Page 24 of Heart Breaker

“Just open it.”

I slip my hand inside and pull out the small turquoise box, my breath catching before I can stop it. “Oh my God,” I whisper, holding the box in my hand. “That is definitely not an Amazon special.”

He laughs. “It had better not be. It would be an absurd amount of money to spend on a fake.”

I look up at him, something fluttering low in my chest, and for a second, I wonder if this whole thing is a dream. My life isn’t supposed to feel like this.

“Open it, Lottie.” He’s looking at me intently now.

I swallow and flip the lid. The large oval cut diamond catches the light immediately, throwing it back in sharp, brilliant flashes that make it impossible to look at anything else.

“Wes—” My hand flies to my chest. “This is… it’s insane.”

I look up to find that he’s watching me instead of the ring, like my reaction means more to him than what’s sitting in the box. His steady gaze holds mine. “I hope you like it.”

“Like it? It’s the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen. Wes, you didn’t have to do this.”

He shrugs. “It needed to be believable.”

I look back down at the ring. “I think this would convince people from outer space.”

That earns me the smallest flicker of amusement.

“Better make sure it fits,” he says, quieter now.

Carefully, I slip my grandma’s rings from my finger before lifting the ring from the box, the weight of it surprising in my hand. It warms almost instantly against my skin as I turn it, watching the light catch every angle. If I could conjure up my dream ring, this would be it.

Before I can overthink it, I slide it onto my finger. It fits perfectly. Of course it does—this is Wes after all, the man who leaves nothing to chance. I turn my hand slightly, watching it flash. It’s beautiful. And yet I can’t help but think about how I slid it onto my own finger. No hand steadying mine, no shared moment between us. Just me pretending this is something it’s not.

My thumb brushes absently over the edge of the band, grounding myself in the feel of it. This man just gave me a diamond ring most girls would lose their minds over and all I feel is this strange, hollow feeling where something else should be.

I glance up at him, suddenly aware of how quiet it’s gotten between us—how the moment has shifted into something awkward.

“It really is gorgeous, Wes,” I say, slipping off my stool to face him, doing my best to lift the moment back to something that feels safe. “Thank you. I would have been happy with anything.”

“You don’t have to thank me,” he says. “I should be thanking you for agreeing to all of this. And you’re crazy if you think I would buy you any less than three carats. You deserve a beautiful ring on your hand, Lottie.”

He gives me the smallest hint of a smile and I return it.

“No one’s going to question our marriage with that ring on your finger,” he adds after a beat, his tone shifting slightly, and I wonder if he’s reminding me why he gave me the ring.

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding, my hand drifting to rest lightly against my stomach. “Yeah,” I say quietly. “I don’t think they will.”

The words linger in the air between us, neither of us quite sure what to say next.

Wes’s gaze drops, landing on my mouth like it was always meant to end up there, and my breath stutters. My lips part before I can stop them and I watch as he grabs his tongue slowly across his bottom lip. And just like that, every coherent thought I had disappears.

God. What is happening?

Is he going to kiss me?

I should feel more in control of this moment—I should throw out something clever, keep it light—but my mind refuses to cooperate, leaving me standing here with absolutely nothing.

Wes’s eyes lift back to meet mine, searching like he’s caught somewhere between stepping closer and pulling away. I don’t help him find the answer. I don’t say a word.

The music I put on earlier hums quietly in the background, but it feels miles away. All I can focus on is him.

He’s too close.