The lady had changed quite much.
Her face looked more mature now, and her features were a little sharper but Ruby would have recognized her anywhere.
She remembered Layla visiting their dorm once, looking around the tiny room with an expression that made it clear she wasn’t impressed by anything she saw.
Ruby had never forgotten that visit mostly because Claire had looked so uncomfortable the entire time.
Layla was still wearing the annoyed expression from her phone call, but it disappeared as soon as she looked properly at Ruby.
Her eyes widened in surprise before her face softened.
“Sorry,” Ruby said again, rubbing the back of her neck.
“I wasn’t looking where I was going.”
Layla shook her head and a small smile appeared on her face.
“It’s fine.
I wasn’t looking either.” She looked at Ruby again, as if trying to confirm her thoughts.
“Aren’t you Claire’s friend?”
Ruby straightened immediately and her usual smile returned.
“Yes!
I’m Ruby.” She pointed at herself before laughing.
“Wow, it’s been ages.
Layla, right?”
Layla laughed softly.
“That’s right.
I can’t believe you still remember me.”
“Of course I do!” Ruby said.
“You visited Claire at our university dorm once.
You probably don’t remember, but I remember you.”
Layla smiled.
“I remember the dorm.”
Ruby laughed.
“Then you remember how tiny that place was.”
“I do.” Layla glanced at her dress and then back at her face.
“You look completely different now.”
“So do you.” Ruby looked her over briefly before smiling.
“In a good way, obviously.”
Ruby didn’t know Layla well enough to say they had ever been friends but she remembered enough about her to know that Claire had never been comfortable around her family.
Claire had never gone into much detail either.
Ruby only knew that Claire had lost her parents when she was young and had grown up with her uncle’s family.
She also knew Claire didn’t particularly like talking about them.
Seeing Layla here still felt a little strange.
Not because there was anything wrong with her being at the party.
It was just the last place Ruby expected to run into someone connected to Claire.
Layla slipped her phone into her purse and gave Ruby another small smile.
“Actually, Ruby, I’m glad I ran into you.
I’ve been so worried about Claire.”
Ruby blinked.
“Worried?
Why?”
“We haven’t heard from her in so long,” Layla said in a much lowered voice.
“She doesn’t call, she doesn’t come home…
her phone is always off.
Her aunt has been sick with worry.
We had no idea where she was.”
Ruby felt a pang of guilt.
Claire never talked about her family, ever.
So she had just assumed they were all distant and that Claire wanted nothing to do with them.
She hadn’t really thought about how they might feel.
“Oh.
Well, you know Claire,” she said, trying to sound reassuring.
“She’s been working so hard.
Teaching is a lot more demanding than people think.
She’s just been focused on that.”
Layla’s brows raised, her expression full of understanding.
“Oh, she’s teaching now.
Of course.
That’s just like her, always putting work first.
But…
is she doing okay?
Really?
We just want to know she’s safe.”
Ruby’s heart softened.
“She’s fine!
Better than fine actually.
She’s doing great.”
A look of relief washed over Layla’s face.
“Oh thank goodness.
That’s such a weight off my mind.
Do you…
do you know where she is now?
We’ve been trying to find her, just to talk, but we have no idea where she’s living.”
Ruby hesitated for a split second.
Claire would kill her.
But this was her family.
They were worried.
And Ruby was a terrible liar.
“Yeah, of course.
We’re still roommates.
I can send you the address.”
Layla’s eyes widened a little.
“Really?
I’d love that.
I just want to send her a message and let her know we’re not angry.
We just miss her.”
“Sure.” Ruby exchanged numbers with her and quickly sent her the address.
Layla glanced at her phone as the message came through.
“Thank you, Ruby.
You’ve been a huge help.
I’ll let you get back to your party.”
“You too!” Ruby said brightly.
“It was nice seeing you!”
Layla gave her a final smile and walked away, disappearing into the crowd.
Ruby watched her go, feeling proud of herself.
See?
She wasn’t just a clumsy disaster.
She was a peacemaker.
Claire would surely thank her for this later.
She shook off the strange encounter and walked back to the main lounge.
She spotted Ryan at a small table near the edge of the room.
He was sipping wine and scanning the crowd, his brow furrowed in that way he got when he was wondering what kind of trouble she had gotten into.
She slid into the seat beside him.
“Sorry that took so long.
I ran into someone.”
He turned to her, his expression immediately relaxing.
“I was about to send a search party.
Find any more long-lost relatives?”
Ruby laughed while picking up a sausage from the plate she had passed him earlier.
“Something like that.
You know, you’re surprisingly calm for a man whose girlfriend just abandoned him at a party.”
He leaned in closer, his voice dropping to a low murmur that sent a shiver down her spine.
“Well, I was thinking…
if you’re done playing catch-up, we could leave early.
Go to my place.”
Ruby raised an eyebrow with a questioning look plastered on her face.
“Your place?
And do what?
Listen to you complain about how much your back hurts from sitting at a desk all day?
No thank you.
I’m not playing nurse tonight.”
He chuckled and traced his fingers a path up her arm.
“I wasn’t thinking about my back hurting.
I was thinking about other things.”
Ruby just stared at him for a second.
Other things?
What other things?
Then she saw the look in his eyes and felt his fingers slow down on her skin.
Oh.
Those other things.
The idea was tempting.
Very tempting.
But then she remembered.
“Nope.
Can’t.
I have to go home.”
He leaned back, looking mock-offended.
“And why is that?”
“Because,” she said, taking a small sip from his wine, “I have to tell Claire something important.
I saw someone who knows her earlier.” She paused, then added, “Her cousin, actually.
And if I don’t tell her tonight, with my amazing memory, I’ll forget by morning.
And then I’ll never remember again.
It’s now or never.”