poor by any means. We’d been more than comfortable, and I’d never wanted for anything tangible. But Luca’s wealth was in another stratosphere. I wasn’t sure I even understood how deep the Rossi family coffers were.
Today, I learned they were shut-down-an-entire-jewelry-store rich.
As soon as we stepped into the store, glasses of champagne entered our hands, and we were waited on by soft-spoken, unobtrusive staff. They had to have been briefed because none of the rings they showed me had a diamond center stone.
And each one was larger than the next.
Luca sat beside me on a sleek little padded bench, using his phone while I tried on ring after ring. I stopped showing them to him after the fourth or fifth one he’d barely looked at.
I supposed he wasn’t playing the role of doting husband today. It was strange, but as soon as we entered into this arrangement, he’d become entirely different than who I’d first thought him to be. The charm, flirtation, and ease had disappeared. He was stiff and distant, really only interacting with me when he had to.
It had only been a day, though. I might have been overanalyzing him.
After the fiftieth ring, I sighed, and Luca looked up. “Did you choose one?”
“No, I haven’t.” The saleswoman’s flattened mouth was subtle, but a sure tell she was getting just as tired of this process as I was.
He scanned the rings displayed on black velvet. “There isn’t anything you like?”
“They’re all beautiful but—” I was being silly. Luca didn’t need to be involved with choosing my ring since none of this was real. The ring was nothing but a piece of jewelry.
He set his phone face down on the glass counter and turned to me. “What are your favorite pieces you own now? We can have something custom-made in that style.”
“I think you’re going to be very disappointed to hear I don’t own any fine jewelry. My most precious pieces are things I’ve bought during my travels.” I held up a finger. “Before you start thinking I’m some Mary Sue who thinks she couldn’t possibly deserve anything fancy, that’s not what I’m saying. It’s just… I’ve never wanted to invest in that kind of thing.”
The saleswoman covered her mouth as if she was aghast to find I wasn’t swimming in jewels. Luca didn’t seem any less disapproving.
“We’ll have to remedy that, Saoirse. You’re a Rossi now.” He picked up a ring with a large, emerald-cut aquamarine on a platinum band. “This one. Give me your hand.”
He took my hand without waiting and slipped the ring over my wedding band. It was the simplest of the bunch, even though the stone was enormous. Since I’d refused diamonds, I had a feeling Luca wasn’t going to let me get anything smaller.
He ran his thumb from the ring to the tip of my finger and back down again. “Looks good on you,” he gruffed. “What do you think?”
I stared at my hand in his. Being tall, I had long fingers, and it took a lot for my hands to feel dainty, but they did in comparison to Luca’s broad palm and thick, blunt-tipped fingers.
“It’s pretty.”
The saleswoman cleared her throat. “That is five-carats and natural AAAA quality. You couldn’t have chosen better.”
Luca nodded decisively. “We’ll take it. Now we want to see necklaces and earrings. No diamonds.”
“Luca—”
He squeezed my knee. “Humor me. Let me buy you a few pieces, so I know you’ll have something to wear when I need you to come places with me.”
“I have to look like a Rossi.”
He chuckled. “You should see my mother’s jewelry collection. She could fill this store and still have some left.”
“All gifts from your father?”
“Mmhmm. He celebrates every holiday by buying her jewels. He’ll make something up if he finds a piece he thinks she needs. One Flag Day, he gifted her a ruby cocktail ring.”
That made me laugh for the first time today. “Flag Day?”
“Gotta celebrate the flags, Saoirse.”
“I’ve been remiss by not celebrating them all this time. This year will be different.”
He leaned in closer, speaking conspiratorially. With his hand still on my thigh, he had my full attention, even as the salespeople buzzed around, selecting more jewels for me to look at.
“If you’re good, you might end up with your own ruby cocktail ring.”
I gave my head a little shake. “I don’t even know what that is.”
His brow arched. “Being good?”
My laugh was huffy. “Yes. That’s exactly what I meant.”
Moments later, an army of salespeople presented us with millions of dollars’ worth of jewels. I allowed Luca to take the lead since this was a lot more his thing than mine. Not that I didn’t appreciate it. My heart was beating a mile a minute just looking at all the beauty. My mind just hadn’t connected the shiny jewelry to me yet.
Luca had no such qualms. He plucked up a platinum lariat with a round ruby dangling from the end and draped it around my neck. The ruby dipped between my breasts. Luca fixed that by sliding his finger from my throat down my chest, venturing past the V-neck of my shirt. He hooked his finger around the gem, pulling it out to lay over top of my shirt.
“You’re getting this one.” Swiveling away from me, he pointed to several more pieces. So many my throat went dry. The lariat was the only thing he had me try on. The rest, he chose quickly and with confidence.
He tilted his face toward me again. “Do you see anything else you would like?”
In a daze, I shook my head. How had I gone from a simple, single life to married to a billionaire who seemed to have every intention of showering me with jewels?
It seemed like a very strange, unbelievable dream.
