Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Chase carried an armload of fast food bags to the kitchen counter. “Who wants a regular cheeseburger, and who wants animal style?”
Haley was the first to come running. She collided with Chase’s legs, wrapping her little arms around him and looking up.
“Fies,” she said.
Ruby walked into the kitchen. “I told her fries were coming.”
After they’d gotten to Ruby’s apartment, Chase had volunteered to run out for food. While he was gone, Ruby must’ve combed out the braid in her hair, leaving soft waves.
Chase hadn’t thought she looked bad even after a night in jail, but now she looked much more like herself. In other words, gorgeous.
“Here you go, princess.” Chase handed a couple fries to Haley, who grabbed them in her fist.
Ruby grumbled at the term of endearment. She stopped when he held out the bag with her order.
“I got you a double-double animal style, and two orders of fries. As requested.”
“And I’ll love you forever for it. Even if you’re forcing archaic gender roles onto my kid.” Ruby winked as she took the bag. “But let us never speak of this again, because this is enough food for three people, and I’m going to scarf down every bite.”
“I’m not judging.” He leaned his hip against the counter. “How’s it going?” he murmured.
He knew that Ruby was probably putting on a brave face for the rest of them, her daughter especially, even if she did a convincing job of it. But he’d seen the cracks in her facade in the car on the way home. She was struggling. Anybody would be.
“My mom is calming down,” Ruby said. “Food is exactly what we need. Maybe everyone will take a nap instead of asking me questions I don’t want to answer.”
“I can run interference for you.”
“I appreciate the offer, Prince Charming, but I need to fight my own battles when I can.”
Chase shrugged. “But if you need backup, let me know.”
Aurora and Devon came into the kitchen, followed by Megan—Devon and Ruby’s mom—whose eyes were bloodshot and swollen from crying. They gathered around the table, paper bags and wrappers crinkling as they ate.
Damn, comfort food was a real thing. All the carbs and salt and fat warmed Chase’s stomach.
Ruby was sitting next to him. He knocked his knee against hers. “Good burger?”
“Hmmm.” She mumbled something, and he was pretty sure she’d said, Better than sex.
Which was a depressing thought. But accurate for him as well, given his lack of action in a very long time.
That made him wonder how long it had been for Ruby. Only thing better than comfort food was an orgasm.
Not like she’ll let you help her with that, dumbass.
She’d once commented that she could never fall for a cop after losing both her dad and brother. She hadn’t said it to Chase directly, and he doubted she’d been thinking of him at all. But that fact just made the sting all the worse.
“Ruby, you need to talk to us,” her mom said. “What I’ve been hearing so far just doesn’t make sense.”
Ruby didn’t look up from the remains of her lunch. “And what’s that?”
“Just what Devon and Chase shared. That your…” Megan glanced over at Haley, who was busy playing with a box she’d found. “Your ex was murdered? And you were there?”
Ruby almost never spoke about her ex, at least not to Chase’s knowledge. He figured that if her brother had known the guy’s identity, Devon would’ve paid him a visit and had some strong words for the asshole.
“His name was Michael Waverley. Mickey.” She rubbed her hand over her face. “I met him when we still lived in LA. It wasn’t that serious, and it was right after Kellen died. I wasn’t being very careful.”
Across the table, Devon’s shoulders stiffened, and his head bowed. Kellen had been killed responding to a mass shooter. Devon had been in the army then. Chase knew how guilty his friend had been that he couldn’t make it home when his family had needed him.
“By the time I gave birth to Haley, Mickey was already way out of the picture. Devon had just gotten back home, and we were about to move to West Oaks for him to start at Bennett Security. I didn’t tell Mickey where I was going, and he didn’t ask. He had my number, though. He could’ve called.”
“Why did Mickey contact you again, after all this time?” Megan asked.
Ruby looked up at her mom. “He wanted to see Haley. To share custody, or maybe get primary custody. I don’t know.”
Devon’s hands splayed on the table. “Why didn’t you tell us he’d contacted you? Why would you go there alone?”
Exactly what Chase had been wondering.
“Dev, I can’t get into all of it now. I just can’t. I’m so fucking tired.”
Megan cringed, but held back her usual plea for better language.
Chase brushed Ruby’s hand with his pinky under the table. She entwined her fingers with his.
“But there are going to be a lot more questions like this,” Devon said. “You need to think about how you’ll answer. You did good asking for a lawyer last night, and they can’t force you to testify, but if your story doesn’t make sense—”
“Oh my god, I know,” Ruby yelled.
