That was harder than I had anticipated it being.Ruby had her walls up ever since I first met her, and she still hasn’t let me in much in the six months I’ve been here.
It might seem crazy to some people to completely uproot my whole life for a woman that I’ve only said a handful of words to, but I know she’s it for me.I haven’t regretted it for a single second.Sure, I might not be as close to Ruby as I would like, but I still get to be around her, and I’m making progress.
I think…
She looks up, and we lock eyes.Her green eyes seem to sparkle, but that could be wishful thinking on my part.I stand, knowing that she must be ready to close up.She rolls her eyes at me, but I can see the smile tugging at her lips.She likes me waiting for her and making sure that she gets home safely.She just doesn’t want to show it for some reason.
“I’ll close up,” Ford, her boss and the owner of this place tells her as he comes out of the back.
“I think Cameron was still doing inventory in the back,” she tells him, and Ford nods.
“I know.”
Ford looks at me, and I know he wants me to leave so he can be alone with Cameron.The guy is obsessed with her, but he hasn’t told her yet.I guess being her boss might have complicated all of that.
“Come on, Ruby.I’ll walk you home.”
She sighs but grabs her jacket and heads my way.
“Let’s go,” she tells me as she walks past me, and I smile, waving at Ford as I turn and head out after my girl.
“It feels like you’re my bodyguard when you walk behind me like that,” Ruby tells me as I hurry to catch up to her.
“I used to be a bodyguard,” I tell her, and she looks surprised.
I’m not sure why.I’m an open book to her, always sharing stuff about me and my past.I can count the things that I know about Ruby’s past on both hands.
“Yeah, when there were bands or whatever passing through town sometimes, they would hire the security company that I worked for.”
“By security company, do you mean biker gang?”
“It wasn’t really a gang,” I clarify, and she snorts.
“It wasn’t.We just liked riding together,” I insist.
I love motorcycles and everyone who worked at the security company loved them too.We would go out riding together at least once a week.It was a great group of guys, but I was starting to get bored.I was looking for a change of pace.That’s why I was up in Oregon and passing through here.
I got my love of motorcycles from my dad.It was just him and me when I was growing up.My mom ran off with some other man when I was four.I don’t remember much about her and I never tried to find her when I got older.I figured that I didn’t need someone like her in my life.
My dad passed away a few years ago, and I guess I had been drifting ever since.Getting out of Santa Cruz was also because I thought that it was time to get away from all of the old memories.
I’d like to make new memories with Ruby, but she’s going to take some more convincing.At least I’ve made new friends here in town.We walk past Foster’s auto shop.Foster is Ford’s twin brother and my neighbor.The shop is long closed and I’m not surprised.I’m sure that he’s at home with his girl, Lilliana.
Ruby and I reach the edge of the parking lot and we turn, heading down the sidewalk towards her place.
I send up a silent prayer that tonight is the night that something changes between us as we go.
TWO
Ruby
I thoughtI would be left alone in Wolf Valley.I mean, it’s a small town with like two hundred people living here and most of them prefer to be left alone.For the first few months that I was here, I wasn’t bothered by anyone.I went to work and then home.Sure, it was a little boring, but I kind of like boring.
Then Ransom moved to town.He started coming to the diner every single day, asking to sit in my section and always trying to talk to me.When I went from morning shifts to closing shifts, he started coming in later and then insisted on walking me home.
I ignore the warm feelings that seeing him every day always brings and pick up my pace.I need to get home so that I can go to bed and forget all about my pesky feelings for Ransom.
“So, last night we were talking about favorite vacations,” Ransom says as he matches my faster pace.
