Chapter Thirty-Nine
GAVIN
“Sku 5718. That’s the one I saved on the website; what do you mean it is no longer here?”
“I am sorry sir, but that ring was sold a week ago.”
“A week ago? What the fuck do you mean it was sold a week ago? I put a fucking down payment on that ring because it was required to put in the request to hold it! What the fuck do you mean?”
“Sir. I am going to have to ask you to calm down, okay? Now, I understand that you are upset about the event that has transpired here today, but I assure you that everything will be settled one way or the other.”
I stood in line at the jewelry store as security made as though they were going to have to intervene. My jawbones gyrated inside my mouth as the tall, slender man in front of me with horn-rimmed glasses tried his best to settle me down. It was the perfect ring for me. April stood by my side, tugging at my arm to get my attention. “Gavin, just calm down, please? I do not have any extra money to spend bailing your ass out of jail. Now, just settle down and see what they do for this inconvenience.”
I met April a few weeks ago when I started looking for a ring. The day Bethany left my office for our early morning delight, I got in touch with her so she could help me get a good ring for her best friend. I figured that she would know what she liked better than me, and April was more than willing to help me out in the process. The tall man behind the counter waved the manager of the store over to us as April tried to keep me calm. She said she was six months pregnant, but she looked to be about eight. When I told her that we could look online for a ring, she refused and said that it would be better to get it in person. That way, if something was wrong with it, I didn’t have to wait for weeks for them to send another back to me. I was appreciative of her, mainly for the fact that she was willing to come out of the house. I don’t know what I would do if men had to carry a child in our stomach for nine months. I think I would’ve died by the second.
The short, pudgy manager came over to us, and I explained to him what happened. He was empathetic in his response. “Sir, I completely apologize for the mishap. It should have been noted on the website that those rings are not able to be held. I will do my best to prevent anything like that from happening in the future. In the meantime, can I interest you in another ring? I see you chose one of our finest, but if you just take a gander, you will see that there are many comparable to–”
“No. No, I do not want another ring. Please, just give me my refund, and I will be on my way.”
“Most certainly, sir.” He shooed the first man out of way, then positioned himself behind the counter. I was stewing inside because after all that searching, April finally found the one that she knew Bethany would like. As the manager typed away on his computer, April grabbed my attention.
“Gavin,” she snapped as she glared into one of the jewelry cases, “here. Here, now!”
I quickly walked to her side. “Sheesh, is this what Mark has to deal with?” She lowered her eyes and looked as though she was moments away from ripping me a new one. I quickly backtracked, “I mean, as far as you being so um… beautiful.”
“Yeah, yeah, don’t push it. I know we sort of just met, but I am pregnant, and if I happen to kill you, I promise that they will not find your body.”
“My God, what is it with you and Bethany about threatening to kill people?”
“Anyway,” she pointed into the case, “that one right there. You see the big one in the back? That is it. She will love it. Absolutely love it.”
“You think so?”
“I know so. That is perfect.”
I leaned closer to the ring to get a better view. It sparkled behind the glass like sunlight bouncing off the surface of the ocean. I looked at April as she flashed a wide grin while fanning herself with a sheet of papers. I stood up and called to the manager. “Sir, I think I have had a change of heart.”
“Oh, absolutely.” He quickly approached me to the side. “Which one of our lovely rings caught your attention?” I pointed to the one in the back. “Oh, absolutely! That is our finest. I shall get that one for you to look over.”
As he unlocked the case, April spoke up, “This one is discounted, right?”
“Um, no. I’m sorry, this one is not discounted. This is one of our most precious diamonds. There is no way that we can–”
She cleared her throat, stopping him in the middle of his sentence, “Um, sir. Let me make sure I understand this correctly. This fine gentleman here ordered something off your site. Your site specifically said that, in addition to the down payment, the ring would be held at the purchaser’s request.”
