Chapter 11

The next few days passed in a warm summer haze. Walking to and from work with Rafe, the streets empty and dark, had Ruby feeling like she was existing somewhere between a dream and reality. Somehow, the sexy fantasy she’d been having for the past month had materialized and was walking beside her like everything was normal. Like requiring a werewolf bodyguard was all perfectly regular. But the really odd part was how normal it did feel. How right Rafe felt next to her.

The night air was thick and warm, a weight heavy on her shoulders as they walked home. Ruby wished the heatwave would end but every storm seemed to only bring more humidity. Rafe’s hand brushed against hers and despite the weather, shivers raced up her arm. She glanced up at him, his face stoic and strong in the light of the street lamps. He caught her looking and heat flared in her cheeks.

“What?” he asked, brow furrowed.

“Nothing. Just thinking it’s nice to have someone to walk with.”

He looked at her a moment too long and she glanced away, her pulse thrumming in her ears. Why did he still have this effect on her? She was acting like a horny fangirl. But seriously, a sexy werewolf had been her wet dream since puberty. It was a lot to take in.

“Want to eat with us again?”

He’d sat around the kitchen table every night so far, eating leftovers from the pub with her and Lena, joining them in their little ritual.

Her sister had even taken to smiling and laughing again, teasing Rafe for his taciturn nature, always trying to pull more words out of him. It made Ruby remember why her sister was so adored. Lena charmed her way into everyone’s hearts. And Ruby was glad her sister was comfortable with their little—giant—houseguest.

Lena’s appetite was back too, and Ruby wasn’t even mad when her sister scraped all the best bits of burnt cheese off the edges of the lasagna.

“Sure.” Rafe’s voice was a rumble in the darkness.

“Okay, great.” Ruby ignored the odd squeak in her own voice and hoped Rafe did too. They walked up the front path to the house, the front door’s cheerful yellow obvious even in the dark. She leaned into the door with her shoulder, pushing their way in. The old wood had a tendency to swell in the heat and it groaned in protest.

Rafe followed her through the living room and into the kitchen, his presence in her house never failing to send a jolt of nervous excitement through her.

“Lena! We’re back. I brought dinner.” Ruby paused, waiting for her sister’s response, dreading the nights when Lena didn’t answer.

“Coming!”

Ruby let out a sigh of relief and caught Rafe studying her. She gave him a quick smile and set the food on the table, busying herself with setting out utensils and plates. A large hand on the small of her back stopped her in her tracks. Lightning zipped up her spine.

“You don’t have to serve anyone here,” he said, his mouth dangerously close to her ear as he reached around her and took the plates from her hands. “You’ve been on your feet for hours. Go sit.”

The gruff command sent her scurrying to her chair faster than she would ever admit. Rafe set the plates on the table while she opened the takeout containers. It was probably terrible for her body to eat such heavy food at one in the morning but Ruby ate breakfast at noon and the rest of the day was a crap shoot. She was starving. Her stomach grumbled at the smell of Macy’s signature fries. Extra salty just the way Ruby liked them.

“Ooo … fries. Yum.” Lena snaked a fry on her way to her seat and popped it in her mouth. “Hey, Rafe.”

“Lena.” He nodded as Lena dished up her food.

“How was work?”

“Work was good. Busy. Lots of tips.” Ruby smiled at her sister, not wanting her to know the truth, which was that work was long, tiring, and soul-sucking. Lena felt bad enough about not being able to contribute to their bank account right now. Ruby didn’t want to make it worse. But somehow, from Lena’s doubtful expression, her sister already knew exactly how she felt about her job.

“What did you get up to today, Rafe?” Lena asked, turning her gaze to the giant man in their kitchen.

Rafe stuffed the remains of his burger in his mouth and gave Lena a noncommittal shrug. Ruby bit down on a smile, picturing him running through the woods chasing bunnies.

“I told you, Lena. Rafe’s a woodworker.”

“Right.” Lena tipped her head. “You do have a bit of a lumberjack vibe.”

Rafe grimaced.

“That’s not the same thing,” Ruby said with a choked laugh.

Lena waved a hand like it was inconsequential what Rafe did with his wood. Settle down, Ruby. She stuffed more fries in her mouth to stifle a giggle.

“So, are you going to finally tell me the real story of how you two met?” Lena asked, twirling her fork between her fingers. She used to do the same thing with her hair, twirl the long, blond locks around her fingers. Ruby had seen boys captivated by the motion, hypnotized by her beautiful sister. At the moment, Ruby was just glad she was eating.

“I told you, work,” she jumped in before Rafe could answer.

“Right. After that intense game of strip poker.”

Rafe’s eyebrows rose to his hairline. Ruby shrugged apologetically, forgetting about that little lie.

“Just a friendly afterhours game.”

“Of course,” Lena said with a laugh. The girls weren’t in the habit of policing each other’s dating habits, but an injured naked man in the middle of the living room was unusual even for Ruby. “It must have gotten pretty rough. You were bleeding.” Lena’s tone had turned serious and Ruby shifted in her seat.

“I fell. On the way home.”

Ruby nodded vigorously. Yes, good job, Rafe. Very convincing.

