Mind Play (Bennett Sisters Book 3) (19 page)

Butch walked out of the shop and cross
ed
the street to a jewelers. He hadn’t wanted Claire to come with him. She would have protested what he was about to do, but it wasn’t her choice
;
it was his. Butch pulled open the door
,
and
a tall lanky guy stared
down his nose at Butch. He knew he didn’t look like he belonged
,
but he wasn’t here to prove himself to
this guy or
anyone. He was here for one reason and one reason only.
Claire.

The owner approached Butch. “May I help you?”

“I’m here to pick out a diamond ring for my fiancé
e
.”
Butch glanced around the shop, noting all of the various sparkling displays.

“Oh
,
how wonderful
. W
e have
an entire store
for you to
chose from
,
”
t
he owner said as he rounded the glass case and walked to the end where the
one karat
diamonds were
held
.

Butch wanted to laugh at the man but refrained. This man didn’t know who
m
he was dealing with. Butch had enough money in the bank from working with Jake that he could afford to buy out the whole store
,
and a one
-
karat diamond wouldn’t do Claire justice
. There wasn’t anything that he wouldn’t do to put a smile on Claire’s face. She’d kill him, but he knew deep down that all women liked diamonds. He’d just never bought one before today.
He’d get her to wear it
,
too, because of the ruse he’d led people to believe.

Butch could feel the lines scrunching together on his forehead as he asked
,
“Is this all you have?”

Butch looked up at the owner and tilted his head to the side.

“Well no
…
of course not
. M
aybe if you tell me a little bit more about how much you’re looking to spend, we can find something for you
,
”
t
he owner said with his hands planted on the glass case.

“What do you have in the range of three
karats?” Butch folded his arms over his chest. The owner covered his mouth and started to cough.

“Sir, you do realize how much those cost?”

Butch planted his hands on the glass and leaned over
.
“Sir,
m
oney isn’t the problem. The problem is finding something that will make Claire Bennett happy. Do you have anything
in this store that will thrill my fiancé
e
?
”

The owner raised his brow. “Oh
,
yes, of course, my mistake. We have several rings that would look wonderful on her hand.” The owner walked to the back room and returned with several
rings displayed on black satin fabric.

“Ah
,
here we are. These range in size from two
karats to four
karats
. D
id you have a particular cut
or clarity in mind?

Butch thought the guy was talking in a foreign language. He shook his head no as he proceeded to look through the collection. His gaze caught on the most stunning of the bunch. Later he found out that it was a white gold,
three
-
karat
princess
-cut
diamond with an additional karat in smaller stones surrounding it.
Butch could imagine it sitting perfectly on Claire’s hand, right where it belonged.

“That one.” He pointed at the ring. “Wrap it up and I’ll take it with me.”

Butch pulled his platinum credit card out of his wallet and handed
it
to the man.

“Sir, I haven’t even told you a price.”

“It doesn’t matter. That’s the one I want
.
”

The owner
’s eyes got huge
, but he didn’t care. That was the one Claire would like
, and that was the one he was going
to give
her. Now it was just a matter of making her realize he wasn’t joking. Maybe he’d give her some time to get use
d
to the idea before
springing
it on her that he wanted this for real
. 

Chapter 10

Butch jogged
back
across the street to
the little dress shop
but before he pulled the door open, his cell phone vibrated
.
He grabbed it and checked the caller ID and let out a sigh.
Regina again?

“Hello.” Butch barked into the phone. The woman wouldn’t take a hint. He’d broken things off and she’d turned into a stalker on him.

“Why are you avoiding my calls? I must have called you ten times in the last week and you didn’t answer not once.” Regina whined.

Butch let out a sigh and looked through the window of the shop and watched as Claire pulled out her credit card and handed it to the lady behind the counter. “Regina,
this
isn’t a good time, I’ll call you back tonight.”

He
hadn’t been surprised that Regina didn’t like his response. She’d been
used
to getting her way, and right now he didn’t have time for her childish sulking.

He pulled the door of the shop open and m
ulti
ple scents hit his nose at once.
The women were scurrying around, some hanging new clothes and others helping women pick
out more
than
they held draped across their arms
. It was a typical wom
e
n’s store. It didn’t house any men’s clothes
,
and he was thankful for that. If it were up to Claire, she’d be picking him out a new suit or tuxedo to wear to her fundraiser. Butch patted his pocket
,
making sure the little black box stayed tucked safely inside. He’d have to figure out a way to get the ring on her finger before they headed to the bank.

Butch didn’t like the new bank manager
. H
is gut told him the guy was a slime ball
,
and apparently
,
Claire’s had too
. When Claire
had
grabbed Butch’s hand at the last meeting, he could tell she was uncomfortable. The ring should take care of that. Butch felt his lips tilt up in a smile.

“What are you grinning about?” Claire asked
,
walking up to him with her hands on her hips. “I know that smile
,
and it means you’re up to no good.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about
,
angel
. I’ve been a very good boy
. A
s a matter of fact, why don’t we go to Emma’s café for lunch
?
I’ll tell you all about it.”

