But it was usually blotted out by the sound of pots and pans. When it wasn't, he tried not to pay attention to it. Someday he would do something about it, but not now. He was far too busy.

Raising them? Sara looked at Nik dubiously. "You don't look old enough."

"He wasn't," Jennifer confirmed.

She set her squirming daughter back amid her colorful chaos. Nik had had the room transformed into a giant play area for his niece. He had left only a few bare essentials to identify the fact that this was also an office where all the business transactions were conducted.

"But he managed, anyway," she added fondly. She looked at Sara. "So, are you taking the job?"

Nik noticed with annoyance that Jennifer had completely bypa.s.sed his input in this scenario.

Sara always went with instincts. Instinct told her to take the job.

Prudence told her to go more slowly than she was normally accustomed to. Nik didn't look as if he was up to her normal pace. " " I don't really know what it is yet. " Blocks crashed in an orchestrated avalanche as Katie clapped her hands together' Is she going to be my junior helper?"

Jennifer laughed as she got down on her knees to clear away the debris.

"Not if you're lucky. You're going to have enough trouble as it is: '.

Sara wasn't quite certain whether or not Jennifer was joking "

" Trouble? "

Jennifer nodded toward her brother. "Because of Nik: '

Now she thought of bringing him into it. To be insulted. "It's not my fault," he protested darkly. "It was the d.a.m.n computer: '

Sara moved toward the desk that was pushed against one wall to maximize s.p.a.ce for Katie. She looked at the dormant computer. "Uh-huh, famous last words."

Jennifer joined her. She switched on the computer and it hummed to life. Within a few moments the single, lonely white line appeared. It lay rigidly stretched out across the screen. Jennifer pointed toward it. "He did that yesterday"

"Any backup discs?" Sara had a feeling she already knew the answer to that.

Nik hated admitting that he had made a mistake. He wasn't used to making them. Despite all the responsibilities that were laid across his shoulders he had always made the right choices, done the right thing. In short, he had always han dred everything well. The fact that they now needed an outsider to handle something he considered to be a key part of the restaurant really grated on him.

He scowled at the machine. "No."

" " I see. " A challenge. Sara nodded thoughtfully. Because Jennifer was more receptive, Sara turned to her with the next question. " Any paper files? "

Jennifer nodded at the towering file cabinet. "Lots. In there. We keep the drawers locked so that Katie isn't tempted to create her own version of a ticker-tape parade in here."

" " Very wise. Also a tremendous relief. " Sara circled the file cabinet like a magician contemplating the best method of making a tiger appear before an audience in place of a lady. This was the kind of thing best tackled early in the morning, when she was fresh. Right now there was something weighing too heavily on her mind for her to concentrate'I can start tomorrow morning at about nine or so."

Just like that? Was she desperate, or careless? Nik couldn't make up his mind. "I haven't quoted you a salary ," Nik reminded Sara. The woman was going faster than Julia ever had. His head began to hurt again.

Sara looked at him, surprised that he would think of that as a deterrent. "I'm Brom's cousin. I don't figure you'll insult him or me by paying me minimum wage. Besides- she shrugged her shoulders in a gesture that was beginning to make Nik feel oddly itchy " -I'm not taking it because I need to make a living at this moment. " She had more than enough saved to see her through this episode, had never needed much to begin with.

"Oh?" Nik asked skeptically.

"No." Her wide mouth turned up in a broad smile. "I'm doing it as a favor."

Nik crossed his arms in front of his chest and pinned her with a look.

He'd be d.a.m.ned if he was going to be pitied. " " For whom ? "

"Brom," she answered easily. "And Julia. She said that you were desperate."

Julia always exaggerated even the simplest of things. "I'm never desperate," Nik informed Sara before she began laboring under the wrong impression. i Jennifer weighed the matter quickly and thought that this was a safe time to override Nik. Sara was going to find out, anyway. She nudged him out of the way and moved closer ! to the other woman. "We're desperate."

Nik knew when he was outnumbered. What did it matter ? It was only temporary. They were both in agreement on that part.

Sara began to carefully pick her way through the scattered blocks.

"Fine. I'll be here tomorrow, then." She stopped at the threshold.

"Oh, one more thing. I need the day after tomorrow off."

Nik stared at her. She was nervy, he'd give her that. AI ready ? "

"Already," she answered cheerfully. "Those are my terms." She waited to see if he'd turn them down. If he did , he was a fool.

"We'll take them," Jennifer answered for both of them, afraid to let Nik say anything.

But it wasn't good enough. Sara looked at Nik. "Okay with you?"

As much as Nik hated to admit it, he really had no other choice.

Sinclair's couldn't go on indefinitely without some sort of up-to-date accounting system. With business being what it was, he had no time to feed the d.a.m.ned information into the miserable computer again, and neither did

Jennifer.

That left him with only one viable alternative.

He sighed, Lee surrendering his sword to Grant at

Appomattox with whispers of " " The South shall rise again " , echoing in the background.

"Okay by me." The words sounded as if they were being forcibly dragged out of his mouth.

Sara laughed as she exited. " " It's going to be great working for one of the less popular seven dwarfs," she mused alouqi, closing the door behind her.

Nik scowled at the door. He gave the arrangement one week, tops.

Chapter 2.

The smile on Sara's lips slowly faded as she slid behind the wheel of her car. There were no other stops she needed to make. It was time to see her father. , A hollow feeling seeped through her like seawater into the hull of a ship that wasn't quite airtight.

"No more excuses, Saratoga, you're a big girl now. You can do this."

Sara jabbed her key into the ignition and turned it. Anger and anxiety faced off within her like pro tennis players at a Wimbledon play-off.

Gripping the wheel, she gunned the engine and peeled out of the parking lot, hugging the road as if the car was part of it.

Nik winced when he heard the noise, certain that it was Sara driving away. Just what he needed, an Indianapolis 500 trainee.