Jackson tipped her chin up with his rough knuckles and leaned in to kiss her. When the kiss ended, he whispered, “I fell in love with you the first time I laid eyes on you.”

“It was dark then,” she said with half a giggle. “You couldn’t even see me clearly.”

“I could see enough,” he said.

“When we get out of here, and if it’s still the light of day, are you still going to be able to say that?” She laid her head on his shoulder.

“Of course.” He toyed with a strand of her hair. “I’ll even shout it from the rooftop if you want me to. That is, if I’ve got a roof left.”

“Hey, if the tornado took your shop and house, you can have the quilting shed to work in, and I’ll suspend my quilt rack from the living room ceiling. You can stay with us. All I’ve got is a twin bed with a trundle underneath it, but I’ll make Flynn trade rooms with me,” she said.

“Well, whether your quilting shed is gone or not, my house has three bedrooms. You can have the bigger one to set up your sewing machine and do your quilting. You’ll have air-conditioning in the summer and heat in the winter,” he said.

“That almost makes me hope the shed is gone,” she laughed, but then she grew serious. “No, erase that. I wouldn’t want Nanny Lucy’s shed and all the memories, good or bad, to be gone.”

“Whether it’s there or not, that offer still stands.” He kissed her on the forehead. “I’d ask you to move in with me tomorrow, but that might be moving too fast.”

“Probably so,” she yawned.

“Looks like it’s going to be a while before we get out of this place.” His eyes were twinkling.

“Not in front of Tex,” she whispered.

At the sound of his name, the dog came crawling out from under the bed and jumped up on the foot of it.

“I don’t think he’ll mind if we just cuddle and talk,” Jackson said as he stretched out on the side of the bed nearest the wall.

Nessa kicked off her shoes and snuggled up next to him, her cheek on his chest. His arms around her made her feel safe and warm, no matter what was going on outside because of a tornado.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Five

Flynn was frantic to get over to Jackson’s place after the storm to see if Nessa, Jackson, and Tex were all right. That text he’d gotten from Nessa had him wondering if she’d lost service or had been swept up by the tornado.

“Do you think they’re all right?” April’s voice was totally breathless.