Intertwined

Chapter Seventeen

 Ruby sat outside of Bryce office watching him work. He looked to be very busy. It had been over a month since their encounter and she hadn't been able to speak with him yet. She couldn't even blame Carmine because she didn't seem to work in his office anymore. She was replaced a young lady who had a serious attitude problem. Whenever she would call the woman would say he isn't available for her call and hang up the phone. She didn't even try to see if she wanted to leave a message.

She decided it was time to talk to her therapist about this situation because it was eating her up. They were working their way through the issues in her life from her childhood forward. They hadn't gotten to her present yet. Her brain told her let I go he was ignoring her on purpose. There was something she felt between them that night and she knew it wasn't fake nor was it just about the sex. She wanted to just talk to him. If they spoke on it she could let go. She could move on if that was what he wanted.

Ruby's alarm brought her out of her thoughts. It was time for her to go and pick up the kids. She tried to be more hands on with the kids. The nanny, Shamari had made it too easy for her to disconnect from life. Shamari was young but she was great with the kids and the house. Everything was always taken care of. She understood how mom's with nanny's lost touch with their kids. You get caught up in this new life you are trying to have and the kids just start to fade into the background. She never wanted that to be the case. Her kids were her everything. They were what kept her going when all she wanted to do was quit. She looked at Bryce one more time and drive off.

She hated picking the kids up from Jerrod. They never wanted to leave. She always had to damn near pry them out the door. Scarlet answered the door as usual. They had gotten closer over the last month and change. Therapy really did help. Sometimes it took more effort to keep her unreasonable emotions in check but she was doing good. Scarlet was really putting her on and she wasn't trying to mess that up especially before she even got where she was trying to go. They gave each other a church hug and she headed in to sit on the couch.

It was still strange looking at a home that was once her home. A home she had decorated from floor to ceiling. It didn't look like that home anymore, and it certainly didn't feel like it. There was a part of her that was happy for Scarlet. She just wish she was having this life with someone else besides Jerrod. Scarlet had shared some of her life experiences with her as a way of letting her know it is possible to take most fucked up situation and win. She opened up to encourage Ruby not to be discouraged. Ruby was taking notes and getting her shit together.

Ruby was almost done with a fictional novel she was working on. She had a YouTube channel that was earning revenue per video. She had a good amount of followers on social media. She felt like she was moving in the right direction. She felt in a place to love again and she was definitely living again. There was a part of her that longed for her family back, for what she had with Jerrod but most of her had made peace with that being over.

"The kids are getting their things together but I wanted to talk to you about something real quick." Ruby felt her anxiety pick up as Jerrod sat across from her and Scarlet quickly left the room. Her mind began to race. Was he about to try to take her children? Did he know about Bryce and was about to tell her he wasn't footing the bill for her anymore? Her stomach was bubbling her nerves were so bad. She realized Jerrod was waving his hand in front of her face and came back to the present. "You okay? You just spaced all the way out." Jerrod looked concerned.

"Yes, I'm okay. I have a lot on my mind and I've had a long day." Ruby rubbed her temples. That wasn't a complete lie. She had a couple of boxes in her trunk she had just picked up from her p.o. box with items for her to review and demo on her channel. She was trying to get a fashion nova deal. She was being ghosted by Bryce. Now Jerrod wanted to have a sit down with her. "We can talk another time if you like. It's nothing majorly important." He looked like he would prefer to not have the talk. That made her want to have the talk all the more.