Page 177 of Rags to Royals

I look at him with surprise. Typically, he knows everything that’s going on around the palace and on the island. "She left. Last night actually. She texted Scarlett when she landed in Ohio this morning."

He scowls. "She left?"

"You didn’t think she was going to stay with us indefinitely, did you?"

Looking at his face right now, I realize that he kind of did. Or that she’d be with us until we went back to Emerald. Or maybe he just hadn’t really thought it through at all.

"She wanted to get back,” I say. “She has a life in Ohio. She had to get back to work. She’s got a house. Friends. She can’t travel around the US with us.”

He’s still scowling. "Why not? You could support her.”

“That’s not the issue.”

“Then what? A bartending job she does only out of necessity in a town where she lives only because Scarlett wanted to move back there? Emerald was never Ruby’s plan."

I glance at Scarlett but she’s listening to Linnea and Mariah talk.

I lower my voice and lean closer to my best friend. "Well, I don’t know what to tell you, Henry. She came in and said her goodbyes. I arranged the plane. She texted Scarlett when she got home." I study him for a moment. "I take it she didn’t say goodbye to you?"

He blows out a breath. "No."

"Maybe that’s for the best?" I ask.

He doesn’t say anything for several seconds, but finally, he gives me a single nod. "Yeah, maybe.”

Just then Scarlett’s phone rings.

"Sorry,” she apologizes, pulling the phone from her pocket. She glances at the screen and frowns, then looks at me. "It’s Ruby."

"Take it," I say. "It’s fine." This is hardly a formal meeting.

Besides, Linnea is in charge. That’s really all any of us need to know. We’ll go where she tells us to, when she tells us to, and everything will turn out great.

Scarlett stands and takes a few steps away from the group, lifting her phone to her ear.

I watch her, feeling my neck muscles tighten as I observe her body language.

"Something’s wrong," Henry says, clearly reading the same thing.

Scarlett comes back over to the couch. "We might have to rearrange our trips a little bit.”

"What is it?" Henry asks, his tone sharp.

"We just need to go back to Ohio. Or I do. Maybe you can go on without me," she says to me.

I frown. "No way. Why do you have to go back?" I stand. "Is Ruby all right?"

"Yes. Kind of. She’s…taking someone in."

Henry is on his feet now too. "What the fuck does that mean?"

She looks at both of us then glances around the room. Everyone is listening. But this is our family. They would find out eventually anyway. And we might need some of their resources.

"You can tell everyone," I assure her. “They’re all here for you and for Ruby.”

Scarlett’s shoulders relax a bit at that.

"So you know that Ruby was with me when I faced down our father in the café,” she says.

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