When Ruby Gregory repeated those words, she distinctly noticed that the three women who had been gushing over Steve Burton immediately turned to look at her.
Slowing her pace, Ruby continued to talk on the phone for a moment and then hung up a call that was never actually dialed. Then one of the three women called out to her, inquiring if she was the woman who'd been proposed to at the Grand Capital Hotel.
The purpose of Ruby's boasting about Steve Burton's affection was to dispel any fantasies the three women might have harbored about him.
In fact, this kind of boasting truly delighted Ruby deep down, but just as she was savoring it, not having reached the peak of her elation, she was caught red-handed by Steve Burton.
