Daniel went pale.
Ruth noticed. “Why are you looking like that?”
Daniel rubbed his mouth. “Mercer Renovations received eighty-six thousand.”
Claire snapped toward him. “You told me not to mention that.”
“You said Mom approved a bridge loan.”
“I said she would approve it.”
Adaline’s hand closed around the back of her chair. The betrayal hurt most because each voice at the table belonged to someone she had once comforted in the dark.
Ruth whispered, “Claire, what have you done?”
Claire stood. “I protected this family. Daniel’s company was collapsing. Mom cannot manage everything alone, and the house is worth more than she understands.”