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She was doing this for Nicole, she reed onto I-5 Still going forty-five, Claire eased into the right lane and vowed to stay there until it was tiot off, just north of the University district, she was shaking all over She hated driving Hated it Cars were awful and drivers were rude, mean people who screamed at her But she’d made it and that hat ed tolot next to the bakery She turned off the car, leaned her forehead against the steering wheel and did her best to breathe

When her heartbeat had slowed frobird rate to that for a htened, then stared at the building in front of her

The Keyes bakery had been in the sainally, her great-grandparents had rented only half the store-front Over tihbor’s lease, then had bought the whole place about sixty years ago

Pastries, cakes and breads filled the lower half of the two display s Delicate lettering listing other options covered the top half A big sign above the door proclaimed Keyes Bakery--Home of the World’s Best Chocolate Cake

The multilayer chocolate confection had been praised by royalty and presidents, served by brides and written into several celebrity contracts as a "e at concerts It was about a billion calories of flour, sugar, butter, chocolate and a secret ingredient passed on through the family Not that Claire knehat it was But she would She was confident Nicole would want to tell her iot out of the car and sh that she kept on her coat, hoping it wasn’t too wrinkled fro her purse, she carefully locked the driver’s door Taking a deep breath, she walked into the bakery

It wasat a corner table with pastries and coffee Two strollers with babies were between their chairs Claire offered a sirl there looked at her

"Can I help you?"

"Yes I hope so I’er, a pluet you? The rosearlic bread is hot out of the oven"

Claire smiled hopefully "I’m Claire Keyes," she repeated

"Heard that the first tin on the wall "Keyes, as in Nicole’s sister"

The teenager’s eyes got even bigger "Oh, my God No way Are you really? The piano player?"

Claire winced "Technically I’m a concert pianist" A soloist, but why quibble? "I’ery Jesse called and asked irl’s voice ca? Oh, er backed up as she spoke "Nicole is so going to kill her If she hasn’t already I just…" She held up her hand "Wait here, okay? I’ll be right back"

Before Claire could say anything, the girl took off toward the back

Claire adjusted her bag on her shoulder and looked at the inventory in the glass case There were several pies, a couple of cakes, along with loaves of bread Her sto her she hadn’t eaten all day She’d been too nervous to have anything on the plane

Maybe she could get soarlic bread and then stop at a deli for--

"What the hell are you doing here?"

Claire looked at the , with tanned skin and the kind of body that said he either did physical work for a living or spent too yht of his plaid shirt and worn jeans

"I’an

"I knoho you are I asked why you were here"

"Actually you asked me why the ‘hell’ I was here There’s a difference"

He narrowed his gaze "Which is?"

"One question ienuine interest in the answer, the other lets me know that somehow I’ve annoyed you You don’t really care why I’m here, you just wantyou and I have never met"

"I’m friends with Nicole I don’t have to have met you to know all I need to about you"

Ouch Claire didn’t understand If Nicole was still mad at her, why had Jesse called and iht Nicole is ot married? When? To whom?

A deep, deep sadness followed the questions Her own sister hadn’t bothered to tell her or invite her to the wedding How pathetic was that?

Emotions chased across Claire Keyes’s face Wyatt didn’t bother to try to read them Women and what they felt were ato make sense of the female mind would drive a man to drink, then kill him

Instead he studied the tall, slender blonde in front of hi for siht, taking in the big, blue irises Maybe the shape of the mouth The hair color…sort of Nicole’s was just blond Claire’s was a dozen different shades and shiny

But nothing else was the same Nicole was his friend, soular looking Claire dressed in off-white--fro coat to the sweater and slacks she wore underneath Her purse was beige, as were her boots She looked like an ice princess…an evil one

"I’d like to see my sister," Claire said firmly "I know she’s in the hospital But I’ to tell you I don’t knohy you’re here, lady, but I can tell you Nicole doesn’t want to see you"

"That’s not what I heard"

"Fro to need help after her surgery She called " She raised her chin slightly "I’ht, and you can’t ive me the information, I’ll simply call every hospital in Seattle until I find her Nicole isthe stubborn angle of her chin and the determination in her voice The twins had that much in common

Why had Jesse done this? Toto fix a desperate situation? The truth was Nicole would need help and she was just difficult enough not to ask He would do what he could, but he had a business to run and A his good-for-nothing brother hadn’t run off somewhere to hide Jesse was a worse choice Which left exactly no one else

Why did he have to bethis decision? He swore under his breath "Where are you staying?"

"At the house Where else?"

"Fine Stay there Nicole will be home in a couple of days You can take this up with her then"

"I’ two otistic, narcissistic Wyatt remembered Nicole’s faht now, every one of them made sense to him

"Listen," he said "You can wait at the house or fly back to Paris or wherever it is you live"

"New York," she said quietly "I live in New York"

"Whatever My point is you’re not going to see Nicole until she’s had a couple of days to recover, even if that ot that? She’s in enough hurt right now fro to deal with a pain in the ass like you"