LITMIR.BIZ

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again.

      “Both. How am I doing?”

      “I’m totally with you. Sorry I’m going to miss the show.”

      Claire had a feeling she wasn’t talking about the date, but instead her telling Nicole about the date.

      “I don’t know what to wear,” she said. “Out with Wyatt. I don’t, um, really date a lot.”

      “Where are you guys going? Did he say?”

      Claire shook her head. “I have no idea.”

      “Probably dinner out. Maybe a movie. Wear something nice but not too dressy. Seattle isn’t New York. Maybe some really nice jeans with a silk blouse and a blazer. You want to look hot but not slutty. Interested without being desperate.”

      “How are dressy jeans different from regular jeans?”

      Jesse sighed. “You’re hopeless.”

      “I know.”

      AFTER CLAIRE DROVE back to the house, she sat in the car giving herself a pep talk.

      “I am strong,” she told her reflection in the rearview mirror. “I am empowered. I am an adult. I am a good person. I appreciate myself. I’m going to go in there and tell Nicole what’s going on. I am strong and brave and I will not be intimidated by anyone. Especially her.”

      She sucked in a breath, then marched into the house. She found Nicole standing in the kitchen.

      “Good,” she said forcefully. “I want to talk to you.”

      Nicole only raised her eyebrows.

      Claire refused to be intimidated. “Look. I respect who you are and all of your relationships. I know Wyatt is your friend. I’m not trying to change that.”

      “You couldn’t.”

      Claire felt a little of her strength fading away, but she kept her mind focused. “That’s not what I meant. The thing is you’re not interested in dating him and I am. I don’t know what your problem is. If you think I’m not good enough for him or what, but you’re just going to have to get over it.”

      “You’re going out,” Nicole said, sounding tired.

      “Yes, we are. He asked and I accepted. You can fight and pout and protest, but you can’t change what’s going to happen. Besides, it would be wrong of you to suggest otherwise.”

      Nicole stared at her. “Anything else?”

      “Yes. Several things. I’m sorry for what happened to you. I’m sorry that Drew slept with Jesse. I’m sorry your own sister betrayed you. I’m sorry you got stuck working in the bakery and you think you were cheated out of your life. I’m sorry you lost your mom. But I lost out, too.”

      Nicole started to speak, but Claire held up her hand.

      “I’m not done. It happened to me, too. And you’ve never once considered that. You’ve totally blown me off and dismissed any feelings I might have had. I’ve spent the past ten years trying to connect with you. You’ve ignored my phone calls, my letters, everything. Yet when Jesse called, I dropped everything to be here with you.”

      “According to what I hear, there wasn’t much to drop.”

      Claire ignored that. “There was enough and that’s not the point. You’re my sister and I wanted to be here for you. It wouldn’t have mattered what I’d had on my schedule. I still would have shown up, because you needed me. Because you matter to me.”

      Claire fought a sudden wave of emotion. “When we were five, you went to a birthday party and I couldn’t go because I had to practice. I cried and cried, but my teacher didn’t care. You got the chicken pox and they tried to keep me away from you because they didn’t want me getting sick, either. But I just wanted to be with you. I crawled into bed with you that night and I got sick, too. Because you’re my sister.”

      “You already said that,” Nicole murmured.

      “You don’t seem to remember it very much. So here’s the thing. I’m not going away this time. We’re going to figure out how to have a relationship and I’m not leaving until we do. It would help if you acted human once in a while and showed a little gratitude. You could even be friendly. But whatever you decide, you need to get off my ass because you weren’t the only one who didn’t get to make a lot of choices about her life.”

      “You’re really pissing me off,” Nicole said.

      “Ask me if I care.”

      They stood there, staring at each. Claire didn’t know what to think, she only knew she wasn’t backing down.

      “Fine,” Nicole grumbled, staring at the floor. “Date Wyatt. I don’t care.”

      “Really?”

      Her sister nodded. “And thank you for coming. You didn’t have to do that.”

      Claire grinned. She felt lighter and happier. “You would have been totally screwed without me.”

      “Don’t push it.”

      “I still have scars from the chicken pox. You so owe me.”

      Nicole smiled slowly. “Yeah, maybe I do.”

       CHAPTER ELEVEN

      “MIXED TWO DOZEN BAGELS,” the man in the suit said, pausing his cell phone conversation long enough to place the order, then saying, “I need those numbers by the time I walk in the door. Numbers, not excuses.”

      Claire collected the bagels, rang up the order and handed him his bag. “Number ninety-eight,” she yelled.

      “Two glazed doughnuts and a large coffee with extra room for milk.”

      “Got it.”

      She moved quickly and efficiently, getting the doughnuts, then pouring the coffee. She took the money, made change and called out for the next customer.

      A well-dressed woman approached the counter. “I want to order a custom cake,” she said. “I’m in a hurry.”

      “No problem,” Claire told her as she moved to the counter off to the side. She pulled out the special order book and took a sheet. “What are you looking for?”

      “The Keyes cake,” the woman said. “But with custard filling, not chocolate.”

      Claire smiled. “I’m sorry but we don’t make changes on the Keyes cake. We have other chocolate cakes we can customize any way you like, but the Keyes cake recipe is a tradition we don’t mess with.”

      “Excuse me, but I’m the customer. Your job is to give me exactly what I want. I’ve told you what I want, now do it.”

      Claire allowed herself a moment of visualizing the hostile customer covered in frosting and being attacked by flying sprinkles, then she smiled again.

      “There are a few things in life that shouldn’t be changed. You wouldn’t want the Mona Lisa to suddenly become a nurse or have someone put a hula skirt on the Statue of Liberty.”

      “You can’t possibly be comparing your ridiculous cake with either of those.”

      “Have you had the Keyes cake before?”

      The woman sniffed. “It’s just a cake.”

      “I’ll take that as a no. It’s beyond wonderful. Trust me. My family spent sixty years getting that cake recipe right. So which would you rather have? An honest-to-goodness legend, or one of our other cakes made to your exact specifications? Or you could get one of each and have a taste test. It might be fun for your guests.”

      “I suppose that’s a possibility.”

      “It

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