Page 76 of Wicked Devotion
“And I’m out,” Sam says, pushing his wife away to get up from the lounger. “You’re not lacking tactfulness, you are allergic to it, darling.”
Ruby just grins at him, and after giving her a kiss, Sam flees to the living room.
“So, you’re a virgin,” Ruby says, already jumping to conclusions. “No shame in being a late bloomer. It’s just funny you ended up with Logan and Max,” she snorts, taking her tumbler from me before she turns to Max.
“It’s like you’re trying to drag someone with no hiking experience up Mount Everest. No wonder the poor girl is so nervous all the time.”
“I am not a virgin,” I force out. “I was—am—well, whatever, I was married, after all.”
“If he wasn’t any good, it doesn’t count,” Ruby says, sitting up straight.
“In that case, virgin,” Max answers for me, and I slam my elbow into his stomach. Learned that move from Ruby.
“Let’s go on a walk,” she says after checking the time on her phone.
“Girls walk,” she adds, directed at Max, while she takes my hand and pulls me into the house after her.
“Why does everyone keep stealing my girl from me?” hesays, shaking his head with a laugh as he grabs our towel and the rest of our stuff.
Mochi is lying on the cool tiles, stirring awake when Ruby and I reach the kitchen. Ruby searches the cabinets for something, and soon, two open tumblers stand on the kitchen counter.
“Water is fine,” I insist when Ruby asks for my preferred drink a third time.
“Yeah, no,” she says, getting a bottle of white wine out of the fridge.
“Why are we taking drinks with us when we’re walking Mochi?” I ask, and Mochi wags her tail against my calf.
“It's already past five; it’s efficient, and you need to loosen up a bit.”
Ruby puts on a pair of flip-flops before we walk down to the beach, throwing a second pair over to me. “Was Brady the only guy in your life?”
“Yep,” I say, taking a big sip from my bottle. “We were the typical high school sweethearts. He had a few girlfriends before I came along, but he was my first for everything. We got married right after I finished college.”
“That explains a lot. No wonder you put up with his shit when you had nothing to compare it to.”
“I guess you didn’t settle for the first guy then?” I say, laughing as I watch Mochi run through the sand, having the time of her life.
“Hell no,” Ruby says, shaking her head. “But I also wasted more than a year on a pathetic manchild. Then the universe rewarded me with Sam, so I’m not going to complain.”
Dipping my feet into the water provides a welcomed cool-down, and as I turn back around, I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the view of Ruby’s house.
“How are you able to afford all of this? Sorry, I just have to ask.”
“Iown a couple of companies. Import-export,” she says, walking a few steps. “Inherited my father’s business and a lot of money when he died.”
“Oh, I’m—“
“No, no, he’s alive. Just dead to me, but that’s a story for another evening. One with way more booze,” she adds, staring off into the sunset. “I’m sorry if my question earlier made you uncomfortable. Sam says I sometimes speak before I think.”
By now, the tumbler is half empty, and a few pressing questions form at the tip of my tongue. There are some things I can’t talk about with Max and Logan. I am constantly embarrassed by my lack of experience, but over the last few days, Ruby proved to be a pretty non-judgemental person.
“Have you ever had a threesome?” I blurt out, immediately mortified by my own words. To top it off, Mochi has the zoomies, and after she crashes into me, I land ass-first in the sand.
Ruby laughs so hard she almost spits her drink out, flopping down next to me.
“Yes,” she says, still laughing. “We were two girls, and the guy was kinda useless, so my experience won’t help you that much. But to be honest, I don’t thinkanyonecould prepare you for Logan and Max.”
Putting my hand over my eyes, I exhale deeply.
