Ruby

by Shanna Handel

  “The happiest,” he agreed.

  “I would feel bad about having a wedding and all of your family being there, and not inviting her. The guilt would ruin my day. But I just can’t have Mama at my wedding. I want to elope, but I don’t want to ask that of you. I know how much your family is looking forward to this,” she waved her hands in the air, exasperated, “whole thing.”

  Jacob was a planner. Jacob did not do things on the fly. Maybe it was time to take a cue from his whimsical fiancée and change some of his rigid ways.

  “Do you have plans next Friday afternoon?” he asked.

  “No.” She looked up at him, her eyes sparkling with tears.

  “Well, now you do. We are getting married. Somehow, some way. I will work out the details tomorrow. And then we can let my family throw a post-wedding celebration in a few months, if you want. Does that sound good to you?”

  She nodded. Joy shone from her face. He felt like her knight in shining armor. And he would be her lawfully wedded husband in less than a week.

  “Now let’s get you back to Heather’s. She’s going to blow a gasket when she finds out she’s having a slumber party.”

  Heather did freak out when she found out about the slumber party. The family dinner was wrapping up by then, and she quickly ushered everyone out to get some time with the young couple. Heather dished up leftover barbecue and coleslaw on plates, as well as huge slabs of Elizabeth’s homemade apple pie. She poured them each a glass of milk, then she and David sat across from them at the table, talking quietly.

  Ravenous after the emotional evening, Jacob ate every bite of food on the overloaded plate. Ruby picked at her food for a moment, then excused herself to take a shower. Jacob knew she needed time to decompress. Heather returned to the dining room after showing her soon to be daughter-in-law where the towels were and made sure that Ruby lacked nothing.

  Looking around the elegant, yet cozy dining room, Jacob watched David and Heather speak softly to one another. He couldn’t help but feel saddened by the stark contrast from this home, and the house he had just come from. What kind of childhood had Ruby endured?

  Chapter 6

  Jacob stood at the small altar, swaying back and forth nervously. He looked over at the dark, heavy oak chapel doors, for what felt like the hundredth time, then back over to David. David gave a small smile, looking the part of his best man in his perfectly cut charcoal Italian suit. He placed a reassuring hand on Jacob’s shoulder. Jacob looked down at his navy, equally expensive suit and leather shoes that David had insisted on buying him for the day.

  The small stone chapel was dripping with floral bouquets. The twinkling lights of a hundred candles warmed the walls with their soft glow. Heather had spared no expense yet pulled off an effortless look, wanting it to be beautiful but not intimidating for his and Ruby’s wedding. It was perfect. The only thing missing was the bride.

  Pat, the minister, an elderly slightly overweight man with glasses and a friendly face, cleared his throat. He was clearly embarrassed. “Um, was Ruby aware of the time? I mean, did you communicate clearly what time she should arrive? Sometimes couples get the location mixed up. One time I was marrying this couple and the groom thought they were getting married in the barn and the bride…”

  “She’ll be here,” David announced, coolly.

  “Of course, of course.” The preacher picked at imaginary lint on his jacket.

  The feeling that something was wrong with Ruby settled down around Jacob like a heavy weight. “I’m just going to poke my head outside to see if they are here.”

  “Let me go,” David started to step down from the altar towards the door.

  Jacob cut him off from his exit. “No,” he said with a polite smile, “I’ll go.”

  Ruby had loved the idea of Heather and David being the two witnesses for their last-minute ceremony. Finding a minister to perform the ceremony in just a few days was a bit of a hassle but Jacob had finally done it, and made a handsome donation to Pat’s church for his trouble.

  Ruby had happily let Jacob plan everything and was enjoying her evening sleepovers at Heather’s. They had done every single girly thing two women could do and Jacob had given them their space. He figured he would have Ruby to himself soon enough. Besides, he wasn’t really one for manicures, pedicures, or facials.

  The only thing that Ruby had insisted upon was that Jacob not see her dress before the wedding because it was bad luck. Jacob had only recently learned that Ruby, in her own words, was not superstitious, but she was ‘a little bit stitious.’ Heather had procured the honor of dressing and bringing the bride to the chapel for the ceremony.