Haley turned around at her mom’s outburst, and everyone froze.
“Mama?”
“Sorry, baby,” she whispered back. “I’m okay. Everything’s okay.”
Chase could feel her coming apart beside him. But she held onto his hand, and nothing in the world could’ve made him let her go.
Aurora was the first to speak again. “Ruby, no matter what happened, we will stand by you. Whatever took place yesterday, it’s in the past, and you did what you had to do. You don’t have to answer any questions you don’t want to answer.”
Chase nodded. So did Devon.
But Ruby glared at them. “Wait. You guys don’t actually think I did it, do you? You think I’m capable of killing someone?”
Again, silence.
Megan shrugged. “Well, honey, if some jerk threatened to take one of my kids, I’d open a can of whoop-ass, too.”
Aurora snickered first. Then Chase smiled, and Ruby laughed as her brother did.
“Glad to know you’re all willing to stand by me, even if I’m a killer.” Ruby rolled her eyes. “But I didn’t do it. I’m telling you the truth.” She sounded completely confident, if annoyed.
Half the tension in Chase’s muscles loosened. He hadn’t really thought she’d done it, but…jeez, it was good to know.
Then a new thought dawned on him, obvious though it was.
“That means the real killer is out there,” Chase said.
“Exactly. And he saw me.”
Aurora gasped. “Then you need a bodyguard. Like how Devon was guarding me after I witnessed that murder last year.”
“And you were so eager for him to protect you?” Ruby reminded her.
“After I realized the danger, then yeah, I was all for it!” Aurora bumped her shoulder against Devon’s. “Especially after I realized how cute he was.”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.” Chase’s stomach lurched, thinking of one of Devon’s fellow bodyguards watching after Ruby that way. Maybe if it was Noah or Tanner or another guy with a serious girlfriend…
“I agree.” Ruby got up from the table and scooped up Haley, who whimpered and reached for her toy, still wanting to play. “Before you all start planning out my entire life for me, I’m going to take a nap with my kid. I’m exhausted, and that makes me grumpy.”
“No gumpy,” Haley said.
Ruby bounced her daughter on her hip. “That’s right. No grumpy allowed.”
Haley pointed at Chase. “No gumpy, Chay-Chay!”
“Hey, I didn’t say a word!”
Ruby grinned at him, and his heart squeezed.
God, he loved them. Why did love have to hurt so fucking much?
Devon walked Chase out to his car. Now that Ruby was back with her daughter and in safe hands, Chase was ready to head home and crash. He’d been lucky not to have work today, but he did in the morning.
That was going to suck.
“I spoke to Max,” Devon said, “and Bennett Security is going to help Ruby’s defense attorney with her investigation.”
“That’s great news.”
“Thank you for everything, man. Especially for calling Noah. That didn’t even occur to me. My mind was all over the place last night.”
“Happy I could help.”
“I’m going to keep an eye on things here whenever I’m around,” Devon said, “but I was hoping you could do the same when you can.”
“Yeah. I’ll stop by every day. But think about it. Whoever really killed Mickey, they’ll want Ruby to take the fall. Whether it was a coincidence that she showed up then, or some kind of plan, the real killer has no reason to go after her so long as the police think she’s responsible.”
“Shit. So if we clear her name, then she’s in greater danger?”
Chase frowned. “Maybe. But she didn’t see the killer’s face. She can’t identify them.”
Devon shook his head. “Just keep an eye out for her, will you?”
“We both will.”
“You’ve always been there for my family whenever I’ve asked. That means a lot.”
About a year ago, when Devon had been protecting Aurora from a crime syndicate, Chase had stepped in to keep the rest of Devon’s family safe. Chase and Ruby had been acquaintances before, but those stressful days had bonded them together.
Afterward, Devon had asked some pointed questions about why Chase and Ruby were suddenly so close. Chase had told him the truth. That they were friends and nothing more.
Of course, Chase hadn’t shared that he’d wanted more.
He hadn’t fallen in love with Ruby right then. His feelings had taken longer to develop, to cement in his soul. To start feeling like a weight he was carrying around. A weight he wished he could set down, though that didn’t seem to be happening.
Devon gripped Chase’s shoulder. “We might’ve lost Kellen, but Ruby still has two brothers in her corner.”
Chase ignored the sting of guilt in his chest. He didn’t want to be Ruby’s brother, but he also didn’t want to explain his reasons. He settled on letting that comment go.
“I’ll look out for her,” Chase said. Because that was what really mattered. “Always.”