Page 77 of Rocked By the Alpha
It’s over.
Chapter 23
Security has installed a new gate around her house, but someone must have given Natasha the code, because she’s there waiting on Ruby’s doorstep when she arrives home.
Ruby parks her bike in the middle of the drive and Nat rises to her feet.
“I thought we should talk,” Nat says. Her large dark glasses cover most of her face but she sounds more worn out than angry.
“Sure,” Ruby says. “You wanna come inside.”
“How about we go for a walk?”
She cocks her head to look at her friend, then nods. It’s what they used to do when they had a problem or needed inspiration back in New York. They’d link arms and start walking. Sometimes they’d walk for hours and end up God knows where. They haven’t walked together for a long time.
They squeeze out the gap in the gate before it shuts and start off down the sidewalk. Thick green grass grows alongside the tarmac and the odd palm tree casts spikey shadows over their path.
“I’m here because I want to try to fix things, Ruby,” Nat says, eyes fixed ahead.
“Do you think we can?”
“I dunno.”
“We’ve had fights before Nat but this one felt—”
“You really fucking hurt my feelings. You lied to me and it really, really hurt.” She can hear the choke in Nat’s voice but it’s too painful to look her way. “More than the fact you’re seeing that shithead. The lying …”
“I know,” Ruby bites her lip. “I’m sorry. If I could take it back. If I could turn back time and tell you right from the start, I would. I guess I just never expected it to go anywhere and then it did and I was already trapped in the lie.”
Nat sighs. “I’m sorry too.” They pause to let a car back out of the drive and Ruby can see scuff marks on the front of Nat’s boots and cracks in the sidewalks. “I’m sorry I lost my shit with you,” Nat continues, “and I’m really sorry you didn’t feel you could be honest with me.”
Ruby glances up at her friend and she can see the tears trailing out from under her shades. They walk some more.
“The truth is I’ve really missed you, Ruby. I don’t want you out of the band. It’s not the same without you. If it means I have to cross paths with that asshole, I can live with that.”
Ruby stops. “That won’t be a problem.”
“What?”
The words are hard to say. They scrape against her throat. She doesn’t want them to be true. But it’s for the best. It wasn’t working. He agreed it wasn’t working. “We’re not seeing each other any more. We broke up.”
Nat’s shoulders relax and she grins. “Thank fuck for that. I mean I was prepared to put up with it but …” She glances up at Ruby’s face and registers her expression. “You’re not happy about it?”
“I guess, I don’t know. It was kind of inevitable. It’s West Stone. It was always going to be a bit of fun for him.”
“He’s an asshole, Ruby. They all are.” Nat pauses. “But assholes can be fun, if you like him …”
“It’s over, Nat.”
“And us?Sweet Desire?”
“I don’t want us to stop being friends over some dude. We always said a man could never come between us.”
Nat chuckles. “We did say that. We should get that tattooed on our arms so we never forget it.” She holds out her pinky finger to Ruby. “So friends again?”
Ruby hooks her finger around her friend’s and tugs her in for a hug. “Friends,” she says.
“I am sorry. For everything,” Nat says, holding her tight. “I will try to be better, calmer. What you said about trying to control your life? I don’t want to be that person. I know what you went through with your parents.”
