Running from the Wolf

by Laura Ann

  Ruby crossed her arms. “A bit of a pickle, huh? Are you a two-timer? I won’t help a cheater.”

  Mateo waved his arms back and forth. “No! Absolutely not. This is, well ... you probably are going to have a hard time believing what’s going on.”

  “I THINK SOMEONE MUST have put something in the city water.” Grams threw her hands in the air as Ruby told her Mateo’s story. “First you and Braedon and now Lucy and this, this, this, Mateo guy. Doesn’t anyone know how to fall in love anymore?”

  Ruby bit her lip, stifling a smile. Grams had been ranting and raving since Ruby explained how she was going to help Lucy and Mateo. Although the situations were both crazy, Ruby was having a hard time not laughing at the irate senior citizen.

  “All you need is a boy and a girl.” Grams put out her hands, palms up. “They meet, they like each other, they kiss and BAM!” She clapped her hands together. “They fall in love and get married. Simple. None of this lying and hiding and, and, and ... I don’t know what all.” She sighed. “I’m too old for this.”

  Ruby glanced sideways and realized that Grams did look tired. Is her hair greyer than it used to be? And where did all those wrinkles come from? A sudden burst of anxiety hit her as she realized that Grams wouldn’t be around forever. Ruby cleared her throat. “Oh, you’re not old Grams. You’ll be young forever.”

  “One can only wish,” Grams muttered darkly. “You young people have much to learn about life. It’s supposed to be simple. You make it too complicated.”

  “I’m sure you’re right,” Ruby soothed.

  Grams shot Ruby a side glare, “Placating the old woman isn’t going to get you out of unloading the groceries when we get home.”

  “Dang it!” Ruby smiled and shrugged. “It was worth a try, right?”

  Grams chuckled and patted Ruby’s knee.

  As they pulled into the driveway, Ruby’s heart leaped. Derrick’s car was parked along the edge of the street and he was sitting on the front porch.

  “What’s he doing here so early?” Ruby asked even as excitement ran through her at the thought of a day together.

  “Does it matter?” Grams replied.

  “Not a bit.” Ruby turned off the engine and darted out of the car. Hurrying around, she met Derrick halfway and threw herself into his embrace.

  “Mmmm ... You smell good enough to eat woman.” Derrick mumbled into her hair.

  Ruby giggled. “You always smell like the woods.”

  Derrick took hold of her shoulders and pushed her back. “The woods? What the heck does that mean?”

  Ruby shrugged while playing with the buttons on his shirt. “The woods. All piney and foresty. I don’t know. Like the woods.”

  Derrick scowled. “Is this a good thing?”

  Ruby smiled. “I love it.” She leaned back in and wrapped her arms around his middle. “It reminds me of ... “ She got up on her tiptoes so she could whisper in his ear. “A lumberjack.”

  Derrick closed his eyes and shook his head. “Maybe I need to start wearing plaid.”

  Ruby widened her eyes. “Would you?”

  Derrick just grinned and shook his head again. Setting Ruby aside, he rushed to the car and helped Grams get out. Offering his arm, he walked her into the house and got her settled in her favorite recliner.

  Ruby waited for him on the front porch and together they unloaded the bags of groceries.

  When they were in the kitchen, Derrick spoke. “I thought you were going to do your grocery shopping with me in the evenings.”

  Ruby smiled over her shoulder while she put a box in the cupboard. “Grams went with me so I wasn’t alone. Besides, we only needed a few things.”

  Derrick came up behind her and trapped her against the counter, his chest against her back. “I hardly think Grams would be much in the way of protection if something happened.”

  Ruby carefully turned around. He had left her almost no space and she loved having him so close. Looking up her voice dropped to a whisper as she looked at the intensity of his gold eyes. “Oh, I don’t know. Gram told me she knew how to use her knitting needles to our advantage if need be.”

  Derrick’s lip twitched. “Be that as it may, and I have no doubt she’s telling the truth, I would still feel better if you let me take you places.”

