Chapter 3He Thinks He's the Other Man

An ex-boyfriend or a gold necklace. The choice was obvious. Ditch the man, take the gold.

I turned my full attention back to the task at hand.

“Ma’am, you have excellent taste,” the sales associate chirped. “This Stargazer Locket is our bestseller. It’s just over twenty-six grams.”

It was beautiful. It was also over budget.

I glanced at my mom. She was smiling, a serene, pleasant expression on her face. But I could see the glint of steel in her eyes. A silent threat. Don’t you dare.

I meekly put the locket down and picked up a smaller, more delicate butterfly charm.

“Oh, that one is so unique!” the associate said. “It looks dainty, but it’s solid gold. Twenty-eight grams!”

Good lord. I was getting worse at this, not better. I dropped the butterfly as if it were hot and shot my mom a desperate, pleading look.

My mother, a woman with an entire jewelry box full of gold, was a pro. She stepped in, her hands confidently selecting several pieces that were both stylish and, blessedly, within budget.

Liam’s mom was impressed. “You have a wonderful eye. Those pieces are perfect for young women today.”

Just as I was about to make my final choice, my phone buzzed again. A text message this time, not an iMessage. Liam had found a loophole.

[Liam]: That mother-in-law of yours is all talk. She won’t even buy you a bigger necklace. What’s the point of a marriage like that?

I, a grown woman who had been living on her own for years, was being gifted a beautiful piece of jewelry by my mother, and this guy was questioning it?

[Me]: None of your business!

I hit send and then blocked his number from my phone’s call and text list, too. He never initiated contact, so I’d completely forgotten to delete him after the breakup.

Now my phone would finally be quiet. I chose a simple, elegant chain my mom and I both loved.

As we were leaving, my mom and Liam’s mom were exchanging numbers, making plans to try a hot yoga class together.

I learned later that after I left, Liam walked back to the counter and, under his mother’s baffled gaze, bought both the Stargazer Locket and the butterfly charm I had been looking at.

His mother hesitated. “Honey… that girl is married.”

“Doesn’t matter,” he said.