
It felt as if a giant hand was pressing down on his lungs, suffocating him. “It’s very impressive,” he answered woodenly. He risked a look at Jacinta. She had gone deathly pale, but she managed to peek at the ring and nod to his grandmother.
“It’s, uh, definitely stunning.”
So Jacinta wasn’t prepared to wipe that glow off his grandmother’s face either. He felt oddly relieved by that, and some of the pressure eased off his chest. They’d have to go along with the charade for the moment and figure out a solution later.
“Won’t you put the ring on your fiancée?” Nana Alice asked Lex.
Oh boy. He had no choice but to pick up that enormous rock and slide it onto Jacinta’s finger. It took him a few seconds. He was all thumbs, and her hand quivered in his, mirroring his stupefied feelings.
Nana Alice went all teary-eyed. “Oh, it looks beautiful on you, my dear.”
Silently Jacinta held out her hand weighed down by the giant rock.
“Well, isn’t that nice?” Holly spoke up, a crisp bite in her voice. “A surprise engagement to round off the weekend.”
Was Holly jealous over the ring? And what about Kirk and Uncle Ralph? Personally, Lex thought the ring was too big and ostentatious for Jacinta. If he were to buy her an engagement ring, he’d choose something elegant and simple, something she could wear every day, because he’d want her to wear his ring all the time and never—
Hold it right there. Why was he even thinking about engagement rings when this whole thing was a concoction of his grandmother’s?
“Nana, you’ve taken us by complete surprise,” he said. “To be honest, we’re not ready for all the attention.”
In an instant his grandmother was all contrition. “Oh dear. Have I made a mess of things? I didn’t mean to preempt you.” Her worried eyes darted between him and Jacinta. “I wasn’t thinking straight. I do hope you’ll forgive me.”
“There’s nothing to forgive.” Jacinta moved closer to Lex. “We just, er, weren’t expecting this.” She glanced at him. “Were we, Lex?”
“That’s right,” he said. “We weren’t going to make an announcement for a while.”
“I won’t say a word.” Nana Alice bit her lip before glancing around at the others. “And none of you will say anything, will you?”
They all shook their heads. Lex was pretty sure they meant it. How would it profit any of them to blab the news that he and Jacinta were engaged? Engaged. Hell. The prospect made him feel as if he were about to bungee jump off the Golden Gate Bridge—nauseous, terrified, but…excited too.
That disturbed him, that sneaky frisson of excitement. He’d always thought he was the last person who should get married—just look what a crappy example his parents had set for him—but Jacinta... A few minutes ago he’d been disheartened about not sharing a bed with her anymore. But really, it wasn’t just a bed he wanted to share with her. Was it possible she could change his mind about commitment?
He scowled, his mind shying away from the possibility. He didn’t want to think about it now. He’d handle it later, after the meeting, when the rest of the family had departed and he could think straight.
…
The glower on Lex’s face sent Jacinta’s heart into a nosedive. Did he have to look so upset at the idea of being engaged to her? Even a fake engagement? She turned away, irritated by his reaction. He should be grateful to her for not trampling over his grandmother’s wildly incorrect assumptions. He didn’t have to look as if he’d swallowed a fishing hook.
Kirk jingled the change in his pocket impatiently. “I hate to break up the celebrations, but isn’t it time for our meeting?”
“Yes, the meeting,” Nana Alice said. “I almost forgot.”
“Let’s go, then,” Lex said. “Nancy is setting up things in the library.”
“You’ll come too.” Nana Alice gestured toward Jacinta. “You’re part of the family now.”
Kirk and Ralph exchanged looks, and Holly frowned. Lex nodded. “Yes, come and sit in.” He waited until the others had walked out of the room before he murmured to her, “This is your chance to spot something during the meeting.”
Her lips tightened. “We need to talk.”
Grimacing, he checked after the others to make sure they wouldn’t be overheard. “About the engagement, yes. You don’t have to worry. I’ll explain to her as soon as I get the opportunity.”
A lump formed in her throat. “You should do it quickly,” she said, “before she starts sending out wedding invitations.”
“We can’t have that happening. But first, let’s get this meeting over with.” He held out his hand to her and sighed impatiently when she hung back. “We’re supposed to be a newly engaged couple, remember?”
He curled his fingers around hers, and the pressure from his hand seemed to tighten around her heart as well. She was just another item on his To Do list. Family meeting. Find mole. Break off fake engagement.
…
As Lex led Jacinta into the library, he struggled to focus on the agenda of the upcoming meeting. How could he even remember his own name when his head felt like an overloaded, overheated dryer? He had to get this engagement misunderstanding sorted out, pronto. After the meeting was over he’d have a quiet word with Nana.
The library was cleared and tidy for the meeting. Nancy Bird was already there, a pile of documents in her arms. She shot Jacinta a surprised squint over her steel-rimmed glasses but said nothing.
Jacinta moved away from Lex and chose a chair in a corner as if to emphasize she was just an observer. He watched as she sat down and crossed her legs, the giant ring winking at him as her nervous fingers played with the ends of her ponytail. His fiancée. A burning sensation swelled up in his chest. Christ, how was he going to get through this meeting with that thought prancing through his mind?
A faint disturbance behind him caught his attention. He turned to catch his uncle confronting Nancy Bird. Ralph had planted himself in front of the assistant, his chest puffed out.
“Ten thousand dollars,” Ralph muttered. “That’s my final offer.”
The assistant clenched her jaw. “I’ve told you before, Mr. Rochester. I’m not selling.”
“Oh, come on. Ten thousand is twice what it’s worth. Why are you being so stubborn?”
The sheaf of documents quivered in Nancy’s grip. “The clock is mine. I’ll never sell it.”
“You’re being ridiculous.”
Lex stepped between them and eyed them both. “What’s going on here?”
“This is a private matter.” His uncle scowled at him. “Nothing that concerns you.”
“It is my concern if you’re harassing my assistant,” Lex retorted, his voice deceptively smooth. “Are you hassling Nancy to sell you the clock my dad left her?”
A thick vein pulsed in Ralph’s forehead. “That clock was meant for me. Philip always promised me he’d eventually let me have it, and then he leaves it to his—his—” He jabbed a bony finger in Nancy’s direction. “Her!”
Lex shook his head. “I don’t understand. It’s just a clock. You can afford to buy any other clock in the world.”
“It’s not just a clock.” Ralph glowered at him, his face an unhealthy puce. “Trust a Philistine like you to think it’s just a clock.”
Lex folded his arms. In spite of his uncle’s rudeness, he was determined to keep his patience. “So tell me what makes it so special.”
“It’s French, antique. Frederic Berthoud, not that you’d know who he was. It’s part of a three-piece set together with a pair of candelabra. I managed to buy the candelabra years ago, but Philip refused to sell me the clock.”
“I remember that clock. He used to keep it in his office.” Lex shrugged. “I can see why you’d want to complete your set, Ralph, but the fact is, the clock belongs to Nancy.”