Chapter Thirty-Seven
Ruby
Callahan’s is loud with music humming, laughter spilling from tables, glass clinking against glass. Normal. Almost comforting. Almost.
Bella and Emily are already in the back booth when I slide in, heads bent together like they’re mid-plan. They both look up at the same time, relief obvious.
“Okay,” Bella says. “We’re not doing the ‘everything’s fine’ thing. Start talking.”
Emily watches me, calm and steady, which makes it worse.
“I’m fine.” A pause. Emily raises a brow. I sigh. “Mostly.”
“That’s not better.” Bella leans forward. “Spill it.”
So I tell them. Not every detail, just enough.
Emily knows most of it anyway: the break-in, the box, the locks, the lights, the cameras coming tomorrow, Xavier staying.
And me trying not to feel how exposed that all makes me.
By the time I finish, their expressions have gone from concern to something sharper.
“You shouldn’t be alone.” Emily signals the waitress to our table.
“I wasn’t.” I’m not sure about tonight. After Xavier left the shop, I didn’t speak with him. But I’ll be fine. “And the house is secure.”
“You can stay with me,” Bella says. “Guest room’s empty.”
“And Jake’s working nights,” Emily interjects. “You’re welcome at my place.”
A small shake of my head. “No.”
Bella frowns. “Ruby-”
“I’m not staying with either of you.” I place my palms flat on the table and lower my voice. “I’m serious. You’ve both got your own lives, and I’m not interrupting that. I can’t turn this into someone else’s problem, and I can’t keep leaning on you when I already feel like enough is at stake.”
“That’s not what this is,” Emily says as the waitress takes our order, including a combination platter of fried food that makes my mouth water and a soda for me.
Once the waitress leaves, I reach across the table and grab their hands. “You’re both in new relationships with the men you’ve been in love with for years. I’m not becoming a third wheel, and I’m not asking you to carry this with me.”
Bella turns her hand over and squeezes mine. Her eyes widen with exaggerated horror. “You have drywall dust under your nails. We can’t have that.”
“That’s the least of my concerns.”
“It shouldn’t be.” Bella shakes her head. “We’ve got to get these cleaned and polished, and you’re not a burden.”
“You’re never a burden.” Emily’s eyes narrow. “You’re our best friend, and we love you.”
“I know.” And I do. That’s not the point. A breath in. Out. “I’m okay.”
Bella leans back, arms crossing. “And Xavier?”
My pulse stumbles. “What about him?”
“He stayed. What does that mean? Is there something going on between the two of you that you haven’t shared?”
“He left.” The words are out before I can stop them.
They exchange a look, and the silence between us says enough.
Emily’s voice softens. “He left you sleeping?”
“Yes. Nothing happened.” I glance down at the condensation sliding down my glass. “He stayed because he had to.”
“Or because he wanted to,” Bella says. “And if that’s true, you need to think about what you want too, because this could change everything for you.”
I shake my head. “It won’t.” He flirts with every woman alive, except me. “He’s not the kind that makes commitments.”
“Neither do you,” she shoots back.
That pulls a laugh out of me before I can stop it. She’s not wrong. I don’t do commitments, but that’s only because there’s only been one man for me and choosing wrong would be worse than wishing I was with him and never getting the chance.
Around us, someone cheers. Music swells. Life keeps moving like nothing’s changed, and I use that motion to stand.
“I’m going to the restroom.” I slide out of the booth.
Bella looks like she wants to argue but doesn’t.
The noise from the bar is muffled the farther I go down the hallway. The air smells faintly of cleaner and stale beer.
I pull out my phone and scan for messages. Then I bounce into something solid, make a strangled sound, and fall back a step. Hands grab my upper arms, holding me upright.
“Ruby.” My stomach drops as I twist and wrestle my arms free. Greg. I ran into Greg when I wasn’t looking. He’s too close. Too familiar.
“What’re you doing here?”
He steps toward me. “I could ask you the same.”
My feet shift back again without thinking.
He closes the distance just enough to notice. Not quite touching. Eyes roaming over me, slowly, taking everything in at once. “You left.”
“I told you I was leaving.”
“You walked out.”
“I wasn’t comfortable–”
“With him?” he cuts in.
“With the job.”
His hand braces against the wall beside my shoulder. Not trapping. Not exactly. “You had something good.” His voice is lower, and I have to strain to hear him over the bar. “Consistent. Reliable.”
My pulse starts to climb. “I made a choice.”
“You’re not seeing it clearly.”
“I see it fine.”
His gaze drifts over my face like he’s trying to figure something out. “You don’t know what you’re getting into, and I’m not going to stand by if this turns ugly.”
“I know what I left.” The space tightens. “Excuse me.” I don’t wait this time. I step sideways, duck under his arm, and stop when Xavier appears at the end of the hallway.
Not rushing. Not posturing. Just… there.
His attention shifts from Greg to me, taking everything in without asking: the space, the distance, the way my shoulders are pulled tight. His expression changes—small, cold.
“Everything okay?” He directs the question at me without sparing Greg a glance.
“I’m fine.” My pulse is racing despite my words.
Greg straightens, stepping back. “We were talking.”
Xavier doesn’t move. “She said excuse me.”
Silence drops between them before Greg lets out a short breath. “You don’t need to jump in.”
Xavier’s voice stays even. “Then don’t give me a reason to.”
Greg’s jaw tightens. “She worked for me.”
“She doesn’t anymore.” The line settles. Firm. Final.
Greg glances at me, then back to Xavier. “You don’t know the situation.”
“I know enough.”
Another pause. “I’m not a problem,” Greg says.
“Then it won’t be hard to stay away.” No raised voice. No movement. Just a line. Greg looks like he wants to push it, but he doesn’t.
“Call me when it all goes to hell,” he mutters, brushing past us toward the bar.
I don’t move until the noise swallows him up again. Only then do I notice my hands shaking, and the quiet after him feels sudden.
Xavier turns back to me, the edge in his expression easing. “Are you really okay?”
A nod comes before I can think about it. Not because it’s true. Because he’s here. Because he saw it. Because he came in and rescued me. Again. And because, if I admit how shaken I am, I’ll have to face how close I came to being alone in this.
He reaches up and trails his thumb along my jawline. “You don’t have to deal with him. Not when I’m around.”
“I know.” The words surprise me. I do know. Xavier won’t let anything happen to me, and that realization warms me in ways that should be illegal. He’s not my savior. Or my rescuer. I can handle things myself. But having him in my corner feels pretty damned good.
His gaze holds mine. Then he nods. “Come on. Your friends are about to come back here.”
I glance past him. Bella and Emily are halfway out of the booth, eyes locked on the hallway, ready. The tightness in my chest eases a little more. They’re in my corner too.