Page 34 of The Wolf I Sworn To Hate

All of them were frozen half to death and the women helped them pull off their coats, gloves, hats, and boots. Xyla helped Sean. Then, while they were all sitting near the fire, Xyla brought him a cup of coffee.

Elliot was staring at him with laser eyes. If looks could kill, Sean would be a dead man.

Maybe it would be better for all of us if I stayed away from Xyla while we were stuck here. The problem is that we are in such close quarters, that would be virtually impossible.

Sean was positive that Xyla would catch hell from her father once they got back home.

Xyla is a big girl and makes her own decisions, just like you pointed out to Elliot. Plus, she does have her own place.

The person Sean felt sorry for the most was Edward. There was no escape for him.

“Sean was almost murdered while we were outside,” Howard announced dramatically.

Everyone gasped and stared at Sean wide-eyed.

“The wind knocked down a big ole tree and it almost squashed him like a bug. Sean barely jumped out of the way. As it was, he got cracked on the head with some branches.”

Sean laughed. “I think Howard is being a little overly dramatic. The tree came close to clobbering me. I think the snow is deep enough that it would have just pounded me into the snow and given me a headache.”

“Too bad,” Elliot muttered loud enough for everyone to hear.

Sawyer looked at Elliot as though he was about to punch the man in the nose. William beat him to it.

“Elliot, leave the room,” the old man said, pointing his cane right in Elliot’s face.

Elliot stared at William for a minute before snarling at him and walking into the room he shared with Edward.

The tension was thick and the silence was deafening.

Sean was so relieved when Franny walked in. “Lunch is ready. There are cold cuts, bread, condiments, lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese laid out for everyone.”

Everyone stood up at once. Sean waited a few minutes for everyone to stand in line and make their sandwiches before going into the dining room. He quickly made a couple of ham and cheese sandwiches, grabbed a soda, and sat down at one of the tables. He was soon joined by Sawyer, Xyla, and Edward.

Xyla smiled at him and briefly covered his hand with hers. A bolt of electricity exploded through him.

He mocked himself.Yeah, right. Just stay away from her.

14

Xyla

The storm finally quit sometime during the night. After breakfast, Howard went outside to survey the damage. He came back in with a grim look on his face.

“There are a lot of branches all over the place. We have a couple of old trees that toppled over. The resort itself suffered some damage. So, I hate to ask, but I was wondering if there are any volunteers who could help.”

Sean, Sawyer, Tristan, Darren, Xyla, Marcie, and Ellie stood and walked over to their coats.

“Can I help, too?” Edward asked.

“Sure, Buddy. The more the merrier,” Howard said. Then he looked at Xyla. “As long as it’s okay with your sister.”

Xyla nodded. “Of course.”

Howard had a couple chainsaws. Sean knew how to use one and went to work on the tree that nearly killed him, cutting it up into small pieces, so it could be stacked and carried inside later. Xyla and Edward carried the pieces away as Sean cut them. The others hauled branches and stacked them into piles so that they could be cut. They also picked up some of the shingles that flew off the roof.

Once the trees were cut up, Sean walked over to the windows. “Should we take the plywood off the windows?”

Howard hesitated. “I want to say yes. We don’t get many storms like we’ve had recently. It would let in the light and heat from the sun. If you guys will help me put them back up if that vicious wind comes back, I say let’s take them down.”

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