Ruby (6 page)

“
I heard just on the way
here.” He looked at Diamond. “I hope you have some information for
me. I am going to call a meeting as soon as I can with the other
members. But as of right now, I want the doors shut. Transfer any
patients that can be transferred out, and see about getting some
doctors back in here.”

“
They won’t come if he’s
here.” Diamond looked at the man on the floor who was being
treated. Not nicely either, it looked to Josh. “Most of them are
looking for other jobs, and those that aren’t said they’d rather
never practice again if they had to work with the rules they were
assured the board okayed. We’re also short staffed all over the
hospital. From maintenance all the way up to the top.”

“
I’m going to investigate
everything with your help. Where’s Ruby? Please tell me she’s still
here.” Diamond shook her head. “Talk to her. I need her here before
we’re shut down. And Mr. Ewing, I’m going to make sure your sister
and everyone else gets the best of care from now on. It just might
take me a few…I was going to say minutes, but I have a feeling this
is going to be a long time in cleaning up. But I do assure you, we
had no idea this was going on.”

“
I hope you didn’t,
because the shit is about to hit the fucking fan. I’d really hate
to have to own this place too.” Peter looked shocked but said
nothing. Josh had no idea how much a hospital was worth or if there
was any profit in it, but if it kept his sister here and alive,
he’d certainly buy it for her. He looked up when Diamond said his
name.

“
My sister will be here in
a few hours. I’ll see if she’ll come in and talk to you about your
sister’s care.” Josh nodded. “And when she gets here, you should
also know that she’s been offered a job elsewhere and is only
coming here to pack her things. I’m going to miss her so much.
Everyone here will. This hospital is not going to get a finer
doctor.”

Josh only nodded. For some reason he
thought that Diamond was telling the truth about her sister and not
just bragging about her. But he’d see about that too, her leaving
here. And he couldn’t wait to meet the woman. She sounded like
someone he would like to have working with him.

Chapter 4

Quentin made his way down the hall
with Ruby. She was walking so fast that he had to nearly run to
keep up with her. He had no idea what was said to her on the phone
call she’d gotten, but whatever it was, she was pissed. When she
stopped at the nurse’s station, he took a deep breath and decided
that he’d had enough running after her. He asked her what the hell
was going on.

“
Someone paid off my
student loans.” He started to tell her congratulations, but he
could see by the spark in her eye he might keep breathing if he
didn’t. “Some fucking bastard paid off my student loans, as well as
put money in my account, and it wasn’t Blair. And as soon as I see
this guy, I’m going to tell him about privacy laws and doing things
underhanded that could get him killed.”

That had been his first guess, that
Blair had paid them off, and he was glad he didn’t say that. Then
when she asked the nurse if Ewing was still there, he thought of
his old friend from college. There was no way that he’d be there.
So when she continued to talk to the nurse about a patient, Quentin
took a chance to go and see.

“
Mother fuck.” The big man
had not changed in fifteen years. And when he pulled him in for a
hug, it was all Quentin could do not to warn him about Ruby. Just
as he was pulling back from him, the door opened and there she
stood in all her fury.

“
Did you do this?” Josh,
smart man, took a step back from her. Quentin saw her wolf then,
shimmering along her skin, just ready to pounce when she took a
step toward Josh. “Your secretary sent me a message at my bank to
contact her when I saw what had happened. She told me that you paid
off my loans as well as flushed out my checking account. Did
you?”

“
Are you Ruby Erickson? If
so, then yes, I did. You lost your job saving my sister, and it was
the least—”

She cut Josh off with a finger
punching to his chest. “You’re damn right I saved her life. And do
you think that because you put money in my account or paid nearly a
hundred grand to my loans that I’m somehow going to be beholden to
you? You fucking bastard, take it back. All of it, right now.” Josh
shook his head and braced his arms over his chest as if to do
battle. Quentin took a step back now. He wasn’t stupid. “You heard
me, I want you to take back that money now, or so help me you’re
going to need it for your own hospital bills.”

