RUBY'S POVRain pelted down on my umbrella as I walked briskly along the sidewalk, keeping my head low and my eyes sharp. Every sound felt amplified—the squelch of my boots on wet pavement, the hum of cars, the occasional splatter of rain hitting puddles. I couldn't stop glancing over my shoulder, paranoid that Gabriel was lurking somewhere, waiting for the perfect moment to strike again. It had been days since he stalked me all around the city, but the fear hadn't lessened. If anything, it had only grown stronger.Dominic had warned me to stop taking my car out, claiming it was too flashy and too recognizable. "You want to hand him a road map to find you?" he'd said to me, when he called yesterday. So now, here I was, taking public buses like a regular person and feeling more exposed than ever.When I spotted the dark green Audi parked by the curb, just as Dominic had described, I took a breath of relief. It wasn’t one of his more ostentatious cars, but I could tell he was inside.
RUBY'S POVThe car was quiet except for the soft hum of the engine and the rhythmic slapping of rain against the windshield. Dominic’s eyes were locked on the road ahead, his jaw set tight and his hands gripping the steering wheel like it was the only thing holding him together. From the corner of my eye, I watched him, studying the stiff way his fingers curled around the leather, white-knuckled, as if he was fighting himself.I pursed my lips as the memory of the traffic light intersection crept back into my mind. My cheeks flushed involuntarily, remembering how hard he'd felt under my fingers. Was that what this was about? Was he overthinking it, afraid he’d been too forward with me?Hell, fuck forward. This man had seen every naked bit of me. Why was he acting like this because I groped him in his car?But then, it wouldn’t surprise me. Dominic Rutherford was all sharp edges and commanding stares, but with me, he seemed different. Gentle, careful. Like he was tiptoeing around me, a
RUBY'S POVHe pulled the car smoothly into a driveway and turned off the ignition.I turned to look out the window, and my jaw dropped. Through the rain, I could make out a sleek, modern house with a large, sweeping lawn.“Wait. This is your 'small' house?” I asked incredulously.Dominic smirked faintly as he put the car in park. “It’s cozy.”I gawked at him, but he was already stepping out of the car, leaving me there, stunned.The rain had finally let up, but the air was still damp and heavy. I stepped out of the car, glancing around in disbelief at the sprawling house before me. It was sleek, all sharp angles and dark stone, perched like some brooding fortress on the green lawn. I had to admit—Dominic’s definition of small was grossly inaccurate. This house was as big as a high school, if not bigger.I jogged to catch up with him as he walked ahead, his long strides eating up the distance to the front door. He didn’t wait for me, simply stepped inside and left the door open for me
RUBY'S POV I sank into the bed after Dominic left, sighing as the mattress hugged me like a warm cloud. I ran my hand across the sheets—they were impossibly soft, almost as soft as the ones in my condo. For someone as cold and brooding as Dominic, he sure knew how to pick his fabrics.I stared up at the ceiling, feeling the quiet press against me. It was too much. Too still. The entire room was beautiful, yes, but there wasn’t a speck of colour anywhere. Gray, black, white—if someone ever painted Dominic’s soul, it would probably look just like this room.Three days. That’s all I had to endure here. But even so, I might actually lose my mind if I didn’t add something—anything—that made it feel a little like me.I sat up, grabbing my phone from the bedside table. It buzzed to life immediately, lighting up with notification after notification. Dozens of messages poured in from Ariana and Lilac on our group chat. I opened the chat briefly:ARIANA: Wait, wait, wait. You’re MOVING IN with
RUBY'S POVA loud knock at the door made me jump so hard I nearly fell off the bed. My heart shot into my throat as the pounding came again, more insistent this time. I froze, staring at the door like it might explode. Was that someone here to finally end me?“Calm down, Ruby,” I muttered to myself, though my voice was anything but calm.My eyes darted around the room for something, anything to defend myself with. My gaze landed on the first thing I could grab: a pillow. A soft, white, useless pillow. Fantastic.With the pillow gripped tightly in my hands, I tiptoed toward the door. The knocking hadn’t stopped. It was steady and firm, and with every knock, my heart beat faster.I swallowed hard, held my breath, and flung the door open. I raised the pillow high above my head, ready to attack whoever dared to….“Ruby?”Dominic’s deep voice interrupted the chaos in my brain. I froze mid-swing, eyes wide as I stared at him.He stood there, one brow raised, his lips twitching with amusemen
DOMINIC'S POVI woke up to darkness around me. The room was quiet except for the faint sound of Ruby’s soft breathing beside me. I turned my head to look at her, and there she was, curled up on her side, her red hair spilling over the pillow like ink. Peaceful.I didn’t know how I’d ended up here, sleeping beside her. Most of the women I’d brought into this house never got more than a few hours of my time. I always left them sprawled out on the bed. Whatever we usually did was fleeting and meaningless. But this felt different.Ruby had a way of cracking through my walls without even trying. She always made me feel like I could unburden myself. Like I didn’t have to be the ruthless Dominic Rutherford everyone expected me to be.Sighing quietly, I sat up, careful not to stir her awake. My mask had slipped while I was sleeping, so I shifted it back to my face. I stared at her for just a moment longer before I swung my legs off the bed and stood. The floor was cool under my feet as I cros
