Ruby hummed along with the hold music as she waited, speaker phone on, nail polish being swiped onto her left hand. She had picked a nice baby pink color, and as she held up her hand to inspect her handywork, the phone chirped. "Ms. Crowell?"

"Yes?" Ruby decided to apply another coat, just to make sure the color wasn't streaky.

"We are all set to host your business meeting. I just spoke with the owner, and we should be good to host that number of people. As requested, we do have a menu planned for the catered lunch. Shall I go over that with you now?"

"Yes, please." Ruby capped the nail polish, reaching for the clear top coat to unscrew.

Ruby listened as the woman on the phone went over the menu for the meeting. To Ruby, this wasn't her bread and butter, but it was still event planning nonetheless. Once they went over the approved menu, the selected time frame for the meeting, and the parking situation, Ruby said her goodbye into the phone. She immediately clicked on her email, waiting for the confirmation.

As expected, it popped up in her inbox.

Ruby let her nail polish dry as she read through her spreadsheet, just to make sure everything would be all set for next month. She had been shocked when Brody had supplied the number of attendees. In her mind, she had assumed a business meeting would be ten people, max. What did she know about meeting clients?

But, no. It was closer to a hundred attendees. Her eyes had bugged right out of her head, and then Ruby considered what sort of work Atlas actually did. He couldn't just be a landlord, right? Not if he was hosting these types of meetings.

She wasn't supposed to care. She wouldn't care. Once her nail polish was dry on both hands, Ruby called Brody to tell him the good news. She held the phone to her ear as she skimmed the confirmation email.

The moment Brody picked up, Ruby didn't let him get a word in. "Hey, feel free to shower me with thank you kisses, because I got us the best venue."

"Excuse me?"

Ruby's heart got stuck in her throat immediately at the man on the other end of the line. The voice did not belong to Brody. Instead, it was Atlas that growled on the other end of the line. Hearing his voice made a shiver race down her spine, and she straightened in her chair on impulse.

"Who is this?" She asked, as if she didn't know.

"Ruby," Atlas warned. It had her heart slamming against her ribcage. Hearing him say her name like that made Ruby imagine him in her bedroom, saying it in the same tone of voice, doing something a little more rated R.

She tried to swallow, but it got stuck. "Atlas," she squeaked out. "Is this not Brody's number?"

"It is. I'm wondering why you're calling him, telling him to give you a kiss. Why are you calling my men?"

The anger in his voice was terrifying. And, Ruby hated to admit it, but also delicious. It made her toes curl. "Is Brody there? This is private."

"Unless you want a murder on your hands, you will tell me why you have my man's number." The timber of his voice lowered into dangerous territory.

Her mouth went dry. She knew she couldn't lie to him, and it was obvious Brody had not yet mentioned the work event that she was planning. She tried to swallow again before she croaked out, "Brody asked me to plan your business meeting next month. I was calling to tell him I booked the venue."

There was a long, tense silence. "Why the fuck would Brody ask you to plan anything?"

"I work at an event management company."

Another long silence. "You're a waitress."

"Correct. I'm also an event planner."

"You no longer have to worry about the business meeting. I am pulling your company off of it."

Anger flooded Ruby at his words. She stood up from her chair so fast it spun out behind her. She wanted to strangle him, right then and there. "No. It's already done. If you hate me that much, I can transfer the event to a coworker, but you will not embarrass the event company by pulling out from the venue. It's not my name that would be affected, asshole."

"You don't tell me what to do," Atlas retorted.

"I'll send the information along to Brody. Goodbye, Atlas." Ruby hung up. Then, she stared down at the phone, waiting for it to ring again. Waiting for Atlas to call her back and demand she apologize.

He didn't call back.

By the time her anger had subsided, Ruby had sent an email to Brody with the confirmation and the venue details. There were other things to get done for the event, but that was enough for today. Ruby's head throbbed from the argument with Atlas, and she wanted nothing more than to crawl home and lay in bed.

Instead, when five o'clock hit, Ruby checked her phone. Another DM from Ryan blinked at her on the homescreen. When Ruby opened it, she was a little delighted to find an invite.

"I told you I managed a hockey team, right? They have a game tonight if you want to come. I can get you in for free ;)"

Ruby didn't have to go into the restaurant tonight. And she was feeling a little on edge, wondering if Atlas would be waiting at the apartment building, ready to argue with her again. So Ruby didn't feel too guilty when she replied with a yes.

Dating rules be damned.

When she arrived at the rink, Ryan was waiting out front. He wore a big smile and a team jersey. Others were streaming into the rink in crowds, all wearing similar jerseys. "So, a summer league?"