“Yes, but–”
“Not only did this man pay for it in full, but when he came here to pick it up, you told him that your website was incorrect. Now, I’m sure you know that is bad business. I am also sure you know that because of his position as the CEO of High Time, he can make business for you a living nightmare. Now, I am not saying that he will do that; if you start receiving bad press, I am sure that will just be a coincidence. I would hate for that to happen, though. Wouldn’t you?”
He smiled nervously as he looked between April and I. “Well, I see. Since you put it that way, I don’t see why we can’t give you the preferred customer discount. I mean, just to show that we have every desire to please each one of our customers.” He removed the ring from the case and allowed us to examine it. “And, if this is to your liking, we can go ahead and ring it, um, excuse me, charge it to the same card, if that is alright with you, Mr. Wallace.”
I examined the ring for any flaws, then passed it to April. “Yes, that seems alright with me.”
April took a little longer to examine it, turning it in her fingers until she finally tried it on. “Yes, this is it. This is going to work.” She slid it off her finger. “What was your name again, sir?”
“Harold.”
“Right, Harold. Well, it was a pleasure doing business with you. He will take this one. Please check him out, and don’t forget to add that preferred customer discount.”
“Sure thing, ma’am. Sure thing.”
He walked away defeated as I smiled at April. “You are a tough one. I should bring you to my office when I need to close deals. You would probably scare the shit out of everyone at the table.”
“No,” she said, fanning herself, “it’s not who I am. Well, it is, but I am a little more vicious these days. If you had to sleep sitting up because a baby’s foot was jammed into your liver, then you’d understand what I mean. It’s probably best just to stay on my good side until I give birth.”
“Duly noted.”
Ten minutes later, Harold came back with a small bag in his hand. “Well sir, I put my card in your bag, and you have received the discount as well. I hope your future fiancée looks as good in that ring as your friend did.”
“Flattery will get you nowhere,” April responded. “Have a nice day.”
“You as well.”
I chuckled as we walked out of the jewelry store. The next step was to propose to Bethany; I just wasn’t sure when or how I was going to do it. When I got home, Bethany sat in the living room with Vinny. The two of them were laughing on the couch, watching cartoons. I couldn’t wait for this image to become permanent in my life. “How is everything going?”
“Good,” Vinny responded, “we are just watching TV. Bethany ordered pizza, and it should be here in a little while.”
“Yeah. I got extra mushrooms for you,” she said, gagging at the end.
“Whatever. A pizza is not a pizza without mushrooms.”
“Says who?”
“Says me.”
I squeezed between the two of them. Vinny huffed, and Bethany laughed. “How are you going to just come in here and squeeze in between us like that? We were comfortable.”
“Well, I had to get comfortable, too. So, here I am.”
We sat around and joked with each other until the pizza man came. As I got up to get the door, I thought about the ring I hid in the garage inside of my toolbox. I had to put it there for now because it would’ve been too obvious if I walked into the house with a little bag from the jewelry store. After I grabbed the pizza, I brought it back to the table. It already felt like we were a family. April said that she wanted to be around whenever I proposed to Bethany, so I had to make sure everything was perfect. I had to make sure it was like a fairy tale. She deserved it. I watched her as she bit into her pizza. I loved everything about her. The way she connected with Vinny. The way she persevered through every obstacle that came her way in life. She was full of strength. Full of vigor. She was somebody that I would love to call my wife and right now, I just had to wait for the right moment.
Just then, I got a text message from April. I had to hide it from Bethany, so I went into the kitchen to grab drinks for everyone. I read it with one eye on the entrance to the kitchen. “Hey bro, and yes, I can call you that now because soon, you will be my brother. I want you to know that Bethany is going to be so happy when you propose to her. She cares about you a lot and just being with you today, I know that you two are a perfect fit.”
“Thank you, April. That means a lot.”
Bethany walked into the kitchen in the midst of my smile. “What’s funny?” she asked, curiously. I slid my phone into my pocket and approached her. I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her lips softly. She smiled. “What was that for?”
“Just for being you, babe. Just for being you.”