27. Ruby

Letting out a deep sigh, Ruby closed her laptop and fell back against the couch cushions. After twenty minutes of talking to her mother, she couldn’t decide if she wanted to cry, scream, break something, or sleep for three days.

How was it possible for the woman to drain her as much as she did? Now she wasn’t just dreading their upcoming anniversary party, she just didn’t want to go. But her mother had been explicit about what would happen if she were to not show up.

It really was sad that her mom knew Ruby had no other options for money so she used it as a weapon to get her to do whatever she and her father wanted.

Even though she had a degree in business management, she had no work experience and would never be able to just walk into a company and get a decent paying job right off the bat. Which meant she wouldn’t be able to afford even a decent apartment in Seattle with the way housing prices were, and she had no idea how to even find housing or pay bills because her parents had never taught her those lessons.

Yet she sure knew the importance of diamond coloring and what kind of gems were the rarest and how much money twenty carat yellow diamonds cost. Because apparently those were the only things that mattered to the Montgomery’s. Not the fact that they’d pretty much isolated their daughter all her life, gave her no emotional or mental support, and were pretty much holding her hostage in a penthouse apartment that felt so stuck up that she never really felt at home there.

The only place she’d ever really felt at home was at Jace and Zane’s house. No matter where she was in their house, she always felt comfortable and welcomed and cared for. And Zane and Jace had said that they’d love it if she lived with them, but they couldn’t have really meant it. She brought nothing to the table.

She was intelligent enough to know the second she decided to be done living under her parents’ thumb, she would be disowned and cut off from their fortune. Not that she cared about money, but she knew enough to know that expecting her Daddies to just step in and take care of her financially would be unfair and just plain rude.

The weight that had felt lighter over the past week was suddenly so heavy she could barely breathe, but her heart was racing and her skin felt clammy. Closing her eyes, Ruby told herself that everything was okay, but no matter how many times she said it, her heart felt like it was going to beat out of her chest.

Tears rolled down her cheeks as she forced herself to take several deep breaths. In her mind, she knew she was having a panic attack, but she was still scared and hated that she was all alone. She could die right there and no one would ever know until her housekeeper showed up. And would anyone really even care if she disappeared?

Your Daddies would care.

That single thought alone calmed her slightly and she felt her heartbeat slowing. After several minutes of deep breathing, she felt her entire body relax as exhaustion washed over her. She needed to sleep but she needed to text her Daddies and let them know she was off the call. They probably wouldn’t be happy that she didn’t want them to come pick her up. But she was too tired to worry about it right then. Picking up her phone from the cushion next to her, she fumbled through typing a message to them.

Ruby:I’m off the call with my mom. I’m just going to go to bed. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.

Her phone buzzed with a response almost immediately and when she looked at the message, she saw it was Zane who responded.

Zaddy:What’s wrong, baby? We can come get you and take you home with us.

Letting out a sigh, she typed a response back and then lay down on the stiff couch.

Ruby: I just need to sleep now. I’ll talk to you in the morning. I’m fine.

Turning her phone to silent, she dropped it onto the ridiculously expensive coffee table and closed her eyes, fading off to a fitful sleep.

The sound of her intercom buzzing repeatedly woke her. Blinking her eyes open, she squinted toward the floor to ceiling windows. It was ridiculously bright outside, which was completely opposite from the mood she was waking up in.

When the intercom buzzed loudly again, she groaned and scrambled off the couch to go answer it.

“Yeah?” she asked.

“Miss Montgomery, there are two men here to see you by the names of Jace and Zane. May I send them up?” Andrew, the daytime lobby attendant, asked.

Letting out a sigh, she leaned her forehead against the wall.

“Miss Montgomery?” Andrew asked when she didn’t answer him.

Tapping the button on the device, she finally spoke. “You can send them up, Andrew. Thank you.”

She stood near the door to her apartment fidgeting. Were they mad at her because she didn’t go to their house the night before? Was she in trouble? Were they there to break up with her? Would they take one look at her apartment and decide she was, in fact, a spoiled little rich girl?

A swift knock on the door made her jump and she rushed to open it. As soon as the door swung open, Zane stepped in and swept her up from the floor, holding her tightly against him.

“We’ve been so fucking worried about you, baby. What happened with your mom?” Zane demanded.

Jace stood looking around the apartment with a look of distaste. “This is where you live? They make you live here? They didn’t even let you decorate it and put your own style into it?”

Huh.

Wrapping her arms around Zane’s neck, she let out a sob and then another one. He strode over to the couch and sat, Jace coming to sit beside them.

“What happened, baby?” Jace said more gently, reaching over to grab her hand.

