Feral Obsession

Chapter Two

Ruby Crowell had come too far to go back home. She tightened her apron around her waist and smiled at her new coworker. A second job had not been on her radar when she moved, but she needed fast money, and she needed to make sure Atlas Langdon didn't take away her home.

Last night, while cursing her situation and her unpacked boxes, she looked at more apartments in the city. And just like Ruby had expected, there were none. Not in her price range, anyway. And not with her credit score.

"It's super lowkey here. And the tips are pretty good." The girl talking to her stood behind the host stand with a rag, running it down the top. Her brown hair was pulled back in two dutch braids that ended just shy of her shoulders. "You'll be serving with me tonight. Do you have any experience?"

Ruby shook her head. "Not serving like this, but I used to work a catering gig." Years ago, in high school. Her coworker didn't need to know that, though.

"You'll pick it up fast."

Chelsea, her coworker, was right. After the first few hours, Ruby felt comfortable chatting with the customers and bringing out their plates. She didn't have the menu memorized, of course, but with her little pad of paper, she did alright running orders to the kitchen.

Ruby found that she liked it. It gave her a chance to think about something else for a little while, and with how busy the tiny restaurant got, she barely had a chance to think about anything other than her tables. Chelsea of course was with her the entire evening, but as the night was coming to a close, Chelsea felt okay to give Ruby some breathing room.

"You're a natural. I'll be over here," Chelsea said, jerking her thumb over her shoulder towards the hostess stand. There was another server taking tables, and a bartender behind a very small bar, but that was it. The hole-in-wall restaurant wasn't all that big.

Ruby loosed a breath. Her tips were feeling heavy in her apron, just knowing that maybe a few nights a week would give Ruby enough money to either find a new apartment, or convince Atlas to let her stay.

Speaking of. Ruby felt a prickling against the back of her neck, and when she turned around, she felt a pit of dread open up in her stomach at the sight of Atlas and two other men in one of the back booths. Atlas sat alone on his side, arm stretched across the back as if he owned it. The two other men had their heads bent forward, talking in hushed whispers.

All three of them were huge. Like, I-workout-everyday huge. Ruby swallowed, prepared to tell the other server that she could have that table when Chelsea clapped a hand on her shoulder. "I'm giving you table 5. They usually tip pretty well, and they're not that complicated."

It was a nice gesture from Chelsea, but Ruby wasn't feeling very confident in that moment as she stared at the table of men who looked like they could bend her in half. And the way she spoke to Atlas yesterday had not been all too kind.

Ruby jutted her chin and squared her shoulders. She had to be confident.

When she approached the table, she gave the two men across from Atlas a big smile. She cocked her hip, a move she had learned while catering when she was trying to get a big tip from tipsy men. "Hey, welcome in. What can I get you guys to drink?"

Both men looked at her, then looked at Atlas. They didn't say a thing until Ruby turned her gaze to the man who was clearly waiting for her attention. She pretended like her heart wasn't hammering in her chest at the sight of him there, and she gave him a smile. "Hello again."

It should have been illegal to look so attractive against the cheap vinyl booth. Yet Atlas looked as though he were modeling for a magazine, his eyes meeting hers and his mouth curving up. "Is this how you're affording rent? You definitely can't afford what I'll be charging after you leave."