  Ruby pursed her lips and squished them to the side, pretending to think it over. “I think I can handle that. After all, there are definitely worse people I could spend my time with.”

  Derrick’s eyebrows shot up and a playful gleam entered his eyes. “Oh really? I’m glad to hear I don’t rate the bottom of the pack. That might be a bit awkward.”

  “Really? Why?” Ruby bit her lip in anticipation. She could feel the air humming and the look in his eye said he was about to do something she would heartily approve of.

  Derrick’s head came down until they were nose to nose. “Because I plan to be around for a long,” he kissed her upper lip, “long,” he kissed her lower lip, “long,” he kissed the side of her mouth, “time.”

  Finally! Ruby sighed and leaned into him. His little teasing game had done its work, she had nearly growled in frustration before he got to the good part. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she toyed with his glorious hair and basked in the strength of his embrace.

  DERRICK COULDN’T GET enough of the feisty woman in his arms. A moan rumbled in his throat as he wrapped his hands around her waist and lifted her up to the counter, pushing himself between her knees in an effort to get closer.

  He pulled the elastic out of her hair and let the weight of it run through his fingers. It felt like silk and although his eyes were closed he could imagine its dark, rich color. She tasted like heaven and he knew he would never tire of having her in his arms. Or your heart. The thought sent a jolt through him and he pulled back slightly.

  Ruby opened her eyes and ran her fingers through his hair. “What’s wrong?” Her voice was husky and her already full lips were swollen making them even more tantalizing when he thought about the fact that he was the one who made them that way.

  Do I love her? Isn’t it too fast? Does love at first sight even exist? His thoughts were jumbled and he was having a hard time concentrating as she continued to play with his hair. Her fingers were sending electric sparks through his system and in that moment he decided he didn’t care. Fast or not, this was too perfect to give up.

  Grinning, he answered her, “absolutely nothing.” He put his hands on either side of her face and leaned in, brushing his lips against hers. “Where were we?” He could feel her start to smile as he took ahold of her lips once more.

  Just as things were starting to get interesting, he felt a sharp pain on his backside. “Ouch!” He jerked back. “What the-” Spinning around he barely managed to jump sideways to avoid a fast moving wooden spoon.

  “Grams! Stop that!” Ruby jumped down from the counter and grabbed the utensil from her grandmother.

  Derrick pinched his lips between his teeth to keep from laughing at the glare Grams gave Ruby, but he dropped it completely when that same look was turned on him.

  With a bony finger pointing at his face, Grams moved toward him. “There are still several steps in the courting process before I’m allowed to have great-grandbabies. And I expect you to follow every single one of them.” Standing up to her full height, which was only chest high to Derrick, Grams put her hands on her hips and continued to stare him down.

  Good grief. No wonder Ruby is so independent. Throwing out a salute Derrick responded, “Yes ma’am. I promise to follow all of them.” Meaning I’ll kiss Ruby when you’re not looking, but I won’t take it any further than that.

  Grams narrowed her eyes until they were the tiniest of slits as if she could hear his thoughts. Derrick gulped loudly, hoping she hadn’t somehow developed that particular gift. “Humph,” she finally said. “See that you do.” What that, she shuffled back to the living room and sat down in her seat, picking her project back up.

  Derrick s
agged in relief as she went, then glanced over at Ruby.

  Ruby had her hand over her eyes and was shaking her head.

  Derrick walked over and pulled her into his arms. He could feel her shaking and he rested his chin on her head. “Hey ... it’s okay. It was probably a good thing ... “ He trailed off when he heard an odd sound come from the girl in his arms. Grabbing her by the shoulders he pushed her away from him and got a good look at his face.

  Ruby’s creamy skin was candy apple red and she was biting her lip so hard, it looked painful. Tears were rolling down her cheeks and her shaking came from trying to keep herself from laughing but to no avail. Another snorting laugh burst out of her mouth and that seemed to break the barrier she had put up. She doubled over and let the humor out, hardly able to breathe as she howled in amusement.

