Page 59 of Tessa and Nash

His eyes narrow. “Explain that.”

Before I can answer, Grandma speaks from her chair by the window, needles stilling mid stitch.

“I allowed her to borrow it.”

The silence is immediate.

Thomas turns slowly. “You what?”

Grandma meets his stare without flinching. “The ring is a Long heirloom. It was meant to be worn with intention. This seemed like an appropriate one.”

His disbelief flashes hot and unfiltered. “You knew about this?”

“I knew about the plan,” Nell replies calmly. “Before the town did.”

“You went behind my back,” he snaps.

“I went ahead of you,” she corrects gently.

His gaze whips back to me. “You involved your grandmother and not me?”

“I involved the person who understands what this family loses when we hesitate,” I say. “And who remembers what happened the last time silence did the talking.”

Thomas exhales sharply through his nose. “So you staged this. With her blessing.”

“Yes.”

“And you didn’t think,” he demands, “that I deserved to know?”

“I knew you’d stop me before I could explain,” I say quietly. “And I needed to get close enough to learn something first.”

His jaw tightens. “Learn what?”

I don’t look away.

“That there is no fiancée.”

The silence is instant.

He blinks. “What?”

“Obviously, Nash McCoy was never engaged,” I continue evenly. “He lied to the town council to keep his project alive. He panicked. Which is why I offered to… step in.”

A slow smile cuts across his face. “Then this ends tonight. We expose him. We tell the council he fabricated this to manipulate them. His project collapses before it starts.”

“No,” I say immediately.

He turns on me. “No?”

“If you expose him now, you win a moment,” I say. “And lose everything after it.”

“That lie disqualifies him.”

“It also binds him,” I counter. “Right now, he’s off balance. Desperate to keep the illusion standing. That makes him predictable.”

He steps closer, looming. “You’re protecting him.”

“I’m using him.”