Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 76205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 381(@200wpm)___ 305(@250wpm)___ 254(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 381(@200wpm)___ 305(@250wpm)___ 254(@300wpm)
“Except for your jobs,” I say.
“All I need to do is call Mom. She’s running the show now, and she won’t mind running it for another few days.”
That much is true. Donny is our mother’s Achilles’ heel. She and he have a bond the rest of us don’t share with her.
“If the two of you are sure,” I say.
“Absolutely,” Callie says, smiling. “This is what’s best for us and for you and Maddie. Donny and I have seen two concerts, one with Dragon and one without. We’re good.”
I give my brother a quick hug and kiss him on the cheek. “You’re awesome,” I say.
Donny wipes his cheek where I kissed him. “Don’t you forget it. Now get out of here, grab a cab, go back to the hotel, and shower, and see if you can get a few hours of rest. Then, I want you to meet Callie and me at The Old Bank of England on Fleet Street at one p.m. That’s where we’re meeting Ennis for lunch. Be sure to try the priest.”
As tired as I am, I laugh at my brother. Donny can always make me laugh.
After a shower, a few hours of quick sleep, and a pot of lovely English tea, I take a cab and exit in front of The Old Bank of England on Fleet Street. Another gorgeous building that I wish Diana were here to see, but since I know nothing about architecture and I’m starving, I don’t take the time to memorize any more details. I walk into the restaurant.
Dark paneling and brass fixtures adorn the dining room. On the walls are historical artwork, photographs, and memorabilia related to Fleet Street’s history as a center of journalism and publishing. A full bar stands to one side, and the seating options are varied and include wooden tables and cozy booths.
I spy Donny, Callie, and Ennis at a table near the back.
“I see my party,” I say to the hostess.
“Brilliant. Go on back, then.”
“Ms. Steel,” Ennis says, “so lovely to see you once again.”
I shake his outstretched hand. “Please, you knew me when I was a baby. Call me Brianna. Or Bree.”
“Then you must call me Ennis.”
He and Donny both rise, and Ennis holds a chair for me.
Callie’s holding the list of alcoholic beverages, and she hands it to Ennis. “You know way more than I do about this kind of stuff.”
Ennis stares at her hand.
“That’s a lovely ring.”
“Yes, isn’t it?”
“I noticed it when you were at my house for tea the other day, but I didn’t get this good a look at it. May I?”
Callie holds her left hand out, and Ennis takes it, eyeing the ring.
“May I ask where you got this?” he asks Donny.
Donny nods. “It’s actually a copy of a ring that used to belong to my mother. We haven’t been able to ascertain where the original came from.”
Ennis closes his eyes. “I never dared hope.”
“Hope what?” Callie asks.
“You still have the original, then? I’d heard it had been stolen.”
“Yes, it’s in my father’s safe,” Donny says.
“It has the initials LW inside,” Callie says. “Donny and his parents haven’t been able to figure out where it came from or why Daphne even had it.”
“Yeah,” Donny says. “My grandmother’s—Daphne’s mother’s—initials were LW. Lucy Wade. But she came from a modest background, and she never would’ve been able to afford a ring like this. It’s a fire diamond, and it’s priceless.”
“Yes, I know.”
Donny cocks his head. “How do you know about it?”
“Because I’m the one who gave it to Daphne.”
Chapter Eleven
Jesse
I tossed and turned all night in the room next to Brock and Rory’s suite, and when I finally did get some sleep, Brianna haunted my dreams.
Every song I’ve ever written went through my mind, and somehow I found a way to relate every one of them to Brianna Steel.
My thoughts and feelings have taken me over—and frankly, they’re disturbing.
By the time I get up and take a shower, it’s nearly noon. We’re taking a late train to Edinburgh tonight, and I can’t stand the thought of leaving Dragon here.
But he’s not ready to do the concerts yet, so we’re going to leave him here. He’ll be released to the hotel, and apparently Brianna and Maddie will be staying there.
I made arrangements to meet Brock and Rory for lunch to go over everything from here on out until Dragon can return to the tour when we head across the English Channel to Paris. Then I’ll have a little time to go see Dragon in the hospital before we leave for Edinburgh.
I hurry to the restaurant, making it just in time. Brock and Rory are already sitting at a table.
“I was just about to text you,” Rory says.
I yawn. “I overslept. It took a while for me to get to sleep, so I needed it.”