It didn’t really matter now because everyone knew I had been talking to her.
Not that it should have mattered anyway.
But it did.
It always mattered when it came to me.
My reputation sort of guided the rumors and I did nothing to stop it.
That was just part of being in the Rulz. We never say yes or no to anything about us.
The mystery was power. And if we needed real power we had fists.
Simple as that.
“You’re drooling,” Barr said to me.
“Fuck off,” I said.
“How long has this been going on?” Pres asked.
He blocked my view of Ruby.
“Why does it matter?” I asked.
“It matters because I said it does,” Pres said.
“Oh, fuck that,” I said. “Don’t give me the tough guy act right now, Pres. I’m not in the mood. I haven’t done anything wrong.”
“You pissed off Tinsley,” Pres said.
“That’s the worst thing you can do,” Barr said with a wink.
“For the record… assholes… I’ve been checking on her,” I said. “Ruby, I mean. We’ve been texting. That’s it.”
“Texting what?” Pres asked, lifting an eyebrow.
I laughed. “Really? You think I’m going to waste my time with pictures? Fuck that. And wait a second… does anyone not remember the other night when I took that Crazy chick for a ride. A real kind of ride…”
“And what exactly is a real kind of ride?”
Ruby appeared from around Pres, one hand on her hip, her lips puckered, with the vixen look in her eyes.
“Hey, girl,” I said. “Didn’t see you there.”
“Don’t mind me,” she said. “Just telling the guys one of your fuck stories?”
“Looks that way,” Barr said.
“That’s good,” Ruby said. “Want to hear one of mine?”
“No,” I said.
Damn… Kip… you cannot get jealous over her.
Ruby laughed. “I won’t interrupt again. Just needed to go inside for a minute. If that’s okay with you.”
I was blocking the door to the guesthouse.
I moved out of the way and pointed to the door.
“Make yourself at home, girl,” I said. “Stay as long as you want. This is a good place to be. Much better than where you’ve been.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” she said. She closed in on me and touched my chest. “Then again, is this where you bring all the girls to sleep with them?”
“Try his backseat, love,” Barr said.
Pres laughed.
“Dirty ride,” Ruby whispered and walked into the guesthouse.
I looked at Pres and Barr. “You both are assholes.”
“Why?” Pres asked. “I’m doing what I’m supposed to do here. Which is protect Tinsley. She’s worried about Ruby. She wants Ruby to get…” Pres looked around. “… to get real help. The help her mother got.”
“You mean go somewhere?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Pres said.
I opened my mouth to say FUCK NO.
But I caught myself.
I shrugged my shoulders. “That’s up to her.”
“Let me guess,” Barr said, “you’re hoping your dick is just the medicine she needs…”
I turned and swung at Barr.
He knew it was coming and jumped out of the way.
Next thing I knew, I was chasing Barr around the pool.
I knew I had to have looked like a complete idiot but whatever.
As I circled around the back of the pool, I stopped.
Tinsley lifted her glare to me.
She didn’t look happy.
At all.
I had no problem sitting down next to her, even though I was risking my life by doing so.
I wrapped my arm around her shoulder and pulled her toward me.
“I will gut you,” she whispered to me and then she kissed my cheek.
I released my hold on her. “Got it.” I gently elbowed her. “Are you going to talk to me ever again?”
“Haven’t decided yet.”
“We’re talking now though.”
Tinsley curled her lip. “Looks like I’ve fucking decided then.”
“See? You can’t hate me for long. At least not for this. This is nothing.”
“Kip.”
“What, girl?”
“This is serious. This isn’t some random girl to sleep with.”
“Who the hell said I was sleeping with her?” I asked.
“It’s you. You breathe, drink, fight, surf, and fuck. It’s the fifth thing!”
“Actually, if we’re being honest, it should be the first thing,” I said with a grin. “It’s my favorite thing.”
“I’m not playing games here.”
“Neither am I,” I said. “I’ve been texting her. That’s it.”
“Oh, so your ten minute piss break… you were kissing her?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “I mean… I’m only human. Put me near a beautiful girl like Ruby and it’s bound to happen.”
“You didn’t even have to piss,” Tinsley said. “You would have said anything to get to her.”
“Which shows how much I actually care about her,” I said. “Think about it, Tinsley. I could say or do anything to get anyone I want. But I lied to my best friends and you for her.”
Tinsley rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. When it comes to shooting a load, guys will lie to anyone to make it happen.”
“True,” I said. “But… she had me worried. About her ring. Just wanted to make sure she was okay. She threw a yellow, rubber boot at me… and that was it. Love at first… boot throw.”
Tinsley let out a long sigh. “I am not okay with this. I am going to do everything I can to keep you from her.”
“You brought her to my house, girl,” I said with a laugh. “Why not just take her to my bed and tuck her in with a note that says Have fun, Kip!.”
“I didn’t know… she told me on the ride down here. Want to know why?”
“Why?”
“Because she likes you,” Tinsley said through gritted teeth. “That worries me the most.”
“Of course she likes me,” I said. “Who doesn’t like me?”
