by Sarah Atwell
With all the details now dissected and discussed, none of us had much else to say. We sat quietly, exhausted by all that had happened. It had been a hell of a week, but at least everyone had emerged more or less intact. I looked around me: at Matt, tired but satisfied; at Cam and Allison, their hands entwined; at Frank and Nessa, sitting companionably side by side on the couch. Safe home, every one.
At last, Matt stood up. “I should be going. It’s been a long day.”
“Wait, Matt,” I said. He turned toward me. I looked around the room at the happy couples. “It’s getting kind of crowded here.”
“It is,” he agreed amiably.
Damn the man, he was going to make me come out and say it. “Can we go to your place?”
“I’d like that,” he replied, watching my face.
“I would too.” I made a point of not meeting anyone’s eye as I gathered up a few things. At the door where Matt waited, I turned to the group. “Will somebody walk Fred and Gloria, please? Allison, Nessa—you’ll be in tomorrow?”
Nessa smiled. “Of course, dear.”
Maybe now life would get back to normal, as soon as the Gem Show ended in a couple of days. Although normal might not be what it had been.
“See you in the morning.” Before anyone could say anything else, I turned and fled with Matt.
At the foot of the stairs I stopped, turned to him, and said, “Matt, I promise I won’t run out on you in the middle of the night this time. I think . . .” I couldn’t finish, because I didn’t know what I was trying to say.
He put his arms around me. “I know. We’ll worry about that later.”
At least there would be a later. I leaned against him, and enjoyed the moment before saying, “Matt, there’s a lot we haven’t talked about—about us, I mean.”
“I know.”
“About where we’re going.”
“Yes?”
He really was going to let me do all the work here. Damn you, Cam—why did I let you push me into this?
“I think maybe we need to.” I held my breath waiting for his answer.
“Whenever you’re ready, Em.”
I relaxed into his arms. “Maybe tomorrow, after . . .”
Smart man, Matt—I didn’t need to explain.
Sources
If you want to know more:
Colored stones have fascinated people since their earliest discovery, and gems have been assigned various mystical properties from the beginning. Some of the more entertaining reference books were written in the nineteenth century, and include:
Antique Gems: Their Origin, Uses, and Value, C. W. King, 1866.
The Curious Lore of Precious Stones, George Frederick Kunz, 1915 (a classic, and still in print).
Gems, Helen Bartlett Bridgman, 1916.
A Text-Book of Precious Stones for Jewelers and the Gem-Loving Public, Frank B. Wade, 1918.
Other more recent writers such as Deanna J. Conway in Crystal Enchantments (1999) have perpetuated the fascination with stones, and there are many websites that provide additional information.
