Watts twisted the diamond stud in her right earlobe. It was hard and sharp, leaving a series of tiny depressions in her fingertips. After months of constant wear, they'd become an extension of her. She never removed them—not even in the shower.
She'd forced Keith return them, of course. Whether he intended to go to college or not, the idea that he had cleaned out his savings account so that she could own a pair of tiny, impractical baubles, was completely preposterous. It simply wasn't the way that things should be done. Period. End of story.
Naturally, she'd told Keith exactly that. She even walked him to the jewelry store, removed the earrings from her ears and dropped them into his palm, giving him a not-so-gentle shove toward the door.
Unfortunately, there was one major glitch . . . . For as docile and self-effacing as Keith could often be, he was also incredibly stubborn. Watts had, of course, known that about him. She'd intended to override his insistence, though, as she so often did, by bullying him into doing what she wanted. In life—and especially with Keith— sometimes a little tough love was exactly what was required.
She reminded him about the impracticability of the purchase. She insisted that there were many, many other ways that he could use the money, all of which made far more sense than did a pair of diamond studs that he couldn't even enjoy. He, of course, countered by saying that he enjoyed seeing her wearing them very much—especially when they were the only thing she was wearing. So, that definitely hadn't been the angle to take. Damn him. And yes, he made her blush when he said it. Double damn him.
She even resorted to blatant dishonesty, claiming that they were gaudy and that she didn't want them anywhere near her ears. For a moment, she thought she actually wounded him and had been ashamed of herself for being the one to wield that particular sword. But then, he smiled, and flipping her hand like a pancake, he dropped the earrings back into her palm and closed her fingers over them.
"You're lying," he said as he brushed a kiss across her forehead and walked away.
Jaw to floor, Watts didn't know what to do next. Having exhausted the tools at her disposal, she realized that her bullish desire to force Keith into doing "the right thing" had been muzzled by the unassailable combination of Keith's questionable judgment and his obstinance.
"Are you coming?" he called back over his shoulder as he walked down the sidewalk away from the jewelry store.
And that had been the end of it. She'd kept the earrings.