Phantoms of Fall (The Haunting Ruby Series Book 2) (35 page)

I dug into my pocket and pulled out the small box
inside. I sat up and flipped open the lid. There sat the ring I
was going to give Ruby the night she turned into a raging
seductress. When I decided to ask her for a commitment of
sorts, I knew I had to back it up with a symbol.
I had no idea
what kind of ring I wanted to give her. All I knew was it had
to be special. Since my financial situation wasn’t the greatest,
I couldn’t afford some big fancy diamond and I was pretty
sure that wasn’t exactly her style anyway.
And besides,
diamonds say “marry me”. What I was looking for was
something more along the lines of “promise to stay with me
until I’m finished with college and it’s time to start thinking
about marriage”. I certainly wasn’t ready yet, but I wanted
her to still be around when I was.

Lucky for me, Nancy, the lady at Brody’s Jewelry,
knew exactly what I needed.
She asked me a handful of
questions about Ruby and came up with the design for the
perfect ring for my perfect girl. The band was silver—Ruby
hated
gold—and
the setting
was
a
cluster of red stones
arranged in the form of a rose. It was beautiful and unique—
just like Ruby. I was so excited to give it to her that night. But
I never got that far.

Honestly, if I’d given her the ring first and then she
wanted to have sex, I wouldn’t have said no. I would have
literally run home, grabbed the box of condoms—yes, the
whole
box—and it would have been game on. It might sound
weird, but I’m kinda glad things happened the way they did.

She deserved something better than uncontrollable
hormones in the backseat of my car. I wanted to plan it out—
make it perfect. It wasn’t for my benefit, it was for hers. I
mean, I did have
some
standards—I wasn’t a complete ass.
It’s not like I would have tried to get some under the
bleachers during the game or anything.
But that backseat
would have been just fine for me. As long as it was with her, I
would have been happy.

But for Ruby, I wanted to make it everything she
probably dreamed it would be. Flowers, candles—all of those
romantic things girls went crazy over.
I wanted it to be at
Rosewood—in her room, in her bed.
I figured she would be
more comfortable that way. Plus, every time she slept in that
bed she would think of me and what we did there together.
That was the important part—for her to think about me as
much as I thought about her.

But of course, I was a complete idiot and ruined things
by not telling her what I wanted.
Oh, if she only knew how
crazy she made me. But she didn’t. Instead, she had some
insane idea in her head that I wasn’t physically attracted to
her. She couldn’t be further from the truth.

If
she could only
see
and
feel things
from
my
perspective for one day, she would know how bad I wanted
her. And how bad those feelings scared me.
But I was an all
or nothing kind of guy. Anything beyond kissing and I was
afraid I wouldn’t be able to stop if she asked me to. So I was
the perfect gentleman when we were together. Oh, but once I
got home it was a different story.

If I spent any more time alone in the bathroom, I
would be in danger of breaking my other arm, too. I couldn’t
help it—if I didn’t get it out of my system I was afraid I would
literally explode. There wasn’t a single part of her that didn’t
get me hot.

Her skin was so soft—just one touch was enough to
set me off. And when her hair brushed against my face, it felt
like the flutter of an angel’s wing. And that perfume! Every
once in a while I would let Rachel win an argument she was
clearly losing as a way to thank her for telling Ruby how much
I loved that scent. But even without all of that, she would still
be sexy.

The way she looked at me, the way she laughed when
I made a stupid joke—there wasn’t anything about her that I
didn’t love. Especially the way she said my name—why did it
sound so different when it came from her lips?
I almost
texted her a goodnight “mwah” every night since our breakup
but each time found the strength to refrain. A simple “mwah”
wouldn’t make up for the things I did to her.

