Better to wake from the dream than have it turn into a nightmare.
His hands went to his head, his heart aching with the choice. A tear trickled down his cheek.
He held his phone in his hands, cradling the numbers he could see there. The decision was made and he was choosing wealth.
It would be worth it, he told himself.
The money always was.
Money was what mattered.
Chapter 37
Merryweather
Something was wrong. Merryweather could feel the shift in her bones, much like the ache in her joints before a big storm. She could feel the magic starting to fade.
Darkness was coming.
The love was fading.
Something had to be done.
Chapter 38
Holly
“There,” Holly whispered, carefully placing the last piece of tape.
She smiled at her work. The wrapping paper was neatly folded around the corners and she’d even made the tape look nice. She wrote Nathan’s name in neat print on the corner. It was possibly the best wrapping she’d ever done on a present.
It was just a copy of A Christmas Carol, but it seemed like the perfect Christmas Eve present for Nathan. She’d agonized over which book to get him for the Christmas Eve tradition, but had finally settled on this one.
It was tradition in her family to gift a book on Christmas eve. She was excited to share this tradition with Nathan. She was excited to share everything with him.
Life was good. She tucked the book under the small tree in her apartment next to the other gift she’d picked out for him. It was just a t-shirt with the name of the town and a printed mountain background. It wasn’t much, but she thought he would like it since he was moving his company here. It felt like a good gift and she couldn’t wait for Christmas to come so she could give it to him.
Half the fun of Christmas was giving gifts. She knew he wouldn’t be expecting anything, which made it even better. She felt a little like Santa Claus.
It was time for dinner with Nathan. She smoothed her black dress down and checked her earrings. She’d even curled her hair and put on makeup since it was supposed to be a nice dinner. They had reservations at Mountainside, which was one of the nicer restaurants in town. The last time she’d eaten there was for a wedding.
Cold wind blew as Holly hurried into the restaurant. The hostess told her that Nathan hadn’t arrived yet, but was happy to take her to the table. They had a small, romantic table in a corner. A small candle flickered on the table, and two pristine white napkins sat ready and folded.
A thought hit Holly.
“Can I order two glasses of champagne?” she asked the server.
The champagne arrived and Holly sat waiting patiently for Nathan to arrive. With her hands in her lap, she watched the tiny bubbles in the golden liquid dance to the top. She checked her watch and found that he was ten minutes late. She chewed her lip before remembering that she had lipstick on.
Had he forgotten? She checked her phone, but didn’t see any messages saying he’d gotten tied up in a meeting. She hoped that he was okay. The roads could be icy this time of year. Every time the front door opened, she perked up, hoping it was him.
Nathan arrived nearly twenty minutes late. He walked through the restaurant with a cool confidence.
Holly stood up to greet him. “Hi,” she said, coming to kiss him. He sat before she could.
There was a darkness to his eyes that she hadn’t seen before. It didn’t match the smiling joy she’d seen earlier that day.
It must have been a rough day, she decided.