“You could’ve put them somewhere else.”
I shoot him a side-eye, “Bowen, I only have nine pairs of earrings.”
I’m not excessive when it comes to accessories. I find what works and stick with it.
“Fair,” he smiles and then shakes his head, “I don’t know, babe.”
I let out a groan and shut the drawer. Maybe they fell out in a bag or suitcase. I’ll have to check all of them later to make sure. Meantime, I open the third drawer and take out a pair of thin gold hoops. I fasten them into my earlobes and step in front of the full-length mirror in the corner of the bedroom.
This’ll have to do.
●●●
The teal sapphire on my engagement ring is the perfect size to spin around my finger with my thumb. That’s what I do, continuously, from the time we sit down at a coveted table in the middle of the bar until I finally shoot a look at Bowen. I cover my mouth with the side of my hand, when do we tell them? I mouth to him.
Everyone else at the table—Hildy, Jay, Hannah, and four other friends of Hildy’s—are blithely unaware of what lays in my lap beneath the lacquered wooden table gouged with years of intoxicated pummeling. Bowen glances around the table, the muscles in his cheeks twitching with amusement.
“Hildy!” Bowen suddenly calls across the table.
“What?” she shouts back obnoxiously, mimicking him.
“Brett and I are getting married!” he hollers back over the roar of the crowded bar.
That’ll do it.
Hildy jerks her head up. Her smile is gone and her mouth agape. Jay is still talking to the couple sitting next to him. Hannah, however, is staring at Bowen. Her mouth is half open and she’s so still that I can see each breath she takes as her chest rises and falls between the plunging neckline of her blue blouse.
Hildy slams her palm down and leans across the table, a wild look in her eyes, “What?”
I clasp my hands over my mouth as I stifle a laugh. Hildy studies my face for a moment before something catches her eye. Her jaw drops as she zeroes in on the teal sapphire with the gold band.
She smacks Jay in the arm, “She has a ring!” Hildy shouts at him.
Jay flinches and shoots her an annoyed look.
“She has a ring!” Hildy repeats, pointing across the table at me.
Jay follows her direction and slowly raises his eyebrows when he sees it.
“Oh my god!” Hildy shrieks and leaps from her seat. She runs around the table and throws her arms around me, collapsing onto my lap, “Let me see!”
I lift my hand and Hildy grabs it, jerking my finger up to her eye. She scoffs in surprise and goes silent. Her face relaxes as she examines the ring, rotating my finger from side to side. After a minute, she gently sets my hand back down, speechless. It’s not like her. Usually, she’s yelling something in a dramatic display—positive or negative doesn’t matter. Now, she’s looking at me like she has no clue what to say.
“Are you OK?” I chuckle.
“Yeah!” she chirps, finding her voice, “I’m just like…wow!” She rubs her fingers across her hairline, “Congratulations!”
Hildy throws her arms around my shoulders and it feels like I’m being squeezed by a python. She lingers there, not letting go, and when I glance at Bowen over Hildy’s shoulder, he just gives a shrug. Apparently, he also didn’t expect Hildy to be so overwhelmed with emotion.
Hildy reaches across the table for her glass and downs the rest of her beer. She suddenly straightens up, her eyebrows arching like she’s just thought of something. She smacks her palm on the table again to get everyone’s attention as she swallows.
“Hold on, hold on, hold on!” She waves her hands over the table, “So, when’s the big day?”
“Well…” I begin, brushing a strand of hair behind my ear.
“She has to finish writing her book first,” Bowen interjects, “it’s a whole dowry thing. She sells the book, makes millions, and pays me back for helping her level up.”
“Yes,” I roll my eyes so far back I think they’re going to detach from my head, “exactly.”
Then I glance across the table at Hannah. She hasn’t said a word since Bowen made his announcement. She gazes around the bar, stone faced, for a few minutes before grabbing her coat and her purse. She stands up and leaves, making her way to the front and hurrying past the bouncers at the glass doors.
For a moment I think she left, but she didn’t. Of course she didn’t. I can see her through the front window, leaning against one of the columns under the overhang and lighting up a cigarette.
“Oh, hey!” I pat Hildy’s arm, “I was going to ask you something.”
Hildy looks relieved for me to change the subject, having finally composed herself.
“Did you ask Hannah to stop by the house today to take care of Waylon?”
“Mm, no,” Hildy shakes her head, “she came over and fed our dogs today because we stayed last night at Jay’s grandparents. But you all got back yesterday, right? Oh, God,” her eyes bug out in alarm, “was I supposed to come by today?”
“No, no, no!” I laugh, shaking my head, “We came back yesterday. I must’ve overheard her talking about your house and I just got confused.”
Relief washes over her face and she seems satisfied with that answer.
Bowen turns his attention back to us and smacks Hildy on the back, “What do you guys want—another beer? A shot? A Xanax?”
Hildy sniffs and takes a deep breath as she rises from my lap, “I’ll go with you,” she says as she shoves Bowen in the shoulder and follows him to the bar.
