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"But--"

"Aunt Claudia owes you this allery an hour earlier than usual and went straight to work reorganizing and tidying up the shop

She took down drooping balloons and swept the cookie crumbs off the floor It required three trips to the Duet rid of all the used paper cups, plates, and napkins

When the trash had been dealt with, she concentrated on the display panels One by one she took down the fras that had been done by the children and replaced them with the usual pictures She stacked the kids' pictures in one corner in the back room, ready to be collected by the proud artists

She was coh the door that separated the back rooe seascape in her hands, when she caught a gli lot Directly behind hi monster of an SUV

Nick, Carson, and Sullivan, accoh the front door two minutes later They all looked at her, concerned and serious and a little baffled

"Okay, we're here," Nick said "What's this all about?"

"Hang on," she said "I'll be right back"

She darted into the other rooainst the leg of the worktable

She walked back out into thethe picture aloft for all to see "Look what I found when I started cleaning up after the art show thisNone of the leefully, "I res to AZ and Mr Nash and the Heralds The one everyone said had been stolen"

"It is, indeed," Octavia agreed "You really do have a good eye for art, Carson"

He beamed

She put the Upsall very carefully on the counter "Evidently it got pushed behind a stack of pictures that was leaning against the wall Heaven only kno long it would have stayed back there if it wasn't for all the rearranging I had to do in here this "

"Well, shoot and damn," Mitchell said The so expression took its place "It was in your back rooood Lord we didn't rush off to confront our suspect last night," Sullivan said dryly He grinned at Octavia "Could have been more than a little aard"

"Naturally, I feel like a complete idiot," Octavia said "But at least this fiasco is finished and Nick no longer has to play detective"

Nick smiled slowly He did not take his eyes off Octavia "I was just starting to get the hang of it"

That evening Nick drove her back to the cottage after dinner with Carson and Sullivan at Dreaive theht, a the

She e, leftover chocolate chip cookies on a plate When she carried the tray out into the living roo coht to be there

Soht at Lillian's show So Just didn't quite recognize it until recently Probably because I'm a little out of practice… I love you

A deep sense of joy welled up inside her and shih her senses

Nick watched her set the tray down on the coffee table

"Alone at last," he said