Chapter 5
Chapter Five
RUBY
“So, you’re Ruby.”
Tall and muscled, with light brown hair and freckles, Micah’s friend flashes me a bright smile and offers his hand. His gaze dips to my neck, and his features go hard for a moment. But just as quickly, his expression shifts to friendly again.
“It’s nice to meet the mysterious woman who got Knight into cooking,” he continues. “The extent of my cooking expertise is microwaving frozen dinners. And stopping into the bakery to pick up these.”
With the hand not holding mine, he holds up a white cardboard box for display. “Not for now, of course,” he explains. “But I thought you guys might like them for later.”
“Hi,” I reply, hiding my wince when my throat protests. I’ve been drinking tea and water since I got up, but it hasn’t helped much. “I’m not sure I’m the one who got Micah into cooking. He joined the class before he even met me.”
“But he stuck it out.” He flicks a glance at Micah. “How many weeks now? And it’s not like you need to cook for yourself. Not when—”
“Maybe you could try introducing yourself,” Micah interrupts. “Instead of going on about cooking.”
I already know who he is, since Micah told me before answering the door. This man with the friendly smile and smattering of freckles is Jester—aka Jaxon—who first served with Micah on the same Delta team and now works at Fox putting himself in danger in the process. If my attacker had still been inside my apartment when Micah arrived, who knows what could have happened. Micah could have been hurt. Badly injured. Even killed.
My stomach lurches. The idea of Micah getting hurt is awful on its own. And if he was hurt protecting me? That’s even worse.
“Ruby?” Micah rubs my shoulder gently. “Are you okay? Do you need to rest? If you’re not up for this yet, that’s okay. We can reschedule the meeting for later.”
I give myself a quick mental shaking. Get it together. Micah is going out of his way to help, which he doesn’t have to do. He doesn’t have to do any of this.
Which, I realize, is probably another reason why I’m feeling so insecure.
If Micah and I were dating, it would make sense.
Of course he’d want to protect me. But we’re casual friends, and new ones, at that.
He could have just as easily left me at the hospital rather than bringing me here.
He doesn’t need to ask his friends over to discuss the possibility of Fox & Falcon taking on my case.
He could leave the police to handle it instead.
And maybe, my inner voice of reason adds, what Liam did messed you up more than you want to admit. And it’s hard to accept that a man—a very nice, handsome, obviously successful man—would do more for you than Liam ever would.
Maybe, I concede. That might have something to do with it.
“I’m okay,” I reply. Looking into Micah’s concerned eyes, I force a little smile. “My mind keeps wandering, is all. Now is fine to meet with your friends. Really.”
He regards me for a few seconds, his gaze assessing. “Okay.” Resting his hand on my back again, he continues towards the dining room. “But if you get tired or overwhelmed, just say so. It’s not a problem at all.”
Once we reach the dining room—a room with giant floor to ceiling windows that’s half the size of my entire apartment, Micah leads me over to the twelve-person table and pulls a chair out for me.
“Jester’s still rummaging through the fridge,” he says as I scan the empty room.
“Probably hiding the ketchup or something like that.”
I sink into the chair. “Hiding the ketchup?”
Micah smiles. “Where do you think he got the nickname from? Jester’s always liked playing pranks on people. You should have seen the shit he pulled when we were younger.”
“Hey,” Jester interjects as he walks into the room, an ice-filled glass of clear liquid in hand. “What are you telling Ruby about me?”
“Just telling her where you got your nickname from,” Micah replies. He sets the box of donuts on the table and turns to Jester. “And how you were probably messing around in the fridge, trying to figure out the best place to hide the ketchup.”
Jester takes a seat across the table and sets his glass down. His eyes widen innocently. “I swear, I didn’t touch the ketchup.”
“The mustard, then?”
Jester grins. “Nope.”
Shaking his head, Micah smiles. Then he gives me a quick smile. “He hid something. We’ll have to hold a search later.”
Warmth fills my chest. I like how he says we. Like we’re a team. Even if our mission is as simple as finding whatever condiment Micah thinks Jester hid from him. “Okay,” I say. “Sounds like a plan.”
Micah squeezes my shoulder again. “Do you want—”
But he’s interrupted by melodic notes of the doorbell chiming.
At the same time, his phone buzzes from his pocket.
A moment later, a series of quick knocks sounds at the front door.
Micah pulls out his phone and glances at the screen, presumably to check the security camera outside the front door, just as he did when Jester arrived.
“It’s Rogue, Wraith, and Houdini,” he says in explanation. “I’ll let them in. Be right back.”
As Micah turns to leave, he glances back at me. “Will you be okay?”
He doesn’t say more. But I know what he’s asking. Will I be okay alone in a room with a man I just met, without Micah there as a buffer?
Maybe if Jester were just a random stranger, and I were meeting him in a public place, I’d be anxious about it. But knowing that Jester is one of Micah’s closest and most trusted friends? I’m not worried at all.