Page 66 of Freeing Ruby

She reaches up and touches my face, her fingertip gentle as she traces my brow, then the edge of my cheek. And then she gently traces the curve of my lips. “Miguel.”

There’s so much emotion in the tone of her voice. God, please tell me I’m not imagining this.

I realize we’re both frozen, both of us afraid to make a wrong move. I guess there’s only one way to know. “Ruby?”

“Mmm?”

“Would you be terribly upset if I kissed you right now?”

Her lips curve into a smile, dimples appearing in her soft, freckled cheeks. “Not at all. In fact, I’d be more upset if you didn’t.”

Cupping her face, I lean down to press my lips to hers. Her mouth is trembling, her breath shaky, and yet she’s clutching my arms. I test the water by deepening the kiss, and her hold on me turns into a death grip.

She’s definitely not pushing me away.

Her lips part, taking the kiss to a whole new level, and my doubts and concerns about what’s right and wrong go straight out the window. She wants this, just as much as I do.

When we hear Pumpkin’s plaintive wail coming from one of the bedrooms, we break apart.

“Oh, my God, Pumpkin!” she says.

I take Ruby’s hand. “Come on. Let’s free Pumpkin and finish the tour.”

As soon as we open Ruby’s bedroom door, Pumpkin comes racing out. He practically throws himself against her legs, purring like a motorboat.

“You poor baby,” she coos, scooping him up in her arms. “You must be terrified.”

Ruby walks into her new bedroom and turns in a circle, observing every little detail. She opens her dresser drawers and the nightstand drawers. Everything is right where she left it. She opens the closet doors to find her clothes hanging just as they were at her place. Her shoes are lined up on the closet floor. Her shoeboxes filled with mementos are sitting on the overhead shelf. Even the curtains hanging in front of her window are from the other apartment.

I show her the middle bedroom, which is now her art studio. Everything’s in place. All her canvases are hanging on the walls. Her worktable looks just like it did before. Her supplies are arranged on the bookcase shelves exactly as she had them.

She shakes her head. “I can’t believe this. It’s so perfect.” She turns to me. “You did this. You told them to make it perfect.”

I nod. “I wanted this place to feel familiar to you.”

After she examines the linen closet and the bathroom, she stops in front of the door of the last bedroom, which is currently closed. “Is this your bedroom?”

I nod as I turn the knob and open the door. Inside the room is my king size bed covered in a gray comforter, two nightstands, lamps, and a dresser. She opens the closet door to see all of my clothes and shoes, everything from my closet is here. Even my gun safe has been moved here, stowed in the closet.

She eyes my bed and frowns. “I’m sure you’re thrilled to have your own bed to sleep in again. No more sleeping on the sofa.”

“It wasn’t that bad.” Actually, no. I’m not thrilled. Suddenly, having my own bedroom doesn’t seem like such a great idea after all. I much preferred sharing a bed with Ruby, even if it was purely platonic.

Pumpkin springs out of Ruby’s arms, jumps to the floor and starts rubbing against her ankles, purring loudly.

“I think someone wants his dinner,” I say.

She nods and heads for the kitchen. Pumpkin follows her, darting between her feet in his exuberance. In the kitchen, she locates the cat food in the pantry and dishes it into his bowl. She tops off his water bowl and sets it on the floor next to his food.

Pumpkin devours his food, purring loudly in the process.

“How does he do that without choking?” I ask. “Speaking of food, are you hungry?”

“No,” Ruby says. “I had enough to eat at the hospital. What about you?”

“I grabbed something after the movers finished. But I do think we should celebrate you getting out of the hospital and us moving into this apartment.”

“What did you have in mind?”

---