“I can think of one person right now,” Tinsley said.
“Don’t be like that. I swear to you, we were just texting. She’s your hot friend. I called it from the second I met her.”
“You stole her number from my phone,” Tinsley said.
“Wow, she really told you everything.”
“Secrets aren’t good for her, Kip. She’s trying to get things together. I don’t like it as it is. And you… you’re… you’re like a…” Tinsley made a fist and shook it at my face.
“Like what? A maraca?”
“Fuck, I hate you,” Tinsley said.
“Hey. You’re a great friend, Tinsley. I mean it. Everything you’ve done for Ruby. You were really upset when you left and left her behind. And you were the one that helped her…”
“And I’m going to keep helping her,” Tinsley said. “You fuck with her heart, Kip, and she’ll run right back to everything she got away from. I know it. And then I’ll lose her for good. And if she ends up…”
Tinsley closed her mouth.
Her lips turned white with how pursed she had them.
I nodded. “What? If she ends up dead? Right? If she ends up overdosing and dying?”
“I didn’t… shit. Kip…”
I pushed myself back and stood up.
Tinsley touched my leg.
“Kip,” she said again.
“No, girl. It’s okay. You’re probably right anyway. What good am I for her? Other than checking up on her, right? Making sure she’s clean. Not afraid to ask her the blunt and hard questions about it. Doing anything I could to make her laugh. Thinking of the dumbest jokes or stories to text her. Or having her know that she can text me even i
f it’s fucking four in the morning and I’ll be right there to respond. That’s right. I’m worth nothing. I’m just looking for a quick and meaningless fuck in the back of my SUV.”
I walked away with Tinsley calling my name.
I was pissed off.
Maybe for good reason.
But the truth was…
Tinsley was right.
About everything.
If I got closer to Ruby, I’d break her heart… and she wasn’t like any other girl I had ever met before
Chapter 6
“Do you want a tissue or toilet paper?”
I turned my head and smiled at Ruby. “What’s up, girl?”
“Just trying to help you.”
“With what?”
“You’re pouting,” she said. “Not sure if you wanted a tissue for your eyes or toilet paper for your vagina.”
I laughed. “Damn, girl. You are… something.”
“Tinsley calls it the street in me.”
“Meaning?”
“Where we grew up. Duh.”
“Right. Duh.”
“You had to defend yourself there,” Ruby said. “Fast with words. Faster with your fists. If not, you’re a goner. It’s not like here. This cushy, rich life.”
“Nice,” I said. “You come to my home. I let you swim in my pool. I let you use my guesthouse. I take a fist from Tinsley to the mouth. And you insult me.”
“Ah, poor Kip. Is your silver spoon a little tarnished?”
“Standing next to you it is,” I said.
“Oh, nice,” Ruby said. “So now you can insult me.”
“What? Can’t take it? Are you feeling things again? Do you need me to hold your hand?”
“Fuck off with that,” Ruby said. “I love Tinsley… but she’s like a hovering parent sometimes. She thinks… I mean, I get it. She grew up with her mother always messed up. But that wasn’t me. Okay? What you saw… yeah, I was messed up. I definitely was. But it wasn’t like Tinsley’s mother. It wasn’t an always thing. It was when I was there. With… you know…”
“You don’t have to defend yourself with me, girl,” I said. “I’m not looking to judge you or tell you what to do. I happen to think you’re hotter and more fun to talk to when you’re not all messed up. That’s just me.”
“Damn,” Ruby said. “That smooth, rich guy charm is going to get me one of these days.”
“Well, then I guess it’s good you’re only staying tonight, right?”
“I guess so,” Ruby said. “Plus, you’ll want to get back to your humping surfer chicks in the back of your car routine.”
I laughed. “Wow, there’s a visual.”
“Yeah, it is a visual,” Ruby said. “A mansion on the beach with a guesthouse bigger than any house in my old neighborhood and you’re going to town on some girl in the backseat…”
“Wait a second. Do you smell that?”
“What?”
“Jealousy,” I whispered.
“Yeah right,” Ruby said. She closed in on me. “Been there, done that.”
“But not with me.”
“And you’re special?”
“You’ve never seen my backseat, girl,” I said. “It’s got so much room…”
“See, that’s the problem with you rich people,” Ruby said. “You’re all about having more room. More stuff. More space. If I want to really get down to it… I don’t need room. I like it tight. Close. Feeling everything. You know?”
A weaker man would have fallen to his knees… and I felt pretty fucking weak right then…
I moved my mouth but nothing came out.
Ruby did her snort-laugh thing and kissed the air.
She walked away.
Maybe I was the one who needed someone to keep Ruby from me.
* * *
“One kiss goodnight,” Tinsley said.
She pointed her finger and narrowed her eyes at me.
“You’re regulating my kissing?” I asked.
“That’s right,” Tinsley said. “I don’t trust you.” She pointed her finger at Ruby. “Or you.”
“I don’t even want to kiss him,” Ruby said. “I just want to go to sleep. It’s late. And I’m tired.”
