Page 25 of Possessed By Knox
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, an emergency at school, I need to get back.”
“You’re leaving?” There’s hurt in her voice that I don’t allow to get to me. I’m doing this for her. “Ruth, what about Knox?”
“I’ll tell you everything later.”
“Ruth!”
But I’m already walking to the guest room. I shove everything into the bag I came with and grab it, ready to hightail it out of this place before I break down. I find my sister standing by the door, watching me with hurt written all over her face.
“You’re safe and happy here,” I whisper, taking her hand in mine. “I see that now. I feel at ease knowing you’ve found a home here. A community.”
“Then let’s share it. You and Knox—”
I release her hand. “I need to go.”
She doesn’t stop me when I leave, and I manage to keep a firm and straight face as I exit the building. It stays even as I walk to my car and climb in, my heart hammering as I pull out of the lot. I drive through the city with clear eyes, and it’s not until I’ve crossed the city lines that I let the tears fall.
In wretched sobs that rip out of me, through me, I mourn the end of a love I never got to experience.
Chapter Eight
Knox
I wait all morning [KB33]for Ruth to come back, and when her phone goes to voicemail, I decide to give it a little more time. She mentioned that her sister needed help with something, so I force myself to stay still and not be a controlling jerk who can’t keep her out of his sight without worrying.
I try not to think about her as I take a shower, but there’s no erasing her. Not when my back hurts from the scratches she left this morning. The bite on my shoulder will take a long time to fade, but I don’t mind its presence.
I’m still thinking about her when I step out of the shower with a towel around my waist and grab a coffee in the kitchen. She’s probably in the club’s kitchen or Ransom’s apartment with her sister. I try not to think of Ruth talking to her sister about moving out of Chicago.
The thought of her leaving makes my heart clench painfully, but I push it away. It doesn’t fucking matter if Ruth never falls in love with the city; what we have can still be explored, even with her living in a different town. That thought gives me so much relief and comfort that I don’t worry too much when her phone hits voicemail again.
“Fine, I’ll come find you, little bird.” I grin, finishing my coffee before rinsing the cup in the sink. I get dressed, and it’s almost ten when I finally step out of the apartment. I think about heading to the cafeteria first, but change my mind when I get into the elevator and press four—Ransom’s floor.
It hasn’t even been a month since Ransom became an official member of the club. He’s one of the fastest people to be accepted into the club, but the man has proved himself to be worthy of the patch and thus, I know he’s the right man for Ruth’s sister. Maybe I should have done a better job of assuring Ruth of that instead of trying to charm her in the time we spent together.
Tonight. We’ll talk about everything tonight. She needs to know, above everything else, that my feelings for her run deeper than anything I’ve felt for anyone else.
I’m smiling when I knock on Ransom’s door. When I hear movements on the other side of the door, I half expect Ruth to open it like she did yesterday, but it’s her sister who opens the door. Her eyes are red and swollen from crying, and when she sees me, her lips begin to tremble before she starts sobbing.
“Abby, what’s wrong?” I ask, reaching into my waistband where I typically keep my gun, but it comes up empty. I curse myself for forgetting to grab my gun on my way out, but I don’t need it. I instinctively grab Abby’s arm and pull her out, pushing her behind me and shielding her from danger. It’s not until Ransom follows with an equally somber face that I consider that the danger to Abby isn’t physical. “What the hell is going on, Ransom?”
“It’s Ruth,” Abby responds from behind me.
“What happened to her? Is she hurt? Where is she?”
“She’s gone,” Abby says before slipping into another bout of tears. She moves around me and throws herself againstRansom in a move so dramatic I would make a crack out of it if my head wasn’t pounding so loudly.
“Can someone please tell me what the hell is going on here?”
“Ruth showed up this morning, grabbed her things and left,” Ransom says, his hard eyes meeting mine. “She’s done this before to her sister. Abandoned her when—”
“She never abandoned me!” Abby cuts in, defending her sister. “She just… I thought this time she would stay. I know she has college and a life she’s made for herself in a different town, but I didn’t imagine she’d be gone so soon. Not after I just got her back.”
“She’ll come back, Abby,” Ransom assures her, running a soothing hand down her hair. “To visit you.”
“No,” Abby says with a shake of her head, lifting her teary eyes to me. “You don’t know my sister. She hates this city from the bottom of her heart. When she left the first time, I thought she would come back too, but she stayed away for four years. I think she thought that by staying away, she was protecting me. She’s always trying to protect me.”[KB34]
