CHAPTER TWENTY
Ruby
February
I’m nervous as I smooth the dress down my torso, examining the way it shows the bare patch of skin at my stomach. Caleb is supposed to be here to pick me up in an hour. Excitement bubbles up in my throat as I think about how he’s going to play my body after our dinner reservation. I bought special lingerie for tonight, and I can’t wait to show it to him.
I’m finishing up my hair when my phone rings. Seeing his smiling face, my stomach immediately sinks. Foreboding hits me hard, and I know he’s about to cancel.
“Hey,” I answer, trying to sound much more positive than I feel.
“Red.” The regret is deep in his voice, like he wants to tell me anything other than what he’s about to.
“You have to cancel don’t you?”
He sighs heavily. “I do. There’s been a bad wreck on sixty-five, and they’ve called everybody in. There’s some fatalities, Ruby. Dad and I are both responding.”
Carefully I control my emotions, because I don’t want him to know I’m upset. There’s nothing he can do about this, and honestly, it’s the reality of our relationship. If I let this get to me, I’ll never be able to handle anything, and there’s no point in us even being with one another anymore. “It’s okay,” I soothe him. “We can plan for something else; it’s not a huge deal.”
“It is a huge deal,” he argues. “And I feel like shit that I’m doing this to you.”
“I know what getting involved with you entails, and there are sacrifices that sometimes have to be made. It’ll be okay.”
He’s quiet for longer than I like before he speaks again. “I bet you look gorgeous. Can you at least send me a picture?”
He’s killing me. “I’ll do it as soon as we hang up. I’m not mad, or disappointed. This is life, babe.”
“Okay.” He sounds resigned.
“Just let me know when you’re safe, and done. Maybe we can hang out later.”
“I’ll keep you informed,” he promises, and I can hear people in the background telling him they’re leaving.
“Go, Caleb. I’ll see you soon.”
“Bye, Red. I’m sorry,” he apologizes again.
“No need, be safe.”
“Always,” and then he’s gone.
When I make sure the phone’s been hung up, I let out a little cry, because I am disappointed and upset. Not at him, but at the situation. Then I feel awful, people have died, and I’m feeling sorry for myself for not going out on a date. “Suck it up, Ruby.”
My phone vibrates with a text. After the news I just got, I wonder if I want to see whose messaging me now. When I look over, I see Karina’s name.
K: Wanna come hang out with me and Kels? We lost our V-Day date too.
R: Be right there!
And in this moment, I’m so thankful to be a part of this family.
Cruise
The scene we’ve encountered is awful. A couple obviously on their way to a date for the night. She’s wearing a dress, he’s dressed up in a suit, and as we search the scene, trying to find ID so that we can notify next of kin, we find an engagement ring in his pocket.
This is the shit I hate. People who get stopped in the tracks of their lives. I’m sure they started this night, especially the guy, thinking that it would be the best night of his life. It’s a reminder of how quickly life can turn in the complete opposite direction of what you assume it will.
“Caleb, I need you to go over there and start directing traffic around some of that debris.” Dad throws me a vest and points to where there’s a bottle neck.
I put the yellow vest on and move quickly to get to work.
* * *
“Looks like Ruby is at the house.” Dad comes over as we’re finishing clearing up the scene.
“Is she?”
“Yeah, Rina invited her over. The three of them decided to spend V-Day together, since we ended up having to work.”
At least she didn’t have to sit at home by herself, and I’m thankful she had my family to be with. “Good, then I’ll head to the house with you. I’ll follow behind.”
I’m beyond tired and beyond ready to see my family as we pull up into the driveway of the only house I’ve ever been able to call a home. Dad gets out of his Jeep slowly, just like I do. He puts his arm around my neck, pulling me into his side.
“You don’t gotta turn it off just because you’ve had a rough night and you have a woman in there waiting for you. It’s okay to feel whatever it is you feel. You start lying to yourself and her, then you’re fucked. Whatever we walk in to, is what we walk in to. She may be upset, she may be angry, but then again she may be okay. This sets the tone for the rest of what you two have, but don’t let it ruin anything. Got it?”
I nod, thankful for the advice he’s given me. “Love you, Dad.”
