Diamond Rings Are Deadly Things

by Rachelle J. Christensen

  “I’m glad you trust me. I want to keep you safe, since the police can’t seem to do their job.”

  “They’re doing their job.” I bristled at his comment. Tony had gone above and beyond to protect me and solve the crimes, and I didn’t want him discredited.

  “Well, they’re not doing it fast enough to satisfy me.” Dallas put his hand on my knee and squeezed gently. “But you’re right. They’re doing what they can. The perpetrators must be smarter than they are.”

  I bit my tongue because I couldn’t think of a good reply to his statement. “Can we change the subject?”

  “Sure. Tell me more about Natalie’s wedding plans.”

  I smiled and began talking. And Dallas listened. He really was interested in how hard I was working to make Natalie’s dream wedding a reality. That’s why I felt so wishy-washy about breaking up with him. He cared about me and had made a continuous investment in our relationship—working overtime to get to know me and the intricate details of the wedding business that made me who I am. That thought derailed my smile as I remembered that I still didn’t know much about him.

  Dallas was a clever conversationalist. Every time I tried to delve into his background, he found a way to turn the question back at me. I kept thinking that maybe he’d open up more after we spent more time together. I decided to make another attempt to get to know him better before I let him go.

  “Thanks for listening. I don’t mean to bore you, so why don’t you tell me your deep, dark secrets?”

  Dallas licked his lips and rolled his shoulders back. “Now, that would be boring. You already know my secrets.”

  “I do?”

  “You know—the one about how I fell in love with a wedding planner?”

  “And?”

  His face reddened, and he focused on his hands. “I have another secret, but I planned to tell you later. That’s why I wanted to go to your house.”

  “Gee, I’m not curious at all now.” My anxiety level ratcheted up a few more notches.

  He touched my knee. “No, it’s something good—really good. I just wanted to surprise you.”

  “Okay, I’ll be a good girl and be surprised, if you give me one hint.” I parked in front of his realty office so he could get his car.

  “How about, I love you?”

  “That’s a hint?”

  Dallas jumped out of the car and hurried around to my side. I rolled down the window, and he leaned in and kissed me. “I won’t make you wait long.”

  Chapter 26

  Wedding Question Cards

  Create six to eight questions that members of the wedding party can answer about the bride and groom (questions that encourage brief answers are best). Print one question each on a sheet of cardstock. In place of just signing a guest book, encourage guests to pick a question to answer and then sign.

  Some examples of questions:

  “What is the best marriage advice you have ever received?”

  “What is the most romantic place we should visit?”

  “What should we name our kids?”

  “Where do you see us in twenty-five years?”

  Courtesy of www.mashedpotatoesandcrafts.com.

  The five-minute drive to my house wasn’t long enough to calm my nerves or steel my defenses against what I knew I needed to do. Lorea told me it was cruel to get Dallas’s hopes up by continuing to date him when I wasn’t committed, but I wasn’t the one who spouted the “L” word on the third date. I had hoped for a slow, easy relationship where we both took time to get to know each other before jumping into the messy stages. When I had told Lorea that, she laughed at me and said, “Now who’s the cynic?”

  I wondered about Dallas’s surprise. There wasn’t any reason for him to buy me a gift, but that was probably what he had done. I parked in front of my house and stepped out, looking for police cars in the vicinity. They would drive by once each hour, according to Tony. I texted him a description of Dallas’s gray Hyundai so the police would know he was an expected visitor. My phone pinged, and I read the text from Tony and laughed.

  Stay out of trouble!

  I hurried to unlock my door and turn on some lights before Dallas arrived. Brushing at a spot on my capris, I wondered if I should change but decided against it. Dallas would be here any minute, and his shorts had some grass stains from the meadow anyway.

  Tux pawed at the patio window, and I refilled his dish with cat food. He purred as I stroked his back and scratched behind his ears. For a moment, I wished I could escape out my back door with some wedding emergency so I wouldn’t have to face the breakup with Dallas. With a sigh, I stood and slid the door shut before heading back toward my front door.

