Chapter 13

Radiant Diamonds was nothing like the jewelry stores I'd been to before. Sure it had the white floors and walls with the bright lights that made everything in the glass cases sparkle. But that's where similarities to other stores ended. No, as soon as Nate and I walked in, they took us back to a private room and offered us sparkling water as we sat on soft leather chairs.

The associate, a man in a nice black suit, asked us a few questions about what we were looking for, then left us to enjoy our drinks while he went to pull inventory. I now stared at a collection of the prettiest rings I'd ever seen in my life.

Each one was gorgeous in its own right, but the one on the far left caught my eye. A beautiful oval-cut solitaire was set into the center, and the rose gold band itself was crafted to look like vines, while smaller diamonds dotted the vines like flowers among the leaves. A beautiful balance of tradition and fairytale.

"We can swap the diamond for any stone." The salesman offered as he pulled out the ring I'd been looking at. He handed it to Nate to look at. "The wedding band also comes in the same woodland style."

Nate lifted my hand, his hold steady and warm as he slid the ring on my finger. It fit so perfectly and made me feel like a fairytale princess. An overwhelming mixture of wonder and wrongness hit me. Wonder at this ring that was more perfect than anything I'd ever imagined for myself, and wrongness as I thought of the last time I'd gone ring shopping. I'd been so excited that I'd pulled on my boyfriend's hand as we walked by the jewelry store in the mall. Reluctantly he'd followed me in, and he'd frowned at each of the rings I pointed out. Complaining about the cost of each one, and how commercialism was killing romance. Comment by comment, my bubble of happiness had burst.

All the warm fuzzy feelings I'd been feeling around Nate vanished, and I shivered. This was not a fairytale, and it wasn't going to end with a happily ever after. Those didn't exist.

"It's beautiful, but no." I slid the ring off and handed it back to the salesman. "How about that one."

I pointed to the simplest of the rings we'd been shown, with the smallest stone. A classic pear-shaped solitaire on a plain gold band, the diamond was still bigger than anything I'd looked at with my ex. The man handed it to me to try on. The fit wasn't the same, it felt a little looser, and it didn't ignite the same level of rightness the other one had. But it was an engagement ring and that's all we needed.

"Can you give us a moment?" Nate asked the associate.

The associate excused himself, mumbling something about getting us a refill even though our glasses were still mostly full. As the door closed, Nate leaned towards me, his eyes filled with a concerned intensity.

I put the ring down as I looked away from him. "I'll wear whatever ring you pick. We both know this is temporary so there's no point in picking anything more expensive than the basic one."

"Lia, I want you to be happy." His gentle tone had me looking at him, and I saw the unwavering sincerity in his eyes as he lifted a hand to gently cup my cheek. "Please pick the ring you like wearing, so you can enjoy it for however long you wear it."

"I'll be happy with whatever you pick Nate." I said softly. "You don't have to spend your hard-earned money on me."

Our eyes locked in a silent exchange, the air was thick with unspoken words. My heart beat faster as Nate leaned in slightly, his lips hovering close to mine. For a fleeting moment, I imagined what it would be like if we kissed. I could feel the electric spark between us, sending shivers down my spine, just from his fingers cradling my face.

But just as quickly as the moment arose, it shattered.

The return of the associate, broke the spell and Nate pulled away. I hastily tried to compose myself, I couldn't help but wonder if Nate felt the same magnetic pull I did, or if it was merely a figment of my imagination. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. A faint smile played on his lips.

We were both quiet, and I sipped my drink just to have something to do.

The associate cleared his throat. "Have you reached a decision, or should I get another round of rings?"

"We'll take the woodland one."

I gasped, "Nate!"

He handed over a black card without hesitation. He didn't even ask how much the ring would cost.

"Excellent choice Mr. Mitchell. Do you want me to package it, or do you want to wear it out?"

As Nate's warm touch guided the ring into place, I couldn't help but feel a flutter of excitement mingled with apprehension. His touch ignited a spark of connection that I'd been trying to suppress. The sincerity in his gesture confirmed his earlier words. Despite my earlier protests, I loved the ring. Even if the weight of it felt both foreign and strangely comforting against my skin. Leaving me feeling both touched and overwhelmed at the possibility that even in the midst of faking our relationship, there was a glimmer of something more.

The associate processed the payment right in front of us and printed out the receipt. I just stared at the ring on my hand, I was so shocked I missed everything else Nate and the man said as they finished up the paperwork.

We walked out of the store into the bright afternoon sunshine. My hand felt heavy now as I lifted it to shade my eyes. Nate threaded his fingers with mine and brought my hand to his lips. He placed a kiss so light on the back of my hand, I would have thought I'd imagined it if I didn't feel the undeniable warmth from his tenderness that it left behind. He smiled and lowered our connected hands down to swing as we walked side by side.

"Where do you want to go next?" I asked him.

His shoulders were relaxed, as he pointed across the street. "How about there."

If I didn't know any better I'd think the man had a list of my favorite things. The store wasn't any regular bookshop, no The Book Garden was the perfect combination of cozy and modern. Maria made the scones for their reading spot, and once a month we met for book club after hours with the owner, Sofie.

Entering through the sturdy double doors, I felt at home immediately.

"What do you like to read?" I asked him.

He took me to the aisle full of epic fantasy novels and pointed at the Lord of the Rings series. "What about you? Maria mentioned a book club."

"We read only the cheesiest romances possible for book club."

"Show me."

I did just that, pointing out the ones I'd read. He picked up one of them, and I took the opportunity to browse the store. I couldn't afford to buy today, but that didn't mean I couldn't look for the next book club read. So absorbed in browsing, I didn't pay attention to how much time had passed, and it wasn't until my stomach growled that I realized Nate had wandered away at some point to get a basket. He'd filled it with books too.