  A cool breeze hit Jacob’s face as he opened the heavy door. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, steadying himself for whatever may be keeping his fiancée from him and the lifelong commitment that they were about to make.

  The first thing he spotted was her green Spider. Ruby must have driven Heather to the wedding— strange. As he got closer to the car, Heather popped up out of the passenger side. She wore an elegant floor-length lavender, silk dress, her platinum hair cascading down her back. Her smile warmed Jacob but did little to ease his nerves.

  “Hey, baby. We are doing just fine out here, just a few last-minute nerves.” She winked at him, smiling hugely but her smile didn’t reach her eyes, showing her concern. Jacob strode to the car, not hearing the string of words that flowed out of Heather’s perfectly painted mouth. He reached the driver door and tugged at the handle, the door was locked.

  He crouched down and looked at his little bride, who was huddled against the steering wheel. All he could see were the curls piled on top of her head, dotted with tiny white flowers. He was desperate to hold her.

  Jacob rounded the front of the car, gently opened the door, and slid into the passenger seat. The car smelled of strawberry and cinnamon and tears.

  Ruby would not lift her head from the wheel of the car. He tried not to look too closely at the dress but judging by what little he could see, he knew she must look magnificent.

  “Go away, Jacob.”

  The words stung, but knowing Ruby well, Jacob would not allow himself to be wounded… yet.

  “Ruby, what in the world is going on?”

  He tentatively put a hand on her back; she instantly shrugged away. Jacob was shocked by the wave of white heat that crossed his face as anger washed over him. “Tell me exactly what is going on right now, Ruby. You owe me that much,” his tone was low, emotion making his voice unrecognizable to himself.

  She finally looked up at him. Her face was streaked with tears, her makeup in ruin. There were tendrils of hair stuck to her damp face. She was beautiful, and his heart broke.

  “Just go away. See, I told you so,” a strained laugh came from her, “I’m mean.” She dropped her head into her hands and resumed crying.

  Jacob sat back in the seat, willing his feelings down inside him and clearing his head. Ruby needed him, and something was going on underneath this tough exterior. “Mean?” he mumbled to himself. The lightbulb went off, and he turned towards her. “Ruby, did you go see your mom?” he asked softly. Her only answer was to cry harder. Jacob reached over and took the keys from the ignition. “Sit tight, just a minute, honey.” Jacob jogged back to the chapel, looking over his shoulder every few steps. Heather had made her way to David and Pat, and the concerned looking trio greeted him on the stone steps of the tiny church.

  “Mom, did you guys make a pit stop on the way here?”

  Heather looked confused. “Well, we just stopped by her mama’s house. Ruby said she just wanted to show her the dress. She didn’t invite me in”

  “What happened after that?”

  “She got back into the car and kinda had this weird smile on her face. I tried to make small talk while we drove over here. I swear she was gripping that wheel so tight her knuckles turned as white as that dress. I chalked it up to nerves.” Jacob looked worriedly over at Ruby, still crying and she hadn’t mov
ed an inch. “When we got here she just wouldn’t get out of the car. Kept saying she needed a minute. I tried to ease her mind, kept thinking just a few more minutes, and she’d be settled and ready to float down that aisle.”

  “Thanks, Mom.” Jacob jogged back over to the Spider. He smiled to himself when he heard David say, “Stay here, Heather. Don’t worry, Jacob will sort it out.”

  Jacob went to the driver’s side, unlocking the door. The fuzzy pink keychain was soft in his hand and despite the situation, he smiled at the memories it evoked. He reached into the car and gently pulled his bride-to-be out. Wordlessly, he wrapped his arms around her as tightly as they would go. He stroked her hair and held her until her sobs began to subside.

  Leaning down, Jacob inhaled the familiar, sweet scent. He whispered, “You aren’t her, you will never be her, you are goodness and light,” over and over like a mantra. Eventually, the crying stopped.

