“I want to treat Nia to something special,” I say. “Something that she deserves.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
24 Riker
Jane and I enter a jewelry shop that’s owned by a good friend of the family, Maxwell Carton, or Max for short. He’s an elderly man that dons several gold chains around his neck, and gold rings on each digit. He even has a gold tooth that he likes to show off. Glasses with gold frames are always perched on his head, but he never wears them. It’s just for show.
Once we enter the shop, Max is busy talking to a customer, so I bring Jane to one of the glass counters to look at rings. The place is filled with so much jewelry, it can take hours looking at every single one, so I’m sure we’ll be here for a while.
“Is there anything in particular you like?” I ask Jane.
“Hmmm…” Jane thinks as she stares down at all the rings. There are rings flanked with diamonds, and rings flanked with gems. There are rings with crazy designs, and rings so bright they look like they always capture sunlight.
Jane takes some time to consider until Max comes to our aid. He places his hairy hands onto the counter, his gold rings always sparkling. He leans into the counter as he shows off his smile. That gold tooth of his gleams like an old coin.
“Ah, Riker, my boy!” Max greets in his heavy Brooklyn accent. “Welcome, welcome, I see you brought your lovely fiancée here today. It’s a pleasure to meet you, miss. A great pleasure, indeed.”
“You too,” Jane greets.
“Jane, was it?”
“Yes.”
“Ah, a beautiful name for a beautiful lady,” Max comments, his smile growing. His beady eyes smile as well. “Now, what are you two looking for today? Hmmm? Diamonds? Pearls? I got everything you need right here. If there’s something that seems missing, not a problem ‘cause I definitely have it.” He winks at us at the end of that sentence.
“We’re looking for an engagement ring,” I tell him, and Max claps his big hands together. His clapping makes a great thunderous sound.
“Ah, yes, of course. Of course. We have some beauties right here. Yes, right here.” Max digs into the counter and brings out several rings. He picks up one in particular between his thumb and forefinger, and it glistens from the lights above us. The ring is tiny compared to his huge fingers, he can easily snap it in half with one wrong move.
“This beauty here is named Alexia. She's 14k gold crowned with a perfectly cut center diamond. If you look closely, the band has a floral engraving on it. What do you think, miss?” Max turns to Jane for approval. She looks at the ring with great intrigue.
“It’s lovely,” Jane says.
“Ah, so she is, but let’s look at a few more, shall we? Yes, let’s shall.” Max carefully lays the ring down and picks out another one. “This one here, her name’s Celeste. She's 18k white gold with seven oval-shaped diamonds encircling the band.” Max replaces that one with another. “And here, this one’s Marceline, she’s also 14k gold, but her beautiful round center diamond is surrounded by three accent sapphires.”
“I always did like sapphires,” Jane notes.
“Ah, you have wondrous taste. Let’s look at the sapphire collection then,” Max suggests, and he carefully places the rings back into the counter. Once he does that, Max leads us to another counter that’s primarily filled with sapphires. The sapphires glisten like a small pool of water, and I watch as Jane’s eyes widen with awe. I can’t help but smile at her reaction, she’s adorable.
Max bends down to unlock the counter, and he pulls out several rings for us to see.
“This great beauty here,” Max raises a ring in the air, “her name’s Elenore, she's 14k white gold with a winding band that entwines towards a marquise cut sapphire.”
“Mmm,” Jane nods with intrigue but looks towards a couple others.
Max once again picks out another one. “This here is Cordelia, she's 14k gold with a cushion-cut sapphire that’s accented by two smaller sapphires on either side. And this one here…ah, this one is my favorite, actually.” Max picks out yet another one. “This here is Odette, she’s 18k white gold with an elegant halo of diamonds encasing an oval-shaped sapphire. The band is also lined with diamonds. She was imported from Italy, actually, a real gem if I do say so myself. Would you like to try her on?”
“Sure,” Jane says.
“Allow me.” I take the ring from Max and slip it on Jane’s ring finger. Her finger is a bit tiny for the ring, but we can fix that.
“What do you think?” I ask her.
“I like it very much,” Jane immediately answers. A sweet smile spreads through her face. Her hand flicks from side to side as she admires the ring. That’s when I know that’s the one.
Jane observes the ring for a few minutes more until she decides she wants it. Max has to fix the size of the ring first so it can properly fit her finger, so while he does that, I decide to pick out some accessories to match the ring.
I go over to a glass cabinet to find a lovely sapphire necklace and earrings. Jane comes to my side and smiles towards me.
“Are you getting those too?” she asks.
“Yes,” I answer her immediately. “I’ll also get something for Nia, what would she like?”
“Well, these are all a bit much for an eight-year-old, how about a bracelet?”
“Sure, why don’t you pick one out?”
“Alright.” Jane browses through the counter in search of a bracelet. Soon, she picks out a bracelet that’s of white gold and is lined with tiny sapphires.
“I