She didn’t respond right away. Instead, she continued crying for a long time until she felt completely drained again. Sitting limply in Zane’s arms, she rested her head on his chest as he stroked her back.

“Oh, baby girl. Fuck. I hate that you’re so sad. Talk to us, please. You’re killing us right now,” Zane finally said.

“My mom wants me to cut my hair off for their party. She said I look like a lazy hippie and that she would schedule a haircut appointment for me at her salon and she is sending a dress for me to wear which I know I’ll hate so much. And then she told me that if I embarrass them in any way or don’t show up, they will cut me off completely because why should they pay for my expenses if I don’t make them look good.”

To her surprise, Jace let out a string of colorful curse words as he sprang off the couch and started pacing the room. Zane didn’t say anything, but his hold on her tightened and she could feel him clench his jaw as it rested on top of her head.

“I was so upset last night after I got off the phone with her that I was exhausted and ended up having a panic attack. I just needed to sleep,” she whispered.

“You slept in your clothes, baby girl? Did you sleep out here?” Zane asked, looking at the throw blanket she’d used to cover herself through the night.

She nodded. “I was too tired to move.”

Realizing she still hadn’t gone potty, she began to squirm as she realized how full her bladder was.

“What’s wrong?” Jace asked, suddenly staring at her.

“I need to go to the bathroom. I was still sleeping when you guys got here. What time is it?” she asked.

Jace stepped forward and pulled her into his arms. “It’s after noon. Point me in the direction of a bathroom.”

Shit. She had slept a long time. Yet she still felt like she could sleep longer.

Pointing in the direction toward the hallway, Jace carried her into one of the guest bathrooms and then set her on her feet in front of the toilet before quickly pulling her leggings and panties down.

“You don’t have to help me,” she said softly.

His gray eyes pierced her with a stern look. “I know I don’t have to. I want to. I’m your Daddy and I want to take care of my girl. Sit down.”

Her bottom lip trembled as she obeyed him. When Zane appeared in the doorway looking concerned, she couldn’t stop the tears from falling. These two wildly overprotective men were there taking care of her.

Jace stepped back and turned on the sink, making it easier for her to do her business. Before she could reach for the toilet paper, he grabbed some and cleaned her up before pulling her clothes back into place.

“Go snuggle with Zaddy while I wash my hands. Where’s your bathroom?” Jace asked.

“At the end of the hall through my bedroom,” she answered automatically.

Zane picked her up and carried her back to the living room, pulling her onto his lap and then cradling her in his arms. As he stared down at her, his expression looked pained and she hated seeing him like that.

“What’s wrong, Zaddy?” she asked as she reached up to stroke his beard.

He let out a strangled laugh. “Oh, my baby girl. You’re the one being treated like shit by your own parents, and you’re worried about me? I’m just upset, baby. I hate that we weren’t here to comfort you last night. I hate that your mom treated you that way. I’m upset and angry right now, but the most important thing is taking care of you.”

She ran her fingers along the coarse hairs along his chin, feeling soothed by it.

Jace came back into the living room. “I got a bath ready for her and I found some clothes to dress her in afterward.”

A bath? They were going to make her go take a bath? She didn’t want to go. She wanted to stay in their arms.

Her lip trembled again as she stared up at Zane and then Jace. “I don’t wanna go take a bath. I don’t want to be alone.”

Their eyes widened.

“Baby girl, you’re not going to be alone. We’re going to give you a bath. You’re too Little to take a bath by yourself anyway,” Jace said.

Oh.

Her mind instantly moved toward her Little self at his declaration that she was too Little to bathe by herself. And the thought of both of them giving her a bath made her feel warm inside in a way she needed so badly at that moment.

Zane followed Jace down the hall, carrying her bridal style the entire way until they were in her enormous bathroom.

Both men worked in silence as they stripped off her clothes, gently placing kisses in random places on her body as they worked.

Jace turned her toward the tub and she noticed it was already full of foamy bubbles and the bath toys she kept hidden in the vanity. Lifting her up, he carefully set her on her feet in the tub and then told her to sit, keeping his hands on her until she was settled on her bottom.

Zane knelt next to the bathtub while Jace sat on the edge, both staring down at her with concerned expressions.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“There is absolutely nothing for you to be sorry for, little one. It’s your parents who should be sorry,” Zane said forcefully.

Jace nodded. “Zane’s right. Do you want to cut your hair, Ruby?”

She quickly shook her head. “I love my long hair. I’ve been growing it out for years. I was never allowed to have it long when I was younger.”

“Well then, I don’t give a shit what your mom wants. She doesn’t control your hair. You’re not cutting it. End of story,” Zane told her.

Yeah, if only it were that easy. Why couldn’t it ever be just that easy?