  “Oh, Jacob, it was so awful. I just wanted to show her the dress. I thought maybe she would wish me good luck, tell me I’m pretty. I don’t know what I was thinking. She said… she said,” Ruby choked back her sobs, “she told me you were too good for me and that one day you would figure it out,” the last part was spoken so quietly he could just barely make the words out, “and leave me.”

  Now the pain in his heart was for her, and her alone. This was not to do with her feelings for him; she still wanted to marry him. This was the direct result of a lifetime of emotional abuse. Jacob couldn’t help not only see the hurt in her now but to also picture her as a little girl living with a monster.

  Giving a great, heavy sigh, Ruby laid her head on Jacob’s chest, his shirt soaked with her tears.

  Jacob held Ruby in his arms, trailing his finger over a bit of lace edging that outlined her slender shoulder. “Let me tell you all of the times I felt like you were too good for me.” Ruby looked up in surprise, her brown eyes wide. He tucked a curl behind her ear, holding the heat of her body against his. “The first time I laid eyes on you, so beautiful, so carefree. One look at you at the game and I felt out of my league, no pun intended.” Relief washed over him at the sound of her giggles. “Watching you drive your car for the first time, smiling under the stars, your hair caught up in the wind. I thought to myself, what is a girl this funny, this magical, doing with an uptight guy like me? And when I asked you to marry me and you said, “Yes,” my first thought after, thank you, God, was how will I ever be able to take good enough care of this angel?”

  Her eyes shone with joy. Ruby placed one hand on each side of his face and drew him in for a deep kiss. Jacob returned the kiss hungry for her love, he was ready to make her his wife. Ruby dabbed at her eyes and wiped the mascara from her face with a tissue Heather must have given her earlier. Jacob slowly took in his beautiful bride from the golden-brown curls pinned with the tiny flowers and what looked like pearls. The sight of her in the dress stopped his heart for a minute. She had chosen a white, satin, antique-looking floor length dress. It had long sleeves with tiny pearls at the wrists, the waist was tight, and the top was covered with delicate lace.

  “Ruby, you look… I don’t even have words for it, but you are the most breathtaking thing I’ve seen.”

  She looked shyly at the ground, then back up to him, her face splotchy but free of the makeup and glowing in a way he had never seen before.

  “Even without my makeup?”

  “Even better without the makeup. Why would you cover up a work of art, like that?”

  From the Chapel, a loud throat clearing caught their attention. “Folks, I’m so sorry, but I’ve got another wedding this afternoon,” the minister confessed, nervously.

  Jacob turned back to Ruby. “Would you do me the honor of marrying me?” He held out his arm for her to take.

  Ruby smiled demurely and linked arms with him. She snuggled up against his side as close as she could as they walked towards the steps. “Yes. Thank you, Jacob, for understanding. You are going to be an amazing and very handsome husband,” Ruby whispered to him.

  They reached the top of the stairs. Heather gave them both a quick squeeze, then handed Ruby a bouquet of flowers. They all three made their way down the aisle to the altar where Pat waited.

  “Ready?” A smile for young love beamed from his friendly face.

  Jacob looked to Ruby. She smiled up at him, and his heart felt like it would burst in his chest.

  “Yes. We’re ready.”

  “Then let’s begin.”

  He loves me, he loves me not, he loves me, he loves me not, he loves me. Seventeen syllables, six stairs, precisely one hundred candles. Thirteen freckles on this side of the minister’s face, an unlucky number if one was prone to superstitious tendencies. Oh dear, Oh dear. Deep breaths, deep breaths, deep breaths, she thought.

  “Ruby?” The gentle pressure from Jacob’s hand on hers brings her back to the moment. A breath finally shudders through her body without being commanded. Relief. His eyes are concerned, his worried face devastatingly handsome. What if he knew the truth about his ‘carefree girl?’ And how long can she hide the truth from him? But the touch of his hand is enough. He is the only thing that has ever been right about her world.

  “I’m ready.”

