Nicole tried to pull free. Claire wasn’t going to let go. They each moved toward the large vat of dough. A second too late, Claire saw the puddle of what looked like oil on the cement floor.

They stepped in it at the same time and both went sliding. Claire released her sister, but it was too late. They went down, hard on the floor.

Claire crashed into the cement butt first. The jolt of impact made her teeth ache. She sat there for a second before rolling onto her knees, then starting to stand.

As she did, she turned her head. Nicole lay on her side. Her eyes were closed and she wasn’t moving.

NICOLE REFUSED to open her eyes. She didn’t want to know where she was, even though it was impossible to ignore the medics working on her. Words like transport and hospital made her wince.

Reluctantly she opened her eyes and saw two guys bent over her.“You’re back,” one of them said. “Do you know where you are?”

Wished that she didn’t. “On the floor in my bakery. I know the day of the week and who’s president, if you need that information.”

“You didn’t hit your head, then.”

“Not on purpose.”

There were two agonizing points of pain. Her incision and her knee.

“She had surgery a few weeks ago,” Claire said from somewhere out of Nicole’s range of vision. “She shouldn’t have been here at all. It’s all my fault.”

There were tears in her voice, and anguish.

“We were arguing. She tried to walk away and I wouldn’t let her. She slipped on the oil.”

“Relax,” one of the medics told her. “Your sister will be fine. The incision didn’t tear, at least not on the outside. They’ll check her out internally at the hospital. Her knee’s pretty messed up, but that’s not fatal.”

He looked back at Nicole. “Ready to take a ride?”

“Not really.”

“I was only asking to be polite.”

They got her on a gurney. As she moved, pain shot through her leg. It was sharp enough to take her breath away. An IV dripped into her arm. She felt as if she’d been run over.

Once they were moving toward the ambulance, Claire rushed over and took her hand.

For once, she looked as bad as Nicole felt. She was crying and not in a pretty way. Her eyes were red, her mouth swollen.

“I’m sorry,” she said over and over again. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want anything bad to happen. I just hate that you’re mad at me. I love you. You’re my sister. I don’t want you to die.”

It was all a little dramatic, but kind of nice, in an over-the-top way. Nicole couldn’t remember the last time anyone had fussed over her. No, wait. She could. When she’d come home from the hospital and Claire had been waiting to take care of her. Claire, who led with her heart and not her head. Claire, who was holding her hand as if she was never going to let go.

“I’m not going to die,” Nicole told her. “And I don’t hate you. You just really piss me off, sometimes.”

“I know. You’re not easy yourself.”

“Not being easy is my best quality.”

They loaded her into the ambulance. Claire waved. “I’ll drive right behind them. I’ll be with you no matter what.”

Words that should have made Nicole want to run to the hills, but oddly, they didn’t. They actually made her feel kind of warm and fuzzy inside. Which made her wonder what those medics had put in her IV.

WYATT PUT HIS ARM around Claire. “Nicole is going to be fine.”

“You keep saying that,” Claire said with a sniff. “No offense, but I want to hear that from a paid professional. Then I’ll believe it.”“She was awake and talking.” He was worried about Nicole, as well, but Claire seemed on the verge of losing it.

“What if she’s bleeding internally?”

“What if she’s not?”

Claire leaned against him. “Sure, use logic when I’m in a weakened condition. That’s hardly fair.”

He wrapped his other arm around her and pulled her close. “I do what I can.”

She felt good in his arms. Under other circumstances, he would have been thinking about that and maybe getting her back into bed. But these weren’t other circumstances and they had to talk about what happened.

“I can’t believe they’re going to have to operate on her knee and that she’s going to have another recovery,” Claire said into his shirt. “It’s so unfair. It should have been me.”

“You both fell. She got her knee busted up. It was an accident.”

“I know. I just wish—” she sighed “—that we weren’t fighting.”

He really wanted to be supportive. That’s what a decent guy would do. Support during this crisis. He wouldn’t be thinking about his own stuff and wanting to discuss it.

Even so, he found himself saying, “We have to talk about what happened.”

She looked up at him, her blue eyes filled with concern. “What are you talking about?”

“Us. Being together.”