“
Even if I could—which I
don’t care if I can or not—I won’t do it. You risked a great deal
to save her life, and I pay my debts.” Ruby growled and took
another step toward Josh. It took Quentin several seconds to
realize that something had happened in that short period of
time.

“
No.” She looked at him
and shook her head. “No. I can’t…it can’t be. Not now. Not with
this…. This can’t be happening to me. I can’t…what the fuck am I
supposed to do now? Don’t I have enough shit on my plate without
this too?”

Quentin got it the second she leaned
in and sniffed Josh’s throat. The low growl this time was coming
from his friend and not Ruby. Her mate. Josh Ewing was her
mate.

When Josh wrapped his hands around her
upper arms, Quentin thought Josh was going to push her way, but
instead he brought her closer to his body and moaned again. Quentin
wasn’t sure what else might have happened had she not jumped back
from him and fallen on the floor in her hurried rush to get away
from him.

Ruby looked at all of them, but her
gaze went back to Josh. Quentin wasn’t sure who was more confused,
her or Josh, but Ruby was more vocal about it. Rufus’s sudden
appearance made Quentin reach for his own wolf. Lucky for him, or
Rufus, Ruby leapt to the older vampire before he could act on
whatever he’d come there to do.

“
Don’t touch him.” Rufus
was thrown back, and he fell against the bed that held Bri. She
didn’t stir, but Rufus turned to look at her. His face spoke
volumes, but nothing that Quentin understood. He turned to look at
Josh, and then he glared at Ruby.

“
You did this here.” Rufus
continued as he looked at Ruby, who had stepped away from Josh
again. “You brunged me here so I’d get to know her. Well, ain’t
gonna happen. No way, no how. You think this is some sorta joke, do
you? That I’d be just ready to roll’em over and let it go on? No
fucking way, not ever.”

“
What the fuck are you
talking about? I didn’t even know you were…why the fuck are you
here, anyway? Is this that blood connection thing?” Ruby looked at
Quentin when Rufus continued to stare at Bri. “Did you call
him?”

“
No. I don’t have a clue
what’s going on but that Josh here is your mate. He is your mate,
isn’t he, Ruby?” Ruby took a step toward him, and then Sloan was
there. And he did not look any happier than Ruby did.

“
What the hell is going on
here?” Sloan looked around the room, and that’s when Quentin
noticed Josh. He had no idea what was going on, and worse yet,
Josh, the poor man, was looking like he’d seen a ghost. As he
stared at Sloan, the big vampire moved to pull Rufus from Bri. But
the low growl made Sloan move back. “Rufus? You’d better have a
fucking good reason for calling me in the middle of the day. And it
had better be said in less than five seconds.”

“
You did this here.” Sloan
shook his head, and Quentin got it. Christ, this was just too good
to miss. He was glad he’d volunteered to bring Ruby in
today.

“
She’s your mate?” Rufus
growled, and Quentin had to work hard, very hard, at not laughing.
Laughing now would not just get the shit beat out of him, but he
was pretty sure that Rufus wouldn’t have any problems draining him.
Fighting mirth, he looked at Sloan to explain. “This is Brianna
Gamble, sister to this man, Josh Ewing. Who, if I don’t miss my
guess, is mate to Ruby.”

Sloan turned slowly to look at Josh.
Quentin nodded, and he felt his belly cramp up. Holding onto his
laughter was hurting badly now. None of the newly mated people in
the room looked like they were happy about the events that would
alter their lives. It got the better of him, and he burst out
laughing. Then, in a need to breathe and laugh more, he dropped to
his knees. Christ, this was the most fun he’d had in a very long
time.

Sloan was speaking, his voice calm and
well controlled. Quentin was sure he was trying to be serious, but
Quentin could not seem to handle much more today. Two people, two
paranormals, had just met their mates, and neither of them were the
least bit happy about it. Finally, when he could stand without
pain, Quentin looked around the room.

“
Blair needs to know about
this.” Quentin started to go on, but Josh raised his hand and then
sat down hard on the room’s only chair. He looked pale and very
close to the edge.

