Page 17 of Pulled Away

“I really am sorry. With everything going on, I think she’s trying to find comfort wherever she can.”

“Tell me about her.”

“What do you want to know?”

“Well, besides the fact that you’ve known her forever, that you were close, and that she’s a private person, I don’t know anything about her. What is she like as a person? I’m assuming she’s an only child since you said her dad is the only family she has left. No other family?”

“No,” he says, shaking his head, but then seems to think a bit. “Maybe? I’m not really sure. If there is, I’ve never met them and she’s never spoken about anyone.”

“And? What is she like? Tell me something about the Hadley you grew up with.”

“Ugh,” he groans. “Hadley is Hadley. She’s always been selective with who she allows in her life. So until she knows you and likes you, she’s very reserved. Extremely loyal if she cares about you, but if she doesn’t, you don’t exist in her world.” He shrugs. “I don’t know what else to say. Driven. Ambitious. Can get moods that last for days.”

“It sounds like this is her first time back since college. Why? Didn’t she miss her parents? Did they visit her?”

I feel like a freaking FBI agent with all my questioning, but something in my gut is telling me I need to find out as much as I can about Hadley.

“I don’t think it’s my place to talk about that,” he says, frowning.

“Why? Because she wouldn’t want you to?”

I watch in frustration as he nods, still frowning.

“I’m not trying to pry,” I say, trying to keep my frustration behind my clenched teeth. “All I want is a better understanding of the dynamics. I get her need for privacy and not wanting people to see her emotions.” Except for Ryan, of course. She has no problem showing him anything. “It’s just that it makes me feel as if I should tiptoe around her. Is it okay to ask her how her dad’s doing? How she’s feeling? I’m at a loss here, Ryan, and I need you to help me.”

He sighs, rolling onto his back and staring at the ceiling, seconds ticking by in silence.

“It was never a close relationship,” he mutters, not looking at me. “Which is why she spent so much time at my house. They were older when they had her, and she was a surprise baby. And not a happy surprise baby.”

I wait for him to carry on, but he doesn’t, choosing instead to stare at the ceiling as if it’s the most fascinating thing.

“That’s it? That’s all you’re going to give me?”

“I’ll have to check with her what she’s comfortable with you knowing,” he says, a muscle jumping in his jaw.

Ryan’s loyalty is astounding. I just wish he’d show me some of that loyalty.

“Right. Okay.”

“Look, babe,” he sighs, rolling back to me, and tracing a finger down my cheek. “I’m not trying to be difficult. She’s told me many things in confidence over the years, and it won’t be right to tell you without her permission. I can’t betray her like that. The same as I would never tell anyone what you told me in confidence.”

I hold his eyes while I try to figure out how that makes me feel. He’s said he loves me. He’s shown me he loves me, making no secret that he wants to spend the rest of his life with me. Shouldn’t that somehow set me apart from everyone else?

It’s not like I’m asking him things that can cause her harm. I’m asking him to help me understand her. Help navigate this situation I’ve been thrown into, and he’s giving me nothing.

“Just give it time. She can be…difficult, but I know she’ll open up to you once she gets to know you better.”

I doubt it, I think, but all I say is, “You think so? I don’t think she likes me very much.”

“That’s not possible. Everyone you meet loves you.”

Yeah, right. Not someone who sees you as competition. Competition for what exactly I’m not sure yet.

“I don’t want to talk about her anymore. I haven’t thanked you properly for dinner,” he says, rolling on top of me.

This is the outcome I was hoping for, but now…I’m just not in the mood. I would have preferred it if his thank you was telling Hadley to get her own dinner to allow the two of us to have some alone time.

Three months into dating, Ryan introduced me to his parents. I thought it was too soon, but he insisted. From the way he spoke about them, it was clear they were a tight-knit family, so I knew their opinion mattered a great deal.

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