  The hall mirror was a great checkpoint for me as I left my house each morning. I stood in front of the oval-shaped glass now and smoothed out my hair. As my fingers worked through a tangled curl, I thought about how many times I had told my brides that love would set them on a path that would change their lives forever.

  For a short moment, I wished I did love Dallas so I could be on that road with someone by my side. I straightened my shoulders and gave myself a solemn look in the mirror. My brown eyes remained serious, and they didn’t light up when I thought of a future with Dallas. It was time to let him go. The doorbell rang, and I dredged up the last of my courage, opening the door with a smile.

  Dallas carried a gift sack, and my heart sank down to my toes. “Thanks again for giving me a tour of the springs today.” He stepped inside, his eyes bright.

  He had bought a gift. Blast. As much as I wanted to tell him right then, I wimped out.

  “The night is young. What would you like to do?” It was just after seven, and I had hoped to send him home by eight and get to work on the wedding plans for Natalie, but I would have to stall until I could figure out what to do about his gift. I didn’t have the heart to tell him as he walked casually into my living room and set the gift bag on the floor. I didn’t want to date him anymore, but I didn’t want to crush him, either.

  “I want to kiss you senseless, and then I want to sate your curiosity by letting you open this gift.” Dallas patted the cushion next to him.

  “Okay, but let’s do those things in reverse, since I am dying to know your secret.” I sat down, and he scooted closer until our legs touched. He picked up the gift sack and let the handles swing gently on his fingertips. The bag was made of some kind of silver iridescent paper, and I noticed flecks of multicolored glitter embedded in the tissue. The sack was medium sized, so the possibilities were endless.

  “This is my secret,” he murmured.

  I reached for the sack, but he held it just out of my reach. “Just one kiss?” He leaned toward me.

  Kissing him now didn’t seem right. I’d made my decision. I hated it when I had to upset nice people. “Dallas, I wanted to tell you—”

  He covered my mouth with his, cutting off my explanation. I changed my mind again. One last liplock wasn’t going to hurt anything. But Dallas had more than a kiss in mind. He deepened the kiss, and I tasted peppermint on his tongue. I heard the gift sack slide onto the floor as he put his other arm around me and held me tight. Perfect timing. I reached for the sack and grabbed one handle with my index finger. Pulling my head back, I whispered, “Gotcha.”

  Dallas nuzzled my neck. “Cheater.”

  I giggled. “Please, can I open it?”

  Dallas released me and sat up. He put his hand over mine, and my eyes were again drawn to the stump of his ring finger. “Yes. Open it.”

  The tissue paper crinkled as I pulled it out of the sack. I reached inside, and my fingers grazed a velvet-covered box. With a gasp, I lifted it out, hating myself for not saying something to him the minute he walked in the door. I hoped it was just jewelry, but the size was exactly like every ring box I’d ever seen. I could feel tears pricking at the corners of my eyes.

  “Close your eyes.”

  “But . . .”

  “Please, Adri. This is special.
Just close your eyes.”

  I took a ragged breath and closed my eyes. He took my left hand and gently uncurled my fingers. I heard the box snap open, and I held my breath as I felt Dallas slip something onto my ring finger. This couldn’t be happening. It would crush him, but I had to tell him. I couldn’t force myself to love him.

  “You can open your eyes now.”

  I realized I was squeezing my eyes tight and still holding my breath. I relaxed my eyelids and lifted them slowly. With a glance at Dallas, I examined my ring finger just as I was about to suck in some much-needed oxygen. My lungs convulsed as I focused on the ring.

  “Adrielle Pyper, will you marry me?”

  The ring glittering on my finger sent a shudder through my body. I took short gasps and blinked several times, trying to cover the absolute terror that had overtaken my senses.

  “What’s wrong?” Dallas looked at me, followed my gaze toward the ring, and then back to my face. “Don’t you like it?”