He gives me a grin. “Love you too. You’re a good man, Caleb. The two of you will figure this relationship shit out.”
We enter the kitchen through the side door where the three women in our lives look to be having the best time ever. Kari and Ruby are drinking margaritas, and Kelsea’s got what looks like a slushy in her glass.
“You’re home!” Kelsea yells as she hops down from her chair at the bar, running to me and Dad. We both hug her before we each go to the respective woman in our life.
As I greet Ruby, my gaze lands on some flowers and cupcakes on the bar. “Good job, Dad. Those flowers and cupcakes look amazing.”
“I will take credit all day for the flowers.” He wraps his arms around mom’s neck from behind. “But the cupcakes, I didn’t do.”
“Ruby did them,” Kelsea lets us know as she bites into one. “And they are totally amazeballs. Chocolate covered strawberry.”
I let go of Ruby, moving in to inspect the cupcakes sitting on the counter. They look like they were bought at a bakery. The chocolate frosting layered on, with little pearls on top, sitting in Valentine’s day cupcake sleeves. “You did these?”
“Yeah.” She looks at me like I’m crazy. “We never bought desserts at my house, you’ve met my parents. I can bake, if I do say so myself.”
My eyes flutter to Mom and Dad, both standing there, looking at me with looks on their faces. Dad gives me a grin before he speaks. “No ugly-ass cupcakes for birthday parties, am I right?”
The pounding of my heart inside my chest seizes, as I wrap my arms tightly around this woman who’s changed so many things in my life.
“What in the world are you two talking about?” she laughs as I bury my face in her hair.
“Just a little inside joke,” Dad saves me from having to put voice to my feelings.
Kissing her on the temple, I pull myself together. “Let’s give one a try.”
Reaching forward, I devour the sweet treat, moaning as the flavors hit my tongue. My eyes almost roll into the back of my head, it tastes so good. “That’s it. Cupcakes every night, forever.”
“Not happening,” she laughs, smacking the stomach I’m so proud of. “You’d have to be way more dedicated to working out than you are right now.”
She’s not wrong, and I concede defeat easily.
* * *
We’ve decided to spend the night here because I’m tired and she’s a little tipsy. I hand her a shirt to wear, watching as she takes off her jeans and gets comfortable.
“Oh, I almost forgot.” She reaches into her purse, pulling out a card. “Happy Valentine’s Day.” She pushes back her hair nervously. “I’ve never had a Valentine, so I wasn’t sure what to get you.”
Going over to my bag, I pull out a card for her too. “My big present was the dinner we had to cancel, so I’m sorry you’re getting just the card now.” And I feel like complete shit over it, but as Dad said earlier, there’s nothing that can be done.
“Just promise me we’ll go back sometime?”
“That I can promise.” I lean in, kissing her softly.
I slip between the covers and pull her into my side, curling my arm around her shoulders, holding her close. Her fingers play with my bare skin, trailing her nails back and forth. “Can I ask a question?”
“Anything.” I kiss her forehead, grasping her fingers in mine, just wanting to feel close to this absolutely amazing person who’s come into my life.
“What was the deal with the cupcakes?”
My throat works hard as it swallows roughly, but I know I have to be honest with her. Even if I don’t tell her the whole story, I have to give her what this means to me. “You know some of the situation with my birth mom. One thing that always bothered me, that seriously sucked was Dad couldn’t make cupcakes for the class on my birthday. I mean he did,” I amend my statement, “but they sucked. They were so shitty,” I laugh. “Somehow over time, that became something that stuck out to me. You were a very lucky person if you had someone to make you cupcakes that didn’t suck.”
She pushes herself up on her elbow. “Caleb, if you want me to, I’ll make you cupcakes every day.”
I laugh loudly. “How about on my birthday and maybe on a few holidays? It’s really not that big of a deal.”
“It is a big deal.” She sees right through me trying to joke this out. “And what’s a big deal to you, is a big deal to me. You’ll have those cupcakes whenever you want them.”
She comes off her elbow, pressing herself to me, holding me tightly around the waist. And for the first time, in a very long time, I feel like I can breathe. I inhale deeply, the scent of her shampoo, and drift off into one of the best sleeps I’ve had in years.