Page 58 of Wrong Car, Wright Guy
“You mean it?”
My stomach draws tight, but I still manage to nod. “Yeah. I’m tired of not being in control of my own life, tired of being the one to pay forhisinability to step up. Somehow, he needs to be made to stand up and face his sins.”
Twenty-Five
Ruby
My phone buzzes with a text from Tahlia.You’re about to get a grumpy visitor.
“What?” I shoot up from my seat and Darren stops his sewing to look at me.
“Tell me you didn’t just get bit by some nasty little bug,” he says. “I don’t think my heart can take any of that nonsense again.”
“No,” I say, tearing my eyes away from my phone. “I think…I think Tanner is coming.”
“What? Here? Does he know?” Darren has started waxing his eyebrows off to make his drag queen makeup easier to apply, but they still manage to arch up and hit his hairline. “When?”
“I don’t know. Soon? Tahlia said we’re about to get a grumpy visitor.”
“Oh, that could just be that damn cat. Doesn’t mean it’s Tanner—who’s still at the top of my shitlist, by the way. He hurt you, and until I see him groveling at your feet, I don’t even wanna know.” He holds his hand up like he’s blocking a bad feeling.
“I think we should let Ruby decide where on the shit list Tanner should reside,” Theo says. “She’s the one with stakes in this game, after all. And I don’t really want to upset you, baby, but I’m pretty sure grumpy cat passed away.”
Darren gasps. “You take that back!”
“No. It’s true. Look.” He gets up and takes his phone over to where Darren’s sitting at the sewing machine, showing him the screen.
“Well, that is just the saddest thing I’ve ever—” The door buzzer sounds and all eyes land on me.
“You want me to answer it?” Theo asks, his tone soft and understanding.
I swallow down hard as butterflies burst to life in my stomach and attempt to fly out of my mouth. “I can do it,” I say, moving to the handset on the wall. My heart pounds against my rib cage as I pick it up and hold it to my ear. “Hello.”
“Ruby? It's Tanner. Can we talk?”
My hand covers my mouth as my eyes fill with tears. I’ve been longing to hear his voice for months. I’d even gotten to the point where I thought I’d never get the opportunity to speak with him ever again. But now, all of a sudden, here he is. But why? After three months of nothing, why now? Then it hits me. Karen.
“That depends. Are you here to yell at me again?” I ask, my hand against my chest. I can feel the thudding of my heart.
“No. I’m here because I love you and I’m miserable without you.”
Without a second’s thought, I hit the button to open the door. I mean, I should probably play a little harder to get. I should probably make him work for it. Maybe grovel a little, but since he just came from Tahlia and that’s ten flights of stairs he went up and down,andthe elevator is out here too, so he’ll have to run upanothertwelve flights of stairs to get to me, so I think that’s working hard enough. Especially when I did him wrong too. I should never have told anyone about Camille without checking with him first.
I open the door, expecting to wait for a minute or two before he reaches us, but he must be some kind of stair climbing champion or something because the moment I step out, we collide. And it’s not just any collision, it’s a full-on arm wrapping, jumping collision that ends with his mouth on mine and my legs wrapped around his waist.
“Fuck, I missed your mouth,” he says, pressing his forehead against mine as I cling to him like a monkey, refusing to let go.
“I missed everything about you. Absolutely everything. And I’m so mad at you for leaving. I’m furious at you for throwing what we had away. But I’m elated that you’re here,” I cry, my voice getting tighter and tighter with each word. “Does that make me pathetic? Because I feel pathetic, but I just… I missed you. I missed you.”
“Baby, you could never be pathetic. You’re perfect. I am the asshole here. I reacted like a total dick and I’m so incredibly sorry. I should’ve given you the chance to explain, should’ve at least waited for the fallout before I reacted. But I just… I fucked up. Please tell me I didn’t ruin us. I mean, I’m hoping the fact your legs are wrapped so tight around my waist is a good sign.” He gives me that signature smirk of his and I just want to kiss it off his face, kiss him until neither of us can breathe anymore.
“It’s a good sign,” I confirm. “But I need to know, is Camille OK?”
He nods. “She’s fine. Things were a little topsy-turvy for a while there, but I took care of things. She’s back in the facility now. Happy and cared for. And she swears black and blue that you bought her a Barbie Dream house.”
I tilt my head to the side. “That’s because I did. I bought it before, for her birthday. So when it arrived, I took it there, and they said they sent it to her. I felt horrible because I thought your father had sent her away like he threatened to. But I’m relieved she’s still there.”
“I had her staying with me for a short time. It wasn’t easy for her, but we got through. You know, she asked about you every day. Talks about you every time I see her. I feel like maybe she knew us better than we did.”
