Something to Believe In by Kimberly Van Meter

don’t even think about saying no because I won’t
listen.” She sent a quick look around the small house, then muttered, “And
neither will Heath so don’t waste your breath.”
    “Stubborn Bell,” Celly called out after her, and Lilah smiled.
Yeah, she supposed that was accurate.

CHAPTER TEN
    L ORA DRAGGED HERSELF TO BED , her head throbbing. The day had been a trying
one to say the least. She changed out of her clothes, slipped into something
that flowed loosely around her body and slid into the bed beside Heath, grateful
for the day’s end.
    She and Heath were still at odds but he reached over and
started rubbing her shoulders when he saw the tension in her body. “Everything
all right?” he asked.
    “No,” she admitted wearily. “Pops kept asking for Celly and
when he couldn’t understand why she wasn’t around, he became more confused. It
was awful.”
    Heath’s sigh said volumes. She looked at him sharply. “She
quit. I didn’t fire her,” she said defensively.
    Heath’s mouth tightened but he remained silent and continued to
rub her shoulders. His touch soothed the knotted muscles but did nothing for the
turmoil in her head. Celly was the one who had overreacted. Not her. So she’d
tidied her desk a little...was that really cause to freak out and quit? A small,
nagging voice reminded her that she hadn’t been welcoming to Celly from the
minute they’d met. But surely, they’d gotten over that small bump since then?
“Everyone treats me the same as before even though I’ve changed. Why doesn’t
anyone see that?”
    “Sometimes you’re stubborn, that’s all. What you need to do is
go to Celly and simply apologize. That’s all she wants.”
    Lora frowned, irritated. “Why should I apologize? I didn’t do
anything worth apologizing for.”
    “How about going to her and clearing the air? You know, I think
you felt threatened by Celly, like somehow she was going to replace Grams, but
you know that’s not true. She’s a part of Larimar and we need her. And,
honestly, she needs us, too. She doesn’t have any family left on the island, and
she’s embraced the Bells in her own way. What more could you want in a loyal
employee other than someone who truly cares about the place and people they work
for?”
    Damn, she hated when Heath was right and she was wrong. She
sighed and turned to him, wrapping her arms around his solid torso and burying
her nose against his skin. “I know she’s not going to replace Grams. But I get
prickly when I’m around her. I don’t know why.”
    “It’s because you hate change,” Heath said, a smile in his
voice. “But change isn’t all bad.”
    “Says who?” she groused, internally processing his point. He
was right; she hated change. But to be fair, change in her life had rarely come
without painful consequences. She preferred order and stability to the chaos of
new adventures or new people. “The damage is done. I doubt she’ll come back even
if I begged, which I won’t do, anyway. It’s a moot point. I just need to find
someone to fill her spot.”
    “Lora...” Heath’s disappointment weighed heavy in his voice and
she lifted to meet his gaze. “You’re making it ten times worse than it needs to
be. You two need to sit down and have a heart-to-heart. That’s all. And then
things will improve between you. I can almost guarantee it.”
    She scowled. “You don’t know that and I don’t feel like
sacrificing my dignity to beg someone to work for me.”
    “How about begging someone who cares about this family to
return because we all miss her?”
    Lora groaned and pulled away from Heath. “I’m tired and my head
is ready to explode,” she said, turning on her side and communicating that she
didn’t want to talk about it any longer. She hated being on the opposite side of everyone, but it particularly hurt when Heath
wasn’t on her side. Tears tingled behind her eyes and she squeezed them shut to
block the moisture from escaping.
    Why