Ruby fake yawned.
“Oh, fucking hell,” Barr said. “This is sad to watch. I’m going for a walk and a smoke.”
Pres had already gone inside the guesthouse to wait for Tinsley.
Ruby was sleeping on the couch.
And I was… who the hell knows?
“One kiss,” I said to Ruby.
“One kiss,” she said back. “Better make it count, Kip.”
I moved toward her.
I lifted my hand and she pointed at me.
I grinned as I dropped my hands and leaned down to have my mouth greet hers.
The whole idea of kissing someone goodnight always seemed a little out there for me. Plus, after enjoying the company of someone, a kiss goodnight always felt like a thanks or it could lead to a morning with a broken heart.
But with Ruby…
She changed the game.
She ruined everything I knew and thought.
And I didn’t just kiss her once either.
I went for a second and a third.
Until Tinsley got between us.
“That’s enough,” she said. “See you in the morning for breakfast. Goodnight, Kip. Go away. Bye bye.”
I stepped back, showing my hands. “Not a problem. Goodnight, Tinsley. And sweet dreams, Ruby.”
“Stay away from my dreams and they will be,” Ruby said.
“Insulting him only turns him on more,” Tinsley said.
“I think she knows that already,” I said.
“Inside!” Tinsley yelled to Ruby.
Like a protective mother and I was the bad boy.
How fucking awesome.
I walked down to the beach and had zero intentions of going to sleep or going inside.
I knew what I wanted and all I needed was a little bit of time.
So I stood at the shore and watched the waves in the dark.
I ran a lot of shit through my head.
Way too much shit.
I looked back at the guesthouse.
A few times.
‘Maybe I can live there.’
‘Outside the house?’
‘Why not? I won’t be in anyone’s way. It’ll be kind of fun.’
‘I like you under the same roof as me, Kait.’
‘I don’t know what that means.’
I know what it means. Everything I’m not supposed to feel for her. But I can’t fucking help it anymore. Each second I get to talk to her it’s magic. Simple magic. The kind of thing I can never explain to anyone else. Ever.
‘Okay, I’ll give you this much… the guesthouse is really cool.’
‘It’s fucking cool,’ she says. ‘I love it.’
‘Okay. I’ll make you a deal. How about that’s our secret place to hang out?’
‘What?’
‘Think about it. For as big as the house is, it gets small. At least I think so. It’s busy. There’s eyes. Those eyes judge. I can’t even imagine…’ I shake my head. ‘We could just hang out there. Pretend it’s our house or something.’
‘Can we make food?’
‘Anything you want.’
‘Can we watch crappy movies and cuddle under a blanket?’
‘Of course, girl. What else would we do?’
Kait laughs and punches my arm. ‘I don’t know about you sometimes, Kip. I hear a lot of bad things about you. But then you act so sweet around me. You confuse me.’
I nod.
I confuse myself… especially around Kait.
I had waited long enough.
My walk back to the guesthouse was quiet. Stealthy. It once again reminded me of a different time and life. When I had to sneak around. I was never afraid of getting caught in the sense of punishment. I just didn’t want to lose or waste time that could have been spent w
ith someone else.
Which was basically the same reason why I slowly opened the front door to the guesthouse.
The lights were all off.
The glow of the TV bouncing off the floors, walls, and ceiling.
I crept to the couch and saw Ruby under a blanket. Staring at the TV. Wide awake. Phone in her hand.
I took my phone out of my pocket and texted her.
Look behind you. Don’t scream.
I heard her phone vibrate and she jumped and gasped.
She read the message and turned her head.
Her mouth opened and I put my finger to my lips.
Ruby hurried to sit up, taking the blanket with her.
I motioned for the front door.
She nodded.
She stood up and dropped the blanket down to the couch.
I put my hand out and when she took it, I pulled her close to me.
“You big wimp,” she whispered.
“What?”
“You’re afraid of Tinsley.”
“No I’m not. I’m being logical.”
“How?”
“Shhh,” I said.
We snuck through the guesthouse together. I purposely lifted my knees as high into the air as I could. Looking like the cliché way someone would walk in a TV show or movie when they were sneaking around.
Ruby snorted and covered her mouth.
I opened the front door and she went out first.
I turned the knob all the way and slowly pulled the door shut and carefully released my grip on the doorknob.
There wasn’t a sound made.
I turned and opened my arms.
“That’s how you do it, girl.”
Ruby jumped at me, catching me off guard.
She seemed to be really good at that.
My right arm moved around her back and I caught her.
She put her hands to my face and she kissed me.
I kissed her back.
She pushed herself away and pointed at me. “That’s enough.”
“If you say so,” I said.
“So what’s so logical about being afraid of Tinsley?” she asked.
I shook my head. “I’m not afraid of her. But look at it this way, girl, if we wake her up, she’s going to complain. And whine. And we’d miss out on our time together. See, you’re leaving me tomorrow.”
“I thought that was your thing though,” Ruby said. “One night and done.”
“That’s true. But you’re different.”
KIP: a bay falls high novel Page 6