DOMINIC'S POV It felt like I'd been waiting for this moment from the day I learned about Ruby's ex husband.Gabriel's house was dead silent, except for the faint creak of his old armchair as I leaned back and tapped my fingers against the armrest. The window was open, letting the cool night air along with the soft glow of moonlight. This was unusual. I wasn’t usually the type to wait, because I preferred action. But tonight, patience was the key.The bastard deserved this. Every single bit of it.Julia’s call to Ruby had been the final straw. I couldn’t let him think he had any leverage over her. Gabriel Volkov needed to know exactly where he stood in this game, and it was miles beneath me. This was personal now.A car engine purred outside, its tires crunching against the gravel. I straightened in the chair and glanced at my wristwatch. Right on time. My source had told me Gabriel would be back from the club around now. A creature of habit, that one. Too predictable for his own good
DOMINIC'S POVI stepped into the house by nine that morning. The familiar quiet house greeted me, though I could feel someone’s presence before I even looked up. My eyes shifted to the foyer, and Ruby stood there.She stood barefoot, wearing an oversized blue button-up shirt that looked like it could swallow her whole. Her red hair was swept up into a messy bun, and for the first time since I’d met her, she looked soft. No dresses, no heels, no layers of carefully applied makeup. Just her. And damn, she looked good.The frown pulling at her lips was a clear warning. "Dominic, where have you been?"I shrugged off my coat, hanging it on the rack. "Out.""Out?" she repeated, crossing her arms. "That’s the best you’ve got? It’s nearly up to ten in the morning.""Good to know you can tell time," I said dryly, striding past her and toward the bar. I needed a drink, something to wash away the remnants of my anger of Gabriel.She followed me. "Dominic, I’m serious. Where were you?"I grabbed
RUBY'S POVI kept my focus on the woman across the room. Something about her just didn't sit right with me or my head. Even though she had her back turned to me, I could see how stiffly she sat. I could also see that her hands were fidgeting with the hem of her sweater. Twice, I caught her stealing quick glances in my direction. Both times, she looked away sharply when I noticed.It was unnerving. My instincts told me to take this seriously, but I brushed it off. What else could I do? If she wanted to speak to me, she would. Until then, I refused to waste energy puzzling over her behavior.The sound of heels sounding against the polished floor broke my train of thought. I looked up and saw Dominic’s blonde secretary entering the room. Still the same as ever, I thought to myself.She had a skin-tight pencil skirt and fitted blouse on, which accentuated her figure 8 shape. There was a full pound of makeup on her face: dark blue eyeshadow, penciled eyebrows, red lips, the works. She move
RUBY'S POV"Let's go to work." Dominic announced.He started the car as I put the sex toy back into the box and returned it back to the glove compartment. The car rolled back into motion, but I barely noticed. My thoughts were stuck on what had just happened. My lips still tingled, and the memory played on a loop in my mind. I crossed my arms and tried to forget about it but the blush refused to fade.Dominic glanced over at me and smiled. “Did a cat get your tongue?”I shook my head and kept my eyes fixed on the road ahead. “I'm just thinking.”His chuckle carried a teasing edge. “About me, I hope.”I rolled my eyes. "You really like to flatter yourself.""I know you're thinking about me." He grinned, clearly pleased with himself. I didn’t push further, and neither did he. It was still weird unlocking this playful side of Dominic; It was hard to even remember the brooding man who had walked into that club on the night after I divorced Gabriel.When we finally pulled up to the office,
RUBY'S POVWe stayed that way for minutes: Dominic in the driver's seat, me straddling his laps and resting my head against his shoulder. I couldn't see much of his face, but the slight curve of his lips told me he was amused about something.“So,” I raised my head to look at him, “you said we were going to be late, right?”He glanced at me, quirking up his eyebrows. “We are late."“Then maybe you shouldn’t have wasted time kissing and fucking me in your car like this." I teased. "Or dragging me outside."Dominic gave a low chuckle. “Dragging you? I don’t recall dragging. I seem to remember you willingly following me.”“Because you were pulling me,” I sighed.“You had plenty of time to get ready,” he said. “If anyone’s to blame for us running late, it’s you.”I rolled my eyes. “Oh, please. You were the one standing at the bottom of the stairs like some smitten schoolboy. If you hadn’t been staring, we’d already be at the office by now.”Dominic’s lips twitched into a full smile. “You
