Stop the Wedding! by Stephanie Bond Page A

nod.
    Knowing her mother would probably be meeting with the caterer for at least another hour, Annabelle nodded. “Fine.”
    The man signaled a young woman and handed the ring off to her with instructions, then turned back to Annabelle with a huge smile. “Now then, perhaps I can show you some of our new pieces while you’re waiting?”
    Nervous about simply whipping out her mother’s ring and asking if the stone was real, Annabelle nodded and allowed the man to show her an array of tennis bracelets. She even humored him by trying on a few, although the only piece she found remotely interesting was a simple silver bangle with a raised griffin design. After a few minutes, she scanned the shop for eavesdroppers, relieved to find only one other customer, a man trying on watches on the opposite side of the showroom.
    Annabelle thanked the man for showing her the bracelets, then cleared her throat. “Sir, I, um, was wondering if you might tell me how much a piece of jewelry is worth.”
    He nodded. “Certainly we offer appraisals, although it would take at least forty-eight hours to process a piece for purposes of insuring.”
    A flush warmed her neck as she fidgeted. Finally, she withdrew the ring box from her purse. “The truth is, I only need for you to tell me if the stone in this ring is as valuable as, um…”
    “As you’ve been led to believe?” he inquired with a twinkle in his eye.
    She coughed lightly into her hand, then nodded.
    He pulled a jeweler’s monocle from his pocket. “Then let’s have a quick look.”
    Annabelle chewed on her bottom lip as the man scrutinized the ring and hummed noncommittally. After a full minute, he lowered the eyeglass, his expression unreadable. “A gift?”
    She nodded again.
    The man gave her a tight smile and returned the ring. “Miss, not only is the stone genuine, but based upon my hurried observation, it’s of uncommonly good quality.”
    She couldn’t keep her mouth from turning down at the corners, and the man seemed surprised. “Not the news you were hoping for, ma’am?”
    “No,” she murmured, then added hastily, “I mean yes.” She managed a happy expression. “Of course.” Darn it—the sole reason she’d been looking forward to dinner tonight with the Castleberrys was to triumphantly expose the ring as a fake and begin to unravel the fabric of lies that the senior Castleberry had managed to wrap around her mother’s eyes.
    “Ah, and here’s your other ring, ma’am, freshly sized and cleaned.” He handed Annabelle the engagement ring her father had given her mother. A lump formed in her throat as she pushed the ring over her knuckle. Anna, promise me you’ll look after your mother if something happens to me.
    “I’m trying, Dad,” she whispered, then thanked the man and paid for the re-sizing. With heavy feet, she walked in the direction of the exit, distracted by the unfamiliar weight of the ring on her left hand, saddened now that she’d had it cut down to fit her finger when it truly belonged on her mother’s. Now what? Her mother was marrying Melvin Castleberry in five days, and it seemed as if there was little she could do about it. Oh, well, if the caterer ran true to form, maybe he’d already aggravated Belle enough to reconsider the entire production. Regardless, she needed to get back to her mother as soon as possible to ensure she didn’t go overboard.
    Weddings—bah!
    The driving summer shower that had blown in only added insult to injury. Without an umbrella, she held her purse over her head and jogged to her mother’s blue Buick. After dropping the keys twice, she fumbled her way into the car. Her hair dripping wet, she sat behind the gigantic steering wheel and shivered for a few seconds, then turned over the engine. The best thing about Belle’s car was that it was so huge, other drivers got out of the way—a phenomenon in Atlanta.
    But she’d traveled no farther than the other side of the shopping center when the