Page 56 of Wrong Car, Wright Guy
“OK. Then what next? Surely there’s another way.”
“This is what’s next, Karen. I’m done. It’s over.”
“So, you’re just going to spend the rest of your life working in Starbucks with Andy?”
I shrug. “Looks that way.”
“Hmm. I thought you were tougher than this, Ruby,” she says, getting up as Andy brings her order over. “I thought you’d fight harder.”
“And I thought you were more of a pushover,” I say, looking her up and down. “Turns out, you’re a bit of a badass, and I’m a big ole pile of defeated goo. We were both wrong.”
“Maybe,” she says, moving to another table to fawn over her spunkeroonie. I watch them and get a spark of jealousy, knowing I’ll never have that for myself. The one thing I was definitely wrong about was my Mr. Right. Turns out, I was just a temporary custodian of Tanner’s heart. He was never truly mine.
The kicker is, I was his. And I always will be …
Twenty-Four
Tanner
“You are the dumbest man on the planet,” Karen says after storming into my office and dumping my mail on my desk.
“I beg your pardon?” I have to blink twice before my eyes deceive me. Besides Ruby, I have never in my career had a staff member speak to me the way Karen just did. I should fire her on the spot.
“You heard me. You are dumb and pigheaded.” She places her hands on her hips. “Oh, and you’re an asshole.”
“Need I remind you that you are entirely replaceable, Karen. Explain yourself or walk out the door and keep going until you exit the building.”
“I just saw Ruby.” My heart jolts in my chest, and suddenly, I realize that it’s been a dead husk, unbeating behind my ribcage, missing Ruby while also being irreversibly angry with her for jeopardizing Camille’s care. As it was, the press made it difficult for her to remain where she was and I had to move her into my apartment with two full-time carers until things died down. It wasn’t ideal since my apartment doesn’t offer the same programs or access to specialist care that the facility did. But we made it through, and now Camille is back where she’s most happy, enjoying her barbies and painting classes with her friends. She even has a fancy new dream house for her dolls that wasn’t there before. She felt sure it came from Ruby, and maybe it did. I just don’t want to know about it. Just like I don’t want to talk about Ruby to Karen right now.
“Don’t you have work to do?”
“She’s working at Starbucks. Did you know that?”
No. I’ve done all I can to not learn anything about Ruby after I stormed out of her apartment. I’ve avoided all calls, all attempts at contact from her, her brother,andher friends. And then I got a new cell just to make sure I wasn’t tempted to give in and talk to her. Because she betrayed my trust, and that betrayal affected my sister. I can’t be OK with that.
“What Miss Casey chooses to do with her life is none of my business.”
“Chooses? That ridiculous non-compete is forcing her to work for a fraction of what she was earning at the station. She made amistake,Tanner. She trusted her best friend who was tricked into trusting a man whoobviouslytargeted her just to get to you. She loved you. And from what I can see, she’s the best thing that ever happened to you. You were better, smarter, happier, for every day you spent with her. And in the end, you treat her no better than one of the many PAs you fired when they got the temperature of your tea wrong. You not only flicked her aside, but you robbed her of her livelihood. You are a callous prick, and you don’t need to fire me, because I quit. I don’t want to work for you. Wallow in your own shit. I’m done.”
She spins on her heel and heads for the door. For a moment, my voice is caught in my throat, but then I manage to force out enough words to make her pause. “I waived the non-compete. She could work at any station she wants.”
Turning back to face me, she quirks a brow. “Except the one she spent her entire career at.”
“I lost out too, you know.”
“Oh?” She looks around the massive corner office situated directly next to my father’s. It’s lavish, and I get paid plenty to be here, but it’s the last place I want to be. When the article dropped, my father gave me a choice—the station or Camille. I chose Camille, which means I’m now my father’s corporate slave. And I fucking hate it. “Your life looks hideous. I feel horribly sorry for you.”
“This isn’t my life. It’s the life my father chose for me.”
“And Ruby’s life is the life you forced on her out of petty spite. I don’t know why, because I don’t think you deserve one ounce of care from that woman after how you’ve acted, but for someinsanereason, she still loves you. She still misses you. So maybe, while you sit on your high horse, you can think about that. Have fun finding someone else to put up with you. I think I was the last person in the entire city.”
“You’re still quitting?”
She nods once. “Want me to stay, sort out your personal life.”
“It’s not that easy.”
“It’s not that hard either. Make a fucking phone call. Hell, go and get a cup of coffee before you come to work and see howlookingat her working at a Starbucks makes you feel. Whatever it takes. Just get your head out of your ass and dosomething.You belong together. And you’re miserable apart. You can’t keep pretending. Fix your shit.”
