“No. Please sit.”
With a pleased look on her face, she settles down comfortably, her movements as graceful as a dancer’s. “So, how have you been? I’ve been meaning to come by and visit you at the office, but I’ve been so occupied lately.”
“Ah, it’s okay.” I gesture with my hands, feeling silly. This woman has that effect on me. She’s so warm and loving that it makes me awkward, as if I don’t know how to explain to her that I am not deserving of this open love she showers on me.
“How’s Ethan doing?” she asks. “Jake says he’s been skipping meals again. I don’t know what I’ll do about that boy. At this rate, he’s going to end up in the hospital.”
Alarm fills me, chasing away my awkwardness. “What do you mean? What’s wrong with him?”
“You didn’t know? I thought you two were working together?”
“I—” My mouth dry, I fiddle with my fingers. “The truth is Mrs. Wilder?—”
“Helen, dear.”
“Oh, yes, that is to say, I resigned from the company.”
The words come blurting out, and the older woman studies me. “I see.”
She doesn’t look very surprised, which is suspicious in itself.
“So you wish to be a homemaker then?”
“A—What?” I gape at her, feeling like I’ve missed several steps in this conversation.
“Ethan must have proposed to you already!” Helen gives me a brilliant smile. “Let’s see the ring, then.”
She takes my hand from me while I reel with this new tidbit. “W-What ring?”
“The engagement ring,” she says innocently, frowning when she doesn’t see it on my finger. “The one Ethan bought three years ago. It was engraved with your nam…” She trails off, and I see a sheepish expression form on her face. “Oh, dear. He hasn’t proposed yet, has he?”
“Proposed?” It feels like the air has been knocked out of me. “An engraved ring?”
Helen drops my hand, her cheeks flushing. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to give away the surprise.”
“I don’t understand,” I breathe. “What ring are you talking about? I—Ethan and I are not together, Mrs. Wilder. Why would he get me an engraved ring? Maybe you’re mistaken. Maybe the ring was for somebody else.”
That makes sense. It had to be for somebody else.
But the knowing look in Ethan’s mother’s eyes is making my heart pound like a drum in my chest. “I saw the ring, Natalie. It had your name in it. It was made by our family jeweler. There is no mistake. Ethan had it encrusted with the jewels from my mother’s engagement ring.”
I get to my feet, shaking like a leaf in a storm. “No. There has to be some mistake. That ring isn’t for me. I know—You’re wrong?—”
Why are my eyes burning? Why is my chest tight to the point of suffocation?
Why does it hurt so badly?
“Ethan—He’s just messing with me. He doesn’t want me. He can’t want me.”
Helen Wilder blinks slowly, and I see a displeased look form on her face, her tone severe now. “I know my son, Natalie. He is serious about you. Now, I don’t know why you believe Ethan cannot love you, but as his mother, I am telling you, he does. Otherwise, he would never have shown me the ring.”
She sighs. “Maybe it was my mistake. Perhaps he didn’t intend to propose to you right now. That ring must’ve been intended for the future, and I apologize for that. I shouldn’t have said anything. But do not doubt my son’s feelings for you. He adores you.”
“But—But he can’t.” My eyes are wet with tears.
Love me?
Who could love me?
