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Hugging her felt good Fa for him Too bad Nicole would have been a whole lot easier to handle than Claire

"I’veme Have you noticed that pattern? First Drew--"

"You threw hiht There is a pattern"

"Shut up I didn’t throw out Claire or you"

"If you could have tossed me across the room, you would have"

"Maybe," she admitted, then made her way to the sofa and collapsed "I’ it as easy as I should I hurt"

"Can I get you so?"

She looked at him "How about Claire?"

"She’ll come back if you ask her," he said

"That’s not what I meant and you know it"

He did "She servedto do with the baby if that’s what I want Just sign my na until she could rest her heel on the coffee table "She told me I let her think that would solve the problem"

"It won’t?"

She rolled her eyes "You’re about theyour own kid disappear fro that reality, but Nicole was right Even if he wasn’t crazy about Claire, he wouldn’t walk away fro to sue for custody, but he would insist they work so out

"I don’t knohat to do," he admitted "I neverabout h?"

"If ere only talking about the logistics of sharing child rearing, you would have already worked out a schedule"

First Dre Nicole Did everyone know him better than he knew hi her and talking to her I bought a couple of her CDs, so I can hear herhis forearhs, and stared at the carpet "She haunts me I don’t have to close my eyes to see her I hear her voice in every o after her, just get on a plane and fly to New York and drag her back here"

"It would get the s My history omen" He remembered what Drew had told him--that he’d broken the family bad luck streak in every other area of his life, why not this one "Can I make it different with her?"

"You know you can," Nicole told him "Besides, it’s not like Claire has a lot of experience She won’t be as picky as so hole in his heart, he smiled "Gee, thanks"

"I live to be helpful What else?"

The next one was hard to admit He sucked in a breath "Do you knoho she is? She’s famous and rich I’m a contractor I do well I have a successful business, but what do I have to offer her that she can’t buy herself?"

Nicole slugged hi him, but she’d never hit him before

"What?" he asked

"It’s not about stuff, you idiot It’s never about stuff Why can’t guys get that? Stuff is usually a substitute we accept e can’t get e really want"

"What do you really want?"

He noticed she didn’t have to think about the answer Were wo, or did they coot older?

"We want to matter," she said "We want to be the most important part of your world We want to know you’d be lost without us, that you ache e’re gone and count the hours until we’re back We’ll give you forever, if you just ht More than a si up to the possibility of handing her everything and still having her walk away It scared the crap out of hi to hear the answer, but knowing he had to

Nicole sighed "I should tell you it is, because you handled most of this pretty badly But Claire loves you and I love her, so I’ll tell you the truth No, it’s not You can still win her But don’t expect iven too much away"

Aht "You’re here!" They eed hined

There was so much affection and trust in her eyes He could still pick her up and toss her in the air and she only laughed It never occurred to her he could drop her or hurt her in any way Because he never had and he never would He would give his life for hers a thousand times over She was his world

Which is exactly what Claire wanted To be his world His everything The wooing to be convincing her

CLAIRE ADJUSTED the headphones she wore before every perforet lost in the music, lost in the sounds and nuances of the piece All around her, stagehands spoke into walkie-talkies, e cleared of everything but her piano, the curtains ready to open Someone yelled that it was three minutes She heard that much, then tuned out the rest of it

She felt the presence of others Lisa hovered in the background, ready to take the headphones fro not to look nervous While the perfor deal for both of them It would be the first time Claire had played in public since she’d totally lost it in the early spring and had to be helped off the stageClair opened her eyes She could see the piano froined herself there, the crowd beyond

Some had come to support the cause Others were there because they’d heard what had happened before and wanted to know if she had lost it But ift that flowed froers and s about herself, even if she could She was exactly what she needed to be

"Are you all right?" Lisa asked "Should I not say anything?"

Claire took off the headphones and handed theood way It’s anticipation, not fear"