Alessia sat in her office, her fingers poised over her keyboard, but her thoughts were elsewhere. The soft hum of the air conditioning did little to soothe her frayed nerves as she tapped her pen against her desk. Something felt off. Her hand instinctively brushed over her left ring finger, and her heart sank.
The diamond ring was gone.
She froze, her breath catching in her throat. Her mother’s precious heirloom, the ring that had been passed down through generations, was missing. Her mind raced, retracing her steps over the past few days. The ball. The terrace. The…
Her stomach dropped.
“No,” she whispered to herself, standing abruptly and pacing around her office. “It can’t be.”
She racked her brain, trying to remember every detail from the night of the masquerade ball. She had worn the ring the entire evening—she was sure of it. But when she slipped out of that room, she had been in such a hurry that she hadn’t checked to make sure she had everything. Her hand clenched into a fist as the realization hit her like a ton of bricks.
She must have left it at the house.
Alessia groaned, sinking back into her chair. The thought of having to confront that man—the mysterious stranger from her one-night stand—made her palms sweat. She buried her face in her hands, trying to figure out what to do next.
Her phone buzzed on the desk, jolting her out of her thoughts. She grabbed it, hoping it was a message from Pamela or someone with a distraction, but what she saw made her breath hitch.
It was from her mother.
Mom: Theo Deveraux just called me. He found a diamond ring at his house. Said it looks a lot like the one I gave you. Do you know anything about this?
Alessia’s heart raced as she read the message. Theo Deveraux? Of course. It was his house. She had somehow left her ring there, and now he’d found it.
Her thumbs hovered over the keyboard, unsure of how to respond. She couldn’t exactly tell her mom where she thought the ring might have been lost. Her stomach twisted as she realized that Theo probably had no idea why it was there or what had happened the night of the ball.
Alessia: I might have misplaced it. I’ll get in touch with him. Thanks for letting me know.
Her mother responded almost immediately.
Mom: You need to be more careful, Alessia. That ring is priceless. Theo said you can pick it up anytime. He’ll be home today.
Alessia sighed, leaning back in her chair. She wasn’t ready for this conversation, but she had no choice. The ring was too important, and she couldn’t leave it in Theo’s hands forever.