Chapter 9

Ruby

The doorbell chimed and Ruby buried her head under her pillow. Was it morning already? She didn't want to get up or open her eyes. All night she'd tossed and turned, debating asking Tommy if he wanted to sleep in her bed since she knew the old couch was lumpy and uncomfortable. It was the right thing to do, considering he was sticking his neck on the line to protect her. She was glad her sister stayed the night with her, but that meant no extra bed for Tommy. Her double bed would be plenty of room for them both. The least she could do. She thought about offering, but he would refuse. Deep down, Tommy was a nice guy...a gentleman.

Wind whistled through the window that was still covered with a black garbage bag and duct tape. Had the intruder gone through her things? When she and Tommy found the window broken, in her room she'd noticed some of her belongings, like costume jewelry and panties strewn across the carpet. At least she thought so. She checked for anything missing, but it seemed as if everything was still here. A few drawers were opened, but she couldn't remember if she left them that way or not. And her closet door had stood half-way opened. Hadn't she closed that before her shower yesterday?

At least she was getting away for a while. Even if it wasn't Mardi Gras, she planned on getting drunk and partying tonight. Would Tommy dance with her? Sure, they sparred and wrestled during practice but never something as intimate as dancing with their bodies pressed up against each other. She punched her pillow. Maybe she needed a date...even a blind one. Crystal had met Kade that way, well and the fact that he was an undercover cop assigned to the Westridge case along with Paul.

Ruby needed to take a shower before the repairmen and alarm company showed up this morning. Groaning, she forced her legs to the floor and shuffled to the bathroom. Mornings were bad enough normally.

Thankfully, the bathroom door was ajar. Maybe she'd woken up before anyone else and had first dibs on the hot water. Rounding the corner, she bumped into Tommy tucking a towel into place low on his hips.

"Morning." Tommy's deep voice made her toes curl into the hall carpet. She stared at his pecs, firm with a trail of curly brown hair that pointed the way lower. His scent of soap, wet skin, and musk rolled over her in a delicious wave of humid post-shower air.

"Mmm..."

He glanced down at her, and her skin burned as he licked his lips. "Your faucet is dripping."

"Pardon?" She shook her head to dislodge the thoughts of asking Tommy to wash her back. "My what?"

"Your bathroom sink is dripping." He grinned. "Where's your toolbox and I'll fix it for you."

"In the basement over the washer." Did he self-tan? There wasn't a tan line on him anywhere, not his broad shoulders, or his pecs, or the V-tapering of his waist. "I was going to take a shower, want me to wait?"

"Nah, I've got to get dressed and grab some coffee first."

She was certain he wouldn't go for her idea of him staying in his towel. Too bad last night Kade brought a pair of jeans and shirt for him. She guessed Tommy was going to go commando. Yummy. Otherwise, she'd tell him to wear the towel while she washed his dirty clothes from yesterday.

"Make me some too, please."

"Of course." He winked and went downstairs.

God, he was sex on steroids. Why hadn't she ever noticed before?

After her shower, Ruby braided her hair, dressed in Daisy Duke shorts and a polo, then skipped down stairs. She ignored the idea flirting through her that she was dressing sexy becauseTommy was here and she couldn't get her mind off their kiss. The aroma of coffee, bacon and eggs made her stomach rumble.

Garbed in snug blue jeans and a fitted gray T-shirt, Tommy stirred a sizzling pan of bacon, a pile of beaten eggs beside him, his gaze drifting over her and lingering on her long legs. "Thought you might be hungry."

"Famished." Tommy cooked? If the food tasted half as good as it smelled, she might invite him to become her roommate. No. That would be too tempting. Maybe he'd help her out sometimes on the catering jobs.

She sighed. Did she even want to continue that façade? Crystal had quit and now worked with Kade. After Westridge was arrested, Ruby had taken a sabbatical on their catering jobs. But she had no idea what she wanted to do with her life. Training and vengeance had taken almost two decades of her life, and unease drifted through her about what to do now.

She scooped up a plate of eggs, grabbed two pieces of bacon, and juggled a bottle of hot sauce and a cup of coffee to the table.

"Still coat your eggs with that stuff?" He nodded to the hot sauce.

He remembered? "Um...yeah, though your food smells wonderful." So as not to offend him, she only added half what she normally did. She stirred the scrambled eggs then took a huge bite. They melted in her mouth and the spiciness of the sauce added to the subtle egg flavor. "This is really good. I didn't know you cooked."

"Had to. Been a bachelor for too long and didn't want to starve." He grinned. "Besides, Crystal never allowed me to crash your catering gigs either."

Even though she knew he grew up on the streets, he never complained about his past or sought sympathy. It was just part of his life and how he got where he was now. For too many years, the past defined Ruby. It twisted revenge in her until she didn't want anything else except Westridge's head on a spike. Now that she had that or at least had him in jail, she felt unfulfilled, hollow. Like when a kid opens the surprise inside the cereal box and thinks, that's it?

"You'll have to teach me how to cook these. My eggs come out dry and rubbery. Which is why Crystal always took the brunch catering jobs. Although, I do make a mean quiche."

"Sure." He sat across from her. "I'd love to show you anything you like." His husky voice sent shivers through her.

Was he flirting?

"I thought I smelled breakfast." Crystal banged a cabinet closed. "Who cooked? Cause these eggs look amazing."

"Tommy." Ruby's cheeks heated. How much had her sister overheard?

"Yummy. Though if you were trying to impress us with your skills, then where's the homemade waffles?"

"Can't make much with a quarter cup of flour and expired milk. I thought you girls were professional caterers." He popped a piece of bacon in his mouth.

