The Cherbourg Jewels (25 page)

“Don’t thank me yet.  I’m not finished,” he said, stepping away from the podium.  He descended the stairs down to the museum floor and made his way over to her, the crowd clearing a way before him with amused smiles and indulgent glances. 

As he stepped towards her, she felt as if all the stress and grief and anger of years past just dissolved.  Instead of chasing a killer, she could chase her own future—and she knew it was with him. 

He couldn’t hold back a smile as he approached her.  Seeing his happiness brought out her own and she smiled back at him.

He approached her and went down on one knee.

Ella gasped and held her hands to her face. 
This isn’t happening
, she thought. 
It’s too much.
She felt as if her heart might burst with happiness.

Sébastien’s green eyes glowed with all the warmth and love they’d shared since leaving O’Malley’s house, hand in hand.  “Ella,” Sébastien said, pulling a blue velvet box from his jacket pocket.  “I want you to know that this isn’t one of my family’s blood-stained diamonds.  This is something fresh and pure, a new start for both of us.” 

He opened the case and gave her an eye-popping view of a multi-carat diamond set in a plain silver band.  “It sparkles, like you.  It’s brilliant, like you.  It’s strong and it’s real.  And I would be honored if you would wear it for me.  Today and every day from here until the end.”

Ella couldn’t hold back the tears.  She was about to answer when she heard Frau Müller clear her throat.

“Please,” Sébastien added quickly.

Ella laughed through her tears of happiness.  “Since you asked so nicely,” she said, falling into his arms.

The End

What did you think? 
Would you have done what Ella and
Sébastien
did? 

Share your thoughts with me and your fellow readers!  I’d love to hear from you! You can comment on my blog at
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Author photo by Ryan Donahue

Jenni Wiltz writes mysteries, thrillers,
historical fiction, and romance.
Before devoting herself to writing, she worked as an editor, an advertising copywriter, a grant coordinator, and an assistant to very busy investment bankers.
 
She is thrilled to have won the 2011 RWA Kiss of Death Chapter’s Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Category Romantic Suspense, Unpublished Division.
 
Her short stories have appeared in
The Portland Review
, the
Sacramento News & Review
, and
The Copperfield Review
. She lives in Pilot Hill with her husband.