Priceless

Chapter 23: Reluctant Release

"What do you think Bails?" Thane asked, glancing up at his brother who stood leaning an elbow against the jewelry case.

Bailey shrugged. "They're all nice rings, but this is your girl, not mine. You need to make the choice."

Thane resisted the urge to groan, letting his gaze sweep over the cases they'd been looking through. He'd hoped to do his ring shopping before picking up Reba and Nessa at the airport, but the process proved more daunting than he'd thought. However, this would be the only free time available that Nessa wasn't around and he didn't want her knowing about it.

Her choice to fly home with Reba for a long weekend hadn't been easy, but in the end her desire to see her brother play at least one football game won out over her reluctance to see her mother. She'd only agreed to go when Reba assured her they could both stay at the Lewis household and Nessa could help organize the wedding details.

They left Friday morning and would return this evening, giving him only three days to find the time to go ring shopping. It was now or never.

"You look a little lost," a female voice said from behind him. "Can I help you guys find something?"

Thane turned with a sigh, resigned to his need for assistance. "I hope so. I'm looking for an engagement ring, but I had no idea it would be this difficult. There's way too much to choose from."

The girl behind the counter offered an easy smile, her demeanor friendlier than her professional attire and tight top-knot would suggest. "That's why I'm here. Why don't you tell me a little about the girl and I can guide you to some possibilities?"

Bailey snorted a laugh beside him and Thane couldn't help but grin, knowing what ran through his brother's mind. "Describing Vanessa is like trying to paint a picture of the wind," he told the girl. "But, I'll do my best. She's a good mixture of girly and tomboy, not into anything too fancy or high fashion. She'd much rather be out riding trails with me than wearing heels behind a desk."

The girl narrowed her eyes, though her smile remained. "Riding trails? As in ATV or horses?"

"Horses," Thane supplied.

Her smile widened and she beckoned them to follow her. "Then I might have just the thing. It's a brand new design. I just put it in the case this morning. I think it will be a popular choice for our demographic, but you'll be my guinea pig."

Thane shot his brother a curious glance as he followed the girl to one of the smaller cases that sat in the store front windows. He realized then both he and Bailey had overlooked them. They stopped to wait as she reached into the display to pull out one of the boxes. She sat it on the counter in front of them with an excited smile.

"What do you think? It's actually a set. You would use one part as the engagement ring, the other as the wedding band."

Thane took one look at the rings and forgot to breathe, causing his heart to slam a painful reminder against his chest. The set couldn't be more perfect if Nessa chose it herself. He could hear the sales girl talking, but he wasn't listening as he reached for the box to take a closer look. The bands for both rings were a thin and simple silver. The diamond on the engagement ring wasn't anything fancy either, though he'd never seen this cut before. However, the part that had him reaching for his wallet was the wedding band. It boasted a diamond encrusted horseshoe that when paired with the other ring, would encase the engagement diamond.

His brother nudged him, bringing him back to his senses and Thane sucked in a breath, pulling his attention back to sales girl.

"You haven't heard a word she said, have you?"