Page 83 of What are the Risks
With an amused expression, Ruby poured herself a drink, heavy on the vodka. “We’ll see.”
*
Dinner had been a bust. I’d ended up sitting between Gretchen and Lindsay at one end of the table, as far from Ruby as possible. The closest thing I had to a friend was Pat, but he was so busy trying to impress Lindsay that he made boring company.
Now the rest of the team were arriving in droves, and the private dinner was over. Thank fuck, because Evan and Ruby had been looking way too intimate. At one point, he’d been whispering in her ear. Fuck knows what he was saying, but the blush that’d covered her skin had given me an idea.
I’d never wanted to wring his neck more. I was jealous – there was no other explanation. The feeling was new to me, and I had no idea how to handle it.
When Joey Nazaar walked through the front door, it pushed me over the edge. He’d clearly taken extra time getting ready tonight. His typically scruffy hair was styled, and he was wearing an ironed button down as opposed to his usual hoodie or tee.
“What’s up with you?” Tori quietly muttered under her breath.
She was on one side of me and Gretchen was on the other, chatting with Lindsay and Pat about her plans next year. Until tonight, I hadn’t known she modelled. I guess I’d never cared enough to ask.
“Nothing,” I grumbled.
Tori snorted. “Tell that to the beer label you ripped to shreds during dinner.”
She could blame Evan for that. Speaking of the douchebag, I hadn’t seen him for a while... or Ruby for that matter.
“Do you find Evan attractive?” I asked.
“Are you kidding? He’s like Ryan Gosling from Barbie. Just a less plastic version.”
“Is that a good thing?”
“Definitely. The guy is hot.”
A growl slipped out before I could stop it. I was turning into a full-blown caveman. Hell, I was turning into Levi Holloway. At least he had an excuse to feel that way about his girlfriend. I had no business acting the same way over a friend.
Tori’s face lit up as she spotted Joey across the room. He waved before heading this way.
“Did you really need to do that?” I complained.
“Do what?”
“Set him up with, Ruby.”
“I didn’t think it’d be a problem.”
“I didn’t say it was.”
“Sure. Because asking if Evan is attractive and getting annoyed at Joey is totally normal.” Tori lifted her drink to her lips, her eyes glimmering with amusement. “You’re either clueless or in worse denial than I realised.”
If only she knew I was well beyond both of those things.
Gretchen reached for my hand, threading her fingers through mine. “I need the bathroom. Can I use yours?”
I went to list off the combination for my electric lock, but caught myself in time. Ruby and I were the only people who knew the code. Having set it in freshman year, I couldn’t remember how to change it.
“Sure. I’ll take you.”
Perfect excuse to dodge Joey who was closing in on us.
Gretchen stayed close behind me as we climbed the stairs, her hand lightly resting on my lower back. When we reached the top, I tried using the vantage point to search for Ruby – or even Evan – but came up short. Fuck knows where they were.
Outside my room, I shielded the keypad with my body like I was protecting launch codes, before nudging the door open.
