her?”
Ryan inhaled slowly.
“My mother never inherited the estate outright,” my fiancé said. “Dad left a trust. I’m the sole heir when I turn 30. Mom had a life-interest allowance, nothing more. Six months ago, Mr. Halston contacted me. The trust required him to go ahead of my birthday. That was the first time I’d ever heard of it. My mother had spent my entire life letting me believe the opposite.”
I looked up sharply.
“You turned 30 last month.”
“I did.”
The office became completely still.
I thought of Eleanor’s check, drawn from an ordinary personal account instead of the estate she displayed like a royal crown.
“Eleanor was bluffing,” I whispered. “All these years.”
“She was terrified,” Mr. Halston said. “The true executor of the trust is Judge Marcus, your late father-in-law’s oldest friend. Eleanor has known him for 30 years. He attended dinners and holidays, and
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