“
Two men just popped, not
moved, into this room.” Sloan, who was standing directly in front
of him, nodded. “And I’m not entirely sure, but I could swear that
I saw…I think I saw her change…only that couldn’t be right. Could
it?”

“
A wolf. Yes, Ruby is a
she-wolf.” Sloan knelt in front of him before continuing. “You’re
doing well. And if what I heard is true, she’s your mate. Do you
have any idea what that is?”

“
I’m fucked?” Josh looked
at Quentin, then at Ruby, before speaking again. “I have the most
overwhelming urge—no, not an urge, but a powerful need—to touch
her. But I have a feeling she’d rip me to shreds if I
tried.”

“
Damned right I will.”
Ruby stood up and looked at everyone in the room before settling
her gaze on Josh. “Take the money back or so help me, I’ll come
hunting for you. And trust me, you’ll be in worse shape than your
sister if I have to. I’m not going to take this…this shit right
now.”

And with that, she left the room. Both
Sloan and Quentin looked over at Rufus, who was still staring at
Bri. Quentin felt sorry for the man. To find his mate now and to
know that she was hurt like she was would be hard. As he stood
there watching her, Quentin reached over and helped Josh to stand.
He decided to have a long talk with the man.

~~~

Josh stared at the cup in front of him
for a good while without saying a word. He knew it was there, and
on some level knew he should at least take a drink of it, but he
was still trying his best to figure out when he’d woken from his
dream. Looking at Quentin, who was still smiling, had him thinking
it wasn’t a dream but fact.

“
How have you been?” Josh
nodded and Quentin laughed. “I guess about now you have about ten
million questions and not a clue where to begin. I’m going to tell
you now that even if I could answer them all, you’d still to have
more.”

“
What happened in there?”
Josh knew he’d asked that before and if he’d gotten an answer, he
wasn’t sure what it might have been. “I mean, those men just were
there.”

“
Yes. Sloan is an old and
powerful vampire. Rufus is as well, but not nearly as strong as
Sloan. And so you know, Sloan is married to my sister-in-law Opal.
They’re having their first child in about eight months.” Josh had
no idea why the thought of a child made him think of Ruby, but he
suddenly could see her swollen with his. “What are you thinking
right now?”

“
Babies and Ruby.” Quentin
nodded as if he understood. Josh was glad one of them did. “I don’t
want a wife, Quentin. I just got out of a fucked up relationship a
few months ago. My business partner and Teri were fucking the pool
boy at my house. I just moved here and got a house. My sister was
nearly killed and is on the mend. And I have people popping in and
out of my life…that was a terrible reference.”

“
Fucking the pool boy and
your partner? Ouch.” Quentin smiled at him. “Sounds like you were
lucky in that. How much did you take them for? A great deal if I
know you.”

“
Yeah. He bought me out at
a buck and a half on the dollar. It was that or I tell the parents
of the pool boy what he’s been up to at my house.” Quentin laughed,
and Josh felt himself relax a bit. But then he remembered the fur
he’d seen on the lovely doctor. “I thought I saw a…well, an animal
on her. I must be tireder than I thought.”

“
You more than likely are
tired, but I’m sure you saw her wolf. Ruby is the nicest person I
know, but she puts the bitch in she-bitch. And you’re going to love
her for the rest of your life. And trust me, there will never be a
dull moment.” Josh looked away until Quentin said his name.
“There’s more. A lot more, and I know you’re overwhelmed, but I’m a
wolf as well. And Sloan and Rufus are really vampires.”

Josh got up and realized then that
they were in the hospital cafeteria. And not only that, but it
looked as if they might be the only ones in the place. He looked
back at his long ago friend and wondered why he was doing this,
when Quentin shifted and melted into a wolf along his face and arms
for the briefest second before coming back to himself.

“
Fuck.” Quentin laughed
but didn’t move. Josh sat down, but he was not as close to Quentin
as he’d been before. He knew it was wrong but had no idea how to
deal with this right now. “I’m not sure what to believe. I’m not
even sure I’m awake, but what exactly does mate mean to
me?”