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‘What, and you didn’t think that was important?’ Daisy said, shocked that Theo would not see that as an issue. Though, from what she had learned about Theo over the last weekend, she knew she shouldn’t be surprised. ‘That’s the problem with all the jewellery in here,’ she said, waving her hand dramatically totake in as much of the shop as she could. ‘You don’t know how many rings here are from people who weren’t happily married. Or had to pawn their jewellery because they ran out of money, or belonged to people who have died.’

‘Well, considering the majority of pieces here are well over a hundred years old, I’m guessing most of the owners are dead. Or in theGuinness Book of Records,’ Theo replied.

Daisy chose not to respond to that.

‘I want a ring that’s our story. Just yours and mine.’

‘Well then, let’s go back to the other jeweller’s,’ Theo said. ‘I really don’t care what it costs. This is the only ring I’m ever going to buy, after all.’

Still, Daisy shook her head. ‘No. There’s no way I’m paying those prices. We are not starting our married life in debt because of a single piece of jewellery,’ Daisy replied. ‘No, we just have to wait.’

‘Until what?’

‘Until the right thing turns up.’

‘The right thing that isn’t new or antique? Not exactly sure how that’s going to happen, Daisy.’

She sucked on the inside of her cheek, but there was no way she was going to change her mind on it.

‘Look,’ Theo said, ‘I don’t mean to push, but you are my fiancé, right?’

‘Yes,’ Daisy said, although it still sounded strange, hearing him say the word.

‘Right, and I would like my fiancé to have a ring. If you don’t want to wear the one from my grandmother, pick something. Pick something cheap, because I think it’s going to take years to get what you’re after. And I’m willing to wait, I am. But I still want people to see you with a ring on your finger.’

‘What, so they know I’m yours?’ Daisy said, leaning in up against him.

‘Too right.’ He bent down towards her, and the smile that played on his lips was irresistible. Daisy pushed up on her tiptoes, ready to lose herself in his kiss, when a throat cleared behind her.

Blushing, the pair turned to look at the jeweller, whose face was pinched and expression stony.

‘If it is budget rings you are after, we have a selection of costume jewellery on the other side of the shop.’

45

Twenty minutes later, Daisy left the antique jewellery shop with a new, temporary engagement ring. It was gold-plated with a cubic zirconia stone cut in a square shape. To Daisy’s untrained eye, it looked remarkably similar to many of the ones in the expensive first shop.

‘We will get you something real as soon as you find it,’ Theo said. ‘And budget really isn’t an issue.’

‘I like this one,’ Daisy said, stretching out her fingers so that the stone caught the sunlight and glittered even more than it did in the shop. She had decided on the second costume piece she tried on, mainly because it was a decent fit, but the more she looked at it, the more she liked it. Of course, getting a real diamond that size was out of the question.

‘I get that you like it,’ Theo said. ‘But I’m pretty sure it’s going to turn your finger green at some point. And I don’t think the stone is meant to wobble like that either. Still, it’s nice seeing you smiling after yesterday.’

‘Am I smiling?’ Daisy said. Only then did she become aware of the ache that was spreading across her cheeks. The type of ache that only settled after an extended time spent grinninglike a Cheshire cat. With a newfound lightness in her chest, she tightened her grip around Theo’s arm. Together, they wandered up and down the little streets, their paces perfectly matched as they walked. Occasionally, they stopped to look in shop windows or browse inside one or two, but there was no urgency to the way they were moving. Their only purpose was being together, until a little before midday when Theo suddenly stopped and looked at his watch.

‘Wow, we should get going,’ Theo said. ‘The hotel’s a forty-five-minute drive from here, and they said we could check in early, you know, because they didn’t have a room last night.’

‘That’s nice of them,’ Daisy said, already knowing that the evening was going to go far smoother than it had yesterday.

‘Right?’ Theo agreed. ‘I also mentioned that we got engaged on Friday, so fingers crossed, they are going to throw in a bottle of wine for us, too.’

A bottle of wine, Theo, and no one to disturb them. It almost sounded too good to be true.

46

Given how she knew Theo wanted the weekend to be memorable, and not just because of his family, Daisy suspected the hotel he’d booked would be something special. But the reality blew her out of the water.

The check-in had involved a drive through the extensive country grounds before a short walk into reception, where they were met with cold towels and a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice. Then it was a trip up a winding staircase, where a crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling and the walls were lined with modern, abstract oil paintings. Daisy had wanted to spend a little longer just looking at them, making note of the technique and the skill and the way the images changed when she looked at them from a different angle. But the porter was standing by the door to their room and she didn’t want to keep him waiting.