Nicole shrugged. She didn't want to talk about decorating.

"I thought maybe we could talk," Jesse mumbled.

"About?"

Jesse sucked in a breath. She raised her head. "I'm sorry," she snapped. "I'm really sorry and you're not making this easy."

Nicole pushed down the hope that sparked inside of her. "Making it easy isn't my job."

Jesse rolled her eyes. "When are you going to stop taking every opportunity to teach me some stupid moral lesson?"

"When you stop needing them. Come on, Jess, convince me." It wouldn't take much, but Nicole wasn't about to admit that.

"I'm sorry I hurt you. I'm sorry you got upset."

The hope died and anger grew out of death. "How about 'I'm sorry I stole from you?' or is that too much like accepting responsibility?"

"It's a family recipe. No matter how much you might not like it, I'm still a part of this family. The bakery is half mine. I had the right to take it."

Nicole wasn't going to admit that. "The recipe belongs to the business. Instead of talking to me or trying to make some equitable arrangement or even ask, you just took what you wanted, then set up a Web site almost exactly like the bakery's."

"When was I supposed to talk to you? You threw me out of the house."

If Nicole had been even a week further along in her healing, she would have stood up to face her sister without crutches, but there was no way her knee would support her.

"You're right. I wasn't talking to you. Why is that? Oh, yes, I remember. You slept with my husband. In my own house. Oh, wait. Was he like the recipe? Were we sharing him, too?"

Jesse blushed, then ducked her head. "That's not what happened."

"Sure it is. Worse, I lied for you. When Matt called I didn't tell him why you'd moved out. But know this. If he calls again, all bets are off."

Jesse started crying. "I deserved it. I know that now."

What? Punishment? Drew? Nicole felt the anger fading as exhaustion claimed her.

Without meaning to, she remembered something she hadn't allowed herself to do. She remembered walking up the stairs late in the evening. She hadn't even noticed Jesse's door was partially closed until she'd heard a weird noise. Then she'd crossed the landing and pushed it open.

They'd been in Jesse's full-size bed. They'd both stared at her, wide-eyed. Everything about that moment was burned into her brain. The way Drew had been on top of Jesse, his hand on her bare breast. How sharp and intense the sense of pain and betrayal had felt. They were supposed to be the two people in the world who loved her more than anyone. She'd been wrong to trust either of them.

"I never wanted to hurt you," Jesse said, brushing the tears from her face.

"Really? Well, then, that makes everything all right."

"I hate it when you get like this," Jesse said. "You're so cold."

"You're still sorry you got caught but not sorry you did it. That's what gets me, Jess. Not Drew, but you. I raised you. I've been there for you every day of your life. I sacrificed for you and you were never grateful. You only wanted to know what else I could do for you. You never cared about any of it."

"I cared," Jesse yelled. "I cared a lot and I would have been grateful, but for what? My mother leaving because it was more fun to be with Claire? Should I be grateful that my father didn't care about me? Or how about for all you did? I can give you the list. You know why? Because every damn day you talked about all you were giving up for me. All you had to do or take care of. Your life was one big pain in the ass because of me. I get it!" she screamed. "I ruined your life, okay!"

Nicole didn't know what to say. Jesse had to be kidding. "You twist everything around to suit yourself."

"Who do you think I learned that from?" Jesse yelled. "You know what? I'm glad I slept with Drew. Glad. If he wasn't such a loser jerk asshole, I'd do it again. But he's not worth the trouble. I should have figured that out. He married you. And now you don't even have him." Jesse's eyes filled with tears. "I'll hate you forever."

Nicole's anger returned, burning bright and hot like the sun. "Back at you," she snapped. "Get the hell out of my house."

"Gladly."

Jesse stalked away. The front door slammed and then there was silence.

CLAIRE ARRIVED HOME to find Nicole fuming.

"Jesse was here," she announced. "Our conversation didn't go well."

"What happened?"

Nicole filled her in on the details, then said, "Don't you dare take her side."

"I won't. I know this has been hard for you." For both of them, but Claire knew better than to say that. It was easy for her to be rational and see both points of view, but much harder for Nicole. And while she cared about Jesse, she had to agree that her baby sister had messed up big-time more than once in the past few weeks.

"It sucks that it's too early to get drunk."

"You're on pain medication," Claire said.

"I'd pass on it for a vodka tonic. At least I would if it was four, or even three. What time is it?"

"About nine-thirty in the morning."

Nicole groaned. "I have hours to wait." She hobbled over to the sofa and collapsed. "I'm glad you're here."

Claire settled across from her. "Me, too. Whatever happens, I want us to stay close. We should have before."

Nicole's face scrunched up.

Claire smiled. "What are you holding back?"

"I want to jump into my 'you left me' routine, but I won't. You were six. No one gave you a choice. I missed you more than I could say."

