We have ten minutes to get ready before we head to Diane’s Christmas dinner party, which isn’t enough time at all considering I have to be in a formal gown. Michael hops out of bed and gets dressed in record speed. “Wait here,” he says and runs out to his car. I spy on him through my bedroom window, wondering what he is up to. He pulls a black box out of his trunk and comes back inside. “I picked this up for you the other day. Thought you might need something formal to wear,” Michael says. “What is it?” I ask. “Just open the damn box,” he says with a crooked smile. I love his smile. I open it and inside is a white, floor-length chiffon dress with silver and clear rhinestone embroidery on the bodice. The sleeves are long and sheer and there’s a chiffon scarf that goes with it. “And,” Michael says, holding up a small black box. Inside is a necklace. “Is that real?” I laugh, thinking yeah, right. “Twenty four diamonds, totaling forty-eight carats of grade A diamonds.”