  The first night holding Ruby, tangled up in sheets and wearing nothing but a smile, was more than Jacob could have ever hoped for for his life. Growing old with Ruby was his life’s dream now, but if he were to die tonight, he doubted a man would ever die happier. Jacob had almost let his nerves get the best of him, he had no experience whatsoever, but nature had taken over and judging by the way Ruby’s body responded to his touches he had done just fine. He looked at his wife as she slept, pulling a curl away from her angelic face. Her breathing was deep and peaceful, his forever. Now that he had her, he was never letting her go.

  “Don’t get your pretty skirt dirty.” He raised an eyebrow up at her. Ruby felt her heart pitter patter, and she tried to hide her smile. The teal skirt swished as she roamed excitedly amongst the animals.

  The small mountain town they had chosen for their honeymoon was hosting a “Simpler Times” fair during their stay, which was one of the reasons they had chosen to visit. There were all types of craft demonstrations, people dressed in garb from another century, and Ruby’s favorite exhibit, farming. She couldn’t remember the last time she had seen so many cute animals in one day.

  Ruby went from animal to animal petting and cooing: the pigs were the most adorable in her opinion. Forgetting about the delicate hand dyed skirt Jacob had surprised her with last night, she knelt to get a closer look at the piglets.

  She felt Jacob come up behind her, pulling her up from the damp ground. “Naughty girl, you got your skirt all muddy.” His words made her feel melty.

  Ruby lifted the fabric, inspecting the brown patches. She bit her bottom lip, “Oops.” She looked up at Jacob.

  “Tsk, tsk. Look at that mud. What did I say about getting your skirt dirty, little girl?”

  “You said not to.” She bit her lip, placing her hands behind her back and twirling a bit side to side, grimy material swishing around her ankles.

  “I think you need a spanking for not listening.” Jacob’s voice carried over the crowd, perking up the ears of a few visitors of the fair.

  Looking at the curious people standing to the side, Ruby moved closer. “Not here,” she hissed, trying to hide the smile from her face. Jacob had been the one to keep things tame during their engagement, but the wedding had unleashed a lion and she was loving every minute of it.

  Grabbing her firmly by her arm, he guided her through the crowd, smiling at the whispering people as he did. He marched her along until they reached the edge of the woods and pulled her behind a magnificent oak.

  Kissing her hard, Jacob pressed Ruby’s back against the ancient tree. She was initially drawn to Jacob because, besides his kindness, he was a strong man. During their engagement, Ruby had let her imagination wander to what their love life would be like after
they were married, and thus far she had not been disappointed.

  Jacob moved and stood next to her, his body pressed against her side. Leaning down, he whispered in her ear, “Face the tree and lift your skirt for me.”

  “Jacob,” she said, being sure to lower her voice, “someone will hear you.”

  He looked around. “Not a soul in sight. Now lift it up, or I am going back to the Village of Yesteryears and buying a leather strap.”

  The threat made her skin tingle. Holding his gaze as she turned, she slowly lifted her soiled skirt, baring her bottom. White panties with pink hearts peeked out from under the fabric.

  He gently traced his fingertips down the length of the back of her arm, causing her entire body to shiver.

  “Panties down.”

  “Jacob!” She tried to hide the thrill from her voice.

  “Now, please.”

  A wave of submission washed away any uncertainty that she felt. It was crazy how his voice alone could make her feel like that, wanting to do his will. Ruby pulled down the waistband of her undergarments and shimmied them down to her knees. Then she obediently raised the skirt again, this time exposing the skin of her bare bottom.

  Jacob lightly ran a hand along her curves. “Now keep that skirt up, or we go back for the strap.”

  Another slight shudder ran through Ruby. She meekly bunched the fabric up and held it at her waist. Jacob stood facing her side and wrapped one arm around her front, to steady her. He continued to rub her exposed skin lightly. The simple touch was enough to warm her insides.

  He lifted his hand up and brought it down onto her bottom with a loud slap. She looked over her shoulder and saw him raise his hand as if admiring the red mark it must have left on her skin. He raised his hand again and put a matching sting on the other side. He tenderly stroked then peppered her bottom with short but stinging slaps. Ruby rose to her tippy toes as her husband warmed her skin.