"I missed you, too. We'd never been apart. I felt like someone cut off my arm. I was so lonely. That never went away."

"Me, too, though I was busy. Jesse was born a few months after they took you away. She changed everything."

For Nicole, Claire thought. Not for her. She learned about her new sister from her grandmother and saw a few pictures.

"I wanted to call more," Claire admitted. "But we didn't have the money back then. I'm sure it was expensive, plus with the time difference." Later, when she'd been able to make her own decisions about calling, Nicole hadn't wanted to talk to her.

Her sister sighed. "Okay, I was very annoyed with you and unforgiving."

Wow-an apology from Nicole? "I believe the word you're looking for is bitch."

"Maybe."

"There's no maybe, honey. You were the queen bitch."

"I'll accept being in the royal court, but I won't accept being the actual queen."

"Works for me."

They smiled at each other. Claire risked the moment by asking, "What are you going to do about Jesse?"

"I haven't got a clue. I want her to be different and that isn't going to happen. I want her to accept responsibility. Another chance for me to be disappointed. I wish she'd grow up, which makes me zero for three." She pulled a throw pillow to her stomach and wrapped her arms around it.

"I don't know what to do about the charges. One side of me says to drop them. She's family, blah, blah, blah. Another part of me wants her to understand that there have to be consequences for what she's done. Your thoughts?"

"I don't know," Claire admitted. "I agree with you. She is family and she has totally messed up. I'm the wrong person to ask."

"You're as right as I am. Which is part of the problem. I'm in such a weird position," Nicole admitted. "I'm as much her mother as her sister. I never know what role to play or what I should be doing. I can't help thinking I really messed up somewhere for her to have done what she did."

"No," Claire told her. "You're not at fault. Nicole, you're only six years older than her. You are her sister and not her mother. You did the best you could."

"I don't think it was good enough. That's my guilty secret. Want to share yours?"

Claire hesitated. Nicole's eyes widened.

"You have one?"

"Maybe. I'm in love with Wyatt."

Nicole looked stunned. "The sex was that good?"

That made Claire laugh. "It's not about sex."

"It's always about sex. Especially for you. Wyatt is your first. It makes sense you'd feel something for him. Are you sure it's love?"

"I'm not sure of anything anymore. I know I've never had these feelings before. I know I want to spend every minute with him and not just while he's in a good mood. I want to learn about him, plan a future. I want to get so tangled up with him that neither of us knows where we start individually or where we end as a couple." She paused. "Does that make me a stalker?"

"Not unless you start spray-painting that on his garage wall. Wow. You really have fallen for him. Does he know?"

"No. I realized this morning when he was talking to me about the other men in my life."

"What other men?"

"The ones that are supposed to follow him. He says he's just my vacation fling or something. That we have nothing in common."

"Wyatt does always resist getting involved."

Not words Claire wanted to hear, but ones she needed to accept. "You told me and he told me. No relationships. He's convinced he's bad at them. What does he say? That he comes from a long line of men who pick the wrong woman?"

"Something like that," Nicole admitted. "But it's just what he says. It doesn't have to be what he believes."

"You're his friend," Claire said. "What do you think?"

Nicole hesitated for a second. "That he's so used to hiding that he has no idea what he wants."

"The politically correct answer. You're sweet to try to make me feel better."

"Wyatt could change. People change."

They could, but they didn't all that often. "Do you really believe, in your gut, that Wyatt could fall in love with me?"

"Yes," Nicole said firmly.

Claire didn't believe her for a second, but the fact that her sister would be so supportive was enough. At least for right now.

"MRS. OLIVE SAYS the counselor will talk to Daddy and me," Amy said, so excited that she was difficult to understand. "I'm going to need..." She paused to finger spell at the speed of light.

"Slower, please," Claire signed. "You're going to need what?"

"T-h-e-r-a-p-y."

"Oh, like what Nicole is getting for her leg but for you it will be your ear and your brain."

"Uh-huh." Amy grinned. "Daddy says we'll do my bad ear. It's a comp...Compy something."

"Compromise."

She nodded again. "After the counselor, we'll meet with the doctor."

Amy climbed out of the car and ran up to the front door of Nicole's house, where she would wait until Wyatt came by to pick her up.

Amy hurried over to the sofa to greet Nicole, then signed about her impending surgery.

"Are you happy with just one ear?" Nicole asked. "One and not two?"

"Uh-huh. I need to wait until there's better ways for me to hear with the other ear. I'll still be able to hear good with the one implant."

She spoke with a combination of signing and speaking.

"You're very mature," Claire told her.

Amy dimpled.

"Go in the kitchen," Nicole told her. "There's a surprise."

Amy raced in that direction. When she'd left, Nicole said, "I agree. She's very together. I wouldn't have been at her age."