44 The Forbidden Frui

When Ruby woke up she was cold. It took her a moment to realize why—Ash was curled up directly in front of her. Their foreheads, forearms, and knees were touching.

Rather than being startled like usual, she was confused. Normally he slept on his back completely still and looked like a dead human in a coffin because he didn't breathe unless he was talking.

He wasn't moving now either but his sleeping posture was much less vampire-like than usual. Some of his long black hair spilled over the side of his shoulder and neck and pooled between them.

Ruby sat up cross-legged and examined him more closely. His milky skin looked whiter than it probably was in contrast with his hair and his angular face was even more like carved marble than usual since he wasn't moving.

She had never met another vampire so she didn't know if Ash was attractive by their standards. He definitely was according to the human aesthetic; he looked like a male model when he had his glamour on.

Fairies tended to have round faces and small, delicate features. But the only male fairies she knew were either her relatives, married, or too young so she had never been attracted to any.

If Ruby really felt like dating, the clan of fire fairies here might be her best bet. There had to be at least a few of them who were currently unattached. She had never thought about that sort of thing before though because of the nature of her existence.

Secrets did not allow for intimacy. She had already accepted that she would spend her life alone long ago, comforting herself that at least she had her family. Now she didn't even have that.

Instead she had this rather contradictory vampire. She knew their friendship wasn't likely to last. He had a major fight on his hands coming up and she couldn't afford to trust anyone completely. It was really nice being able to enjoy someone else's company while she could though.

Ash was fun to be around. They never ran out of things to talk about because their experiences in life had been so different and his naivety regarding human society always made her laugh.

Being able to go out and try new things with someone else was much more enjoyable than doing it on her own but she knew it was only temporary. That kind of put a damper on things.

Ruby couldn't trust him with her secrets but she still wished that things were different. That he wasn't about to plunge himself headfirst into danger so they could spend more time together and she could enjoy having a friend a little while longer.

Unfortunately, that wasn't realistic. They had never been compatible from the beginning. He was a vampire with some sort of grudge against a powerful coven; she was a bizarrely overpowered fairy who couldn't reveal her true appearance to anyone.

Ash may be easily amused but he wasn't a happy person. That much was obvious. She might not know the cause but it was obvious he was holding onto some serious hatred and grief. Maybe he lost a lover or a family member because of the coven he mentioned.

Ruby reached out and ran her fingers through the coil of hair flopping over his neck, absentmindedly braiding it. She didn't know why she was doing it either aside from the fact that he would never allow this when he was awake.

The forbidden fruit was the most tempting and all that. She had never seen such long silky hair before meeting him. When he stood it went nearly to his knees and yet there was never a wisp out of place.

It took her a while to braid because it was so long but she managed to do it and used a hair tie from her suitcase to hold it together. Ash was still a statue but now he was a statue with a thin braid in his otherwise straight hair.

Ruby snickered at the sight and snapped a picture with her phone so she could remember this later. Satisfied that she got that urge out of her system, she put on a high-class woman glamour and headed out to grab something to eat before going back to the jewelers'.

===

Several hours later, her business was concluded and Ruby deposited the checks into Ash's account using Elite Financial Solutions' ATM. Now what?

She texted Cole on the off-chance he was free and got a reply saying he wasn't but Skye and a few others were and that she was welcome to drop by and visit them. That was sufficient invitation for her when she was that bored.

Being around chaotic people was better than being by herself right now. And Skye did seem to be the least rambunctious of the bunch. She could see the two of them getting along.

The wind fairy answered the door with a smile. "Cole told me you would be coming by. Nice to see you again."

Ruby followed her in and saw little Sampson practicing his wind powers by making a bunch of blocks fly around the room. Skye dodged them with ease but she got hit in the arm by one because she wasn't prepared.

"Sorry about that," his mother said apologetically. "He's not so good with his aim yet."

There were plenty of mishaps in the backyard when Flora first got her powers. Ruby had been whacked by stray branches more than once. "No worries; I have a cousin a little younger than him so I know what that's like."

Skye smiled. "Isn't it so nice to see the next generation at work? I was so scared when I was pregnant that the baby would have fire powers and I wouldn't know how to control them when Cole wasn't around. Thankfully he took after me. We have more than enough hot-heads around here already."

A yell came from the kitchen. "I heard that!"

"Oh, I should probably mention that Ember and Hestia are here right now making dinner. They're much better cooks than I am," she said with a nonchalant shrug before calling back. "You know I'm right!"

"Whatever," the indignant fire fairy huffed, making Skye laugh.

Ruby had a small smile on her face. It must be nice being close enough to others that you felt comfortable teasing them.