Ruby
The wedding ceremony for Marcus Colter and Danica Lawson was probably the most beautiful thing I’d ever experienced.
They’d made their own vows, breaking away from traditions, but the pastor still officiated the ceremony. It was unique, just like the two people getting married.
I looked down at the cake that had been carefully brought into the ballroom of the resort where the reception was now in full swing. I rearranged a few things that really didn’t require moving, wanting everything to look perfect for the couple who’d be here soon to cut it.
Jett had gone off to find Mason, who had been a late arrival right before the wedding had started. So I was just admiring the gorgeous venue and all the people who were there in the room.
The cake was officially ready, and I was proud of how it had turned out.
My hand went up to grasp my necklace, just like it had about a hundred times during the afternoon. Then it moved to my earrings, checking them before I dropped my hand again.
I knew I had to relax about the value of the sapphire set of jewelry I was wearing, a gift that Jett had just given me before we’d left for the wedding. But it was hard when I knew they were probably worth a small fortune.
Not that I didn’t love the necklace and earrings dripping with sapphires. Jett had chosen them because they were my birthstone, but it was slightly nerve-racking to be wearing something that probably was worth more than the BMW Jett had purchased for me.
Relax and pretend they’re fake.
In theory, it was a good idea. But my brain couldn’t seem to forget they were very, very real.
While I’d been in Denver with Dani and Harper, I’d purchased some inexpensive earrings while I was there. But nothing had prepared me for Jett’s gift.
The sapphire set was beautiful, and I’d cried all over him for being so considerate.
Relax and enjoy them!
I straightened my spine and remembered that they were just things.
I was grateful that I’d gotten a completely extravagant dress for the wedding, along with a bunch of other utterly decadent pieces to add to my wardrobe.
I was pretty sure my gift from Jett would have looked totally wrong with the dress I’d brought with me from Seattle, so I was glad I’d shelled out some money to get something a lot nicer. And sexier.
The black evening dress that Jett’s sisters had talked me into was, in their words, sexy enough to make a man beg, but not sexy enough to be trashy.
I smiled as I remembered the pained expression on Jett’s face when he’d seen the dress. The cut-out back and the hem that landed just above my knees had been a little bit too much for him, even though it was actually pretty tame compared to some of the others I’d seen.
The dress had been worth every penny when I saw the heat of desire in his eyes when he’d looked at me.
“How much money would it take to get you out of Jett’s life?” a low baritone asked smoothly from behind me, jolting me out of my thoughts.
I turned sharply, almost colliding with the large form that was now in front of me.
It was Jett’s brother, Carter. I hadn’t formally met him yet, but I’d seen him at the ceremony.
My first impression was that he was aesthetically very pleasing to look at, but his blue eyes were as cold as a glacier. Dark-haired like Jett, he also had some of his younger brother’s features, but he lacked any animation. Carter was as cold as Jett was warm. Everything, down to the smallest detail, was absolutely perfect. He looked at home in a tuxedo, like a male model who was taught to put on a sophisticated demeanor. But nothing about Carter seemed to be an act. I could almost feel the chill as I looked back at him.
“Excuse me?” I said politely, certain I’d heard him wrong because of the noise in the venue.
“You heard me,” he answered grimly, as though he’d read my mind.
“Why would I want to get out of Jett’s life?”
“I want to know how much money it will take to get you out of my brother’s life,” he rasped. “I want you gone, never to communicate with my brother again. How much? I’m willing to make giving up your sugar daddy worth it.”
“He’s not my sugar daddy,” I answered, getting irritated by Carter’s presumptions. “You know nothing about me.”
He lifted an arrogant brow. “On the contrary,” he said bitterly. “I know everything I need to know. You were homeless, and Jett loves to pick up strays. He gave you a place to stay, and because he was an easy mark, you manipulated everything you could from him. So far, I know he purchased you a new vehicle, and those pretty blue sapphires you’re wearing right now. I have no idea how much cash he’s laid out because I can’t get to his bank records, but I’m assuming he set you up well with money, too. Jett is nine years older than you, and he has limitations because of his accident, not to mention the fact that he’s severely scarred. But I suppose you can overlook those things when he’s giving you everything you want. Must look pretty good to you. The only thing you have to do is sleep with him. And I have a feeling that’s not a problem since I assume you were a prostitute when you met him.”
“I was not a hooker,” I denied angrily, folding my arms in a defensive act that helped me feel stronger.
Truth was, Carter Lawson was probably the most intimidating man I’d ever met, as well as one of the meanest. And I was feeling slightly vulnerable.
“Interesting,” he observed. “Too bad I have a hard time believing that.”
“I don’t give a damn what you believe,” I retorted.
“I can put a million dollars in your bank account tomorrow,” he said with nothing but steely determination in his voice.
“Your brother was a lot more generous,” I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm. “He put in two million.”
“Five million,” he countered.
Did this man really think he could buy people’s actions? Did he really imagine that if he didn’t like somebody, he could just pay to make them disappear?
“I don’t want your money,” I said sharply.
“Then what do you want, Ruby?” he drawled, his tone skeptical. “What will it take to get your claws out of my brother? Do you really want to be stuck with a man who can’t keep up with you because he has physical limitations?”
Tears started to pour down my cheeks, but they were tears of sorrow. They were proof of the fury and frustration I was experiencing, and I was done listening to this man say negative things about a man he couldn’t possibly even understand or appreciate.
“Jett has no limitations,” I snarled. “And I’m with him because I love him. You’ll never be even half the man your brother is, with or without his money. And you sure as hell shouldn’t be finding fault with anyone else when you slept with your own brother’s fiancée. You’re despicable.”
Before I could think, I lashed out and slapped him across the face, sending the drink in his hand flying and snapping his head to one side.
The satisfying sound of my hand connecting with his face was enough to not make me regret what I’d done.
He reacted immediately, his hand reaching out to grab my arm.
People were staring now, but I was too emotionally riled up to care. “Don’t touch me. Don’t ever touch me,” I hissed as I yanked and pulled myself free. “Money doesn’t make you less of an asshole. It just makes you a more powerful asshole to people who care about your status. I don’t. Just like your brother, I judge people by their actions and not their net worth. And just for the record, Jett is eight years older than me, you jerk.”
I turned around and ran, stumbling a little as I tried to see through the flood of tears that were flowing down my face.
“Bastard!” I said as I moved through bodies to get out of the building so I could compose myself.
In some ways, I had to admit that my relationship with Jett was unlikely, and looking at us from the outside, it wouldn’t be hard to make the wrong assumption.
Homeless girl who was on the streets and hungry.
Rich guy who had a good heart.
I’d never really thought about how the situation looked before, but now I couldn’t help but wonder how many other people had made the same conclusion as Carter.