"Hungry?" He asked me.

"Heard that?" I placed the book I'd been looking at back on the shelf.

Nate picked it up and put it in his basket. I lifted a brow in question. "Picking up romances now?"

"It sounds interesting."

We went to the checkout, and I spotted Sofie working behind the counter.

"Lia!" She beamed at me. "It's so good to see you."

We chatted about how she'd spent the Christmas and New Year Holidays traveling Europe with her husband. They'd visited castles and she'd picked up a recipe she wanted Maria to try making for her bookstore. All the while, she rang up the books for Nate, and halfway through I realized that every book she scanned was one I'd picked up as we browsed.

Nate just smiled and picked up both bags of books. Looping his free hand with mine, he waited for me to finish talking with Sofie.

Sofie caught sight of the ring.

"When did that happen? I thought you'd sworn off men." She looked at me then Nate, "Even if they do have excellent taste in books."

"Tell you at book club?"

She groaned, "That's three weeks away, but fine. I have to get home anyway."

A few reporters with cameras waited outside the store as Nate held the door for me. I did my best to follow Nate's lead and ignore them as we loaded the books into his truck and drove away. We'd accomplished what we needed to, I had a ring, and photos had been taken.

"Did you talk to Penelope about us?" I asked him. He'd spent all of Sunday with her.

His hands slid over the steering wheel as he turned at the light. "I did."

"How did it go?"

"Turns out talking to her is more nerve-wracking than a faceoff in front of an arena full of people. " He smiled. "But she gave me permission to date you."

"What did you tell her about everything?"

"That we met at the bakery and have been talking for a while. But we wanted to take it slow."

"And the engagement?"

"I told her that when people assumed we were, that I realized it felt right. And when I asked you, you said yes."

"So not exactly a lie."

"And what about you? Have you told your friends and family the news?"

Discomfort had me fidgeting with my hands. "My mom and I had a long conversation yesterday. She's disappointed you didn't ask for my dad's permission first, but she would have settled for meeting you first."

"I'd love to meet them."

"You don't have to do that. They'd pull out the baby binder and tell you of all the ways I don't measure up to my cousin Haley."

He gave me a quick stare of disbelief as we stopped at a red light. "Well, that sounds downright backward. I don't think anyone can measure up to you."

I dropped the subject of my family as he drove, instead asking him, "Have you gotten a date from your lawyer?"

"February 3rd."

Four weeks of being a fiance'. I could do that. "That's just under a month away."

"Tired of me already?" He teased and took a left before pulling up in front of my building to park.

He had me wait so he could open my door for me, and then he grabbed the bags of books to carry up the stairs to my apartment. I wondered what he'd think of the place. My home wasn't anything fancy, the kitchen and living room spaces were one and the same. A convenience for those nights when I wanted to watch movies on my laptop while I ate dinner on the lumpy couch I'd picked up for cheap on an upcycling site.

"Where do you want the books?" Nate asked me.

"You can set them on the coffee table. Can I get you a drink?"

I remembered it the moment I saw Nate pause in setting the books down. I'd forgotten about the yellow notice Benny had taped to my door, and that I'd left it on the coffee table. The same coffee table Nate had just set the books down on. He picked up the paper and then looked at me.

"Is this because of Erin?"

"Yes and no. I was figuring it out when my landlord saw that I was fired and decided to go through with it."

His shoulders slumped under an invisible weight. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"It's embarrassing. I'm supposed to be a self-sufficient woman by now. But instead, I have student loans for a degree I never finished or wanted. And I can't earn enough from one job to pay for a good place to live."

"Where does your landlord live? I promised you I'd take care of things until you got back on your feet."

"I'll be okay Nate. I'm moving in with Maria."

I sat on my couch and he joined me. The couch felt much smaller with him next to me, and it wouldn't take much for my leg to brush up against his. It was then that I realized I was still covered in flour and wearing the bakery shirt. I'd completely forgotten about the change of clothes I'd left at the bakery.

"I'll help you move. I'm good at moving things." He had a serious glint in his eye.

"Like pucks and other players?" I teased, patting his hand playfully." I have it under control, but thank you for the offer."

He captured my hand before I could pull it away and brushed his thumb across it. Butterflies fluttered in my stomach at the tiny gesture. "You know all these things about me, but I don't know enough about you. I should probably know about my fiance'."

"What do you want to know?" My heart fluttered unexpectedly at his words. With my free hand I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear to try and hide the twinge of vulnerability I was feeling all of a sudden.

"Ocean or Mountain?"

His question caught me off guard. I'd mentally started preparing for questions about why I was still single or something.

"Ocean. You?"

"Mountain."

"But you live in Glacier Bay. There's an ocean right there." I shifted on the couch to face Nate directly, my elbow resting on the back of it as I leaned in. I could feel that spark building between us once more, or maybe it had never really disappeared.

There was a charming grin on Nate's face as he told me, "And there are mountains just a short drive away. It's the best of both."

His eyes locked on mine, sparking a warmth that melted away my unease. "Is that why you moved here? To have both?"

He took a deep breath before answering. "No. I moved here because I thought in a smaller city I could fix my marriage to Erin. Then I stayed because Glacier Bay needed players."

"How does it work between Erin and you?"

"She makes demands and I give in because it's the only way I get any time with Penelope. But she's been talking about moving away and taking Penelope with her."

"So you need me." I leaned back, grateful for the reminder. Nate didn't want me romantically. He just needed a stand-in, and he could have asked anyone. It was good he reminded me, because for a moment there, it had started to feel real.

"I know we're doing this dating thing backward by starting with the proposal, but I have to say I'm not upset by being able to talk to you and see you."

I managed a small smile. "You're not so bad yourself."