Free Greater Than Rubies, a Novella inspired by the Jewel Trilogy by Hallee A. Bridgeman Page B

very important. I sponsor a special youth camp each year in support of children and families of our fallen heroes. Marcus runs the kitchen for that camp every summer. I think that is where his heart really is, with those children.”
    “You are an amazing man, Tony Viscolli. I love you more with every waking moment.”
    “You are an amazing and beautiful woman, Robin Bartlett. And I can hardly wait to change your name.”
    Feeling a little overwhelmed, Robin decided to change the subject, “I cannot believe we will be married in two months.”
    Tony ran his hand down her arm. “Sixty-six days and a wake-up.”
    She put her hands on her cheeks. “Sixty-six days,” she said. “I don’t even know what to do next.”
    Tony pulled her into his arms. “You pick out your dress, select table settings and flowers, and keep counting down the days with me. I love you, cara, and our wedding will be beautiful, whatever the arrangements.”
     

     
    OBIN nervously fiddled with her ring while she waited for the Inside Boston magazine reporter to arrive. She sat in the conference room adjacent to the office of Tony’s public relations manager, Linda Cross. She still wore the clothes and makeup from the photo shoot that had taken place in a room just down the hall. She’d hoped Tony could be there for the photos, but the magazine had specifically requested only her.
    The door opened and Robin’s heart lurched, but Linda entered alone. She was short and stocky, with a thick waist and jet black hair. Thick glasses with square black frames dominated her face. “Don will be in momentarily,” she said. “He’s signing some papers for me right now.” She raised an eyebrow behind her glasses. “No worries, Miss Bartlett. I’ll be here the whole time.”
    “I’ve just never done this before.” She licked her lips.
    “A year from now, it will be old hat,” Linda assured. Robin wondered if she meant that to intimidate her or make her feel more at ease, because, honestly, she wasn’t feeling better in the wake of that remark.
    A tap at the door preceded the entrance of Don Roberts. He was younger than Robin, tall, boy-next-door good looking with straight brown hair and a fake tan. Nothing about him made her feel at ease about this interview.
    He shook her hand - again - then sat in the chair adjacent to her. He took a phone out of his pocket, pressed a series of buttons on it, then set it on the table in front of her. She could only assume he’d activated some sort of recording device. “Miss Bartlett, Robin, thank you for giving me this opportunity.”
    “It’s my pleasure,” she said around a suddenly too-dry mouth.
    “Let’s go ahead and cover the basics. Tell us how you met Tony.”
    This was the first person outside of church to address Tony as Tony and not Mr. Viscolli. It intrigued Robin. “He, ah, bought a restaurant where I worked.” She cleared her throat. “We met then.”
    “When was that?”
    “Last fall.”
    “And, to add a spice of romance to our story, how did he propose?”
    Robin smiled and relaxed, thinking back. “Christmas Eve, on the beach in the Florida Keys.”
    “That’s really nice,” Don said. He smiled. “Tony Viscolli is a powerful force in the business world, and not just in the Boston area. He has businesses all over the country and thousands of employees. What do you think drew him to you in particular?”
    Uncomfortable, Robin shrugged. “I really couldn’t tell you. You’d have to ask him.”
    “But we can probably guess what drew you to him, right?”
    Robin put her hands in her lap and laced her fingers, squeezing them tightly. “If you knew his heart, or anything about him personally, you’d not have to ask that question. He is amazing and generous and loving, and I feel so incredibly blessed.”
    “Is he?”
    “I beg your pardon?”
    “Is he really all those things? Or simply uninformed?”
    Robin felt her eyebrows crease under the thick makeup from the photo