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“Of course.” She didn’t need to think it over. Didn’t need to ponder the pros and cons of signing her name on the dotted line for him. This was her brother. She would do whatever it took to make sure that this time, he made it. “Whatever you need, Ryder. We can go to the dealership tomorrow.” She checked her watch. “Tonight, even. I have a massage—“
“Hey, slow down.” He cracked a grin. “Tomorrow is good.” Ryder frowned. “Since when do you give massages? I thought that part of your job was over and done with. You know, since you own the place.”
“I offered a personal massage for the fundraiser last week, and Nash’s mother is booked for five twenty.” She glanced at her watch. “Shoot, I gotta run. Lisa must be here already, and I still have to change.”
Ryder got to his feet, and she slipped her arms around him for one last hug. God, even the feel of him was different.
“I had lunch with Sid,” he said slowly.
Ruby wasn’t expecting that. She p
ulled away and looked up at him. “You still have the power to hurt her, Ry. You know that, right?”
He nodded. “She’s a big girl, Ruby.”
“Ryder.” There was a warning in her voice, but she wasn’t so sure Ryder heard it. He might see things not everyone did, but in other areas of his life, he was clueless.
“Relax. It was just lunch. And it was her that called me, just so you know.” He paused, looking a bit sheepish. “Actually, it was Sidney who showed the me the ad, and the lady who did the hiring knows her.”
Ruby filed that information away. She’d been so busy trying not to think about her personal life that she’d closed herself off from everything. She hadn’t talked to Sidney or Ryder. And she definitely hadn’t talked to—
“Travis came to see me to.”
“What?” Eyes wide, she took a step back. “Why? What did he want?”
Ryder watched her for a few seconds. “I didn’t ask. I told him to go screw himself.”
Good. That make her happy. Kind of.
“Are you two…”
“What?” She shook her head. “No. Never.” Her denial sounded lame. So lame, in fact, that Ryder’s eyebrows narrowed and he frowned.
“He drove me home a few weeks ago. From the Coach House. I’d had one too many, and he took my keys and drove me home. Put me to bed too.”
“Oh.” It was the only word Ruby managed to get out.
Ryder took a step toward the door and shrugged. “Maybe I should have asked what he wanted.”
“No. I’m glad you didn’t. Whatever it is, doesn’t matter.”
“You sure about that?”
“Positive.” It was Ruby’s turn to pick a piece of invisible lint from her skirt.
“If you were positive, you’d be looking me in the eye.”
The door closed behind her brother, and she took a step after him—Ruby liked to have the last word—but then turned and headed to her private bathroom. She would get her last word in the next time she saw Ryder. She grabbed the bag she’d brought to work and changed into black yoga pants, a plain white V-neck T-shirt with the spa logo above her right breast, and pulled her hair back into a ponytail. It had been a long time since she’d given a massage, and she was looking forward to it. She would let the atmosphere; the soothing music, and scents take her to another place. One where she could forget all about the man who kept infiltrating her life.
She slipped her feet into comfortable flip-flops and grabbed a water bottle on the way out. It didn’t take long to reach the spa area, and she spied Megan, the receptionist.
“Is my client in?” she asked, smiling at the lady paying for her services. Mrs. Avery was the local florist and a woman Ruby had known her entire life. She gave Ruby a sly smile and turned to Megan, who looked a bit uncomfortable, which made Ruby frown.
“Room three,” Megan replied.
“Great.”
“Ruby, um…”