Four o’clock. I got so caught up in just thinking about
Ruby that I didn’t even think about how I was going to get her
back tonight. Lucky for me, I would have some time alone at
the mansion while I waited for her to get home from work—I
would think about it then.
Right now, I needed to get a
shower and transform myself into a Viking prince. And lately,
my showers ended up being one of two things:
extra-long or
extra cold. Tonight was a long, warm shower kind of night. I
couldn’t walk in there a raging ball of hormones, now could I?

I still had a smile on my face even after I was dressed
and en route to Rosewood.
That Little Red Riding Hood
fantasy sure went a long way, I tell ya. There were only a few
vehicles parked outside when I got there and I recognized
every one of them. Boone’s sports car, Drake’s even more
expensive sports car, and a van with NeverMore’s black and
red raven logo painted on the side. I pulled up to the front of
the mansion and Dr. Matthews came out to meet me. My leg
started to quiver uncontrollably.

Deep breath.
Her dad was nice but he still frightened
me. After all, it was
his
little girl that I fantasized about every
night. He was a guy—he had to remember what it was like to
be seventeen.
He had to know what kind of thoughts ran
through my head when I kissed her.
If he only knew that
Ruby took her shirt off for me in the car that night, I think he
would have met me with a shotgun instead of a smile.

“Over here, Zach,” he said pointing to the garage. Was
that where he kept his shotguns? No, he was a doctor—he
didn’t take lives, he saved them. Hoping that the Hippocratic
Oath extended far beyond the hospital, I started to get out of
the car.

But Dr. Matthews shook his head no. “I’m going to
open up the garage door so you can park in there. You know
she’ll spot your car immediately if you leave it out here
anywhere.”

Once my car was safely out of sight, I sat in my car for
a few seconds to rehearse an apology in my head. I was lucky
that he was giving me a second chance.
Please, let Ruby do
the same.

“Dr. Matthews,” I said, my voice cracking under the
pressure, “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

 

“Sure, Zach, what’s on your mind?”

I followed him outside and waited nervously while he
closed the garage door. It would have been easier to say what
I needed to say while his back was turned but I waited for him
to finish anyway. If I was going to be a man, I had to apologize
face to face. As he turned to look at me, I had some serious
doubts about this whole “being a man” thing.

“I want to say I’m sorry about hurting Ruby that day.”
So much for being a man. Just the thought of her with her face
covered in blood from the accidental blow I delivered caused
me to choke up with emotion. “I didn’t mean to hurt her!”

In
my
head,
this
whole
conversation
went
so
differently. I apologized calmly and in an adult manner and
he
accepted with the same dignity.
Instead,
I was
a
blubbering idiot about to cry in front of his ex-girlfriend’s
father. No father wanted his daughter to date a cry baby.

Dr. Matthews placed his hand on my shoulder and
looked directly into my eyes. “I know you didn’t, Zach. But
you
need to get your anger under control—she wasn’t
seriously hurt but she could have been. And what about the
next time it happens, did you consider that?”

I swallowed my emotions and stood up straight. I had
to prove
to
him
just
how serious
I
was
about
changing.
“You’re right, Dr. Matthews, and I’m working on it—I swear. I
joined an anger management
group sponsored
by
your
hospital and I’m learning a lot about myself.”

There was something else I had to say that scared the
crap out of me but I had to say it. “I’m in love with your
daughter and I’ll do anything I have to do to deserve her love
in return.” There, I said it. I told her dad I loved her. Even
though I was nervous as hell, somehow at least those words
came out perfectly, confidently.

How was he going to react? I never thought that far
ahead. Too late now—the words were already out there.

Dr. Matthews put his arm around my shoulders. That
was a good sign right? “I know you do, Zach. Shelly and I had
a long conversation with your parents about what happened.
They told us about the steps you’ve been taking to better
yourself.
But what impresses me, is that you chose to join
that group yourself. It wasn’t something forced on you—it
was
your decision.
Any
man who recognizes
his
own
weaknesses and works to change them, well, that’s the kind of
man I want my daughter to date.”

Holy hell.
He called me a man!
My chest swelled out
noticeably as I tried to show that I was worthy of that title.