  At first, Derrick scowled at her reaction, but the longer she went on, the more he had to fight his own desire to join in her merriment. That was pretty funny.

  Ruby stood straight, her body still shaking with residual giggles. “You ... should have seen ... your face!” She took a deep breath, working to calm herself down. “You just got taken out by an elderly lady half your size and probably only a third of your weight.” Another giggle broke out as she finished.

  Derrick grinned and shook his head. “Hey, I’m just glad she didn’t bring the knitting needles.”

  Ruby burst into laughter again and it was several more minutes before she was under control.

  “I can hear you, you know. And there better not be a next time like that, or I WILL bring the needles.” Grams never even looked up from her afghan, her fingers keeping a steady rhythm in the memorized pattern she worked at.

  Derrick chuckled at Grams moxy. “Perhaps I’ll change my opinion on her being your companion at the grocery store.”

  Ruby smirked and started walking toward the living room. “You never did say why you were here so early today,” she called over her shoulder.

  Derrick quickly followed in her footsteps. “I got through the last of the paperwork and decided to take a break. I’ve been putting in extra hours—” He was interrupted by the sound of breaking glass. His instincts kicked in and he dove at Ruby, pulling her to the floor as she screamed.

  He had done his best not to hurt her, but he outweighed her by plenty of pounds and he worried his mass was too much. He waited a moment to speak, listening to hear if anything else would occur.

  Silence reigned in the room and he finally whispered in Ruby’s ear. “Are you okay?”

  She nodded in short, jerky movements. Her breathing was ragged and shallow and he could feel her heartbeat pumping at a frantic pace.

  Glancing up, he realized Grams was still in her chair, but she had ducked down and was cowered into a ball. “Everything is going to be okay,” he soothed to Ruby, wishing he could do more to allay her fears. “Stay here while I check things out.”

  When she nodded once more, he crawled off of her, ignoring the cold that seeped into him as he separated their bodies. Now is not the time to worry about hormones. He chided himself.

  He stayed in a crouched position as he worked his way to the front door, wincing at the pain in his left quad. Stupid injury. When he finally caught Gram’s eye, he put a finger to his lips and then put out one hand to indicate she should stay put and be quiet.

  Gram’s eyes were wide as saucers and the blood had drained from her face. She nodded at his command and stayed still.

  Once at the door, Derrick angled himself to see out the window. There was no movement and he couldn’t see what had made the noise they heard. Quietly he stood and began to open the door. He heard a whimper behind him and glanced back to see Ruby watching him with terror in her large blue eyes.

  He nodded at her in a way he hoped was reassuring and then eased open the door. Sticking his head out, he couldn’t find anything unusual. After a few more moments of silence, he walked out the door and started looking around the area. He walked out to the street and looked both ways but still couldn’t find the source of the noise.

  “Derrick?”

  He spun to find Ruby standing in the doorway when a flash caught his eye. Looking over he realized his back window had been completely shattered and the shards were shining in the sunlight. How did that happen? He walked over to investigate, waving Ruby to join him. “Careful now, you don’t want to get glass stuck in your shoes.” He held out his arm and she attached herself to his side, gasping when she saw the mess.

  “It was him, wasn’t it? Braedon did this.”

  “I don’t know,” Derrick answered honestly. “Unless he confesses to you or there was a witness, we have no way of knowing what happened.” Reaching down he retrieved a rock from the middle of the mess. Bouncing it in his hand, he weighed it for a moment, wondering if it was heavy enough to have done the damage.

  “Is that what hit the window?” Ruby’s voice shook and Derrick rubbed a comforting hand up and down her back.

  “Maybe. It’s not huge, but if it spun out from a tire, or was thrown at the window hard enough it certainly could have caused it.” He surveyed the damage once more, then keeping his arm around Ruby, led her back to the house. “Come on, I need to grab my phone and call the police. We shouldn’t clean anything up until they get here.”

  Ruby nodded and followed his lead.

  CHAPTER 11

  Ruby stayed glued to Derrick’s side as the police walked the area and looked for clues.

