Burn Me Once Burn With Me (Ruby Grayson) novel Chapter 651

Ruby almost instantly detected the metaphorical scent of gunpowder crackling in the air.

She frowned, forced to shift her gaze toward Cassian.

His face was completely expressionless, his eyes locked onto Garrison. "Regarding the collaboration between Veyne & Co. and C Collective, I assume you won't refuse, Mr. Cloud."

Garrison's eyes shifted ever so slightly.

One moment he was being hailed as Mr. Caldwell, and the next, he was Mr. Cloud.

"I'm willing to hear the details. But does Mr. Veyne really want to discuss business while taking a stroll through the mansion?"

He curled his lips into a relaxed, unassuming smile.

"The study. After you."

Cassian gestured toward the hallway with a long, elegant finger.

Garrison merely smiled in response, accepting the silent challenge as an agreement.

Ruby watched the wordless, heavy tension brewing between the two men, her brow furrowing with undeniable worry.

Garrison noticed her concerned gaze and gave his head a subtle shake, silently telling her not to fret.

Slightly reassured, Ruby finally let out a breath and followed Grandma out toward the gardens.

Monica stood frozen.

Watching the two groups walk off in different directions, she realized she was the only one left at the table.

She gritted her teeth in humiliation, gripping her silver fork and violently stabbing it into the center of the roasted salmon on her plate.

The fork stood upright, trembling slightly. Paired with the venom in Monica's eyes, the scene looked incredibly twisted and grim.

Meanwhile, Ruby and Grandma had aimlessly wandered into a beautiful floral corridor within the Veyne Mansion.

"If you brought me out here to convince me to remarry Cassian, you can save your breath."

Ruby spoke up suddenly, her pace slow and steady.

Grandma stopped in her tracks right on cue.

Her shoulders relaxed, and she let out a soft, knowing chuckle. "You really are a sharp girl."

Ruby offered a polite but strained smile, staying quiet.

Grandma looked at her, then shifted her gaze to baby Mira in Ruby's arms, letting out a long, heavy sigh.

"Ruby, love is a fascinating thing. Sometimes, it just arrives a little late. Are you truly unwilling to look back? I'm his grandmother, and I can see the depth of his feelings for you now. It's a fiery devotion I haven't seen in him for years."

Grandma's tone was incredibly earnest.

Ruby, however, remained completely detached.

She shook her head gently. "I'm doing great right now, and I have no desire to look back. What's in the past belongs in the past."

She tried to appeal to both logic and emotion, but Ruby remained remarkably unmoved.

"By the time Mira is old enough to understand, I will teach her myself. She only needs her mother, and the love she receives will never pale in comparison to a two-parent household. If she ever faces rumors at school, I will never let my child suffer in silence. And whatever consequences arise from fighting back, I will gladly bear them."

In plain English: if anyone dared to run their mouth, she'd beat them until they shut up.

Grandma's eyes widened in shock. She never expected such ruthless words to come from the gentle-looking woman standing before her.

Seeing that Ruby was completely bulletproof, Grandma felt a severe headache coming on.

"You... Sigh!"

Grandma raised her hand, only to let it drop helplessly to her side.

Ruby leaned in slightly, offering a polite nod. "If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving with the baby now."

"How about this? Stay the night here at the mansion with Mira," Grandma said, exhaling heavily. "I won't be in Quinborough for much longer, and since you refuse to reconcile with Cassian, who knows when I'll get to see this little angel again. Just stay one night. Consider it keeping an old woman company."

Grandma looked off into the distance. Despite being draped in designer clothes and glittering jewels, she suddenly looked incredibly fragile and profoundly lonely.

Ruby's gaze flickered, a sliver of hesitation finally showing through.

Catching the shift, Grandma immediately struck while the iron was hot. She closed her eyes and let out a dramatic, sorrowful sigh. "Ah, who knows how many years I have left on this earth anyway? I don't dare dream of having my great-granddaughter by my side all the time. I just wanted to look at her a little longer. Is even that too much to ask?"

She clutched her chest, looking utterly devastated.