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“I don’t know. I know it wasn’t an option. My dad would have bought it.” He knew his dad almost didn’t buy the branch when the building was not included. And for a few years, he had wanted to buy a building to move into, but every time he found a place, it was bought before he could even look at it.
“Did you make up with her?”
“Yes, and it pushed our relationship a bit further.” He couldn’t not smile at the memory of Ruth and the last twenty-four hours. An amazing twenty-four hours.
“No need for details. I don’t want to know.”
Rafferty, who was always willing to share the details of his love life, didn’t want to hear Anderson’s. He had asked about Daphne and his relationship, so it was only Anderson’s relationship with Ruth that he didn’t want to hear about.
“What do you know about Ruth’s car?” Mia’s words were running through his head.
“That she has a lot of money tied up in that car. It’s gorgeous and a man’s wet dream, but not really what I picture Ruth in.” Rafferty took another candy.
“Why do you think she got it?”
“I remember it being Franky’s dream car, but I sometimes wonder if it was hers, and she talked him into it being his. She bought it about five years after the transplant, so maybe it was just a gift for surviving.”
For a moment, he just stared at the man across from him. “I didn’t think a lot of people knew about the transplant. She said nobody in town knew.”
Shrugging, Rafferty said, “I am one of the few. I don’t tell people her secrets.”
“Why did her mom let her move in with Franky at sixteen?” If anyone knew, it was Rafferty. They had run in the same circles back then.
“Because Chester was very abusive to Angel. He was drinking pretty heavy then and didn’t like sassy teenagers. Frank actually told Sara that if she wanted her kid back, she had to leave Chester. Sara stayed, so Ruth stayed with Frank and Lynn until she graduated and never moved back in with her mom. Frank always had a soft spot for her. He took her side in the breakup and didn’t invite Franky to work with him when the guy graduated, even when it meant that he had nobody to take over for him, and he had to sell. The office was Ruth’s space, not Franky’s.” Rafferty took another candy from the jar.
“How abusive?” Anderson demanded. Ruth had never hinted at that.
“I don’t know the true extent of it, just rumors from back then. But a lot of hitting and yelling. Usually, Angel would leave and come into town when it started. Always staying with Franky’s family.” He cringed at the word.
“She goes out there every weekend.” Until this moment, he had never had any worries about her going out to her mom’s. But now he might have to talk to her about it. If there was abuse out there, Ruth shouldn’t be going.
“I think once she was an adult, he stopped trying to control her. And he doesn’t drink like he used to, either.” Rafferty put the candy jar down.
“I can’t see her putting up with that now,” Anderson agreed.
“You’re going to have to meet the dragon lady if you’re going to keep seeing Ruth. She is going to hate you.” Rafferty laughed.
“You mean her mother. Yes, I hope I can meet her one day and see where Ruth came from.” He had hoped to have met her by now, but Ruth never brought it up.
“She is going to hate you,” Rafferty repeated. His laughter stopped, and his face was serious.
“Why? What have I done?” he asked.
“You are having sex with her baby with no ring on her finger. But then again, it might also just be that you are a man who is interested in her baby.” Rafferty looked out the window at the snowy street. “Either way, you better be sure that you are in for the long haul if you meet her.”
Anderson was silent as he thought about what Rafferty was saying. He enjoyed spending time with Ruth, but was he looking at forever with her? He had once thought that Daphne was the one, and that had only been a few months ago after so many years. But Ruth was different from Daphne. Ruth was not a career woman and would probably follow him anywhere. He knew that he didn’t want to stay in Landstad forever, and he was starting to think that he wanted to take Ruth with him when he left.
With so much on his mind, he decided it was time to go home. Maybe he’d pack some stuff so that he could stay with Ruth another night. All he had to do was wait for her text saying that the girls had left.
After saying goodbye to Rafferty in the cold, in front of the office, he glanced up at her window. The lights were blazing inside as he got into his truck and drove home.
Ruth had a lot of layers that needed to be peeled back. How many? Anderson couldn’t say yet, but he was excited to find out about them all.
