Dark Stranger Immortal (The Children of the Gods #3)(13)

“You do that, as you never actually sleep here… But no worries; we’ll have plenty of good times together. It’s not like I’m a long commute away, right?”

“Right… Well, I’m going to pack my stuff and then finally do some work.” Syssi walked over to the kitchen to rinse out her glass.

“Okay, party pooper. Now you’ve guilted me into doing some work as well.” Amanda pushed up from the couch and sauntered over to the bar.

Making herself another drink, she turned to Syssi. “Want one?” she asked.

“No, thank you, I don’t want a repeat of what happened the last time you kept pushing margaritas at me…” Syssi grimaced and headed for her room to pack.

It didn’t take long until most of her belongings were neatly folded and packed into the duffle bag. But when she got to the velvet pouch containing her modest collection of jewelry, instead of adding it to the rest of her stuff, she turned around and dumped its contents on top of the dresser.

Sifting through the small pile of earrings, she sighed. None would work for her date with Kian. The diamond studs were okay, but they were as good as invisible beneath her full, wavy hair, and the rest of the stuff was just too plain for the occasion.

The same was true for the necklaces and bracelets. None of the bracelets would look good matched with the gleaming silver cuff on her right hand.

And as for the necklaces, she didn’t feel like taking off Andrew’s pendant for something flashier even if the gold didn’t go with the silver of the cuff.

“Oh, well…” Syssi returned everything to the pouch. Turning around, she found Amanda leaning against the doorjamb and sipping from her drink.

“I’ll be right back,” Amanda said. Leaving her goblet on the dresser, she stepped out and headed down the hallway.

A few minutes later, she returned with an ornate jewelry box. Placing it on the dresser, she lifted its lid with marked reverence.

Inside, nestled in black velvet, was a gorgeous set of platinum and diamond earrings and a matching necklace. Syssi had never seen jewelry as beautiful as this. And even though she knew next to nothing about the styles or designer names of the fine-jewelry world, she had no doubt it was a one of a kind masterpiece.

“I want you to wear this tomorrow.” Amanda put her hand on Syssi’s shoulder. “Go ahead… try it on…,” she urged.

“Are you serious? Would you really let me borrow this for tomorrow? It’s stunning! Where did you get it? It must be one of a kind.”

“It is. It was a present from my mother for my two-hundredth birthday. I have no idea who she commissioned to make it, but I’m certain she ensured it was the only one made.” Amanda ran her fingers over the surface of the beautiful necklace.

“It must be very special to you. I will feel weird wearing it… even for one evening.” As much as Syssi was tempted, she knew she would be constantly stressed and worried that something might happen to it. The set was priceless, irreplaceable.

“You mean a lot to me, Syssi.” Amanda’s tone got so uncharacteristically serious, it compelled Syssi to pry her gaze away from the jewelry and look up at her friend’s face.

Amanda still wore that reverent expression, except, it wasn’t directed at the masterpiece in the box. She was looking at Syssi.

Syssi’s eyes misted with emotion. “You mean a lot to me too.” She wrapped her arm around Amanda’s shoulders and pulled her into a hug.

Amanda leaned into her for a moment, her soft hair brushing against Syssi’s neck. Then pulling back, she placed both hands on Syssi’s shoulders and pinned her with her intense blue stare. “In the short time I’ve known you, I’ve come to think of you as a sister. I’m not that close to my real sisters, who are much older and busy with their own responsibilities, and I only became close to Kian when I moved here and he took me under his wing. But regardless of how things will turn out for the two of you, my feelings for you will not change. I want you to have the set, not only for tomorrow but to keep —as a symbol of our friendship.”

Touching a finger to Syssi’s lips, Amanda shushed her protests. “Hear me out. I want to give you something that has a special meaning to me and is close to my heart. And I can’t think of anything else that will better fit the bill. Money means nothing to me, so anything I may buy for you wouldn’t be special enough. Don’t say no, let me have the pleasure of knowing you are carrying on your person a token of my love.”

Syssi was moved to tears. At some point during the last several days, she’d grown to care deeply for the complicated woman; there was no way she was going to jeopardize their nascent bond by being callous with Amanda’s feelings. And as she saw no way to refuse without offending her friend, she was left with no choice but to accept.

But she’d have to gift Amanda something of equal value back. Except, the value would have to be in the sentiment it carried since she didn’t own anything even remotely close to the monetary worth of that set. Syssi suspected that even her car, which had been pretty expensive, wasn’t worth that much.

This left only one thing she could think of. Grasping at the necklace Andrew had given her on her sixteenth birthday, she opened the tiny clasp and took it off.

“If I’m to accept this gift from you, then you have to accept this from me.