Ruth couldn’t help but smile. “I don’t think people usually see me as sweet.”
“Well, then they’re wrong. You’ve got some edges. That’s what life does to us. But you’re so sweet underneath it all. I can see it, and I know Carter sees it. Why do you think he loves you so much?”
Ruth gulped at that and had no idea what to say.
Fortunately, Mrs. Wilson didn’t appear to expect an answer. “I can’t tell you how happy I am that Carter found you. He’s been a new man. Like the boy he used to be. I never thought I’d see that boy again.”
Now Ruth’s eyes were burning. She made a wordless sound she hoped was appropriate.
“Hey, Mom.” The male voice wasn’t Carter’s.
Ruth turned to see Lincoln’s handsome face in the doorway.
“Where did you put that gift for the Harringtons? Summer wanted to make sure we got it in the car so we didn’t forget to bring it to them.” Lincoln’s sharp green eyes moved from his mother to Ruth and then back again.
“Oh, I put it somewhere, I know.” Mrs. Wilson stood up. “I’ll find it.” She gave Ruth one more pat, this time on the shoulder, before she bustled out of the room.
Ruth assumed Lincoln would leave with his mother, but he didn’t. He strolled in and took the chair she had vacated.
Ruth smiled at him.
“Everything okay in here?” he asked in a softer voice than he normally used.
“Yes. Of course.”
“She wasn’t spooking you, was she?”
“What?” Ruth was so surprised she couldn’t quite follow his question.
“Mom. I know she can be... a lot. You weren’t getting spooked or weirded out by her, were you?”
“Oh. No. Of course not. Nothing like that.”
Lincoln was acting nonchalant—like this was just a casual conversation—but his eyes kept discreetly searching her face the way his brother’s often did. “Because as mothers-in-law go, she’s a pretty good one. You can ask Summer if you’re worried. I know she can come on strong sometimes, but she doesn’t ever interfere with our lives or try to take over what isn’t her responsibility. And she never judges or makes passive-aggressive comments. I don’t think she’ll be too hard to have as a mother-in-law.”
“I know that,” Ruth assured him. “I wasn’t worried at all.”
“Weren’t you?”
“No. Why?”
“I don’t know. It seemed like something might be wrong.”
Shit. He was just as perceptive as his brother was. It was really very inconvenient. Couldn’t a girl hide her chaotic mess of feelings for a little while without endless inquisitions?
“It’s nothing. Definitely nothing to do with your mom. I really like her.”
“Carter’s not screwing things up already, is he?” Lincoln asked, again using levity to mask what was obviously a real question. “Because he’s a good one too.”
“I know he’s a good one.” Her voice cracked slightly. Why the hell did she keep getting trapped in these impossible conversations.
“Okay.” Lincoln flashed her a smile. “Just making sure. Because the truth is he can be as stubborn as a mule and have an occasional martyr complex that’s downright infuriating, but I still think he’s about as good as they come.”
“I know he is.” Ruth stared at the empty fireplace, trying to restrain the trembling inside her. “I know he’s as good as they come. I know it.”
They were both silent for a couple of minutes. Ruth expected Lincoln to get up and leave, but he didn’t.
Eventually he asked in a different tone, “What was your family like?”
She wasn’t sure where the question had come from, but she was glad for the change in topic. “It was just me and Mom for most of my life. My dad took off when I was six. For a while I kept hoping he’d come back, but he never did. And now I think it’s just as well.”
“What was your mom like?”
The memories hit Ruth hard, as they always did. “She was great. Just a regular person for the most part. She worked in the school cafeteria. It wasn’t a great job, and she didn’t much like it, but the hours were good. She could spend afternoons with me, which was what she really wanted.” Smiling wistfully, she added, “We’d watch decorating shows together for hours and talk about what we’d do differently.”
“Is that why you went into interior design?”
“Yeah. I think so. I loved it so much I wanted to do it for a living. And I wasn’t really good at anything else. I did good at school, but nothing special.”
“She got married when you were a teenager? And that’s why you moved to Green Valley? Isn’t that what Carter told me?”
“Yeah. That’s right.”
“What was your stepfather like?”
She shrugged. “He was okay. He basically left me alone. I’m not sure... My mom was happy enough with him, but it couldn’t have been easy to get four stepkids all at once. And she was the one who had to take care of all of them. I sometimes wonder if... if she would have been happier if she hadn’t married him.”
“But you have a stepsister now that you love. Right?” Lincoln appeared to be genuinely listening.
“Yes. I do. Kayla. I wouldn’t have missed having her in my life for anything. So I can’t regret my mom’s decision. But I think it had to be hard for her. I did what I could to help. I always did. But I’m not sure I helped as much as I should have.”
“You were just a kid. How much could you have done?”
“I don’t know.” Ruth was surprised to realize a tear had streamed out of one eye. She brushed it away quickly. “At least I learned from her how to take care of myself. That’s definitely come in handy.”
Lincoln’s dark brows pulled together. She wasn’t sure what he would have said, but he didn’t get the chance.
Someone cleared his throat from the doorway to the room.
Both of them turned to look. Carter. Leaning against the doorframe. Frowning.
“Hey,” Ruth said with a smile, brushing away another tear. “Were you wondering where we were?”
“Yeah. What’s going on?” Carter came into the room.
“Nothing. We were just hanging out.” Lincoln stood up and gave his brother a couple of pounds on the back as he left the room. “Talking about you, of course.”
Carter’s frown intensified as he took the seat beside Ruth.
Ruth rolled her eyes. “We weren’t talking about you. He’s just being Lincoln.”
“Then what were you talking about?”
“Nothing.”
“You were crying.”
“I wasn’t really crying. I was just...” She had no idea what to say.
“So you can tell Lincoln what’s wrong with you, but you won’t tell me?” Carter’s voice was soft but rough. Hurt.
“No! It’s not like that. Please don’t be that way. I wasn’t telling him anything. I was just... He was asking about my mom.” Another tear slipped out of Ruth’s eye. It was starting to get annoying.