For such a pleasant-looking woman, she wasn't very pleasant-sounding at all. Frustrated by her sudden rejection (or at least what he viewed as a rejection), Albert grabbed her wrist once more — a bit more tightly than before — and tugged her closer to him. He couldn't even move his eyes away from her, let alone turn and run away from her.

"Don't worry about that," he insisted hoarsely. "I'll buy you a knew shiny necklace, how about that?" The way he spoke suggested that he was telling rather than offering; there was no way he was about to leave her side.