Chapter 30 #2
As round two of the drinks was plopped down, I sucked on the ice getting every last drop of the first one before I dared give the waitress the glass.
Vicky was being cautious, glancing around the bar since I was acting as if I was some 007 on assignment.
“A real wolf compound?” I thought the girl might pass out.
“Yep,” I answered, popping the p. “I hear there are some pretty frisky activities on the weekends in full fur regalia.”
“Like what, shuffleboard and pickleball?”
“Try kinky games and cooking outdoors in the buff.”
“Oh, now I just can’t.” She crossed herself before laughing.
I shook my head. The entire situation was unbelievable. At least the alcohol was helping. To a degree.
“Do you really believe all this… mess?” she finally asked.
“I don’t know what to believe, Vic. How could I? All I know is that Saint and I are connected at the hip. Three days ago, I hated the man. Now, I want to ride his cock like a wild cowgirl every time I see him and twice on Sundays.”
She choked on a sip. “That’s called infatuation. Old-fashioned lust. We’ve all been there before.”
“Are you kidding me? Do you really think Damien evoked that kind of desire?” Oh, my God. My voice had lowered to a deep baritone when husking out the last word. Then I growled. I actually growled.
She giggled. “I see your point. It’s just difficult for me to believe.”
“Imagine what I’m thinking.”
“Let’s concentrate on your feelings for Saint. I know he’s arrogant, but he did give you an awesome ring. I mean awesome.”
“No offense to his grandmother, but I’m certain this was rather inexpensive and was just lying around.”
“Give me your hand. Did you forget I used to work in a jewelry store?”
“Yes, I did. You’ve had how many careers?”
She smacked my hand. “Stop. Three. I worked at Diamond Sellers for almost four years. I worked closely with the gemologist because I really enjoyed the work. If I hadn’t been caught in a compromising position with the man inside the store, I’m sure I’d still be working there.”
I coughed, spitting margarita all over the table. “You never told me that.”
“A girl must keep a few secrets.”
Secrets. I cringed from the thought, but she was right. I’d need to keep this one close to the vest. “I guess so.” I slid my hand across the table and she pulled out a little magnifying glass.
“Do you mind taking it off?”
“Sure.” I pulled the ring, which fit perfectly, from my finger. With the dark sunglasses, I couldn’t see a thing, but I sensed Saint was nowhere close. How did I know that? Because I hadn’t told him that I’d gathered his scent long before he plopped the flowers in front of me.
And it should have scared me to death, but my nipples had immediately hardened, my pussy throbbing. The fact he’d spanked me hadn’t been insulting either. The round of mild discipline had made me think about sucking his cock the entire time.
What did that say about me?
“Um, Lily. This ring?”
I finally looked at her, even lifting my sunglasses to see her expression. “Cheap, huh?”
She shook her head and you’d think she noticed a ghost in the corner. “No. There’s an engraving on the inside. This is Tiffany and I can tell by the setting from the first days when Tiffany registered their jewelry.”
“Really? Is that a real diamond?”
“Uh, yeah to the tune of about five carats.”
“I thought it was a little gaudy.”
“Gaudy?” Vicky threw at me while wearing an incredulous look on her face. “Are you out of your mind? This is a masterpiece. I can’t tell you the exact year, but very old and well maintained.”
“Okay, so worth a couple thousand dollars. That’s nice.”
“No, no,” she groaned and reached for her drink. Why were her hands shaking so badly?
I watched with my mouth hanging open as she sucked down almost half the glass. And we were talking huge margarita glasses.
“Then what? Twenty k?” I don’t know why this was bothering her so much or why I was so unimpressed other than the entire engagement was fake. Fake!
“Try a couple million.” Her throat was scratchy and she grabbed a napkin.
“A couple million as in two?”
She shook her head so vehemently I was certain she jarred her brain. “At least twenty. Maybe more.”
I shrank back in my seat. Forgot about my mouth being hung open earlier. It was wide open, bottom lip on the floor. “I beg your pardon?”
“I’m not kidding you.”
“His family didn’t know. That’s all there is to it.”
She shook her head again. “No. Don’t you understand how much the Masters family is worth?
Billions. They know diamonds when they see them.
He gave you his grandmother’s ring, Lily.
He could have easily gone out and purchased one at any chain store.
That would do. That one would look equally good in photographs, but he gave you his grandmother’s ring. ”
“Okay, so what are you saying?” I asked, completely thrown.
“I’m suggesting that Saint Masters does care about you. I’m telling you that the two of you might be mates in somebody’s world, but in ours, the two of you are in love. This relationship is no longer fake. It’s very real.”