Ryan gave her a side hug. Friendly enough without being awkward, Ruby surmised. "Yeah. We do a summer program to help drum up funds. It's a pretty short circuit with other local teams. C'mon, I'll show you the best thing about this place."

She let Ryan lead her to the food court, and Ruby had to laugh. There was a giant hot dog costume walking around with a bullhorn. "Foot long hotdogs! Get your hotdogs here!"

"Best hotdogs in the city, I swear." Ryan walked up to the counter and greeted the boy working. "Hey, Bry. Can I get a footlong dog with all of the fixings? And for her..." Ryan looked over at Ruby with a smile.

"Can I just get a footlong hotdog with mustang and ketchup?"

The teen behind the counter nodded with a smile and got started on setting up their meal. Ryan pulled out a wad of bills and placed some on the counter, and some in the tip jar. He guided Ruby to the side with a gentle hand on her hip. "Bry works here all year round. He's been working here since he was fourteen."

"You're embarrassing me!" Bry yelled back to Ryan, but it was with a grin. "Here are your two dogs. Have fun."

Ruby grabbed hers and let Ryan show her the way to their seats. They had nice seats, right next to the ice. Ruby didn't know a lot about hockey, admittedly, but it was fun so far. She unwrapped her hotdog from the foil and took her first bite.

"So, my team ended last season undefeated. Not to brag or anything." Ryan gave her a proud smile with dimples on display. "They've worked their asses off, but I'd like to take a little bit of the credit, for being such an awesome manager."

As Ruby settled in, she found herself enjoying this a little too much. It would be very, very easy to do this with Ryan. To go to hockey games, to meet the workers, to cheer on the players. It would be so very easy to fall in love with a guy like Ryan.

Something though nudged at her heart. Something she didn't want to examine.

The opening music began and the players skated onto the ice. Ruby found herself shivering in the chill of the rink, not quite prepared for this outing after the office. In the summer heat, she had worn a sleeveless blouse and a skirt to the office. Now, she found goosebumps racing across her skin.

Ryan noticed. "I'll be right back," he said, moving from his seat on the bench. Ruby stood to listen to the Star Spangled Banner, then she listened as the announcer read off the names of the starting players. By the time everyone was in place to start the game, Ryan had returned with a sweatshirt.

"I had it in my office. Here," he handed her the sweatshirt, and Ruby was extremely thankful as she pulled it over her head.

Immediately, it engulfed her in warmth. She burrowed into it, smelling the cologne that Ryan must use, and she grinned over at him. "Thanks!"

For a while, they watched the game, and Ruby had a lot of fun. Hockey was fast paced enough to keep her from feeling bored, and Ryan was doing a lot of vocal cheering beside her, ramping up the energy. It was the best way to end a Friday night.

Until it wasn't.

A man sitting a little bit down from Ruby abruptly stood, walking down the aisle to exit. When he passed Ruby, she would see he was unwell, with the hair plastered to his forehead from sweat, and the redness in his eyes. When he looked at her, there was something in his expression, something frightening.

Ruby watched as he limped his way to the bathroom, barely making it as he seemed to fall into the push door.

"Hey, I think that guy is going to be sick," Ruby said to Ryan, pointing to the bathroom. "Should we tell someone? A medic? Do you have medics here?" An ice rink seemed like a good place for one.

Ryan looked back at the bathroom. "Let me see what I can do before I call our physician. I'll be right back."

Ryan didn't even make it to the bathroom. Ruby watched as he cut his way across the backside of the rink, but before he could make it halfway there, the bathroom door burst open.

And a wolf came tearing out.

Ruby jumped to her feet, heart in her throat, watching as Ryan froze. He dove for one of the side hallways, slamming the door shut between him and the approaching wolf. Ruby could only assume, as team manager, he was the one who had to call for backup.

The wolf was snarling, drool dripping from its mouth. She was having deja-vu from the other night in the street. But this was very real, and everyone around her began to scream. There was sudden pushing as people tried to get away. Ruby let herself be pushed along, trying to keep an eye on the wolf, and trying to keep an eye on where Ryan had gone.

Panic was bleating in her chest. The wolf was chasing them now, snarling and snapping at those around her. The exit was a bottleneck of escaping patrons, and there was nowhere to go. Ruby watched as the players skated to one side of the rink, staying on the ice, but keeping their distance. On the loudspeaker, a man was instructing people to evacuate.

Ruby tried to push through the crowd, but it was no use. It was a traffic jam of terrified people. She backed out of the crowd, and searched for another exit, or another place to hide. The throng of screaming fans was making her begin to feel claustrophobic.

