His Wife (A Contract Marriage Story) by Heer Mangtani

Chapter 54

Three.

That was the number of people- men, more precisely- that Gabriel almost fired for hitting on me in the first week of me working here.

They didn’t hit on me. One of them just asked if I wanted to grab drinks after work. I’m almost sure he meant it in a friendly way, and a few of our colleagues would’ve even joined us had I said yes.

I didn’t say yes, because Mike was already smirking and heading towards Gabriel’s office. That’s a silly bet Mike and Benny made about what Gabriel will do if someone gives me any problem here, or worse, hits on me.

Eye roll.

They were finding total amusement in their boss being ‘whipped as they called it.

Gabriel didn’t fire them. Any of them. He couldn’t, because if he did, he opens himself up to being sued for wrongful termination. He was too smart for that.

Instead, he buried them in so much paper work that they wouldn’t see the outside of the office for a week at least. Let alone have time to go out for drinks.

That weekend, the rings delivered. All the impulsive shopping at the jeweller’s had caught up because there were thirty rings sitting in front of us in our room that Sunday.

Thirty. Diamond. Rings.

I hadn’t worn my ring since I removed it, and I had no intention of putting it back on my finger after knowing the little story

that backs it

“Which one do you like?” He asked as if I’d gotten a lot of choice in picking them in the first place.

“All.” I replied as I sat on his bed- ours now, and crossed my feet.

“Choose one, Freckles.”

“You choose.”

He got up from the chair he was sitting on, a couple ring boxes in his hand and placed them on the bed in front of me, sitting across. “I narrowed it down to five. Now, pick one.”

I shake my head again. “You pick,” I emphasise on the word you. It’s a replacement to my wedding ring and I don’t want t choose it myself.”

His expression softens, and then he begins looking at the different rings. They were all so pretty, it was annoying how long he was taking to select one. Mid way through his selection process, he got more rings from the side table, and was now staring at eight of them.

I hid a smile looking at his eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

he picked one up.

box to see which one he had picked since I had been busy

“Show me!”

1/4

of the box, and then asks for my hand. I place mine in his forwarded hand, and he slips in a ring I hadn’t

clear pear shaped diamonds almost touching, and a diamond band surrounding it. It went

ring was a lot simpler than my last one, but for

look up at Gabriel, a little surprised. I haven’t seen this one before. We didn’t

your Grandpa’s. He words it so carefully, as if I’ll crack if he mentions after you found out that ring

way because talking about the other two, even thinking about it, brought back the hollowness in my chest, which I was recognising was

blink. “Then why did you take so

those idiots sent it with all the other

which ring you chose

Of course not. Do you think I have the memory of an Alzheimer’s patient?” He

I was

my expression, he adds, “I just wasn’t sure if I should go with that one because it’s a

also the urge to lean to his side and kiss him. “I think this ring

mine and

mean I

in his eyes.

at the fact that I owned thirty diamond rings. Thirty-one, sorry. Thirty-two, if you count my old wedding ring that was in one of the drawers

Holy shit.

strikes me. “Wait! Is this all

his eyes focused at me. “Why? Are you unhappy with something? Do you want to go pick

I hastily reply before he gets any

He c*cks an eyebrow.

sentence, “I had ordered a ring for

charged for just these

heat. I don’t answer, letting him reach

you paid for it

I nod.

what?” His lips part, and now he’s sitting upright, all his attention on me. Eyes

just wanted to…

money is

“And yours is yours.”

and do whatever you want with it. Not to

family provided for your ring too at our wedding. At to

able to pay for a good one. I am now So I

while we’re talking about this, I’m just realising that I haven’t been notified of any transactions on my Amex card. When was the