"Yeah, but we've been kind of busy with Westridge and that nightmare jury duty I was sequestered on last month." The guy had been guilty. Ruby knew it the moment the convicted man had walked into the courtroom. He even stared at them with a smug look on his face while the attorneys and judge had talked during the jury selection process.

"Kade and I have been busy with our business and finding an apartment." Crystal tore a piece of bacon into pieces over her eggs. "Though, I don't mind helping out once in a while, I'd rather not cater anything ever again." Her blue eyes found Ruby's. "No offense."

"None taken." Ruby didn't know if she wanted to either. Yet, she didn't want to play detective. Her sister was good at computers and an asset to Kade's private detective work. What could Ruby do? Sparring and break into safes?

***

The soonest flight took them to Houston. That gave them two hours before the next flight to New Orleans and they could rent a car.

Five hours later, Ruby sat back as Tommy drove the rental car through Bourbon Street. Ah, New Orleans where there are more bars than churches.

She'd first lived here as a child after her mother died and her father was imprisoned. In New Orleans, they would stay at her Uncle George's house. The house that was her home for years until she and Crystal moved back to New York.

Tommy flipped on his blinker and waited for a slow walking pedestrian to cross the street.

Her sister and she had stayed in George's house the entire time they lived here. It wasn't the mansion of Gustin's New York home or even the beach house in Florida they both owned, but it was the first place she felt safe after what happened to her family.

Here she'd learned to fight, assumed her new identity as Ruby, and Bess had taught her and her sister to cook. She owed everything to Gustin and George, and New Orleans would always feel more like home to her than New York.

The buzz of her cell made her jump. "Hello?"

"Where the hell are you?" Her father's voice shouted over the phone. "Crystal tells me you were nearly shot. And what's this about Tommy's brake line being cut?"

"Hi Dad." Her father loved them, even though he came off gruff. Had to keep his distance since he wasn't able to raise them from all the years he spent in prison. "Tommy and I took a rental car and will hang out in New Orleans for a bit until we find out who Westridge paid to take me out." And why hadn't her sister had any incidences? Did Westridge want to kill Ruby so Crystal would pay for the fact she'd been the computer guru who busted him?

"You're staying at the Uncles' house there?" His tone softened. "I'll call them and let them know you're going."

Absently, she twisted her hair around a finger. She didn't want the Uncles or anyone putting themselves in danger to protect her. Besides, she really wanted to spend time with Tommy. His presence was reassuring especially now that he wasn't in jail any more on false charges. "No Dad, it'll just be us."

"I'll take the next flight there."

"That's okay, Tommy and I can handle things." She bit her lip. As much as she wanted to spend time with her dad, she didn't want a third-wheel or chaperone with them. Where had that thought come from? Heat coiled up her chest. This wasn't a date.

"You're sure?" He sounded hesitant. "It's no problem on my end to fly there...though my bike would have to stay here."

She laughed. Her dad, the once professional businessman she knew as a child had turned into a hardened ex-con with a motorcycle and leather jacket. But he was a softy on the inside. "I'll call you if anything comes up. Stay safe."

"I will. Stay safe yourself." He echoed the words he'd spoken every night to her and Crystal from prison and even after he faked his death - he somehow would pass the message onto them in other ways. She tossed her cell in her purse and scrubbed a hand over her face. Damn Westridge and his whole company. They'd taken her father from her, killed her mother and destroyed her innocence, her childhood. And now he was trying to take her security and peace of mind with an assassin stalker.

"Hey, we've been on the road a while." Tommy stopped at a red light. "Want to grab a bite of Cajun Charlie's? I heard they opened a new restaurant off Commerce, so we won't have to detour to Sulphur."

Thankful for the distraction, she nodded. "If you hadn't suggested it, I would have. Glad they're doing well enough to open another place." And hopefully, it was just as good as the original.

Tommy drove in silence while Ruby stared out the window marveling how much had changed in the few years she'd been in New York, and how much remained the same.

At nearly two o'clock, the place was still packed, but they managed to squeeze the rental car into a parking space next to the dumpster.

"I've got plenty of room on my side. Want to move the car so you can get out?"

"Nah, I'm good." Tommy squeezed out of the driver's side and Ruby chuckled.

Inside, the scent of Creole seasoning, red beans and rice, and a spicy sausage made Ruby lick her lips and her stomach grumble. It had been too long since she had a good Cajun meal. Even though she and Crystal often cooked it for their clients, it wasn't the same.

There was just something magical when eating this amazing food in Louisiana. Almost as if the blessings of the Divine only shined down on this patch of land. And Bess was the best cook she'd ever had. She did the sign of the cross remembering her old cooking teacher.

"There's a table in the back." Tommy's warm hand on her back caused a shiver to race through her.

Someone slid money into the old juke box and Aerosmith's Pink blasted through the speakers.

Ruby let Tommy sit facing the front of the restaurant. Even though she was trained to watch people and be prepared for anything, she only wanted to enjoy her food and the company.

After the waitress took their orders, Ruby braced her fingers on the edge of the bench. "So, any leads on who's targeting me? Has Westridge had any visitors?"

"None." He took a sip of his beer. "I called my contacts both in and out of prison, and nothing. Either Westridge is smarter than we thought, or he has someone else working for him that we never knew about." Something crossed in his expression and he looked away.

She fought a shiver snaking down her spine. "So, we just wait it out?" Her hands trembled as she gathered the paper napkin and folded it into a tiny square.

Without looking up, she knew Tommy stared at her. She couldn't help it. When Westridge had been arrested, she thought that was the end of her problems. Now they seemed to be mounting.

"Yes, just relax and have fun." The words were right, but his tone wasn't comforting.