A hand grabbed her from behind, a hand covering her mouth as she let out a loud scream of terror. She kicked back against the person, but they didn't release her.

"Why do I keep finding you in this predicament?"

For no explainable reason, Ruby felt her body relax at Atlas's voice. She was still pissed at him for what had happened earlier. Still pissed at him for kicking her out of the apartment. When she turned to face him, she was prepared to say something rude.

Instead, his expression cut all words from her mouth. He looked worried.

But it was for a split second. And then, once again, he was glaring down at her, his mouth wrenched into a scowl. "Let's move. Brody will handle the wolf."

She was about to follow him, about to let Atlas be a hero once again, but a voice cut through the panicked crowd. "Ruby!"

She spun towards Ryan, stepping towards where he was running. He didn't seem to notice Atlas, not yet. "C'mon, police are on their way! We need to get out of here."

The moment Ryan saw Atlas, he stopped abruptly. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

Ruby took a step closer to Ryan, but Atlas had wrapped his hand around her arm, yanking her back. "Nice place you're running here." Was all Atlas said in response.

Ruby tried to shake off Atlas. "Let me go," she hissed. She looked back at him, glaring at the look in his eyes when he glanced down at her, as if she were an annoying bug. But, he didn't let go. Instead, he tightened his grip, looking at what she was wearing.

He let out a low laugh. "Isn't this cute? You took her on a sweet little date to your crumbling rink? Gave her your sweatshirt? I'm sure you had a nice little hot dog to sweeten the evening. What was next? A goodnight kiss?"

Ruby tried again to pull her arm from his grip, but Atlas wasn't budging. The smile he gave Ryan was all teeth, and definitely some sort of threat. "You almost got her killed."

Ryan was glaring right back at Atlas, seemingly unphased. "What does it matter to you? You want us all homeless on the streets, where we could also be killed. Stop acting like you care about what happened here tonight."

Atlas ignored Ryan all together after that, looking down at Ruby with malice in his eyes. "Is this what you like? Safe little pencil pushers? Men in khakis?"

There was heat in his glare, and Ruby wasn't sure why. The tension felt incredibly similar to the night in the restaurant, when he had kicked out the college boys. But there was absolutely no reason for there to be tension between them.

"I'd like for you to let me go." She gave another tug to her arm, hoping he'd get the hint. "I'd like to finish my evening with Ryan."

He wasn't going to let her go. She was sure of it. There was something stubborn and defiant in his gaze that told her that Atlas would drag her home if he had to.

But then, she heard Brody, and it was like a bubble being popped. The tension immediately drained from the room. "Ruby! You're here? Lovely to see you, as always."

"Can we not be arguing anywhere else?" Ryan was yelling. "We are still in danger. And I need to get my skaters to safety, and Ruby to safety, so please leave us alone." He looked about ready to fight Atlas himself.

"Threat is gone. You're welcome." Brody grinned at Ryan. "Animal Control got it. Wolf is caged and gone." Brody looked around the thinning ice rink. "Not sure if you can salvage the game, though."

"You're animal control?" Ruby could help but ask.

"Sort of. Wait." Brody looked over at Ryan. "Did you say you were going to get Ruby to safety?"

"Considering she's here with me, yes."

Brody looked between Ryan and Atlas, his brows raised. "What the fuck is this human going on about?" He asked Atlas.

Atlas didn't bother answering. He shoved Ruby forward, letting Ryan catch her as she stumbled. "Hope you have another apartment lined up. Only twenty-one days left," was all Atlas said as he turned to walk with Brody.

Ruby watched as the two of them left, her mouth open. She wanted to say more, to say anything, but Ryan was pulling her with him. "C'mon. I need to check in on everything, but I couldn't just leave you behind. Why the fuck were you with Atlas Langdon?"

"I... don't know. He just grabbed me out of nowhere. I wasn't even aware he'd been at the game."

Ryan gave her a long look. "He was awfully possessive of you. You're not seeing him, are you?"

Ruby sputtered out a God no! but Ryan's look was disbelieving. Because there was no way he hadn't felt that tension between her and Atlas. It had been suffocating nearly.

Ruby let Ryan bring her to his office. Let Ryan lock her in there while he checked in on others. And whatever warm feeling she had felt earlier was gone. She hated, hated, that Atlas had taken that from her. That he had ruined her night.

And yet, a tiny part of her, a part she absolutely did not want to examine, was happy he had shown up. Happy that Atlas had come to the rescue, again. It was all she could think about for the rest of the night, even after Ryan had walked her to her apartment door and gave her a kiss on the cheek.