Luca took charge, picking out several necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. He draped each of them on me, studying the way they looked on my chest or around my wrist.
“Blue suits you.” He grazed my lobe with his fingertip. “Do you like earrings that dangle?”
“Sometimes, but I think you’ve picked out enough. I’m covered for at least several occasions.”
He dropped his hand to his lap. “Most women would kill to have a shopping spree here.”
“Don’t make me say I’m not like other girls, or I’ll never forgive you.”
That earned me a soft chuckle. “All right. I don’t want that. We should probably leave while you’re still speaking to me.”
“I think you’re right. It’s a razor’s edge right now.”
Like a perfect gentleman, Luca stood and helped me up, rubbing his thumb over my knuckles.
“It’s time to go anyway.” Luca checked the time on his phone. “The movers will be at your place in an hour.”
“Oh, right. That’s happening.”
The corner of his mouth hitched. “Can’t sell a marriage if we’re living apart.”
“Let me be bummed, Luca. It’s a big change. I’m going from living with my best friend to living with a boy.”
That earned me a legitimate laugh. “I’m hardly a boy, Saoirse.” He pressed a hand to the small of my back. “Once we get all the hard parts over with, we can get back to some semblance of normalcy.”
“Normalcy dripping in jewels.”
He leaned in, his mouth brushing my hair. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
“It’s a thing.”
He chuckled again. “Let’s go, wife.”
When it was all said and done, I couldn’t bring myself to completely move out of my apartment. I left some clothes, bedding, and toiletries so I’d have a place to retreat to if I needed to be alone or a crash pad in case this all blew up in my face.
Besides, we had another six months on our lease. There was no rush to remove every trace of myself from my old life.
Luca wandered into my new bedroom, which was beside his. My things were scattered everywhere as I attempted to reorganize my new life.
“Do you need any help?”
I blew hair out of my face and glanced around. I’d taken things out of boxes, and now it was just a matter of finding where to put them.
“I think I have to do it myself, or I won’t know where anything is. You could recycle the boxes for me if you’re in the mood to be helpful.”
“Sure. I’m going out for a while. I’ll take them on my way.” He moved deeper into my room, where I’d piled the broken-down boxes beside my bed. With his hands on his hips, he studied my possessions spread across the king-size mattress.
I turned to hang dresses in my walk-in closet. “I’ll never be able to fill this closet. Who needs a closet this size?”
“I do. Mine is the same size and it’s full.”
I came out and flicked my eyes over him. Even casually dressed, he was stylish. “You’re much more fashionable than I am.”
“We’ll have to remedy that. I’ll take you shopping.”
“You took me shopping this morning.”
“For clothes. You have to have clothing that matches your jewelry.”
I scooped up another stack of my subpar clothing to hang up. “Fine. I wouldn’t want to make you look bad when I’m by your side.”
This time when I came back out of the closet, Luca was holding my vibrator. “You have quite a collection.” He nodded toward my pile of toys.
I shrugged, refusing to be embarrassed. “I like to come.”
His nostrils flared, and he made a low, guttural grunt. Some of his stiffness from this morning returned. Not the reaction I would have expected from a man holding my vibrator.
“Nothing beats the real thing,” he replied.
“Oh, I don’t know. There’s something to be said for getting off then rolling over and going right to sleep.”
He dropped the toy on my bed and bent to pick up the stack of boxes. “I’ll leave you to your solo fun. I might be out late, but text me if you need anything.”
He left without an explanation. No word on where he was going or what he’d be doing. It left me with a sour taste in my mouth. It was my first night officially living here, and I was already on my own. If this was what it was going to be like being married to Luca, I supposed it was a good idea to know early on.
Once I was unpacked, I wandered downstairs into the kitchen. I hadn’t explored here last night or this morning, so I planned on poking around the sleek, white space before I found something to eat. There wasn’t much to see, though.
The counters were bare except for one lone piece of wood. My heart stopped when I realized what it was.
The cutting board Luca had barely acknowledged.
It was sitting on the counter next to the sink, a place he would see whenever he used the kitchen. I wondered if it had been here since I gave it to him or if he’d just put it on display for my sake.
Probably the latter, but my heart fluttered when I further investigated by peeking in the refrigerator. It was well stocked with fruits, veggies, yogurts, and other sundries, which surprised me. I held my breath as I pulled open the cheese drawer.
The cheeses I’d given him had been sampled, one much more than the other two. I was a gift giver to my bones, and my toes curled with pleasure, knowing he’d enjoyed what I’d given him, even if he hadn’t expressed it.
It made the sting of being alone in this huge, empty penthouse slightly less sharp.
I gathered some snacks and a drink then headed into the den, the one room I truly felt comfortable in here so far. With one of the throws Luca had bought spread across my lap, I settled myself on his soft couch. The glint of my oversize engagement ring caught my eye. No one could relax with ten pounds of aquamarine on their finger.
Slipping it off, my wedding band too, I placed them on the ottoman. I’d put them back on later, but for now, I sighed with relief.
