جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 10

Ruby’s POVThe silk of John’s suit jacket felt smooth under my fingers as I reached into the pocket to check for the room key he said he’d misplaced. Instead, my fingers brushed against something small, curved, and unmistakably rubbery.I froze.Pulling it out just enough to confirm, I stared at the bright pink vibrator nestled in his pocket. My feet were cold on the rug. My heartbeat slow, but heavy.I didn’t say a word. I just tucked it away like it hadn’t happened and stepped back, my face blank, my body numb.John was still in the shower. Steam drifted through the half-closed bathroom door as he hummed to himself, completely unaware. The sound of water hitting tile was almost calming, but inside me, something was breaking.When he came out, his body was still damp, a towel around his waist. He kissed my neck and called me his baby, telling me that tonight he was going to make me feel how much he loved me.My skin crawled.This was the man I’d admired since I was sixteen. The one

Ruby’s POVI was already dressed by the time John walked in.Hair brushed. Face fresh. Sitting at the dressing table like I hadn’t spent the whole night trying to forget him.He smiled like nothing had happened.Came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my shoulders.“Baby,” he said softly, “when did you go out?”I met his eyes in the mirror.“A while ago. I just needed some fresh air,” I said, keeping my voice even.He kissed my neck, his hand tugging lightly at my collar.My stomach turned.Before he could go further, I shifted in my seat. “John,” I said, carefully, “I was thinking… maybe I should get back into the company.”That got his attention.He pulled back just slightly, eyes on mine.I continued, steady. “I know I left everything to you before we got married, but I’ve been thinking about our future. About being more involved.”While I waited for him to speak, my thoughts ran fast.We built that company together from scratch.I’d naively thought that because we were in lo

Ruby’s POVI was still staring at him.Austin stood so calmly, like nothing out of the ordinary had just happened. Like he hadn’t just moved faster than anyone should be able to.“You were… down the street,” I said, breath catching. “I saw you. You weren’t anywhere near me.”He tilted his head, brows slightly raised. “What are you talking about? I was right beside you the whole time.”“No,” I said quickly. “No, you weren’t. You got out of the car way back there—then suddenly you were in front of me.”“Ruby,” he said slowly, gently, like I was the one acting strange, “you must’ve been in shock. That car nearly hit you. Maybe things looked blurry for a second. Your adrenaline’s still high.”I blinked at him.Was he serious?“I know what I saw,” I muttered.He gave me a soft smile, like he was trying to calm me down. “Then maybe you just got lucky. I stepped in at the right time. That’s all.”No.That wasn’t all.But the longer he looked at me like that—steady, confident, unfazed—the mor

Ruby’s POVThe roar came again—louder now.It was low and rough, almost like a growl, but deeper. More powerful. It didn’t sound human. And yet... it didn’t sound like a full animal either.For a second, I thought it might’ve come from Pete—but no, it wasn’t him.My eyes flew open.Pete was looking over his shoulder, panic twisting his face.Something—someone—was holding him back. I couldn’t see clearly in the dark, but his body jerked violently as if he was trying to escape from invisible arms.He let out a scream and then bolted into the woods.Gone.I was alone again. My whole body shook.I forced myself to stand, legs unsteady, my hands scraped and stinging.As I stood up, a sharp tingle ran through my leg—like little pins poking my skin. The pain hit me all at once, deep and strong, and for a moment I thought I might fall again. But I tested my leg slowly. It hurt, but I could still walk. Just barely.One step at a time, I started walking back toward the direction I came.My pho

Ruby’s POVThe news came early the next morning.Pete Carson had been taken into custody. Falsifying account books, forging financial statements, multiple counts of fraud. There was even mention of a prior unresolved harassment complaint.Apparently, I wasn’t his first victim.I stared at the screen of my phone for a long time. There were no details about the incident last night—nothing about the forest, or his attempt to chase me down—but the charges were enough to bury him. And just like that, the brand collaboration was dead. No more Pete. No more forced pitch. No more pretending.Owen didn’t even blame me. The project was canceled, and the punishment I’d been expecting for not securing the deal… quietly disappeared.Still, I didn’t feel relieved. I just felt hollow.At lunch, Rebecca dropped into the chair next to me, hair pulled into a messy ponytail, eyes sharp and curious.“I heard about Pete,” she said, biting into a sandwich. “Guy’s scum. Glad he’s out of the picture.”I nodd