Chapter 254

Noel’s POV

Shortly after the commissioner and Lilia were arrested, Landon and I left the BloodyMoon pack and started traveling again.

My goodbye to Cara had been brief, just a simple exchange of words and a hug she had initiated. I still felt some pain, thinking of the dreams I had for us. What I felt was grief over what could have been, but would never be.

Those feelings I had felt for Cara had been real at the time, and I embraced that. As sad as I was about losing out on what could have been, I didn’t regret feeling what I had felt. In fact, I was relieved for it.

For a long time, I had thought myself entirely incapable of feelings of love. The vampire side of me craved blood more than affection. Even though I didn’t need to drink blood thanks to the werewolf side of me, I still felt cravings. The hunger, it was called.

Because I was only half, I didn’t feel the hunger as badly as other vampires, but I was still deeply ashamed of it. I hadn’t thought I was worthy of feeling love with so much darkness inside of me.

My feelings had taught me that not only was I worthy, I was good at it. I liked loving, even if Cara wasn’t free to love me in return. And that too had been a revelation. Cara didn’t reject me because of who or what I am. Her heart simply already belonged to another.

Through Cara, I learned that I was capable of love and being loved, and I would never be anything but grateful to her.

Though now, I was ready to start on the next chapter of my life. I had nothing to look forward to but positive experiences and the good memories yet to come.

Right now, that meant Landon and I in a rented convertible on the open road.

“I’m sorry about what happened with Cara,” Landon said after being quiet for a while. He’d probably been trying to think of how to broach the topic for a while. I could understand. He was in a difficult place, with us as good friends and Cara as his sister. He probably felt caught in the middle.

“Don’t,” I said. “I don’t hold any hard feelings for you, Cara, Alaric, or any of your family. In fact, I consider you all to be dear friends. And I’m grateful.”

Landon glanced at me sideways. “You really mean that?”

“I do,” I said and was being genuine. “Cara wasn’t right for me. Out there is the right woman for me. I just need to keep searching until I find her.”

“Well, I’d be happy to help in your search,” Landon said. “Because you are someone I consider a brother, Noel.”

“You are my brother, Landon,” I replied.

This trip to visit Landon’s pack might not have gone as I would have expected, but I couldn’t regret even one minute of it. What an adventure I lived, and now I couldn’t wait to see what else was out there.

“Which direction do you want to try?” Landon asked.

I considered. It didn’t really matter which way we went, but I appreciated Landon was giving me the option. After all, he had chosen last time, leading us to BloodyMoon. Maybe this time, I would pick a path that would lead him to his own mate.

“East,” I said, because why not? It was as good a direction as any.

“You got it,” Landon said and turned the wheel.

Ruby’s POV

“Ruby,” Richard asked. He was at the station beside mine, looking at a sample under his microscope. I stood at one of the lab tables, preparing the slides. “Can you pass me the next one?”

“Here,” I said, and passed the next slide over. He wasn’t looking, but held his hand out. For the briefest of moments, our fingers touched. My cheeks burned as I pulled my hand back. I glanced at him nervously, to see if he was as affected as I was, but he was so focused on his task that he seemed utterly oblivious to everything else.

“Richard,” I started, hoping he might take a moment to look at me.

“Hmm?” he hummed, not breaking his concentration.

Gods, this man could be frustrating. Though I admired his passion for and dedication to his work, at this moment, all I wanted to do was grab him by the shoulders and shake him.

Though maybe it was me who needed the good shake.

Harboring a crush on Richard was probably the worst decision I’d ever made in my entire life. I could only imagine what Cara would say when I inevitably had to tell her about this mistake. If it hurt her, I wouldn’t know what to do.

My guilt was so rampant now that Richard stepped back and finally looked at me.

“Did you hear me, Ruby?” he said, looking at me with a touch of concern. “I was asking for the next slide. You seemed a million miles away.”

I loved how caring he was. He’d made mistakes in his past, but… Had he changed enough to make my crush okay?

I couldn’t ask myself this, and I couldn’t ask him. The only one with the answers was Cara.

“Excuse me,” I said quickly and, after grabbing my phone, dashed from the room.

“Ruby?” Richard called out after me.

In the hallway, I called Cara.

“Ruby. What’s up?”

I couldn’t hold it in anymore. I felt like I was going to burst. “I have a crush on Richard,” I said.

She was quiet a moment, during which I felt my soul start to leave my body. This was a mistake. A massive, giant, terrible, bad, bad, bad mistake and I—

“I know,” she replied. “Did you just figure it out?”

“Uh. No. I’ve known but…” I tried to recalibrate my brain. “Aren’t you mad?”

“Why would I be mad?” she asked.

“Well, with you and Richard…”

“Ruby,” she said. “He’s my brother. I’ve forgiven him a long time ago. If you want him this badly? Go get him. You have my blessing.” She ended the call with a laugh, and I felt as if new life had been breathed into my lungs.

Richard opened the door to the lab and stepped into the hallway with me. “Ruby? Are you alright? It’s not like you to –”

I couldn’t wait anymore. I took his face between my hands and brought him down for a kiss.

Immediately, he smiled against my lips, his arms wrapping around me.

“Thank the gods,” he said. “I never thought I’d have this.”

“You too?”

“Yes. For so long…” Then, as if he thought of something, he straightened. “But what about Cara?”

I kissed him again, time and time again. “She. Gave. Her. Blessing,” I said between kisses.

Richard pushed me up against the wall to deepen the kiss.

Behind us, someone cleared their throat.

Richard and I jumped apart in an instant, both blushing fiercely. We were still in a hospital after all.

Grayson looked between us with a bored expression. “Well, it’s about damn time,” he said. “But I don’t need to remind you to keep things professional at work.”

“Yes,” I said.

“Right,” Richard said.

We glanced at each other.

“Uh, permission to leave early today?” Richard asked.

“Same?” I asked.

Grayson rolled his eyes. “Fine.”

Richard and I ran, hand in hand, from the hospital.