8. Ruby
Shit.
She hadn’t stopped thinking about the two men she’d just gotten off the phone with since she’d left the club, and now they wanted to meet with her. They’d probably decided she was too much of a brat to be allowed at their club, so they were bringing her in to tell her not to come back.
Except if they wanted to kick her out, they could have just called and told her not to come back.
She really didn’t know what to think and was too tired to think rationally. Every night since she’d met Jace and Zane, she’d lay in bed all night, tossing and turning as thoughts of them ran through her mind.
They were both so different, and each of them affected her in different ways. Jace was definitely the less serious one of the two and even though he was tall and muscular, she didn’t feel as intimidated by him as she did around Zane. She had no doubt that Jace could be scary as heck when he needed to be but for some reason, she just felt at ease. Like he was a soft blanket wrapped around her keeping her warm and safe.
It wasn’t that she didn’t feel safe around Zane because she did. She was pretty sure the man would break limbs to protect the people he cared about. Not that he cared about her. But she still felt safe in a different way. Even though he was much more serious and easier to tease, she suspected that Zane was a man who cared deeply about others. She also suspected he would be the type of Daddy to put up with no shit. And just looking at his large hands had made her heart race and bottom clench.
Leaning back into the couch at her penthouse, Ruby sighed and smiled as she thought about the two men. Even if they did kick her out of their club, she would always remember the night they’d both put her in the corner. Just the thought of them doing that had her reaching for her vibrator each night. Not that it had helped her sleep. No, it just seemed to make her feel more restless and hornier than she already was.
Closing her eyes, she pulled her knees up to her chest and relaxed. She was going to see her guys again and that thought alone had her drifting into a sleepy wonderland.
The feeling of her phone vibrating woke her up with a start as she sat up straight and fumbled to grab the device. Jace’s name showed on the screen. Looking at the clock, she jumped up when she realized it was already fifteen minutes past noon.
Dropping her phone on the couch, she ran to her bedroom and started pulling off her pajamas, dropping them on the floor as she hopped around the room looking for something to wear. Grabbing a pair of clean, white cotton panties, she pulled them up her legs and then did the same with a pair of pale pink leggings.
Digging through her dresser, she found an oversized pink sweatshirt and a bra and threw those on as quickly as she could. Grabbing a pair of white Converse from her closet, Ruby hopped on one foot and then the other as she put them on and sloppily tied the laces.
She practically ran out of her apartment to the elevator. When the elevator doors closed, she sighed heavily. Whew! What a rush. She wasn’t used to having to be anywhere at a certain time. The men could wait, though. Especially if they were going to kick her out of their club. Maybe she shouldn’t have even agreed to meet with them.
Walking through the parking garage, she dug through her purse for her key fob. The club was only about twenty minutes from her apartment. She steered the car out of the parking garage and was turning onto the street when she remembered Zane practically barking at her to wear her seatbelt.
Rolling her eyes, she grabbed the strap and belted herself in as she drove wildly through the Seattle traffic, hoping to cut her drive time down.
Eighteen minutes later, she pulled into the parking lot of the club and parked right in the front. Since it was the middle of the day, the parking lot was almost empty aside from a lifted Jeep SUV and a Range Rover SUV.
Hmm, why was Jace making such a big deal about her Mercedes if one of them had a Range Rover?
Throwing her door open, Ruby hopped down from the driver’s seat and walked to the front door of the club, gasping when the door swung open and a very angry-looking Zane stood there glaring at her.
Uh-oh.
“Little girl, where the hell have you been? Do you know how worried we’ve been? You didn’t answer our calls. We thought maybe you’d been in an accident or kidnapped or slipped and fell in your driveway or-”
“Geez! Negative thinking much? Calm down, Zaddy. I’m here. I forgot my phone at home,” she said, rolling her eyes dramatically.
Why her brat was rising to the surface, she had no idea. She was poking a very big, scary bear and she knew it.
A small woman stepped out from behind Zane and peered up at him and then at Ruby, offering her a shy smile before turning to Zane again.
“See you tomorrow,” the woman said.
Zane’s features softened dramatically and suddenly Ruby felt more jealous than she’d ever felt in her life.
“See you tomorrow, Gabby Girl,” Zane said gently, winking at her.
The small woman offered Ruby another smile as she walked past them toward the Range Rover. Looking back at Zane, she narrowed her eyes when she noticed him watching the woman until she was in her car.
“Well, I’m sorry to interrupt your ogling, but I’m here so what the hell do you guys want?” she snapped.
The speed of him moving his gaze from the SUV to Ruby’s face made her stomach sink as his deep green eyes landed on her.
“You’re in so much trouble it’s not even funny. Inside. Now.”
He motioned for her to enter and even though she wasn’t afraid of Zane, she hesitated before walking past him into the club. Jace came striding out toward them, a look of both concern and anger on his face.
“Where have you been? We’ve been so worried. I’ve been calling and texting you,” Jace barked.
Double uh-oh.
Jace crossed his arms over his chest, making her shrink back slightly, only to hit a hard wall of muscle. Looking back, she realized she’d backed right into Zane’s chest.
“I fell asleep. Sorry. But it looks like you guys were plenty entertained with that other woman, so I’ll just go.”
She turned to step around Zane but was instead swooped up into the air and thrown over his shoulder.
“Hey, put me down! What the fuck!”
A sharp smack to her bottom made her freeze and then start wiggling.
“Put me down!”
Another sharp smack.
So she did the only thing that seemed appropriate. She smacked Zane’s butt. Except his butt was as hard as steel, unlike her jiggly one, making her wince.
“Did you seriously just do that? Little girl, you’re testing my patience right now and I suggest you quit before the hole you’re digging gets even deeper,” Zane growled.
Triple uh-oh.