Page 24 of Shadowed Rubies
I appreciated her trying so, I said, “Yeah, maybe,” in a noncommittal tone of voice.
She knew me well enough to know that I wasn’t buying it, so she added, “It’s his loss if he can’t see what a fantastic catch you are. If I wasn’t so enamored with dicks, especially one in particular…”
She let the silly sentence dangle because I’d heard her say often enough that I would be her first choice if she were to ever swing the other way on the sexuality spectrum. “Right, but I don’t have one, and I’m not planning to get one in the foreseeable future, so…”
I let my sentence dangle, too, and just like that, Meg had managed to lighten my mood. She was the world’s very best best friend, and I couldn’t wait for her to make her dream of becoming a cop come true. Deciding to let her get some rest, I said, “See you soon, Officer Stark.”
“That’s going to be Officer Ryan, soon,” she said so casually that I almost didn’t catch her big reveal that she and Levi were engaged.
“Wait… What?!?” I screeched into the phone. We laughed and started making tentative plans for her big day.
Once we hung up, I sighed and went to take a shower, in an attempt to bring my body temperature back up to normal. I was truly happy for my friend. She deserved to enjoy her happily ever after with her man, but it was starting to look like I might be back to square one when it came to finding my true love.
27
Max
Dammit. The minute Dani trusted me enough to share her physical vulnerabilities with me, I ruined the tentative faith she placed in me by kissing her like there was no tomorrow and coming at her cock-first. I probably frightened the poor woman half to death.
My only justification was that I wanted her beyond reason and had for as long as I could remember, but that was no excuse to lunge at her when we were both in our skivvies. Our relationship outside of my mind hadn’t progressed that far physically or likely emotionally––at least on her end––so I had most likely ruined our chances of making a serious go of it by taking things way too fast.
Although my first instinct was to call her and apologize, I sensed that might just end up making things worse. The way she’d looked at me when I’d merely tried to kiss her on the cheek last night on her parents’ front porch nearly broke my heart. She glared at me like I was the devil in the flesh, and I didn’t think I could stand to ever see that venom in her gaze again. It was probably best for us both if I just tried my best to leave her alone, but I didn’t know if I had the strength to do that.
I needed to talk to someone, but I didn’t know who. My friends were people that I’d hung out with since grade school, but our conversations were geared more toward sports and cars than anything resembling actual emotions.
If I called Levi to chat about my unrequited feelings for Dani, he would think I’d lost my mind. Talking to Dean about it was absolutely out of the question. I wasn’t completely sure how the man would react to hearing that I had the hots for his older sister, but I was fairly certain that he wouldn’t be thrilled about it. That’s why I’d never mentioned to him my long-standing crush on her––awkward city. Until recently, it hadn’t ever seemed like I had a chance with her anyway, so it hadn’t mattered. Of course, I’d quickly ruined that sliver of an opportunity with her that had presented itself anyway, so I guess it was a non-issue again.
My parents weren’t any help. My dad wouldn’t care one way or the other, and it would make him shift uncomfortably from foot-to-foot if I even brought it up. My mom would care too much, and she would never let it go. She would badger me relentlessly with questions about when we would be providing her with grandchildren. I certainly didn’t need that added pressure.
Although this wasn’t typically how our sibling relationship worked, I decided my best option was to call Molly. We were normally snarky with each other, but I knew that deep-down she cared about me and wanted only the best for me.
I couldn’t help but smile when she skipped a normal greeting and instead answered her phone, “What can I do for you now, pretty princess?”
“Well, hello to you, too, my bright and shining ray of sunshine.” I enjoyed our lighthearted banter. My sister had always been one of the easiest people for me to get along with, even though it might appear to an outsider that we constantly bickered.
“Ugh, don’t say that word. It reminds me of that dreadful song that Dani sang during our time with Kevin.” Molly groused.
It dawned on me then that I hadn’t really checked in on how Molly was doing after what had to have been one of the most traumatic events of her life. My sister pretended to be tough, but I knew that she often hid her feelings.
“Speaking of that, are you doing okay?” Since my words emerged sounding like a simple platitude, I added, “I mean are youreallyokay?”
“I’m fine,” she assured me before adding, “Really.”
I could tell that she wanted me to believe her, but I made a mental note to check in on her more frequently. The last thing I wanted was for her to feel like she was alone to deal with any of the anger, fear, or other negative feelings that stemmed from her kidnapping.
“Okay, but please tell me if I can do anything to help.” I tried to insert an extra layer of sincerity in my voice so she would know I meant it.
“Yeah, yeah,” she mumbled, before practically yelling into the phone, “Oh! Did you hear?”
“Hear what?” I asked her.
“Kevin Durley is going to be held in the state prison until he stands trial for his crimes, and his lawyer is having him plead “not guilty by reason of insanity.”
The news didn’t surprise me a bit, but I searched for something reassuring to say to Molly. I finally landed on, “Either way, it sounds like he is going to be locked up for a very long time.”
“Let’s hope so,” Molly weighed in as I realized it was probably best for everyone, including Kevin, if he remained behind bars. I didn’t trust myself not to hurt him if I ever saw him again.
Not sensing the dark turn my thoughts had taken, Molly added, “I think he had every intention of stealing Dani and me from our lives on a long-term basis, just like he did with Claire.”