  “I don’t see anything suspicious,” the officer in charge came and stood next to Derrick and Ruby. “Obviously the rock hit your window, but we can’t find any clues as to what caused it.” He scratched his balding head. “And you say you feel threatened by the guy sending you the emails?” His eyes bore into Ruby’s.

  She nodded. “After I said we shouldn’t go out anymore, I started seeing him everywhere. It was too much of a coincidence that he just happened to be everywhere I was. When he never approached or spoke to me, I was told there wasn’t anything I could do about it. But then when I met Derrick, I started getting emails again about how I wasn’t allowed to see anyone else. Said he would have to do something if I didn’t get rid of Derrick.”

  “Which you obviously paid no attention to,” the office said, glancing up at Derrick.

  Derrick scowled. “Excuse me, but Ms. Sanchez is the victim here. The man has no right to say who she dates or doesn’t date.” Ruby felt his muscles tense and anger was clearly palpable in the air.

  The office cleared his throat and his cheeks flushed. “I didn’t mean it that way, I was simply stating that she obviously kept you around, which probably upset the guy even further.” The office sniffed and hitched up his pants. “However, that still isn’t enough evidence for us to do anything. We have no way to link him to this.”

  Derrick looked down, his eyes softening as they connected with Ruby’s. “Have you checked to see if he sent another email?”

  Ruby shook her head.

  “Why don’t you grab your computer while the police are here and we’ll see if he said anything to you.”

  Ruby felt a tremor started in her stomach and tears pricked the back of her eyes. “Okay,” she said hoarsely.

  Derrick let her go and she felt the loss keenly. His strength and calm persona were the whole reason she was holding herself together. Grams hadn’t been so lucky and was lying in bed taking a nap. I wouldn’t be able to sleep right now, that’s for sure.

  Grabbing her laptop, she walked back out to the front porch. Sitting on the bench she pulled up her email. Sure enough, an email waited at the top of the list. Her gasp brought Derrick and the officer from the driveway.

  “Did you find one?” Derrick asked as he limped toward her, his thigh was still upset from the earlier episode. His brows were furrowed and his golden eyes full of concern.

  “Y-yes. There’s one here.” Ruby felt herself trembling, but no amount of deep breathing seemed to help.

  Derrick slid in next to her and wrappe
d his arm around her shoulders. “It’s okay. Go ahead and open it and we’ll see what he has to say.”

  Biting her lip, Ruby clicked on the email.

  Ruby-

  I have to admit that your stubbornness has surprised me. I would have thought I made myself clear quite a while ago. I believe the company you keep is turning you against me. There will be much to learn when we are finally together. But Mr. Woodsman must go first. Once he is out of the picture, I have no doubt that you will do all you can to please me. Since he doesn’t seem to be getting the message, I will figure out a different way to get rid of him.

  Yours Forever,

  Braedon

  Ruby tossed the computer onto the bench and leaned forward, dry heaving as her body worked to rid itself of the emotions running through her system. Braedon’s words echoed through her mind as her body revolted.

  Suddenly a cool cloth was pressed to the back of her neck and a large hand rubbed soothing circles on her back. Taking a couple of deep breathes, Ruby fought the panic invading her system.

  “Breathe in through your nose, sweetheart. That’s it.” Derrick’s voice was calm and soothing.

  As her breathing slowed and the panic started to recede, Ruby sat back up. She looked over at Derrick and the sympathy in his eyes almost undid her again. His face began to waver as tears filled her eyes.

  “Ah, babe.” Derrick grabbed her around the waist and put her on his lap, surrounding her with his scent and his strength.

  “I d-d-don’t want anything to happen to you,” Ruby stuttered between tears.

  “I’m fine. Nothing is going to happen to me. We’re going to take care of this guy and then everything will be alright. You’re safe, you hear me?” He waited until she nodded in response. “You’re safe,” he repeated the words with his lips against her temple. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you.” He kissed her hairline as if to seal the deal.