Page 14 of Tessa and Nash

Just for a heartbeat.

Then it moves again, writing faster.

Mayor Caldwell lifts a hand. “Let’s stay focused on the proposal.”

Councilman Harris looks back at me. “Commitment is the concern here, Mr. McCoy. This town has seen enthusiasm before. What assurance do we have that this won’t be another project that fizzles once the novelty wears off?”

The words pile on top of each other, pressing down.

Too young. Too impulsive. Too much as always.

I feel it happening. The walls closing in, the familiar itch to perform, to say something clever, bold, words that make them stop looking at me as a gamble they don’t want to take.

Don’t panic.

Don’t perform.

Just tell the truth.

My mouth opens anyway.

“I’m not going anywhere,” I blurt. “I’m settling down.”

The room stills.

I hear my own heartbeat, loud as a drum in my ears.

“I mean… I’m…” I swallow. “I’m putting down roots. Building a family. I’m engaged.”

Silence crashes down hard.

Even Hank Lawson shuts up.

Mayor Caldwell’s eyebrows lift. Councilwoman Price’s mouth parts slightly. Someone in the audience gasps, then clamps a hand over it because they’ve been caught enjoying it too much.

Engaged.

The word hangs there, heavy and irreversible.

I don’t look at Tessa.

I don’t dare.

“Well,” Mayor Caldwell says carefully, after a beat too long. “That’s… news.”

Mayor Caldwell’s gaze sharpens, calculating. “Stability matters in proposals like this.”

“I take this seriously,” I say, because I have to keep going now. “All of it. The ranch. The town. My future.”

It’s not a lie. Not entirely.

Councilman Harris leans back in his chair, reassessing. “Given this new information,” he says, “the council will table the decision pending further review.”

Not approval.

Not rejection.

A limbo I didn’t know I’d be grateful for.