Holly's Heart Collection One
Holly’s Heart: Collection One
Copyright © 1993, 1994, 2001, 2002, 2008
Beverly M. Lewis
Revised and updated for 2008 edition.
Previously published in five separate volumes:
Best Friend, Worst Enemy
© 1993, 2001, 2008 Beverly Lewis
Previously published as
Holly’s First Love
Secret Summer Dreams
© 1993, 2001, 2008 Beverly Lewis
Sealed With a Kiss
© 1993, 2002, 2008 Beverly Lewis
The Trouble With Weddings
© 1993, 2002, 2008 Beverly Lewis
California Crazy
© 1994, 2002, 2008 Beverly Lewis
Previously published as
California Christmas
Photographer: Mike Habermann Photography, Inc.
Cover design by Eric Walljasper
Unless otherwise identified, Scripture quotations are from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION
®
. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. The “NIV” and “New International Version” trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society.
www.zondervan.com
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
www.bethanyhouse.com
Bethany House Publishers is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
E-book edition created 2011
ISBN 978-1-58558-666-0
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
About the Author
BEVERLY LEWIS, born in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country, fondly recalls her growing-up years. A keen interest in her mother’s Plain family heritage has inspired Beverly to set many of her popular stories in Amish country, beginning with her inaugural novel,
The Shunning
.
A former schoolteacher and accomplished pianist, Beverly has written over eighty books for adults and children. Five of her blockbuster novels have received the Gold Book Award for sales over 500,000 copies, and
The Brethren
won a 2007 Christy Award.
Beverly and her husband, David, make their home in Colorado, where they enjoy hiking, biking, reading, writing, making music, and spending time with their three grandchildren.
Books by Beverly Lewis
G
IRLS
O
NLY
(GO!)
*
Youth Fiction
Girls Only! Volume One
Girls Only! Volume Two
S
UMMER
H
ILL
S
ECRETS
†
Youth Fiction
SummerHill Secrets Volume One
SummerHill Secrets Volume Two
H
OLLY’S
H
EART
Youth Fiction
Holly’s Heart Collection One
†
Holly’s Heart Collection Two
†
Holly’s Heart Collection Three
*
*
4 books in each volume
†
5 books in each volume
Table of Contents
To Dave,
my heart-mate, best friend,
and very cool husband.
BEST FRIEND, WORST ENEMY
“Is it hot in here?” I whispered to the boy sharing my music folder.
Tom Sly’s eyes bulged. “Holly Meredith, you’re turning green!”
That’s when it happened. Halfway through our seventh-grade musical, on the second riser, in front of half the population of Dressel Hills, Colorado, I felt dizzy. Faces in the audience began to blur. Heat rushed to my throbbing head. With a mouth drier than Arizona, I gasped for breath. Then my knees buckled and…I blacked out!
My best friend, Andrea Martinez—better known as Andie—witnessed this embarrassing scene and filled me in on the details later. She jumped off the risers and hightailed it over to help me. Tom Sly dragged me behind the risers and across the newly waxed gym floor to the janitor’s room. Jared Wilkins followed.
When I came to, I was lying on the floor in the musty janitor’s room. The first thing I saw was the adorable face of Jared Wilkins, the new boy. He smiled down at me, fanning me back to life with his music folder. In my half-dazed state, his blue eyes seemed to dance dreamily.
Maybe this fainting stuff isn’t so bad after all,
I thought, squinting through the haze.
“Holly,” Jared said. “Can you hear me?”
“Uh-huh,” I whispered.
“Hang in there. Andrea went to get your mom.” He glanced at Tom Sly, who leaned against the doorway, fidgeting.
Jared helped me sit up next to some mops and a bucket. I still felt a little out of it, but not so bad that I couldn’t enjoy being the focus of his attention.
“Are you feeling okay?” he asked.
“I think so,” I said weakly.
“That’s good. You just take it easy till your mom gets here, all right?” Smiling, he sat beside me, leaning against the wall. “What a cool way to get out of a boring musical!”
“Speak for yourself,” I said, feeling a bit stronger. “You didn’t just faint in front of the whole school.”
“But it’s very romantic, being rescued by two men, don’t you think?”
I was about to tell him that two seventh-grade boys didn’t exactly qualify as men when Mom and my little sister, Carrie, burst into the room, followed by Andie.
“Holly, honey, are you all right?” Mom leaned down to touch my forehead while Carrie frowned.
“I think she’s going to be okay,” Jared said, smiling at me again. “It just got a little too hot up on stage.”
“Well, let’s get you out of this musty mess and into some fresh air,” Mom said. “Thank you for your help, boys.”
“No problem,” Jared said.
Tom gave me a weird grin.
Mom led me down the hallway and settled me into a chair in an empty classroom. Then she and Carrie went to search for a glass of water. As soon as they were out of earshot, Andie sat next to me. She twisted one of her dark curls around her finger. When she does that, I know something’s up!
“Holly,” she whispered, “you’ll never guess what happened when you were out cold.”
“What’re you talking about?” I asked, still feeling a bit woozy.