Timing

SAM

The small, black bin my mother pointed out on the top ledge of their bedroom closet took some tugging, but luckily for me, I got it down without causing an avalanche.

I paced over to their king-sized mattress, setting it down for her to check inside and see if it contained the albums she wanted. Instead, though, she motioned for me to join her, sitting on the edge of the beige satin duvet.

~Oh, okay. So this is what’s going on.~

When I was younger, Ma would always pull me aside into my bedroom if she wanted to have a serious talk about my emotions.

Did I give off a vibe downstairs, signaling I was unhappy or stressed? What if Evie got that impression too? I found myself anxious to get back down there, to assure Evie of how excited I was.

But first, I sank down beside my mother for a chat.

“So…” She sighed. “How are you feeling? Truly?”

“Honestly, I feel great, Ma. I love Evie. The thought of spending the rest of my life with her and this baby is nothing short of magical.”

Ma smiled as if that was precisely what she’d expected. Her chocolate eyes peeled from mine and drifted to her engagement ring, a gold band with a single circular diamond in its center. She slipped it from her finger and held it out to me.

My smile faded as I realized that she wasn’t just holding it between the two of us for me to admire. She wanted me to use this ring to propose to Evie.

“Ma, I—I’m not gonna take that from you.”

“It’s been in my family for generations,” Ma argued. “Your great-grandmother wore it. It’s not just mine…I want you to have it. And then when your son or daughter grows up, you can give it to them next.”

I slowly accepted the jewelry, gawking at it. “Why didn’t you give this to me when I married Carla?”

She smiled sadly. “Believe it or not, I had a feeling I should hold onto it.”

~Mothers. They always know.~

I didn’t spend too much time on that thought, because as I studied the rainbow hues reflecting through the clear stone, another concern pushed forward.

“Ma, even if I wanted to give this to Evie, we haven’t even been together a full month.”

“That’s all it took for Fernando and me,” she said.

My forehead pinched. “Really?”

“We skipped the entire engagement, and within a month, I married my best friend,” she said, smiling as if she were reliving the moment as she spoke it. “Time is a rule. And often, rules are broken. Sometimes for good, sometimes for bad.

“Either way, your ~heart~ is the judge. Not expectations, not rules, and certainly not some man-made box that happens to tell the time.”

All I could do was stare at her. The woman had always been a champion at giving me advice, but I had to assume her wise words also came with age. I didn’t know what I would do without her.

“You know my bio dad was an idiot, right?” I asked with a smile.

“I’m glad he was. Because if he wasn’t, I wouldn’t have met Fernando,” she said, grinning. “Just make sure you ask Evie’s father before you propose.”

I slid the ring into my pocket and gave her a lengthy hug.

“Now, come on,” she barked. “Before they wonder where we’ve gone.”

We rose from the bed, and I snagged the photo album out of the bin to take back to the living room.

“Is everything all right?” Evie asked as I set the album on the coffee table in front of her.

“Perfect,” I muttered, giving her a peck on the lips and parking beside her on the sofa. I could tell by her confused smile she was suspicious of my chipper demeanor, so I toned it down a little.

Of course, I wouldn’t ask her to marry me anytime soon. She’d think I was nuts and run for the hills—or worse, back to Washington. But it was nice to have Ma’s ring in my pocket even so.

After an excruciating hour of going through photos, Evie’s phone chimed: Saanvi informing us they’d made it home and were ready for company whenever we were.

***

“I can’t believe you forgot to eat,” Evie scolded her mother as soon as we arrived. “No wonder you got lightheaded. I know you’re always busy cooking for everyone else, but you have to make sure to feed yourself too!”

She sat down beside Eleanor with an arm around her shoulder before looking up at me. “Sam, before we all…talk, can you grab the last few boxes from my room to take to the car? I want to finish up with this move into my apartment finally.”

I flashed her an okay sign, more than willing to delay dropping any baby bombs for a few more minutes. Even after my parents took the news so well, I wasn’t eager to tell Eleanor and Fredrick that I’d impregnated their daughter.

The stack of boxes was waiting right in the middle of Evie’s bedroom floor, but when I grabbed the first one, its poorly taped flaps popped open, revealing a small ebony jewelry box.

The red tinge of its wood sent my stomach plummeting as I realized: even if I wanted to ask Evie to marry me at some point, I didn’t even know her damn ring size.

What if Ma’s ring was too small for her? What if it was too big and just slipped off her finger? Talk about a mood killer.

I set the box back on top of the pile and opened the flaps to rifle through Evie’s jewelry, looking for a ring to compare Ma’s to.

I found plenty of rings, but they were all different sizes—probably because Evie wore them on all different fingers. There was no way this was going to help my cause.

Someone cleared their throat from behind me, sending me bouncing from my skin. I spun to see Saanvi furrowing her dark brows at me.

“What’re you doing?” she asked.

“What’re ~you~ doing?” I echoed in a defensive tone.

“I came up here to offer some help, but I can see you’re already helping yourself…to my sister’s jewelry.”

~Fuck. Does she think I’m stealing?~

“This isn’t what it looks like,” I said.

“Okay.” Saanvi shrugged, crossing her arms over her chest. “Then what is it?”

Should I just tell Saanvi the truth? Or would she just think I was as insane as I felt at this moment?

I sighed, dragging Ma’s ring from my pocket to show her. “My mother gave me this today to give to Evie when the time is right. I was just trying to figure out Evie’s ring size. I mean, I’m not gonna ask her anytime soon, I just—”

“Are you kidding me?” Saanvi interrupted. “You knocked up my sister on a one-night stand, faked a relationship with her to appease us even though you were her boss, fell in love with her, and now you’re snooping through her belongings.

“If you don’t propose to her at this point, I’ll call the police and tell them you ~were~ stealing.”

I furrowed my brows. “Wait, you know I’m her boss?”

“Is that all you got outta that? Really?” Saanvi asked in disgust. “I know everything, Sam.” She turned to leave me to my snooping.

“Oh, and, uh”—she glanced over her shoulder as she clutched the doorknob—“her left ring finger’s a size seven. Just so you know.”