  I wiped my eyes. There was nothing I could say now. Everything had changed. I couldn’t breathe right. Briette’s engagement ring—the ring on my finger belonged to my best friend. The setting was one of a kind with the swirl of diamonds surrounding the emerald. Briette had loved the ring so much that she chose emerald green as an accent color for her wedding. I could never forget how I spent hours searching for just the right florist who could tint white roses with an emerald hue.

  I hesitated. There was so much love in Dallas’s eyes that I doubted myself for a moment. Maybe he’d bought the ring—maybe the murderer had sold it. My breath stilled as I focused on the emerald.

  When Briette was murdered, the police searched for any clues to why she had been killed. When they discovered her twenty-five-thousand-dollar engagement ring was missing, they decided that was motive enough. But I had never been satisfied with that explanation—it had to be more than theft. And now I’d discovered I was right all along. The police said if the murder wasn’t related to the ring specifically, the killer most likely held onto it as a keepsake, a memento of the crime.

  The blood pumping in my ears increased as I thought of Briette’s picture. It sat in plain sight on my dresser. If he’d seen it, he would know I recognized the ring. Maybe I could pretend I didn’t know the truth. Unless—my heart pulsed with new fear as I lifted my eyes to meet his gaze—Dallas already knew that Briette was my best friend.

  My chin trembled, and I worked to make my voice sound normal. “It’s Briette’s ring.”

  “Isn’t it beautiful? I’m sure you’re happy to see it again.”

  He was absolutely crazy, but I knew that if I wanted to breathe a few more minutes, I needed to play along. “It’s just so sudden. I didn’t expect this.”

  “But I love you.”

  “I know, but we’ve only been dating for two weeks.” My voice trembled, and I tried to swallow, but fear coated my throat, making it difficult to breathe.

  “Almost three weeks since I met you.” He smiled. “When you find the right one, you can’t let them get away.”

  My skin prickled with goose bumps. I hesitated, mentally screaming at myself to calm down and be rational. I had to play along if I was going to get out of this. “You’re right. I always overanalyze things.” I glanced at the ring again and lifted my hand to examine the emerald solitaire surrounded by five diamonds. With a hard swallow, I struggled to keep my composure. I had to hide the cord of fear winding itself around my body. “I love it.” I leaned forward and kissed Dallas and then hugged him.

  “I thought you were going to say no there for a minute.” He kissed me gently. “I would’ve been very unhappy.”

  I started to speak but didn’t trust my voice. My lips caressed his while my mind spun out of control.

  Dallas traced my jaw with his thumb and leaned closer. He kissed me, almost reverently, and pulled me close. “You will make me so happy.” He stroked my hair. “You’ll be such a beautiful bride.”

  He kissed me again, and my pulse quickened. I leaned into him, deepening the kiss and threading my arms around his neck. He lifted me up and swept my legs over his arm. Uh-oh. I had to do something, but fear paralyzed me. I stopped and pulled back with a question in my eyes.

  He kissed my cheek. “Is it all right if we go to your bedroom?”

  I wanted to say no, but I reminded myself again that I needed to act normal. To act as if I was excited that Dallas had just proposed to me. “I—it’s kind of a mess, and I need to use the bathroom first. Do you mind waiting a few minutes?” I wriggled from his arms to a standing position.

  He chuckled. “You’re never messy, but if you want to change into something . . .” He winked. “I’ll still act surprised.”

  I couldn’t answer him, so I forced a smile.

  Dallas gave me one more passionate kiss, his hands trailing down my back and resting on my rear end. “I’ll try to be patient.”

  I dipped my head and brushed my lips across his ear. “It’ll be worth the wait,” I whispered and broke free from his grasp.

  My throat tightened with fear, and I struggled to keep the panic from showing in my eyes. I glanced at my cell phone lying on the coffee table in front of us. I forced a smile to my face as I picked up the phone. “I want to call my parents and tell them the good news.”

  Dallas grabbed my hand. “Not yet. Let me keep you to myself for a few hours.”

  “But—”

  Dallas took my phone and set it back on the table. He smiled at me and licked his lips. “It can wait an hour, can’t it?”

