Page 7 of His Innocent's Passionate Awakening

Artie walked back to the sofa and picked up the ring box. She curled her fingers around it, telling herself she would put it in the safe until Luca came back tomorrow. But suddenly her fingers were prising open the lid. The ring glinted at her as if to say, Put me on.

It was the most beautiful ring she had ever seen. She might not be able to window shop like other people but she did plenty of shopping and browsing online. She ran her fingertip over the top of the arabesque setting, stunned by the ring’s exquisite design and breathtaking quality. Money was no object to filthy rich men like Luca Ferrantelli. He thought he could dangle a ridiculously expensive diamond in front of her nose and she would accept his stupid proposal without question.

She stared at the ring some more, turning the box this way so she could see how the diamonds picked up the light coming in from the windows. It was probably too big for her anyway. Artie pulled her lower lip inside her mouth. What would it hurt to try it on just the once? No one had to know. She hadn’t been in a bricks-and-mortar jewellery shop since she was a teenager, when her mother bought her a pair of earrings. This was her chance to do what others took for granted.

She took the ring out of the box and set the box down on the table again. She slipped the ring on her left ring finger, pushing it past her second knuckle. It was kind of weird that it was a perfect fit. She couldn’t stop staring at it. The sheer brilliance of the diamonds and the deep blue of the sapphire stole her breath clean away.

‘Don’t get too comfortable there,’ Artie addressed the ring. ‘I’m not keeping you.’

The ring glinted back at her as if to say, Are you sure about that?

Artie took off the ring, placed it back in its velvet box and closed the lid with a definitive snap. She held the box in the middle of her palm, glaring at it like it contained a lethal insect. ‘I’m not looking at you again, do you hear me?’ She left the box on the coffee table and went to where Rosa was working in the kitchen.

Rosa looked up from where she was preparing vegetables for soup. ‘Did the ring fit?’

Artie pursed her lips. ‘What makes you think I tried it on?’

Rosa gave a knowing smile. ‘It’s not every day a girl gets to try on a ring as stunning as that.’

Artie frowned. ‘I thought you’d be on my side. Aren’t you the least bit concerned about my situation?’

‘I’m deeply concerned you’re going to lose everything if you don’t do what Luca Ferrantelli says,’ Rosa said. ‘You could do a lot worse than him for a husband. He’s handsome and rich and will no doubt spoil you, if that ring is any indication.’

‘What if I don’t want to be spoilt?’

Rosa picked up an onion and held it in her palm. ‘See this? Men like Luca Ferrantelli are like this onion. You’re only looking at the surface of him—the façade he shows the world. Peel back the layers and you’ll see the man behind the mask. You never know—you might be pleasantly surprised at what you find.’

‘And how will I know if peeling back his layers reduces me to tears like that onion will?’

‘That’s a risk we all take when we get close to someone.’ Rosa sliced into the onion with a knife. ‘And God knows, you’re never going to get close to anyone living on your own here. This is a lifeline and you’d be a fool not to take it.’

Maybe Rosa was right, because, if Artie didn’t marry Luca Ferrantelli she would have to leave the castello. Permanently.

She couldn’t allow that to happen.

No matter what.

But how could she work this to her advantage? What could Luca do for her in return? Apart from buying her a stunningly beautiful engagement ring that just begged to come out of that box and sit proudly on her finger. Artie went back to the salon and picked up the velvet box. She told herself she was going to put it in the safe until Luca returned the following day. But before she could stop herself, she opened the box and took the ring out and placed it back on her finger. She promised herself she would only wear it for a couple of hours, just for the heck of it. Then, once she got tired of it, she would put it back in the box and hand it back to Luca tomorrow with a firm, Thanks, but no, thanks.

She couldn’t possibly marry him...could she?

Later that evening, Artie was doing her embroidery when she suddenly realised the ring wasn’t on her finger. She jumped off the sofa and searched around the scatter cushions, her heart racing. Where was it? Had it fallen off somewhere? Oh, God. Oh, God. Oh, God. The ring was worth a fortune. Luca would be furious if she lost his blasted ring. He had no right to buy her such an expensive ring. Her stomach pitched. Would he want her to replace it? Yes, he would.

Rosa came in at that point. ‘Look, I know things are bad financially but surely you don’t have to search the back of the sofa for loose change?’

Artie swung around to face her, eyes wide in panic. ‘I can’t find Luca’s wretched engagement ring!’

Rosa frowned. ‘Didn’t you put it in the safe?’

‘No, I stupidly put it on for a couple of hours.’ Artie tossed all the scatter cushions on the floor and began lifting off the sofa cushions to no avail. ‘What am I going to do?’

Rosa joined in the search. ‘You’ll have to retrace your steps. Where have you been in the last few hours? Did you go outside to the garden?’

‘No, I’ve only been indoors.’

Artie emptied her embroidery basket onto the floor—thimbles, reels of thread, needles going everywhere. The disorder on the floor in front of her was the same as inside her mind. Chaos. Tangled thoughts. Prickling conscience.

‘It must be here somewhere. Oh, God, how could I lose it?’

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