Page 95 of The Other Side
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Halfway down the stairs, I spotted Chance, looking absolutely debonair in his suit. A lazy grin on his face, he only had eyes for me. And despite the stares I knew I was getting from the curious partygoers, Amanda was right: he was the only thing that mattered. For me, Chance was the only other person in the room.
He made his way through the crowd to meet us at the bottom of the stairs. It was only at the last step that I realized he was flanked by another handsome man, who promptly swept Amanda off her feet, twirling her around, and conveniently drawing the attention from us, allowing Chance and me to blend into the crowd of dancing pairs.
A string quartet played classical versions of pop songs that sounded vaguely familiar, but none that I could remember the lyrics for. Chance splayed his palm at the base of my spine, the heat of him searing through even the thickness of the velvet fabric. He used the other to draw one of my hands up, to trap it between us. I wrapped my free arm around his waist as we gently swayed to the beat, following the movement of those around us.
“You looked stunning before, but seeing you…” Chance drew back from me, making a show of looking at me from head to toe. “You take my breath away.” He pulled me into him again.
“Thank you,” I told him.
“It was Amanda’s idea,” he answered.
I glared up at him, not believing for a moment he wasn’t at least partially responsible for my makeover.
“She asked what you were wearing, and I told her about how hot you look in your little black cocktail dress. I thought you would have been fine, but she assured me she could find something you’d like better.” Chance’s eyes twinkled as he smiled down at me. “I hope you like it better.”
“I do, but I wasn’t thanking you for the dress,” I told him. I narrowed my gaze as he met my eyes. “Your heart was in the right place, Chance, but you know I cannot accept it.”
His eyes flitted to the necklace at the hollow of my throat.
“Would you really deny my dead grandmother her dying wish?” He feigned hurt.
“Cut it out. Don’t put the wishes of the dead on me. I can’t go around wearing diamonds this big,” I hissed under my breath.
“It’s only two carats.” He seemed genuinely confused by my refusal.
“Two!?” I sputtered.
He pulled me even closer. “It was rotting in a box at the bank. I wanted you to have it,” Chance pleaded.
“I—” He seemed so genuinely hopeful. I wanted to tell him he had to put it back, but the words would not leave my mouth.
“What if I lose it?”
Chance leaned in and kissed my temple. “Don’t worry, it’s insured. But you won’t lose it. It’ll be alright.”
“Chance…”
“It’s okay. I can hang on to it for you. If you change your mind.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat and looked away. How had I found myself so far gone that I could no longer refuse him, despite feeling itchy at the thought of the necklace? I hated that I couldn’t just accept the gift. All I could think about was how much it was worth.
“I—It’s okay,” I mumbled. “I love it, I just…”
“I know.” Chance craned his head down, resting his cheek against the side of my head. “I didn’t quite think that through. My grandma died when me and Amanda were really young, but she left all her jewelry to Amanda, mostly to piss off my relatives, I think. From what I could tell, she was a very feisty woman and never let anyone tell her what to do. I think there are old articles about her inPage Six. She caused several scandals my aunts and uncles still bring up from time to time.
“After Thanksgiving, I found myself thinking of you, as I so often do, alone in my bedroom.” Chance laughed darkly. “It occurred to me that she would have really loved you. And I think she would have thought we made a wonderful pair. So I asked Amanda if she wouldn’t mind giving me the simple and modest necklace, for you.”
We continued to sway to the music. I still felt many eyes on us, but Chance and I had somehow created our own little bubble that was only minutely penetrated by the sound of the string instruments.
Upon hearing his story, I decided it would not only be impolite to return the necklace, but rather impossible, given the thoughtfulness of the gesture, and the meaning behind the gift, as well as the involvement of his sister, who I already knew I adored.
“But if you don’t want it—”
“I want it.” I stared up at him petulantly.
Chance smirked down at me. “Oh little muse, if you had any idea what you do to me when you look at me like that.”