  Acid boiled in my stomach. The way Dallas acted only confirmed my fears that anything might set him off. I sucked in a breath and made one final attempt. “Lorea texted me about Natalie’s wedding site just before you came. I’ll need her help later to sort out some of my notes.” I grabbed the phone and began texting before he could reply. My mind spun as I tried to think of a cryptic message I could send to Lorea in case Dallas took my phone again.

  Hey, I need your help. For Natalie’s wedding, could you call Wes’s best friend for a quote? I’m home.

  I moved to put the phone in my pocket, but Dallas grabbed it. “You know she’ll text you right back. This way you won’t be distracted.”

  Forcing myself not to react to the adrenaline telling me to run, I nodded.

  Dallas slid my phone into his pocket. “I’m so happy you said yes.”

  I attempted a smile. “I’ll be right back.”

  It took all my willpower to walk demurely from the room and resist sprinting down the hall. Grabbing Briette’s picture off my dresser, I hurried to my bathroom and locked the door. I didn’t say yes, I thought. I looked at the sparkling diamonds and bit back tears. Clutching the picture frame, I slid open the bottom drawer and placed Briette out of sight. Removing memory triggers might help me to deal with Dallas.

  I could feel my body trembling. Lorea was my one hope. I prayed that she would understand the text. With a shaky breath I stared at myself in the mirror. My eyes were dark with fear. If I could just wipe the panic from my face, I would be able to continue this charade until the police arrived. But what if Dallas reacted violently when he heard the sirens coming? If someone was coming. My stomach churned, and for a moment I thought I might be sick. I took deep, steadying breaths and tried to think of my options. They were few.

  Dallas might wonder what was taking so long. I should’ve taken my phone back, but I was too afraid of how he might react. Maybe I could tell him I needed five more minutes—make up some excuse to get my phone and call 911. Rolling my shoulders back, I lifted the corners of my mouth and opened the bathroom door.

  Dallas stood in front of me, his hand resting on the doorframe. I jumped and tried to repress the scream climbing up my throat.

  “You scared me!” I forced a shaky laugh.

  Dallas narrowed his eyes. He grabbed my arm, jerked me forward, and dangled my cell phone in front of me.

  “Were you trying to tell Lorea something?”
r />   “No, I just—”

  He gripped my arm tighter.

  “Stop it, Dallas.” I tried to grab my phone, but he held it out of my reach.

  He glared at me and threw my phone against the wall. I screamed as the glitter case popped off and the phone fell behind my headboard. I couldn’t hide my fear as he shook his head, making a tsking sound with his tongue. “Oh, Adrielle. I thought you would be happy to see that ring again.” He reached for my hand, but I pulled it away. The ring was the only proof I had of his identity as Briette’s murderer. I wouldn’t let him take it from me now.

  “Dallas, what’s wrong?”

  He held up a wedding planning book, and I took a step back, covering my mouth to suppress a whimper. He had found Briette’s binder. It had been sitting in plain sight on my bookshelf. Of course I’d kept it. Inside were pictures of her exotic engagement ring, her dress, Caleb and Briette together. Seeing her again might have triggered some new level of insanity for Dallas.

  He squeezed the spine of the book until his fingertips turned white. “I’m not in this book, but I was there every step of the way.” He spoke in a low voice that left me petrified. “Briette went out on a date with me right before she met him. I’m certain things would have worked for us, if Caleb hadn’t gotten in the way.” The fury in his eyes dissipated as he looked at me. “But maybe it was all for the best, so I could find you.” He flipped open the wedding binder and held it so I could see.

  The air in my lungs felt as if it had turned to ice. He dragged his finger down the page until it rested on a picture of me and Briette. We were sitting in the grass, wiggling our freshly painted purple toenails, and laughing at the camera.

  “That’s why I picked you. Briette talked about you all the time—it was natural to love you. She said you wanted to get married but hadn’t met the right person yet.” He looked down at the picture again and back at me. “It was hard to find you at first—you disappeared. And I had to wait for the right time. But look at us now. Briette would be happy to see us together.”