Page 63 of Broken Roads
"Honey, a blind man could see the way you two look at each other," she says with a small smile. "And I've still got twenty-twenty vision, thank you very much."
Heat crawls up the back of my neck, and I resist the urge to tug at my collar. "That obvious, huh?"
Giving me a look, she sets the dish towel down and places her hands firmly on her hips. "Stop dancing around it and say your piece."
Pushing away from the sink, I lean against the counter and cross my arms over my chest. "I know how it must look," I begin, then stop, realizing I'm still stalling.
Ruthie raises an eyebrow.
"Fuck," I mutter, then wince. "Sorry for the language."
"I've heard worse," she says dryly. "Usually from you."
That pulls a reluctant smile from me, easing some of the tension in my shoulders. "I wanted to talk to you about me and Hailey," I finally manage. “After what you said at breakfast, about hearing voices in the kitchen... Well, that was us." My confession hangs in the air between us, and I hurry to continue before I lose my nerve. "It’s not what you think."
Ruthie's expression remains carefully neutral. "And what am I thinking, Bradley?"
"I don't know," I admit, suddenly feeling like I'm fifteen again, caught sneaking in past curfew. "That's part of what I wanted to talk about. I know how much Hailey means to you. You've known her since she was born, care for her, and now—"
"And now she's here, working for your family," Ruthie finishes for me. "And you're concerned about how I feel about the two of you... what? Sleeping together? Dating?"
I shift my weight, uncomfortably aware of how unprepared I am for this conversation despite rehearsing it in my head all morning. "I don't know exactly what we’re doing," I admit. "It's all happened pretty fast."
"Most important things do," she simply says.
"I didn't plan for this," I continue, gesturing vaguely. "After how things started between us, with me being such an ass when she first arrived. I was so sure she was just another city girl who wouldn't understand our way of life, who wouldn't fit in here. I was wrong about that. About her."
I pause, trying to organize my thoughts, to express what I'm feeling without sounding like a lovesick teenager. "I just... I wanted to make sure you're okay with this. With us. Whatever this is becoming."
Ruthie studies me for a long moment, her face unreadable. Then she laughs. Not mockingly, but with genuine warmth that crinkles the corners of her eyes.
"Oh, Bradley," she says, shaking her head. "You wonderful, stubborn man."
I blink, caught off guard by her reaction. "What's so funny?"
"You are," she says, reaching out to pat my cheek affectionately. "Standing here all nervous, asking for my blessing like it's nineteen-fifty and I'm Hailey's father."
Her words make me realize how ridiculous I must sound, and I feel heat creeping up my face again. "That's not what I—"
"Isn't it?" Her eyebrow shoots up again. "Let me ask you something. Did you talk to Bradford like this? Ask his permission to court the pretty consultant he hired?"
"No," I admit, shifting uncomfortably. "But that's different."
"How so?"
I struggle to articulate the difference, knowing it has nothing to do with hierarchy or authority and everything to do with thewoman standing before me who has been more mother to me than the one I lost too young to remember.
"Because your opinion matters to me," I finally say, the words scraping at my throat. "Because I respect you, and I know how protective you are of Hailey. And because..." I swallow hard, forcing myself to finish the thought. "Because I don't want to fuck this up, Ruthie. Not with her."
I shake my head. "Things with Claire... they ended badly. And the ranch has always come first for me. Always." I run a hand through my hair, frustrated with my inability to explain myself clearly. "But with Hailey, I think about more than just the next day's work. I think about her. What she wants. What we could be."
Ruthie studies me for an unnervingly long time before she speaks. "The fact that you're standing here, talking to me about this speaks volumes about the man you are, Bradley Walker." Reaching out, she squeezes my forearm with surprising strength. "You've always had a good heart. Even when you're being stubborn as an old mule, which is most of the time."
A reluctant smile tugs at my mouth. "Learned from the best."
She snorts but doesn't disagree. "Listen to me. Hailey's a grown woman who knows her own mind. And you're a grown man who's spent too many years putting everyone else's needs before your own." Those wise eyes of hers hold mine. "I trust your judgment. And more importantly, I trust hers."
Relief washes through me at her words, easing a tension I hadn't fully acknowledged until now. "Even after our rocky start?"
