Page 58 of Wedding Bells in Silverwood

When she reached the office, her stomach felt heavy, as if it were filled with rocks. Dizziness threw her off-balance, and it wasn’t until Jonas caught her that she realized she’d almost collapsed.

“Hey, are you all right?” he asked.

She squeezed her eyes and held her palms to her temples. “I-I just got dizzy for a moment.”

“We haven’t eaten anything all day.” He picked up everything she had dropped. “Let’s repair the damage, and then we can find something to eat.”

“Yeah. There’s food in the kitchen.”

“Perfect. One step at a time, okay?”

She bowed her head. “Okay.”

They worked together to fix the window, with Viola holding the trays in place as Jonas performed some duct tape magic. Once the barrier was secure, they backed up and stared at their work.

“I think that should do it,” Jonas said.

Viola swayed.

“Hey, hey.” He wrapped his arm around her to support her weight. “Don’t give out on me. Let’s go to the kitchen and get some food in you.”

“Yes. Let’s do that.”

Viola felt a sense of security in his arms as he helped her down the stairs and to the kitchen. He found a chair for her and then used his flashlight to search the industrial refrigerator.

“Look.” He aimed the light at his face so she could see his smile. “There’s still pie.”

“Are you okay, Mom? Do you need anything?” Holly handed her mom a blanket.

Vivian placed it on her bed. “I’m fine. I know all about the Silverwood storms. And besides, I lived through many typhoons in the Philippines.”

“Okay, I’m going to help Nick get Cupid out from under the sideboard. He crawled under there when the wind picked up, and getting him out is impossible.”

“Good luck. And don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. I have a book. And a flashlight in case the power goes out.”

“All right. I’ll check in on you later.” Holly made her way to the dining room.

“Come on, Cupid.” Nick had crouched beside the sideboard.

“I’m not used to seeing him scared.” Holly sat cross-legged on the floor. Though the scream of the wind unnerved her, she chose to concentrate on the frightened Malamute. “He braved last year’s storm.”

“This one is worse. Or maybe he’s not feeling well.”

“What can we do to calm him?”

Nick straightened and scrubbed his jaw. “When he was a puppy and had trouble sleeping, I would play my guitar.”

Holly’s eyes widened slightly. “I love that idea.”

“I don’t know.” He grimaced. “I’m a little rusty.”

“Makes sense. We’ve been together for a year, and I’ve yet to hear you play. You even brought it over months ago, intending to play it, but it hasn’t happened.”

“Well, if you think it will help, then tonight could be my comeback.”

“I do think it will help.” Holly playfully batted her lashes. “Come on. Do it for Cupid.”

Nick left to retrieve his guitar.

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