Chapter 36
RUBY
She was nervous as she walked into the rooftop bar Alex had asked her to meet him at. She was so tense that she couldn’t even enjoy the stunning view from there, or the beautiful and luxurious exterior. Alex had been withdrawn lately, his anger was palpable. That night, after he saw the underwear she was putting on, he was enraged. He accused her of putting it on for Scort since he had picked it himself. She tried to defend herself, but there was barely anything she could say that would make him listen. Her eyes fell to the clusters of round sofas, cach of them a separate booth facing a glass barrier, resulting in an unparalleled view of both the skyline and the bar. She spotted Blake in the corner and he nodded at her, stepping aside as she walked up to Alex. He was leaning back on the sofa and his eyes were on the skyline in front of them. He looked up when she sat down next to him. his gaze sending a thrill down her spine. He hasn’t been himself lately. Ever since he back from his business trip and they had the family dinner, he had been distant and cold.
She had tried over and over again to explain to him that nothing was going on between her and Scott, but he wouldn’t listen to her. She couldn’t even blame him. She knew what his history with relationships was like. She had messed up, she should have never entertained Scott’s ideas. She should have known that Alex would respond like that,
He raised his fingers to her mouth, his thumb tracing over her lips. “Red lips? Perfect.”
Her heart raced when he smiled at her, his eyes dark, anger still flashing through them: His gaze roamed over her body. taking in the tight black dress she was wearing. He looked into her eyes and then patted his legs. “Come here.”
She blinked, her cheeks heating rapidly. He wanted her to sit in his lap! She glanced around the packed bar, her heart racing. She might have not known everyone, but she could recognize many faces.
“I won’t repeat myself.”
She swallowed hard and rose to her feet. He smiled in satisfaction and grabbed her hand, pulling on it so she fell into his arms. His hands wrapped around her waist and be positioned her squarely in his lap, her back toward the crowd.
“Alexander.”
He looked at her with raised brows, his hands roaming over her body. “Is there a problem?”
She stared at him, unable to figure him out. He told her at the very start that they were not close enough for her to use his name, and she knew that to be true. She could count the people that called him Alexander on one hand. It was just his parents, Scott, his grandfather… and Natalie. Not her. Never her But now, he wanted her to call him by his full name. And here he was at this moment, putting on a show for everyone. She swallowed down a gulp of air.
“Are you embarrassed?” He asked as his hand glided over her skin, until he was cupping the back of her neck, his thumb on her throat. “You’re mine, yet you seem to have trouble remembering it. You leave me no choice, baby. I’ll have to make sure everyone knows it.”
She could feel him hardening underneath her and her heart started to race. She shifted in his lap and he grinned. “Like what you feel?” he asked, his hand right below her breasts, his thumbs caressing her nipples. They hardened for him like the traitorous little bitches that they were, and he smirked.
“Tell me what you’re wearing underneath this dress.”
Her eyes widened and her cheeks heated even further, no doubt creating a flaming effect. “I… um… just underwear.”
Alex chuckled “What colour is it?”
She swallowed hard. “It’s black”
Is it lace?” He asked, regarding her coolly.
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She nodded.
“Did my brother pick that out for you too?”
She looked into his eyes, her heart twisting painfully, she knew exactly what he meant by that question. It was more than just a question, it was a quiet threat of some sort. “No, of course not. It’s not what you think. It was bad judgement on my part, I admit, but there’s nothing going on between Scottie and 1”
Alex gritted his teeth, tightening his grip on her. “Scottie? Hmm. I don’t like how familiar you are with another man. It’s
Scott from now on.”
She shook her head and looked at him through narrowed eyes. “Like hell it is. He’s my childhood friend and it’s just a name, and you’re being unreasonable.”
He chuckled, but there was no humor in his eyes, “Hmm disobeying me, are you? I was away for just one week, and you were all over my brother by the time I got back. You’re forgetting who owns you, Ruby. You’re mine, and you’ll do as I say.”
She looked down, hurt by his constant reminders. She hated that he kept reminding her that she was just another possession of his That the both of them weren’t in a normal relationship–that they would never be. He leaned into her, his nose brushing against her neck. Alex kissed her softly, where he knew she was sensitive, and a chill ran down her spine. His tongue grazed over her neck, and then he bit her sofily before sucking down on her skin, marking her as his.
A soft gasp escaped her lips and he pulled away, a smile on his face. His hand slipped down her chest, over her hips and underneath her dress, his finger trailing over her thighs. She inhaled sharply, willing her body not to respond to him for once, but as always when it came to Alex, her body betrayed her He pushed her underwear aside and smirked. “Wet. Of course you are. You’re a little slut for me, aren’t you? Always eager for my touch. I bet I can make you come right here, in my lap, with hundreds of people surrounding us.”
She gulped and shook her head. “Alex, they’ll notice. Don’t!”
He grinned and brushed his thumb over her clit, making her jump. “Stay still, baby. Don’t move, and no one will know. Your back is toward the crowd and we’re caged in,” he said, his head upping toward the privacy barriers between the sofas. “Now, let’s see if you can come quietly or not.”
Her lips fell open when he slipped a finger into her, while simultaneously twirling his thumb over her clit. He laughed huskily, his eyes on hers. “Are you struggling?”
He increased the pace and she grabbed his shoulders, holding on tightly. “Alex,” she whispered, her voice coming out as a
moan
“Yes. Moan my name, Ruby, just like that. Remember who owns this body, baby. Come for me.”