Dominic’s POVI stood at the foot of the staircase, glancing at my watch for the third time in five minutes. Ruby was taking her sweet time, and I wasn’t about to tell her to hurry. After last night, I figured it was better to let her move at her own pace.A voice carried down from the second floor: Ariel’s voice.“How did you do that with your eyeshadow? And your lipstick, wow. You look like an office siren.”Office siren? I raised an eyebrow at that. Ariel had a way of saying the strangest things.Ruby’s voice followed, calm and amused. “Ariel, it’s just makeup. Nothing magical.”I could hear Ariel’s footsteps trailing behind Ruby as the two of them descended. Ariel kept going excitedly. “What shade is that lipstick? Do you always blend your eyeshadow like that? How do you even get your bun to stay up so perfectly?”I smirked to myself and shook my head. Ariel had an endless supply of energy and apparently, Ruby was her new favorite subject.Then I saw her.Ruby appeared at the top
RUBY’S POVThe pounding in my head when I woke up was relentless, like tiny hammers striking behind my eyes. I winced as I threw the covers aside and stood from bed.I could hear voices and giggling downstairs, coming from Dominic and his daughter. Sighing, I reached into my bedside drawer and fetched a bottle of aspirin. Popping two pills into my mouth, I washed it down with the cup of water beside me.Five minutes later, I stood under the warm shower, letting the water flow down my body and wash off all the physical pain from the previous night. It helped, a little. Once I was dressed in an oversized blue sweater that reached halfway down my thighs, I shuffled downstairs, my bare feet padding softly against the wood.The first thing I noticed was the smell. It was a rich aroma of sizzling bacon, eggs and something sweet. My stomach rumbled. I followed the scent to the kitchen, where Dominic stood at the stove, flipping eggs like he’d done it a hundred times. Ariel was by his side, h
DOMINIC’S POVI came down the staircase, my laptop balanced on my arm, AirPods plugged into my ears. The screen was crowded with the faces of my management team scattered across time zones. A man in London was talking about projections, his voice echoing in my ear. I nodded occasionally, giving curt responses when necessary but my focus was all over the place.As I reached the living room, I paused. Ariel was perched on the couch at her usual spot, her legs tucked under her, completely absorbed in her phone. Her face glowed faintly from the screen’s light, and she didn’t look up as I approached.“Ariel,” I called out to her and pulled one AirPod out. She glanced up lazily.“Hmm?”“Is Ruby back yet?”“Nope,” she replied, popping the “p” as she turned back to her phone, her fingers moving rapidly across the screen.I frowned and glanced at the clock on my laptop. 9:45 p.m. That was far too late.The last time I’d spoken to Ruby was this afternoon around 1 p.m., if I remembered correctly
GABRIEL’S POVThe hot spray of the shower hit my shoulders as I thought about Ambrose. That old, smug fossil had the audacity to intercept me on my way to Wisconsin some days ago, spewing his sanctimonious bullshit about “jeopardizing the plan.”I scrubbed the soap against my chest with a ferocity that nearly tore my skin. “Jeopardizing the plan,” I sneered. If I had my way, Ambrose would be nothing but a mangled corpse rotting in a ditch. But I couldn’t kill him, not yet anyway. The key was still out of reach, and Ambrose, unfortunately, was a necessary evil for now.I tilted my head back, letting the water rinse the soap suds from my body. The steam around me thickened, clouding the bathroom mirror. My hands baller into fists, knuckles white as I imagined Ambrose’s neck in between my hands. How satisfying it would be to feel his life drain under my fingers.When the water ran clear, I turned off the shower and stepped out, grabbing a towel from the rack. It smelled faintly of mildew
RUBY'S POVDamien. The name sounded familiar, like someone I had known a long time ago.Estelle continued. “Ruby, your mother's family comes from a long line of nobility. Damien is next in line to inherit the dukedom of our hometown. But he…” She paused and sighed. “He’s refused to accept it until he finds you.”"What?”“He’s spent years searching for you,” she said. “After Eleanor passed, he became consumed with the idea of finding his sister. The last time I saw him, he was preparing to come to the U.S. to look for you.”I couldn’t speak. The idea of having a brother, an older brother nonetheless, was overwhelming enough. But knowing he’d been looking for me all this time? That he’d put his life on hold for it?Estelle reached out and touched my hand gently. “He loves you, Ruby. Even though he doesn’t know you, he loves you. Eleanor made sure of that.”Tears stung my eyes but I blinked them away. “Why didn’t anyone tell me? I have been so terribly alone for eleven years. Why did nob
RUBY'S POVEstelle Tredwell could have passed for my mother. Almost. The red hair was the same, bright and vibrant, but that was where the similarities ended for us. Estelle was tall and lanky, towering over me even when she stood by the table. I was also a tall woman, but my figure had always been more curvy, pear shaped. Estelle's gray eyes brightened up when they met my green ones, and her British accent wrapped around her words with a grace that felt foreign to me.She walked over, unbuttoning her coat and draping it over the back of a chair. Every movement was elegant and practiced. Her clothes were tailored, her jewelry was understated but expensive. It was obvious that her family, my mother’s family, had money. Maybe as much as my father's family.“You’re Ruby,” she noted. Then her red-lipped mouth dropped open. “Good heavens, you look just like Eleanor. The green eyes, the dimples… It’s so uncanny. It's like I am staring into the face of my sister again!”I smiled, feeling a