****

Claire had seen that smile before on Butch’s face. It was a f
amiliar look for the big guy. His eyes gleamed of mischief.
What is he up to?
“Don’t tell me you’re still hungry
.
I guess I could drink another cup of coffee while you eat. Maybe we can catch Emma there.”

Butch pulled the door open for Claire and followed her out. The Starlight Café was only two blocks from the boutique, so Claire opted to
take a stroll along Main Street and window shop along the way.
Butch took her hand
,
lacing his finger
s
with hers. Claire looked down at the joined fingers and back up to his face.

“What? Isn’t this what engaged people do?” Butch’s grin got bigger.

Claire narrowed her eyes. She would have never expected Butch to be the type of guy to show public displays of affection. He’d proved her wrong on so many levels lately she wondered if she
really knew him at all
. Claire shook her head as she and Butch passed other couples strolling on the sidewalk. Some gave a half grin as they walked by, as if they were trying to figure out why she
had chosen him.
Claire shrugged. The truth would come out over time.

Butch pulled the door open to the
c
afé and let Claire pass
over
the threshold before following on her heels. He placed his hand on her lower back and steered her toward a table in the back. The
c
afé wasn’t as busy as she’d seen it in
the past, but then again
,
it was the middle of the week. Lots of the
residen
ts
were
probably
still
at work. Emma’s
manager
, Helen
,
approached their table with menus in hand.

“Hey
,
Claire.” Helen gave a nod toward Butch as she set the menus down in front of them. “What would you two like to drink?”

Claire picked it back up and handed it back to her. “Just a coffee for me
, please
. Butch
,
what are you having?”

“
The same for now.
”

Claire tilted her head to the side and stared at Butch. He
’d
said he was hungry
. W
hy the sudden change?

Claire gazed up at Helen. “Is Emma around?” Maybe she knew what Butch was up to
be
cause she sure didn’t have a clue.

“Yep, she’s in the back doing some last minut
e paperwork before she goes on v
acation.”
Helen glanced to the back room where Claire knew Emma liked to stay squ
irreled
away.

“Can you let her know that we’re here?”

“Sure
.
”

Butch handed his menu to the manager.
“Helen, can you give us a moment
? T
here are a few things that Claire and I need to
talk about first.
”

“Sure.” Helen turned and strolled toward another table
to take
their order.

****

Butch had never been so nervous in his life. It wasn’t like she was going to think that it was real. Regardless, he needed to put on a show
,
and he hoped she’d think he was being sincere.

Butch pulled the black ring case out of his pocket and held it in his hands underneath the table. He took a deep breath.
It’s now or never.

He slid out of his chair on one bended knee and took hold of Claire’s hand. She was looking at him like he was crazy. She glanced around at the other patrons before settling her eyes back on him.

“What are you doing?” Her question came out as a whisper.

“Angel,
y
ou’re the best thing that’s happened in my life.” He held out the b
ox and saw tears swell in her
eyes.
“Claire,
y
ou’ve come to mean a lot to me over the last year. You’re the first thing on my mind when I open my eyes in the morning, and the last thing I think about before I close them at night. You are the rock that keeps me grounded, and I can’t imagine my life without you in it.” Butch cleared his throat. “Claire Marie Bennett, I want to spend forever with you. Will you marry me?”

Butch pulled the ring out of the box and set
the empty container
down by his knee as he held the ring out to her. He heard Emma squeal
in his ear
, but he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the blonde beauty in front of him. He’d neve
r met such a strong, caring woma
n in his life. He’d meant every word of what he’d said
and hoped she realized it
. Her hand
flew to her mouth
,
muffling any words that escaped her lips.
A
lone
tear escaped her eye and traveled down her cheek. Her silence was killing him. His stomach was doing summersaults
,
and he just wanted to shake her
. A
nything was better than the unknown.

She finally broke her silence. “Yes.”

Butch jumped to his feet, pulling her from her chair in a tight embrace. He planted his lips on hers
and let her take the lead. She kissed him with passion. It wasn’t frenzied
;
it was sincere. Her palms cupped his face as she
tilted her head to deepen
the kiss. He could hold her like this forever and be the happiest man on the planet, and that was what he intended, whether she believed him or not. Claire leaned out of his kiss and hugged him tight, and whispered in his ear
,
“I almost believed you.”

Butch’s heart fell into his stomach.
He’d meant every word, but for
now
,
he was going to let her believe what she needed
to believe
. He planted a smile on his face and took her hand in his, sl
iding the ring on her finger. “Four
karats,
angel
,
even more than I promised.
”

Claire held her hand out
,
shifting the ring
and watching it gleam
in the sunlight, creating a rainbow that danced around the room. “It’s beautiful.”

Butch saw Emma out of the corner of his eye
and sat back down in his chair
.
She had her hands clasped in front of her chest and a huge smile on her face. He’d stash her approval in his pocket for use later
when he needed to convince Claire he wanted this for real.
Emma squealed again when she approached Claire, throwing her arms around her sister. “I’m so happy for you. It’s official now.”