Page 42 of Modern Romance Collection December 2024 Books 1-4

She turned away from the view. But for now she had her son to look after, and she was going to savour every moment she had with him like this. Because she had no idea what the future with him would look like once this period of pretending to bewithQuin was over.

A few hours later, Lena’s daughter Beatriz stood back and said, ‘You look like a million dollars, Sadie.’

Beatriz had come to pick up Lena and Sol, and had been roped into turning into a stylist for Sadie. She was about Sadie’s age, and disarmingly friendly and sweet. Sadie had had no choice but to let herself be swept along on her wave of enthusiasm.

And then a much smaller voice—Sol’s—said, ‘Wow, you look so pretty.’

Sadie forced a smile. She didn’t see what they seemed to see in the mirror. She saw a stranger, wearing a dress that was far too revealing and far too...gold. She looked as if someone had poured a bucket of it over her head and it had fallen over her body, covering only strategic bits.

One aspect she didn’t need help with was her hair, but Beatriz had suggested leaving it loose, saying, ‘We’re in California. I think casual is more suitable—and your hair is gorgeous.’

Her skin looked milk-white next to the gold.

‘Now, what about this ring around your neck? I think you should wear it on your finger.’

Sadie had completely forgotten about the engagement-wedding ring. She touched it now, just as the small hairs went up all over her body. She realised Quin was in the doorway of the dressing room, dressed in a black tuxedo. How long had he been there?

She barely noticed Beatriz and Lena melting away, taking Sol with them. He was looking at her neck, where she was now clutching the ring.

‘You still have it?’

‘Of course I have it.’

I wear it every day.

‘Why is it around your neck?’

Sadie swallowed. ‘I wasn’t sure how you’d feel if you saw me still wearing it.’

His eyes met hers. ‘It’s just a ring.’

Sadie shook her head, everything in her resisting that provocative implication that it was nothing remarkable.

Memories swamped her of how Quin had got down on one knee and presented it to her, saying, ‘It reminded me of your eyes...but if you don’t like it you can choose another one.’

Sadie had shaken her head, tears blurring her vision. ‘No, this is perfect.’

‘No,’ she said now, a little defiantly, ‘it’s not just a ring. I wear it every day.’

She unlocked the chain and the ring fell into her hand. She put it back on her finger, where Quin had put it all those years ago. She wasn’t going to let him diminish the significance of the ring that had bound them.

Quin said nothing, but Sadie could see a slash of colour in his cheeks. Eventually he said, ‘If you’re ready to go, my driver is waiting.’

Sadie lifted her chin. ‘I’m ready.’

She wasn’t ready at all, but she felt a little more empowered now that the ring was back on her finger. Quin mightn’t like the reminder that he’d once professed to love her, but that was his problem.

The ring kept catching Quin’s attention, twinkling in his peripheral vision. Mocking him. When he hadn’t seen it on Sadie’s hand since they’d met again, he’d been surprised at the sense of disappointment he’d felt. He’d seen it as an added layer of betrayal. But shehadkept it, and worn it every day.

This further evidence of her innocence made him feel a little unmoored. Exposed.

He could recall how the ring had caught his eye in the window of a jewellery shop in Sao Sebastiao one day. Its blue and green stones. Emeralds and sapphires. He’d immediately thought of Sadie’s eyes.

In spite of the gems being real, it wasn’t a sophisticated ring. It certainly wasn’t the kind of ring that he would ever have presented to a woman from his old social peer group. It hadn’t come with an iconic name like Cartier or Tiffany.

He’d also realised in that moment that he had never really articulated the fact that he wanted to marry her—even though obviously he saw his future with Sadie, and not just because of the baby on the way. For ever. To create a family. A home. A life. For the first time, with her, he’d had a sense that that might be possible for him. The kind of life he saw people living every day but hadn’t ever experienced himself.

He’d told her he loved her. He’d told her that way back—before she’d even got pregnant. The words had flowed out of his mouth as if it was the easiest thing to say in the world—when in fact he’d never said it to anyone else. It was as if when he’d met Sadie she’d unlocked something inside him. A need to be loved and love in return that he’d pushed down. Ignored. Because first his mother had abandoned him and then his father had turned his back, treating him with a disregard that had only made sense once Quin had found out he wasn’t even his natural-born son.

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