Page 54 of Beneath the Blue Moon

***Ethan***

“Wow!”

“Wow!”

She giggles at our simultaneous reactions. She looks downright

ravishing. Her makeup is perfect, just enough to accentuate her natural beauty.

Her hair hangs around her face in gentle waves and the dress… Good God, the

dress! It highlights her body perfectly, clinging to her curves. Her creamy

thigh peeks out at me from between the slit in the skirt. Wait a minute….

“It’s too late to change, Sheriff. Deal with it.”

“Are you reading my mind, minx?”

“It’s not very hard.”

“Oh? What am I thinking now?”

“You’re thinking that I look spectacular and you won’t leave

my side all night.”

She’s right; that’s exactly what I was thinking. “Very good.”

I take her hand and gently kiss the inside of her wrist. She shivers at the

contact. “You look stunning.”

“Thank you. So do you.”

With a slight bow, I present her the jewelry box I’m holding.

“For you, my lady.”

She takes it, her eyes not leaving mine, until she’s flipped

the lid.

“Oh, my God, Ethan! It’s beautiful. Are these…?”

“Diamonds? Yes. Set in white gold.”

The diamonds in the seven-carat necklace graduate in size as

they get to the biggest one in the center.

“Ethan, it’s too much.”

“No, it’s not.” You deserve a million more, and I will

gladly buy them for you.

“I can’t accept this. How did you even—?”

“Don’t worry about that,” I cut her off.

I remove it from the box and step behind her to place it

around her neck. She moves her hair to the side so I can clasp it.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Now, your chariot awaits.”

I take her hand and lead her to the car, watching as she

fiddles with the necklace. Abruptly, she stops and tugs her hand from mine,

staring at the car in wide-eyed shock.

“What’s that?”

“My car.”

“That’s not a car, that’s—”

“A Lamborghini Veneno Roadster.”

“It’s yours?” she asks in disbelief.

“Yes.”

“Seriously? Did you rob a bank, or am I missing something?”

“No, I didn’t rob a bank, Casey.”

“So, what? You’re a genius billionaire philanthropist who

wears an iron suit and fights crime?”

Throwing my head back, I laugh, taking her hand once more. I

open the door and help her in.

“I’m not Iron Man, either.”

When I climb in next to her, she turns to me.

“Then who are you? I mean, the house, the dress, the

jewelry, the car… and Clara, which you did not have to do and will not

do again.”

“You know who I am. You just don’t know the balance on my

bank account.”

“So, you’re one of those trust fund babies… or a stock

market whiz… or are you from old money?”

“A little bit of all three I guess.”

Which isn’t a lie. Being around for more than a century,

technically my money is old. I did get an inheritance from my parents,

and I was able to get in on some lucrative investments from their beginning

stages.

“What are we talking about here, millions?”

With a sigh, I look out the window. “Not exactly.”

“More?” she shrieks.

“Is it important?”

“No. No, it’s not.”

She goes quiet and turns to stare out the window

reflectively. I wonder what she’s thinking. I hope she doesn’t think I was

deliberately keeping this from her, but I don’t see the need to go around

flashing my financial status. I leave her to her thoughts until we pull up to

the hotel.

“Nothing’s changed, Casey.”

She looks over at me and gives me a smile that doesn’t quite

reach her eyes.

“I know.”

The valet opens her door and she steps out before I can say

anything else. By the time I get to her, people have already begun to converge

on us. I place my hand at the small of her back and she cringes at my touch.

Fuck.