Chapter 3 Ruby is a Kid

NONSO

Being back in Charlotte after six years feels like a fever dream. Everything looks and feels different, even the air. It's like I never lived here at all. But the memories were the only things that kept flowing through my mind every second I spent here. Memories I'd spent years trying to forget.

Sweat dripped down my temple as I set the barbell back onto the rack, chest heaving from the last set. Ten reps, four sets, and my arms were finally starting to feel it. I grabbed the towel off the bench and wiped my face, glancing at myself in the mirror mounted on the wall.

The door behind me creaked softly. I stared at it through the mirror as the person behind came in. "You're still here?" I picked up the bottle of water beside the bench and started gulping it.

She leaned against the doorframe, wearing nothing but my grey T-shirt from last night, hem barely covering her thighs. "You could've woken me up." She crossed the room slowly. "I would've joined you."

"I like training alone," I said, dropping the bottle back down and picking up a dumbbell.

She walked over, standing behind me as I lifted. Her finger trailed a line along my shoulder, still damp with sweat. "Last night was amazing."

A grunt left me, one accompanied by an exhausted sigh, as I kept lifting. "You should get going."

I watched her smile fall into a frown through the mirror. "Why do you want me to leave?"

"Why do you want to stay?"

She scoffed like my question angered her, but I wasn't in the mood to entertain one of her many dramas. "You were the one who suggested we come to your apartment."

That wasn't a lie and I couldn't deny it.

Lucy was one of the things I left behind when I moved to Georgia. We broke up because I didn't do long distance relationships, and I also wasn't into her the way she was into me. Leaving this town meant leaving everything behind, including her, and if I could do it again, I would.

"Stop acting like a jerk and admit it." She placed her palms on my shoulders and started kneading them. "Last night was amazing." She brought her lips to the side of my neck and took my skin between her teeth. "You missed me as much as I missed you."

The dumbbell was already on the floor and I flexed my shoulder, nudging her away from me. "Last night was just a release. We were both in the moment. That doesn't mean we're back together."

"Really?" She snapped, walking over to face me with her hands folded across her chest, and I dragged a hand down my face. "It didn't seem like it when you were fucking me like I was a possession. We went on and on and not once did you stop to tell me that."

Sleeping with Lucy last night was a huge mistake, and I had a habit of making such mistakes when it involved my sexual pleasures. I always had a high drive for sex, and if she believed last night meant anything at all, then she might as well be delusional.

I drew in a deep breath, raising my head to look deep into her bright hazel eyes, making sure she got the message I was about to pass. "Lucy, it's been six years." I gestured between us with a finger. "You and I can never go back to the way things were. We're adults now, and what happened last night was just sex. I'm not into you anymore, you need to move on. Okay?"

Six years was a long time to wait for someone, but I guess it didn't feel that long for her. Lucy never really moved on, and was always trying to reach me. I had to change my number because of her. I didn't know how she'd found out I was back and at Oliver's party in the first place.

I guess I passed the message just right, because she wasn't saying anything, and she wasn't turning my house upside down like she usually did when we were still together. "You need to move on," I added.

"Is it because of that girl?"

My brows knitted slightly, head tilting to the side. "What girl?"

She rolled her eyes like I was supposed to know what she was talking about. She was a nightmare when we were together, always accusing me of being unfaithful. Although some of the accusations weren't false.

"The girl you were with yesterday. What did you call her… Ruby. Yeah, her."

I poked my tongue against my cheek, questions racing through my head while I looked at the woman in front of me. "What are you saying?"

"Are you seriously asking me that?" She threw her hands up, and the questions only multiplied. I blinked, unable to make any sense of what was coming out of her mouth. "I saw the way you looked at the girl."

"What the fuck," I blurted out, still trying to process it. She chuckled like any of what she'd just said made sense in even the slightest form. "Have you lost your mind?"

My voice rose with the anger building in my chest, the more I thought about what she said. "Why would I be interested in a child?" I stretched out the last word, emphasizing how crazy her accusation was.

Her jaw dropped, lips still parted. "A child? Please, that girl looked nothing under eighteen."

I couldn't believe my ears. "You need to leave. Now."

Lucy only reminded me of how toxic our relationship was by bringing up Ruby. I was in shock when I met her yesterday, but that was because she looked different. The last time I saw her she was way younger, and that was it. I would never look at Ruby the way Lucy described. Other than being Oliver's little sister, she was my little sister. I watched her grow up and she'd always have a special place in my heart. That was it.

"You can't blame me for having such thoughts, Nonso." She crossed her arms tighter, chin lifting in defiance. "You've forgotten how much I know you."

This topic had me shivering with disgust and I couldn't take it anymore. I got up and picked up my towel and water bottle, heading for the door. "Get out of my apartment. I don't have time for your drama."

"If you're not into the girl then why did you order a customized MacBook for her?" Lucy called after me, and I stopped in my tracks, squeezing the bottle until it crumpled in my grip.

"You went through my phone?" I gritted out, turning to face her.

"Don't worry, I didn't reply to any of your fuck doll's nasty texts. I was minding my business and then it beeped, so I picked it up and saw the purchase confirmation. Spending that kind of money on a kid isn't weird at all."

I crossed the room, my hand rising to rest loosely around her neck. I held her gaze, making sure her eyes stayed locked on mine as I conveyed the message.

"Ruby is Oliver's sister, and that means she's family." My hand stayed where it was, my thumb tracing slow along her jaw. "You don't speak of her to me in that way. She's a kid. Do you understand?"

"Harder," she moaned, biting her lower lip as a playful smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

I dropped my hand, jaw still tight, disgust curling in my chest at her, at myself for ever being with someone who got off on this. "I'm going to take a shower and go attend to the reason I'm back in this town.”

"Can I join you?" She purred, already reaching for the hem of the shirt.

"I don't want to see you when I get back." I turned and walked out without another glance, the bathroom door slamming shut behind me.