“A necklace.”
“Of course.”
He gestured toward a row of cases nearer the entrance.
“Our contemporary collection begins over there.”
Naomi looked past him instead.
At the central showcase.
The necklace inside was extraordinary.
White diamonds formed a clean geometric descent around a vivid blue central stone.
Not the necklace she had come to collect.
But close enough in design language that she wanted to see it properly.
She walked toward the case.
Elliot followed.
Naomi stopped.
“How large is the center stone?”
“Six point two carats.”
“Untreated?”
His eyebrows lifted slightly.
“Yes.”
“Origin?”
“Colombia.”
She leaned closer to the glass.
The stone caught the chandelier light.
“Beautiful.”
“It is.”
Naomi looked toward him.
“I’d like to see it.”
Elliot hesitated.
Then smiled.
“That piece begins at five hundred and forty thousand dollars.”
Naomi said nothing for a moment.
Not because the number surprised her.
Because the sentence had not answered the request.
She looked back at the necklace.
“I’d still like to see it.”
Elliot’s smile became thinner.
“Of course. Although our custom pieces aren’t generally taken out simply for browsing.”
There it was.
Not loud.
Not crude.
That was rarely how this kind of thing worked in rooms like this.
The insult arrived dressed as policy.
Naomi turned fully toward him.
“I’m not browsing.”
“You’re considering purchase?”
“I’m considering the necklace.”
He gave a quiet laugh.
The sound was small.
Almost private.
Naomi heard it anyway.
“So that’s a yes?”
Elliot glanced toward another customer.
Then back.
“If you’d like, I can show you several pieces in a more comfortable range.”
Naomi felt no immediate anger.
That surprised even her.
What she felt first was curiosity.
She wanted to know how far he would go.
“What range do you consider comfortable for me?”
The question disrupted him.
Only slightly.
“I didn’t mean you personally.”
“You used the word.”
“I meant we have collections beginning around twenty thousand dollars that might be more appropriate for a first visit.”
“A first visit?”
“Yes.”
Naomi looked around.
“Do you require previous purchases before showing this necklace?”
“No.”
“Membership?”
“No.”
“Credit preauthorization?”
“Not exactly.”
“Then what determines whether someone may see it?”
Elliot smiled as if speaking with an unusually stubborn child.
“Experience.”
“Whose?”
“Ours.”
Naomi nodded slowly.
“That’s interesting.”
He interpreted her calmness as surrender.
“We pride ourselves on matching clients with appropriate pieces rather than creating uncomfortable situations.”
Naomi almost smiled.