“No. I don’t want to look at anything that is less than 15 carat.”
Stacey looked at me with her mouth hanging open, as though the idea of a 15 carat engagement ring was preposterous. “Are you sure?” She raised her eyebrows.
“Absolutely positive.”
“Hmm, I think I know exactly what you are looking for, sir,” the man said with a sudden glint in his eyes that hadn’t been present until then. “Just give me a moment.”
When he disappeared to look for the rings, Stacey looked at me and asked, “Exactly how much are you planning to pay for this ring?”
I shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. A lot? I haven’t really thought about it. It’s not really about the money or how much it costs; it’s about finding the perfect ring.”
Looking impressed, Stacey said, “It must feel awesome to have so much money lying around.”
“It’s alright.” I grinned at her. “It will ensure your best friend spends the rest of her life comfortably, though.”
“That makes me so hap—” she cut herself mid-sentence with a loud gasp.
The shopkeeper had returned with an enormous and beautiful princess cut diamond engagement ring in his hand. I had to open my eyes and close them again a few times before taking the image in. It was, to honor the name of the store, and Aria herself, dazzling. I chuckled to myself.
“That’s,” Stacey said, looking like she was trying to find the right words to describe it. “I have never seen anything like it.”
“I will take it,” I said in a single breath. “That’s the one.”
“You don’t want to know how much it costs?” The shopkeeper eyed me quizzically. “I get a lot of people with a lot of money here, but never has anyone agreed to make such a purchase without even asking about the price.”
“It doesn’t matter how much it costs. That’s the ring, that’s it,” I said, not removing my eyes from the jewel in his hand. I pictured what it would look like in Aria’s pretty dainty little fingers.
It would be perfect.
“All right then. 18 carat on platinum and I can engrave anything you want on the band for a total of five million.”
Stacey’s gasps upon hearing the cost could be heard in the entire neighborhood, I had no doubt. It didn’t matter. It was Aria’s ring and I would have reacted the same way if he had said it was for a hundred million dollars. She deserved the best of everything.
“Like I said, I’ll take it,” I said and looked at Stacey who I was afraid would faint any moment.
“Are…you…sure?” she asked, looking from me to the ring and back to me.
“Would Aria like it?” I asked earnestly.
“Are you kidding? She will adore it, as long as you don’t let her find out how much you paid for it.”
“I won’t tell her if you won’t. I will be right back, I forgot my credit card in the car.”
I walked out with a grin as an idea hit me. I hadn’t really forgotten my credit card. I just needed to get away from Stacey and into another part of the jewelry store across the hall. The rings were all in one room, while the rest of the jewelry items had their own separate areas.
After making the necessary purchase, Stacey and I returned to the car, and as she continued to look utterly stunned, I presented her with two boxes. “Congratulations on your engagement!” I smiled at her.
“What now?” She looked confused. “You didn’t—”
“I hadn’t given you and Mr. Nick anything for your engagement. I thought you would like—”
“It’s just Nick, I’ve never heard him called Mr. anything,” she tried to joke, but there were tears tingling around her eyes again. “You didn’t have to get us anything.”
I shrugged. “You are Aria’s best friends! This is the least I could do for all that you have done for her over the years.”
No longer attempting to hide her tears, Stacey opened the boxes sniffing, to find two matching platinum Him and Her bracelets that read “together forever.”
“This,” she sniffed back tears. “This…is….perfect. You really shouldn’t…I don’t know how to thank you.”