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Was it his imagination that she sounded scared? That she didn’t want him to leave?
Wishful thinking, no doubt.
“I have business. Vera will be by later.” He headed for the door, forcing himself to walk away before he forgot everything but her. “In the meantime, make yourself at home.”
13
Ruby
She stared at the phone in her hand for a long time after Roman left, contemplating her options. There had to be somewhere else she could go, somewhere she could afford that would be safe until the war between Roman and his father was settled and the target was removed from Ruby’s back.
But no matter how hard she thought about it, she came up empty.
She was too broke to get a hotel long-term, and even if she could convince Roman to give her the money — the least he could do under the circumstances — she would have no protection.
If she was alone in the world, she might have been willing to chance it. She’d been taking care of herself in one way or another for a long time and the thought of staying with the man responsible for the decimation of her life was sick.
But she had Olivia to think about.
Her daughter had been living with Adam for the past three weeks, and Adam was anything but a safe harbor for their daughter. Ruby didn’t think he would hurt Olivia, but she wasn’t willing to stake everything on it.
She had to get her daughter back, get her to safety, and for that, she had to remain alive.
The thought of Olivia hit her like a physical blow. It was like being reminded that she’d lost an arm or a leg, a critical part of her missing.
She turned the phone over in her hand. She wanted to call Adam, ask to speak to Olivia, but she didn’t know if it was wise.
Had Olivia been told she was missing? Dead?
The thought made her want to scream.
She had no idea what Olivia had been told, how she would feel when confronted with a call from Ruby after what Olivia might feel was her mother’s abandonment. Ruby didn’t even know if Adam would let her speak to Olivia.
She drew in a breath, forced herself to breathe around the pain weighing on her chest like a boulder.
She should have asked Roman about calling Olivia.
She hated herself for thinking it, hated that she was reliant on the man who’d blown up her life, not just for her safety but for advice about the situation with Adam and Olivia.
She stood and walked to the window, dialed her father’s number, easily remembered along with Brooke’s since the two of them were the emergency contacts for everything in her and Olivia’s lives.
He answered on the second ring, his voice hesitant and tired until he discovered the unknown caller was Ruby. Then, a chorus of relief and happiness followed by a storm of questions she had trouble answering.
He didn’t know about Roman — she’d only confided in Brooke about the enigmatic man she’d been dating before her kidnapping — and she did her best to hedge around the truth: that she’d inadvertently become involved with someone entangled in some shady shit, that it had been a mistake, that it was safer for Ruby to stay away from them until she figured out how to extricate herself from the situation.
He fought her on her determination not to come home, on her unwillingness to give him details, but he had no choice but to accept it when it became clear Ruby had made up her mind.
She turned the discussion to Olivia and learned that Roman had been telling the truth. Adam had picked Olivia up from school the day Ruby went missing and she’d been with him ever since.
Her father and Brooke had pushed to see her, but Adam had said they were busy with Olivia’s school schedule and his work schedule and that it was “better” for Olivia to settle in to her new routine.
Her new routine. As if it were permanent. As if Adam expected Ruby to stay gone.
She was almost grateful for that little tidbit. The anger that rose within her pushed aside the fear and frustration she’d felt after her conversation with Roman.
And right now, she needed anger.
Fear and frustration were useless emotions. She needed to get her daughter back, to keep her safe.