Lena’s gaze swung between them but then she shrugged, apparently deciding to give up this mystery for now. Ruby blew out a sigh of relief. She wanted Lena to be comfortable having Rafe here but there was just no way to explain that first encounter without spilling the whole insane story.

“You don’t usually have … guests for this long, Ruby.”

Ruby’s face went up in flames and she didn’t dare meet Rafe’s eye. It was true Ruby wasn’t one for long-term relationships but she really didn’t need Lena making her sound like she tossed men away after one night. Although … that wasn’t entirely wrong.

“Rafe’s different.” Different in that he’s a werewolf. Different in that they were faking this whole thing. Different in that she wanted to keep him forever. Forever? Yikes. She needed to get a grip.

Lena smiled brighter, taking another big forkful of food. She could tease Ruby as much as she wanted if it meant she kept eating, kept smiling.

“Well, I’m glad you’ve stuck around, Rafe.”

Color swept up his cheek bones. “Uh … thanks. Me too.” His gaze flicked to Ruby, his eyes intent on hers. “I think I’ll head upstairs.”

“Goodnight!” Lena called sweetly after him and Ruby couldn’t help a smile. She loved seeing her sister like this. Cheerful, happy. Healthy. “It’s nice you’re keeping this one, Ruby-red.”

“Yeah, thanks for making me sound like some kind of loose woman.”

Lena burst out laughing and Ruby joined in, their giggles filling the kitchen like old times. As popular as her sister had been, she’d always made time for Ruby, the two staying up late to talk about Lena’s latest date or to dissect Ruby’s current favorite movie. There was always a plate of late-night snacks between them, leftovers they’d scrounged from the fridge or whatever little cakes their aunt had bought for her daily tea. For so long, it had been just the two of them. Except for lately, when it had been just Ruby at this table, tired and alone.

Ruby wished she could bottle it up, this moment, for later when inevitably Lena’s illness would return.

“Loose woman?” Lena gasped. “Okay, Aunt Millie.”

Ruby grinned at the comparison to their aunt. “Whatever. I’m going to bed too.”

“Enjoy!” Lena said, giggling into the rest of the lasagna.

Ruby climbed the stairs, thinking about what her sister had said. Lena was right. Ruby didn’t keep men around like this and even though the relationship was fake it didn’t make sense, this instant trust she put in him. Ruby could count on one hand the number of people she let into her life and still have fingers left over. But something about Rafe just made sense. His steady presence beside her lightened her load. Well, his presence and his tendency to carry her bags for her.

She found herself opening up to him, whispering things to him in the dark that she didn’t admit to anyone. Her confessions filled the night. How exhausted she was. How she wished things with Lena would go back to normal. How she was sick of everyone in this town and longed to escape their judgment and their pity.

And Rafe listened. He listened and for the first time in a long time, Ruby felt like she had a friend. A friend she desperately wanted to kiss, among other things, but a friend nonetheless.

Some nights he stayed at the bar, but more often than not he left her alone to work. Even with Macy and Callie, he never seemed totally comfortable around others, like he worried they might find out more than he wanted them to, might see more than he meant to show them. She wished he would let her see more of him, wished her presence loosened his tongue the way his did to her. But so far, he’d remained frustratingly quiet. Other than a few tidbits about woodworking, she hadn’t gotten much more out of him since their first day together.

Ruby stroked his soft fur as he lay beside her on the bed. This was a new habit too. Rafe in her bed, his wolfy sighs lulling her to sleep. She wondered if he was as lonely as she was. Or had been before sneaking into her life. Maybe tomorrow she would ask him.

“What should we watch tonight?” she asked even though he couldn’t answer. Not really. “How about An American Werewolf in London?”

Rafe narrowed his eyes.

“No? It’s a classic!” Ruby bit down on a smile. “Okay, how about The Howling?”

Rafe huffed a wolfy breath against the exposed skin of her arm.

“You’re right, too scary.” Ruby kept scrolling through the movie options, her laptop balanced on her knees. “Oooo! Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man!”

The wolf beside her let out a low growl and goosebumps rose along her arms but she couldn’t help the giggle that escaped her lips. “You know you could have more of a say in the choices if you stayed in human form.”

Rafe laid his head on his front paws, his ears twitching. Ruby couldn’t help the thoughts that crept into her head about what it would be like to have a human Rafe in her bed. “Here, I know.” Ruby clicked on Teen Wolf and snuggled down into her pillows. “You can’t tell me you don’t love this one. Everyone loves this one.”

Rafe sighed, shifting his big body closer to hers. Ruby smiled to herself, thinking about what her preteen self would have done if she walked into the room right now to find Ruby snuggling in bed with a gigantic werewolf, her favorite movie playing on the screen. Again Ruby had the feeling that she was existing in some space in between, some dream that she would soon wake up from. She dug her fingers into Rafe’s fur. She didn’t want to wake up.

Rafe shifted, resting his head in her lap and she scratched between his ears. A growl rumbled low in his throat, the one she’d come to equate with a cat’s purr. Maybe he was happy here too. Maybe even after this werewolf attack situation was ironed out he would stay. At the moment, it didn’t seem like too much to ask for.