Chapter 15
Ace
By sunrise, I already knew two things.
This story was about to explode.
And Tessa wasn’t ready for it.
I stood outside the Ranger office with my phone pressed to my ear, cold morning air biting at the back of my neck while the town slowly woke around me.
Blaze sighed on the other end. “Say that again.”
“I pushed the footage through a few back channels.”
A truck rumbled past on Main Street.
Blaze muttered something under his breath. “You realize once this spreads, there’s no pulling it back.”
“That’s the point.”
“No,” he corrected. “The point was proving she was innocent. What you did was light a match and throw it into dry grass.”
My gaze drifted automatically toward Bloom & Vine down the street.
The lights inside were still off.
Good.
Maybe she was finally sleeping.
“People deserve the truth,” I said quietly.
Blaze snorted softly. “Truth’s messy, man.”
“Yeah.” My jaw tightened. “I noticed.”
A long pause stretched between us.
Then—
“Well,” Blaze muttered, “you’re about to have company.”
I frowned. “Meaning?”
“Meaning people are already talking.”
Damn it.
I hung up and headed toward the flower shop fast.
Across town, Tessa’s phone started ringing before I even reached her.
Unknown number.
Unknown number.
Unknown number.
Over and over again.
By the time I stepped onto Main Street, I already knew what was happening.
The truth was spreading.
And there was no stopping it now.
Tessa
My phone buzzed again against the counter.
I stared at it without touching it.
Unknown caller.
Again.
The fourth one in ten minutes.
My stomach twisted tighter every time it rang.
The shop suddenly felt too small.
Too exposed.
I finally grabbed the phone before it could buzz again.
“Hello?”
Silence answered first.
Then a sharp inhale.
“Is this… Tessa Bloom?”
My grip tightened instinctively.
“Yes.”
“Oh my God.”
The woman sounded stunned.
Almost emotional.
“I just saw the footage,” she rushed out. “The crash video.”
Ice slid through my chest.
No.
No no no.
Not yet.
“Who is this?”
“Marlene Carter. From Gable Ridge.”
The name hit instantly.
Neighbor.
Church bake sales.
Summer barbecues.
Before.
Before everything.
“What do you want?” I whispered.
“You weren’t driving,” Marlene said softly. “Tessa… we didn’t know.”
My throat closed.
The room tilted slightly.
I hung up before she could say anything else.
My hands shook violently around the phone.
“It’s happening,” I whispered.
Too fast.
Way too fast.
The bell above the shop door chimed.
I looked up instantly.
Ace.
Of course.
One glance at my face and his expression tightened.
“What happened?”
“They know.”
His brows pulled together. “Who?”
“Gable Ridge.” My voice cracked. “They’ve seen the video.”
Ace exhaled slowly like he’d expected this.
“You knew this would happen.”
“I figured it might.”
Panic rose sharp and sudden inside my chest.
“I’m not ready for this.”
Ace stepped closer carefully. “You don’t have to do anything yet.”
“They’re going to call.” My breathing turned uneven. “They’re going to want answers and apologies and—”
Another buzz cut through the room.
Then another.
Then another.
I stared at the phone like it might explode.
“I can’t do this,” I whispered.
Ace stopped directly in front of me.
Steady.
Solid.
“You’re not doing it alone.”
Tears burned instantly behind my eyes.
“That doesn’t make it less terrifying.”
“No,” he admitted softly. “But it makes it survivable.”
That word hit differently.
Survivable.
I knew how to survive.
I’d been doing it for years.
The phone buzzed again.
This time a text message appeared across the screen.
I opened it automatically—
and froze.
Ace noticed immediately. “What is it?”
My throat tightened painfully.
“It’s from Cathy’s mom.”
Everything in the room went still.
“What’d she say?”
I swallowed hard enough to hurt.
“We need to talk.”
Fear punched straight through me.
“I can’t face her.”
Ace stepped closer until I could feel the heat coming off him.
“You don’t have to decide anything right now.”
I stared down at the message with shaking hands.
Because this—
this was real.
The truth wasn’t hidden anymore.
People were seeing it.
Believing it.
And nothing about my life was ever going to fit back into the shape it used to be.
Ace tipped my chin up gently until my eyes met his.
“This,” he said quietly, “is where you finally stop carrying it alone.”
Tears filled my eyes again.
Because for the first time—
the world was finally starting to see what really happened.
And somehow…
that was almost as terrifying as the lie had been.