She was panting and she knew she wouldn’t be able to hold on for long. Her fingers threaded through his hair and she pulled him closer, her lips crashing against his.
He swallowed all of her moans and she kissed him the way she knew would drive him insane. He pushed her over the edge just like that, his lips on hers. She was light headed by the time he pulled away, her forehead dropping to his. He smiled at her, a possessive glint in his eyes. “CGood girl,” he said to her. “So obedient, after all.”
His smile didn’t last long though, it dropped as he looked over her shoulder, and she turned to follow his gaze, but he grabbed her chin, keeping her eyes on him. “Your brother just walked in with Natalie on his arm.” He tensed as he pulled his fingers away, and she did the same.
“Damn it. That asshole is headed this way, and I wasn’t done with you yet.”
“Ruby. What are you doing here?” She heard her brother say. Her cheeks were still flushed, and she prayed he wouldn’t realize what they had just been up to.
She tried to get off Alex’s lap, but he refused to let her go. He tightened his grip on her, so she turned in his arms instead.
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Cole’s jaw was ticking, and that on its own would have made her evening. Better still, though, was the jealous and angry look. in Natalie’s eyes. She looked at Alex, but for once, he wasn’t looking back at her. He rested his chin on Ruby’s shoulder, leisurely pressing a kiss to her neck, as though Cole and Natalie weren’t even there.
“Cole. Good to see you,” she said.
Gole clenched his jaw, and she wondered if would reveal the asshole within. He reached for her, but Blake grabbed his arm, his grip tight. Blake didn’t say a word, he just pushed Cole’s arm way roughly.
“You’re a fucking embarrassment, Ruby. What the fuck do you think you’re doing, sitting in someone’s lap like a fucking prostitute? You’d better get up right now, or so help me God,” Cole hisses, his voice low.
His words wounded her, but after years of him hurling abuses at her, the impact was dampened. It didn’t sting the way it used to. Now it was just a dull ache, the type of pain you experience when you know you’re holding onto something that you should’ve let go long ago. She looked at him, and she could barely recognize him. In the years since their mom fell into a coma, he had strayed further and further from the brother that she grew up with. They were never super close, but he was never cruel either, not like the way he was now.
Alex chuckled at Cole’s words and pressed a kiss to her shoulder ignoring him.
“You stupid little girl. He’s using you. You think it’s you he wants? It’s not. You’re just a fucking pawn in his games.”
Alex looked up at Cole “So what? So what if I’m using your sister?” he asked, his voice low. Her heart twisted painfully at those words. She knew she didn’t mean a thing to him. She knew he was just using her. But half the time, he made it so easy to forget that. He made it too easy to fool herself into believing that what they had could be real one day. It was things like asking her to call him by his full name, when that was only reserved for those closest to him. It was him acting jealous constantly and publicly claiming her as his that gave her the wrong idea. It gave her hope, and hope was the most cruel emotion of all. She glanced at Cole, a bittersweet smile on her face. If given a choice, she would pick his cruel words over Alex’s sugar–coated lies any day.
Cole grinded his jaw. “You need to stay the fuck away from my sister. Alex.”
Alex chuckles, the sound sending a chill down her spine. “The way you stayed away from my fiancée?”
Cole smiled and looked at her. His smug expression just added to the pain Alex’s words had inflicted. She knew it was Natalie he loved, but being confronted with it like that hurt a lot. She glanced at Natalie, and the satisfied glint in her eyes- killed her. She knew that even though it was her in his arms, he was not over Natalie..
“I told you, Ruby. Didn’t i? There it is. That’s all you are to him. Cole shook his head and took a step back, his anger waning, until all that was left was annoyance. “You want her, Alex? You can have her. You think I care about her? Nah. You’re embarrassing me, I’ll give you that, but I’ll survive the reputational damage my slut of a sister is doing. But this? This won’t hurt me.” He laughed, the sound chilling and sinister. “You pickel the wrong sister. This one I don’t give a fuck about.”
Cole smiled and wrapped his arm around Natalie. He looked at her and pulled her toward him, kissing her, putting on a show for Alex. Alex’s grip on Ruby tightened, and her heart shattered. He was holding her while pining after someone else.
Cole smirked and grabbed Natalie’s hand. She watched them walk away, Cole’s words were still reverberating through her mind. Her eyes fell shut and she inhaled shakily.
“You got what you wanted” she said, her voice breaking. “You’ve thrown me in Cole and Natalie’s face. He was right, you know? You’ve treated me like some sort of call girl tonight–and let you. Because you’re right, Alex. You own me. I gave myself up to you willingly. Is this enough now! Have you embarrassed me enough?
He tightened his grip on her, his arms wrapped around her tightly. “Ruby, there’s nothing shameful about sitting in my lap. We’re married for crying out loud. No one knows anything more than what happened. That was just between you and I. I wasn’t treating you like a call girl” He argued. “You’re letting your brother get into your head”
She inhaled deeply, trying her best to believe his words. “Was he wrong, though? You’re using me. I don’t mean a thing to you. You’re no different from my brother, Alex. I’m just a tool to you.”
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His lips grazed against her ear, his voice soft yet harsh. “And you’re no different from Natalie,” he whispered. “You’re disloyal. At least Nat never would’ve had my brother pick her fucking underwear, Ruby. She’s a cheating bitch, but even she never would’ve stooped that low.”
Ruby let her eyes flutter closed, helplessness overwhelming her. Alex and her they were on a collision course. The way they were headed… there was no saving them. And this time, she was to blame. He was never going to forgive her for Scott’s
antics.
