Page 12 of Say You Will
A slow smile spread across Theo’s face. “A ring? For Aaron?”
I answered with a broad grin of my own. “Yup.”
“Oh, man. Congrats.” He slapped me on the arm and almost knocked me over. He steadied me with both hands. “Sorry.”
“It’s fine.” I gave my arm a quick rub. “Nothing broken.” I laughed to take the sting out of my actions.
“Good. Well, let me show you what we have.” He slipped back behind the counter and walked halfway around the U-shaped cabinets. “Here.” He pointed into one case before sliding his hand into his slacks’ pocket and withdrawing a set of keys. Once the case was unlocked, he pulled out two trays of rings.
“He’s into baseball, right? We have these ones here.” He pulled out a diamond-encrusted baseball mounted on a platinum band.
I cringed. Gaudy and then some.
Theo chuckled. “Something simpler, huh?”
“Yeah. It needs to be smoother too, because of his job. He can’t be getting it caught on the totes and boxes.”
“Okay. That helps narrow your choices. Do you know if you want gold or platinum?”
“If I like it, it doesn’t matter.” I gazed down at the array of bands. “I would like something unusual. It has to call to me, you know?”
I looked up to see him with a soft smile and bright eyes. “I do. Hold on a second.” He walked the length of the floor and turned to stand in front of a tall glass cabinet. Theo unlocked the door and withdrew another tray of rings. He returned and laid the black velvet tray beside the other two.
“These are non-traditional rings and bands.”
The corner of my mouth twitched; my fingers itched to touch. Here was brilliance and light, spectrums of color twisted into beautiful shapes. I reached, but hesitated, needing to look at each one before I made the ultimate selection. Moving my finger to hover over each one, I made a decision. Yes, no, or maybe. The no’s Theo removed.
Repeating this several times, left me with two. The differences between them were subtle, but the overall design was similar: a platinum band with a rainbow-hued Star of David embedded into the metal on one; on the other was the Hebrew word for love, ahava, the cursive script in the same color scheme.
“I can’t decide. They’re both perfect.” I straightened, groaning after having leaned over for so long, and tilted my head back to let my eyes wander over the upper walls of chromed clocks and artwork.
“Will you be wearing one, too?”
A freaking light bulb went off in my head. I planted my face in my palm a moment before shaking my head at Theo. “Thank you. Seriously, why didn’t I think of that?”
“You have a lot on your mind. This is a big step forward for the two of you. May I ask how you’re going to propose?”
“I’m planning a surprise birthday party for him. I’m going to do it there.”
“Surprise times two. Nice. Obviously, he’s not the kind of guy to get mad about you keeping secrets.”
“Well, I won’t say he’s mad, more disappointed, but only because he thinks I’m in over my head with whatever I’ve got going on.”
“Protective. That’s sweet.”
“Yeah. I kinda like him.” I gave Theo my best aw, shucks expression.
“I’m sure you do. Will you have Rabbi Levi perform the ceremony?”
“I don’t know. That’s not a decision I’m willing to make on my own. I hope so though. Ace loves the temple, the congregation, and Rabbi Levi, but if he doesn’t feel comfortable…”
“Did you know he married Ari and Gabriel[1]?”
“I didn’t.” I gave him a broad smile, thinking of Theo’s friends at the temple. They were a gorgeous though odd pair, and like Ace and I, had a significant difference in our age. “Thank you so much for telling me. That makes me feel a lot better. One of the future worries I can cross off my list.”
“Glad to help. Now, about these rings… Might I suggest you get both and let him decide which he wants to wear and which one for you to wear?”
“I think,” I said, reaching into my pocket for my wallet, “that’s an amazing idea.”