“No, I remember that time you tried to make chocolate chip cookies. I think hockey pucks would have been more edible.” Drew’s lips curled up into a gorgeous, heart-stopping smile. “Don’t worry. I got you.”
And butterflies whizzed around Ruby’s stomach at ninety miles an hour.
Chapter Eight
Drew couldn’t believe how good it felt being alone with Ruby. He didn’t remember the last time he’d felt this relaxed.
But on the way over to his place, the guilt had come roaring back. She was Blake’s sister, and that fact should have reminded him that he didn’t deserve to be out enjoying himself after the damage he had caused to so many people. Becoming friends—or something more—with Ruby would be nothing short of rubbing Blake’s nose in the fact that he’d cheated with his girlfriend, gotten her killed, and had lived to enjoy a normal life. Things Reese would never do. It would be like a double betrayal.
He glanced across at Ruby who was holding their grocery bags while he fumbled in his pocket for the front door key. He wondered whether he should tell her that he’d changed his mind.
But they still had to do the project together, and they were only having lunch. He’d make sure this was the last time it happened, though.
“Hurry up, before I drop everything,” she said.
“Sure.” Drew turned the key and pushed open the door. He stepped inside the house, and his nostrils were immediately assaulted by the smell of stale alcohol.
“Wait here a minute.” He left Ruby in the hall while he went into the family room and opened the windows, allowing a breeze to filter through. “Let’s go into the kitchen,” he said when he came back into the hall.
“Your folks are still drinking then?” she asked gently. She’d known him long enough to know all about his parents being alcoholics, and she’d been at his house in the past with Blake. Not often, because Drew had always preferred to spend time at Blake’s place and not his own. For all the problems Blake and Ruby had with their father, at least they had a mom who kept their home life steady and predictable.
“Yeah.” Drew shrugged. “It’s okay. There are worse things.” Those worse things hung in the air between them like a lead curtain.
He headed for the kitchen, and Ruby followed. He took the bags from her and put everything away, then poured them both some juice. Then they headed into the lounge since it was too early to make lunch. The room felt warm, so he pulled off his sweatshirt, tossing it onto a nearby chair before he sat down. He tugged at the collar of his white T-shirt. He hadn’t remembered the last time he’d been around someone without wanting to make sure the scars on his neck were at least partially covered. But he felt…safe with Ruby.
She sat beside him on the dark gray couch, and as her leg lightly brushed against his, shivers shot down his spine. He looked at her, wondering whether she had sensed his too-intense reaction. But she didn’t seem to be any different. She pulled the hair tie out of her dark hair, and he longed to run his fingers through it as it cascaded down her shoulders.
“Drew, are you listening to me?”
He hitched in a breath and sat upright, ignoring the way his heart was racing. “Sure. Yeah. What did you say?” He couldn’t allow himself to think those thoughts about Ruby. But they kept forcing their way into his mind, however much he tried to stop them.
“I asked how you were finding school, now.” Ruby bit on her bottom lip in such a cute way, Drew had to ram his hands under his thighs to stop himself from pulling her into his arms there and then.
“You know. It’s school. And it beats being stuck here.” He waved his arm randomly at the room.
“I understand.” Ruby leaned in and touched him gently on the knee.
Anyone looking at his surroundings would never have guessed what his life was really like. His family lived in a large house, thanks to the money his mom had inherited from her parents. The decor was a mixture of white, off-white, and more white, with silver and black accents here and there—looking straight out of a magazine, though he’d always found it cold. And it was always spotless, thanks to the housekeeper who’d been with them for years and was well used to his parents’ erratic behavior. It helped that they paid double the hourly rate a housekeeper would normally get.
“Where are your parents?” she asked.
He never invited anyone over in the past unless he knew for certain that his mom and dad wouldn’t be around. “Dad’s at his office, and Mom always goes to her therapist on Thursdays,” he said, leaning his arm on the back of the sofa so he was half-facing her. He was too close. If she turned toward him, they’d practically be making out. But he didn’t move away.
“So we’re alone,” she murmured, seemingly fascinated by the enormous flat-screen TV that hung on the opposite wall.
“Ruby.” He didn’t know why he said her name. He didn’t know what he was thinking, what he wanted. But something in his voice made her turn her head, and she was so near he could feel her breath on his face. He couldn’t look away. Neither, it seemed, could she.
Desire made his eyelids grow heavy, and it was all he could do not to sink his hands into her hair and pull her forward. He couldn’t speak, could barely think.
Still he didn’t move. The choice had to be hers. “Ruby,” he said again.
Before Drew had time to register what was happening, she’d grabbed a fistful of his sweatshirt, and her lips were on his. The first kiss was soft, tentative. He drew in a deep, shuddering breath, keeping his hands at his sides in case she wanted to back away.
Then she whispered his name and kissed him with so much intensity, it took his breath away.
Finally, finally, he had his hands in that hair. He explored her mouth with his tongue. Probing. Tasting. The sensations running through his body made him feel like he was falling. He lowered one hand, traced the contours of her back with the tips of his fingers. For a few seconds, everything that had happened to him over the last year disappeared. It felt like decades since the last time he’d kissed someone.
Then a picture of Reese popped in his head. She had been the last person he’d kissed. He froze.
And Ruby instantly pulled back from him.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, unable to completely hide the hurt expression on her face.
“I’m just not sure we should be doing this.”
She bit her lip, confusion and sadness warring for domination on her face. He was such jerk for doing this to her. Before he could stop himself, he drew her forward and held her tightly, glad when she relaxed in his arms.
After a few minutes, Ruby gently moved away from him, a resigned expression on her face. “Let’s get some lunch,” she said softly.
She stood up and held out her hand, which he took, allowing himself to be led to the kitchen. He was grateful when she started prepping their salad and sandwiches, acting like nothing had just happened between them. “Dressing?” she asked, taking the rolls from their wrapper and spreading them out on a plate.
“There’s balsamic and olive oil in the refrigerator, top shelf in the door.” Drew busied himself washing the salad. “Give it a shake to mix it up.”
Drew moved toward Ruby just as she shook the bottle, which someone had obviously forgotten to close. The top flew off, and brown liquid shot through the air, covering the front of his shirt.