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Chapter 21
Another Sunday nightof book club had Anderson out of Ruth’s place and back at his own for an evening. It was quiet and lonely on the nights he stayed there. This was the first book club night since he had told her he loved her. Though she had not returned the words, he was sure she loved him just as much. Even if the words her mom had said still rattled around his mind, he knew his love for her was enough to keep them together.
Since he had hours on his hands, he decided to grab some boxes and start packing up his stuff. Maybe it was too soon, but he hoped to move in with Ruth. Once he talked to her about it, he was hoping to move fast—no more of this her place/his place stuff.
Just as he had the first box half full of books, his dad called him. It was rare that his dad called; it was usually his mom. For his entire life, he had been closer to his mom, while Jonathan was closer to their dad. Wondering what would make his dad call from out of the blue, Anderson sat on the couch and listened to his dad in shock.
The older man jumped right in with his thought that it was time to have Anderson move back to Grand Forks. Dan was opening a new branch and wanted his son in charge of it—not at the home office, but his own branch in the city. Anderson had no idea what to say about the offer. Would Ruth go with him? His father had sweetened the deal by saying that Ruth should be brought on board and trained to become an agent if she wanted to. If not, she could still work for Anderson in any capacity she wanted. Dan had been so impressed by her the night she had met him that he thought that she would excel as an agent. They both agreed that she was wasted as a personal assistant.
When Anderson had asked about the Landstad branch, his dad had informed him that he, Anderson, could pick the person to replace him if he knew anyone interested. His mind went immediately to Rafferty. It would be perfect to have him move over. Then he wouldn’t have to worry about leaving this office with someone he didn’t know. Or someone who didn’t know the town.
Anderson chatted for a while longer with his dad. His dad said he should talk to Rafferty and Ruth, and Dan himself would contact the rental company to change the lease on the building. It seemed like something Anderson could handle, but he was happy his dad was going to do it. It showed him that his dad was serious about everything.
Anderson was too keyed-up to sleep, and Ruth hadn’t texted yet that the girls were gone, so he called Rafferty about it. “Rafferty, I just talked to my dad about me opening a branch in Grand Forks. What do you think of working at the Landstad branch?”
Rafferty was silent for a bit before asking, “What does Angel say?”
“I haven’t talked to her yet. It’s book club tonight, and I just got off the phone with dad,” Anderson explained.
“What about Angel?” Rafferty asked, in the last few weeks Anderson had noticed it was more of a term of endearment then a spiteful nickname from her past.
“My dad is offering to train her to be an agent. She will train in my new branch.” He hoped she would be excited.
“I don’t know, Anderson. I don’t think Angel will move. She is a Tiger.” Rafferty did not sound as happy about it as he had a few minutes before.
“What exactly is a Tiger?” he demanded, having never once heard of it.
“Someone who lives in Landstad forever. Never moves, never wants to,” Rafferty explained, though it still made no sense to Anderson. “Take my word for it. She is a Tiger.”
The words reminded Anderson of all the times she had stated that she would not leave. But that was before she had a job away from Landstad, a far better job than the one she had here. That was before they were in love.
“I think I know her better than you,” Anderson argued. She would see how much better it would be in Grand Forks. With a new job, a new house, a new life.
“I don’t think you do, Anderson. Do you know that she gives money to any organization in town who asks her?” Rafferty said from out of nowhere.
“The agency money?”
“No, Anderson, she gives her own money. Sports teams, charities, fundraisers… I think she gives big time at the spring auction,” Rafferty stated.
“Why would she do that?” Anderson leaned back on the couch in confusion.
“Because she loves this town. It’s her town. I don’t see her leaving it.”
His friend didn’t know Ruth enough. They might have grown up together, but they were not close anymore.
“I am going to talk to her first thing in the morning about it. I can’t interrupt book club night. You will see I know her a little better than you do.” Anderson said goodbye and stared at the phone.
Why would she not leave this little place? Grand Forks was exciting and fun. There was nothing to do here. Her job was a dead end that she barely actually worked at. They would do so much better in the city than here.
Giving up on packing for the night, he turned on the TV and watched a few episodes of a show that was funny enough to take his mind off the morning and his talk with Ruth. By the time he went to bed, he knew she would be just as excited about the move as he was.
He wondered if the girls were still at Ruth’s place or if he could go over there and talk to her now. But there had been no text yet, so they must still be there. Or they left too late for her to think he would come back to her place, not realizing it was never too late to spend the night with her.