“But,” he warned, “We
will
keep
an eye on your
progress. One more incident like the one you had with that
Fedderhoff boy and you’ll never see my daughter again.”

There always had to be a “but”. I could feel my chest
rapidly deflate after that but I had to press on. “I promise I
won’t step out of line again, sir. She means a lot to me and I
don’t want to disappoint her—or you—ever again.”

“I hope you don’t.” Dr. Matthews dropped the serious
father routine and started to walk toward the mansion. “And
how many times do I have to tell you to call me Jason?”

After a much easier apology to Shelly, I was back in
their good graces again and I went upstairs to find Rachel.
What I found was my sister making out with Boone.
How
disgusting.

“Really guys, aren’t you supposed to be focusing on
me
right now? If there’s any hope of me getting Ruby back, I’m
gonna need your help.”

Rachel broke away from Boone to get a good look at
me. “Oh, Zach! You look hot!”

Normally, I would have been creeped out to hear my
sister say I was hot but tonight I needed every ego boost I
could get. “Thanks, I guess. So come, on let’s go over the plan
one more time.”

Rachel rolled her eyes at me. “For the hundredth
time, Zach, when Ruby gets here I’ll give her enough time to
look around and see that you’re not here. Then, I’ll have her
help me pass out the masks and give her the one that matches
yours.
When I send Boone to come get you, you pop out of
nowhere and steal her heart.”

She made it all sound so easy. “But what if….”

“No ifs and no buts!” she said handing me a silver
mask trimmed with gray feathers, “Trust me little brother,
she’ll be yours by the end of the night.”

Mine by the end of the night. I liked the sound of that.
I took the mask from her and stuffed it into the pocket of my
cape. “Okay, where am I supposed to hide?”

“Over here.” Rachel led me out of the ball room and
into a small bedroom next door. “You can watch out the
window for her while you wait. Oh, and Chloe can’t make it
until late anyway so Ruby won’t even know she’s here until
after you guys are back together.”

Rachel was halfway out the door when she turned
around and threw something at my chest. I looked down to
find a condom caught in the fur trim of my costume. “Just in
case,” she said with a wink and closed the door behind her.

I stuffed the condom deep into my pocket—I wouldn’t
need it but I definitely didn’t want Dr. Matthews to see it—
and took a look around.
Luckily, my hiding spot was one of
the rooms Rachel and Shelly fully redecorated already. So I
pulled a chair up to the window and watched for Ruby to
come home. One by one, I heard the chaperones arrive—each
time sending my heart into a frenzy thinking I was about to
catch a glimpse of my beautiful Ruby. Impatiently, I checked
my watch.
It was 5:30 already. Her shift at Something Wicked ended at five.
According to Shelly, on a normal day she
would be home by about now but she insisted on stopping for
party snacks so tonight she would be a little late.

I was about to kick back and try to relax for a little bit
when another car zoomed down the drive. The second I saw
the nose of her car I knew it was her. She was early. The
thumping in my chest increased until I was afraid she would
hear it even from below. I stepped back from the window so
she wouldn’t see me but I kept her in my sights. Any second
now she would be inside the house only feet from where I
stood.

But something was wrong.
She stayed in her car
staring straight ahead with her hands still on the steering
wheel.
I knew that look—she
was
thinking
hard about
something. What was on her mind? She couldn’t have seen
my car—there weren’t any windows in the garage and her
dad closed the door while we were talking.
Suddenly, she
stared directly at the window I was watching her from. There
was no way I was visible so I stayed in position and locked
eyes with her.
It was weird—like she could sense that I was
there. She looked away quickly but her eyes came back to the
same spot one more time before she finally got out of the car.

I crept to the door to listen for the sound of her
footsteps but they never came.
Instead, there was a light
knock on the door which nearly gave me a heart attack.
I
opened the door a crack and found my sister on the other side
of it.