Page 62 of Big Daddy Christmas
Heart pounding, she stared at the buttons in front of her. Stop being a baby. Just push the damn button and go up there.
Dragging in a deep breath, she reached out and pressed the button that would take her up to the bridal suite. But when she got to the room where Lottie had texted them all to meet, she froze again, staring at the door in front of her.
According to Ivy, Ruby had the world’s worst poker face. Whether it was actually playing poker, or trying to hide something from Beckett, she never succeeded at keeping her feelings a secret. So the odds were high that if she walked in that room with her emotions running rampant the way they were at that moment, Lottie would know something was wrong right away.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” she muttered, pacing the hallway in front of the suite.
What the hell was she supposed to do?
“Ruby? What’s wrong?”
Pausing her frantic pacing, Ruby jerked her head up, tears once more stinging her eyes as Frankie pulled the door to the room across the hall shut behind her, worry shining in her dark gaze. “I screwed up, Frankie. I screwed up so fucking bad and everyone is going to hate me.”
“Oh, honey.” Reaching out, Frankie took Ruby’s hands in hers and squeezed. “I’m sure it’s not as bad as you’re making it out to be in your head. Take a deep breath and then tell me what’s going on.”
Ruby did as she was told, dragging in a stuttering breath. She could tell Frankie. She had to tell Frankie. As matron of honor, any kind of wedding emergency fell under her purview.
Right?
Right.
Holding tight to that thought, Ruby swallowed hard and forced the words she’d been dreading past the tightness in her throat. “I… I lost the rings.”
Frankie blinked. Then frowned. “What rings?”
Jesus, this was going to be harder than she’d anticipated. “Lottie and Braden’s wedding rings.”
It was Frankie’s turn to pace, dropping Ruby’s hands as though they were the metaphorical hot potato. “I don’t understand. Why did you even have the rings?”
“I didn’t. Beckett did. I guess Braden asked him to pick them up and he had them stored in his nightstand.”
“Okay, well, where the fuck are they now?”
If I knew that, they wouldn’t be lost. Biting back the sarcastic retort, Ruby shook her head. “I don’t know. Um, I was pretty drunk when I got home last night and I… You know how sometimes I like to fuck with Beckett by moving his stuff around?”
Stopping in the middle of the hallway, Frankie groaned. “Tell me you didn’t.”
“I didn’t know, Frankie, I swear to god. I don’t even remember moving them. Like, I remember moving some stuff in the bathroom and I vaguely remember going in his nightstand, but I don’t actually remember moving the boxes anywhere. This morning, Beckett went to go get them and they’re just gone. That’s why I’m so late getting here, we tore our bedroom apart looking for them.”
“Is it possible Beckett didn’t put them there?” At Ruby’s withering look, Frankie rolled her eyes. “Right. Beckett never loses anything, the freak. If he says he put them in the nightstand, then they were in the nightstand.”
“Exactly. What am I gonna do, Frankie?”
“I’ll tell you what you’re going to do.” Gripping Ruby’s shoulders, Frankie gave her a hard stare worthy of any Domme. “You are going to plaster a bright, happy smile on your face, march yourself in that room, and not tell a goddamn soul what’s going on.”
“You know I have the world’s worst poker face, Frankie.”
“Yeah, but I also know you love Lottie almost as much as I do and you would never do anything to ruin her big day. So you’re going to go in there, drink yourself a mimosa or three, and pretend like you’re having the time of your life.”
“Okay.” Closing her eyes, Ruby dragged in a deep breath. “You’re right. I can do this.”
“Damn straight you can. You’re the badass bartender who nailed down Beckett Fucking Stone. You can do anything.”
She opened her eyes with a grin. “You make a damn good point.”
“Of course I do. Now, you go on in there, I’m going to tell Holden what we’re dealing with so he can keep tabs on Beckett. I’ll be right behind you. Oh, and if anyone asks if you’ve been crying, you lie right to their faces and tell them Beckett spanked your ass for being a brat. Nobody will question it.”
“Right.” Turning back toward the door to the suite, Ruby took another deep breath and willed her heart to stop racing. “I can do this. I can do this.”
