Leaving the gaming area of the casino, I found myself being a fish out of water as designer stores popped up around me. Fancy names with fancy price tags. Yet another thing I didn’t know shit about.

Coming to a stop out the front of an expensive looking jewelry store, I stared at the rings in the window display. Glancing up at the sign, I tried to pronounce the name in my head but got nothing. BVLGARI. Whatever that was.

But it was the ring in the center of the display that caught my attention. A silver band, with what looked like scales attached to one another and diamonds encrusted in each little circle, sat on a pedestal, and I instantly thought about Ren. She wasn’t interested in getting married, that much was obvious, but if I was going to buy her a ring, it’d be that one. She never wore any jewelry, and flashy wasn’t her thing, but this… It was simple, quirky and would look pretty fuckin’ nice on her finger.

I must’ve been standing there for ages because a woman through the window caught my eye. She was immaculately dressed with a name tag pinned onto her shirt and a wide smile was on her lips. This would usually be the moment I legged it because I hated being given the sales pitch, but curiosity drew me in.

After stepping into the store, I almost turned around and left entirely, but the woman came up to me with a smile, her gaze raking over me with unmasked appreciation.

“Good afternoon, Sir,” she said sweetly. “Is there something in particular you’re looking for?”

“In the window,” I said. “The ring. Can I look at it?”

“Which one, Sir?”

“The silver one in the middle,” I said, pointing to the display.

She nodded and disappeared out the back someplace. Feeling like a useless lump in the middle of the posh store, I glanced around nervously like Ren would suddenly walk past and bust me, but I knew she was at Beat sorting out the new guy. She wouldn’t be caught dead in a place like this anyway.

The sales woman returned and laid a piece of black material over the glass counter before placing the ring in the middle.

“It’s one of our classic wedding bands,” the woman said with a smile. “The Serpenti wedding band is 18kt white gold with pavé diamonds.”

“Pavé?” I asked, the word sounding alien on my tongue.

“Pavé is the type of setting,” she explained. “They’re made up of lots of small gemstones, often diamonds, set closely together.” Setting the ring onto the piece of black velvet, she gestured for me to pick it up. “As you can see, the ring itself is flexible. Each little scale moves to meld with the wearer’s finger.”

“Wedding band?” I held the ring in my palm and ran the tip of my finger along the surface.

“It’s intended as a wedding band, but it makes a fine engagement ring if you prefer something more simple than a classic diamond setting. Is it for your girlfriend?” she asked, watching me with dreamy eyes.

“Yeah.”

“She’s very lucky. That’s an amazing piece of jewelry.”

“How much?”

“Six thousand, seven hundred and ninety-nine dollars.”

I almost choked on my own spit at the dollar signs, but there was no way I would be a tight-ass when it came to marrying Ren Miller. She’d screwed up her nose at the mention of the m-word, and the thought had me doubting. Placing the ring back down onto the velvet, I shrugged.

“Would you like to look at another option?” the sales woman asked.

“No, it’s perfect…” I trailed off, not wanting to get into it with a stranger.

The lady smiled kindly at me before saying, “You’re not sure about asking her?”

“She said she’s not interested in getting married.” I glanced around the shop, but we were the only people in it.

“But you are?”

I nodded, not sure how Ren would take it if she knew I was out shopping for rings.

“We get a lot of men in here with the same jitters,” she said, glancing down at the ring.

“And what do you tell them?”

“We have a return policy,” she replied with a laugh.

“How many come back?”

She shrugged. “Maybe one out of twenty.”

Considering the price tag, I didn’t think that was a bad ratio. Spending that much money on something and not being sure about it had to be a risky investment.

Glancing down at the ring that seemed to embody the one and only woman I’d ever love, I said, “I’ll take it.”

**

When I got home, the gym was still pumping with an evening class, but upstairs, the apartment was dark. Ren was late coming back from Beat.

I assumed she was still tied up with showing the new guy the ropes, and it was just as well because I had a posh Bvlgari bag with a motherfuckin’ engagement ring inside that was impossible to hide.

Dropping my keys onto the side table just inside the door, I pulled the little square box out and held it in the palm of my hand.

What was I thinking?

My phone pinged with a message and I jumped, holding the box against my chest. Fuck. Opening the drawer on the side table, I shoved the ring inside, knowing she’d never think to look in there.

Pulling my phone out of my back pocket, I glanced at the message on the screen.

Ren: I’m going to be another hour or so. I’m watching Caleb’s boxing class.

Caleb was the new guy, and since he’d started a couple of days ago, she hadn’t shut up about learning boxing techniques. I wondered when I should go meet him to make sure he knew not to get any ideas while training with my woman. It was how I managed to get in her pants after all, and if I could figure it out, then so could this Caleb dude.

Moving toward the kitchen, I opened the fridge and began thinking about what I was going to make for dinner.

How would I ask her? When would I ask? Would she be pissed? I didn’t even want to know what it’d do to me if she said no. Maybe I should wait, or maybe I should seize the fuckin’ day.

I had no idea what to do, and for the first time since we’d gotten together, I felt uneasiness creeping underneath my skin.

What if she said no?

Five

Ren

Caleb’s first class was actually pretty great.

I had to hand it to him, Dad had chosen my permanent replacement pretty well. Caleb was good with the guys, and the girls for obvious reasons, and had this leadership quality that stood out most when he was teaching a bunch of prepubescent teenagers the fundamentals of boxing. He was switched on, and I hadn’t had to explain myself more than once on anything so far. It made my job and transition a million times easier, that’s for sure.

Opening the front door to the apartment, I stepped inside to the noise of a fight on the TV, and my gaze instantly locked with Ash’s. He raised his hand and pressed the off button on the remote, and the room fell into silence.

“Hey,” I said, sinking down onto the couch.

Ash wrapped his arm around my shoulders and tugged me against his side. “You’re late.”

“Didn’t you get my text? I was watching Caleb teach his first class at Beat.”

“Yeah, I got it.”

I pressed a quick kiss onto his cheek. “Why are you so grumpy?”

“I’m not grumpy,” he complained. “I just missed you.”

“Aww,” I exclaimed, running my hand over his tight stomach. “What do you want?”

He rolled his eyes, but he finished it off with a smile. “You here all the time.”

All the time meant working at Pulse and living in this posh new apartment at one of the most desirable addresses in all of Melbourne. Ash Fuller’s bed. Wait, scratch that—our bed.

“I’ll be full-time here by next week,” I said. “That guy’s a pro. Dad chose really well.”

“Who is this guy anyway?” he asked.

“Caleb Carmichael. He was a pro boxer,” I replied.

“Coach going back to his roots?”

“Yeah, well, Beat started out that way, and now they’ve got the whole experience.” Pulse was more of a mixed martial arts focused fighter gym, what with both of our expertise. There was nothing wrong with that considering the sharp rise in popularity the sport had gotten over the past few years.