“Oh. I’m fine with that.”

She was so damn calm. “I’m not. You should have told me you were a virgin.”

She smiled. “Oh, Wyatt, don’t worry. It was great. I was too embarrassed to tell you. I probably should have mentioned it, but I didn’t and everything worked out. You were very gentle.” She drew her eyebrows together. “Is that what you’re getting at or do you mean something else? Are you saying you wouldn’t have made love with me if you’d known?”

They were alone in the waiting room, but privacy didn’t make the conversation easier. “I don’t know.”

She leaned back. “Then I made the right decision.”

“By taking away my choice?”

“I don’t know if I should laugh or hit you with a chair,” she told him. “You’re saying I violated your rights or something?”

This is why men and women should never have emotional conversations, he thought grimly. “There are consequences that should have been anticipated.”

Her eyes flashed with annoyance. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Which is my point. You’re not experienced.”

“You weren’t complaining before.”

Now he was getting pissed. “I’m not making a statement about your performance,” he growled. “I’m talking about birth control. You aren’t on any, are you?”

He waited for her expression to change to shocked regret. Instead her eyes widened and then she smiled as if he’d just handed her the cure for global warming.

“I could be pregnant?” she breathed. “We could have a baby? I never thought about that. Is it possible? I don’t think my luck is that good.”

He couldn’t believe it. She was happy at the prospect?

She flung herself at him and laughed. “Oh, Wyatt, wouldn’t that be amazing? A baby. I’ve always wanted children. Could it really happen my first time? I guess it could. Wow.”

He grabbed her and shoved her away. “What’s wrong with you?” he demanded. “This isn’t good news.”

Her smile faded. “Why not?”

How the hell was he supposed to answer that?

“It’s a baby,” she said. “That would be a miracle. Of course there are logistics, but we’ll deal. This is amazing.”

He was beyond pissed. Shouldn’t she be upset and frantic? “You’re not getting it. This isn’t good news.”

“It is to me. I guess the odds of me being pregnant depend on where I am in my cycle.” She clapped her hands together. “But still, a baby. That would be totally cool. What a wonderful consequence.”

“Not for me,” he snapped. “I’m not interested in more children. I don’t do relationships, remember? If you think you’re going to trap me the way Shanna did, you’re in for a big disappointment.”

The happiness fled from her face. “Is that what you think of me?” she asked. “I’m not like that.”

“I don’t know you well enough to make that judgment.”

“I’m not interested in trapping you, or any man. I’m very comfortable being a single mother.”

“What do you know about raising a kid?”

“As much as you did when Amy was born. I’ll learn.”

She was so defiant, he thought, fighting frustration. Didn’t she understand what this could mean?

“With your travel schedule?”

“I’ll hire a nanny.”

Typical, he thought in disgust. “I’m not paying for that.”

“No one’s asking you to.” She glared at him. “I’m sorry you’re upset about this, Wyatt, but I refuse to be. I’ve always wanted children. Maybe this isn’t the way I would have chosen, but it’s still a miracle to me. I promise whatever happens, you won’t be inconvenienced, which is really what this is about. If I need help, I’ll hire it. Without asking for any money from you. I’m more than capable of paying for whatever I want.”

“If only,” he muttered.

She tilted her head. “You really don’t get it. I’m just some woman who plays the piano, right? This may surprise you, but I’m actually very good at what I do. Between concert dates and CD sales, last year I earned about two million dollars. It was a good year, but not my best. Money isn’t an issue for me. I’m sorry you’re upset about the chance that I might be pregnant, but I refuse to be.”

With that, she turned and walked away.

Wyatt stood alone in the waiting room, wondering if he could have screwed things up worse than he had. If there was a wrong way and a disastrous way, he’d obviously gone down the latter.

He shouldn’t have attacked her like that. What were the odds she was pregnant? He’d been a first-class jerk and he knew it. He’d reacted because of what had happened with Shanna. But Claire wasn’t anything like his ex-wife.

She was also rich, he thought, not happy about the news. He considered himself a confident guy, who didn’t worry about impressing the women in his life. Yes, he had a successful business and money wasn’t an issue for him, but damn, had she really made two million last year?

“HOW DO YOU FEEL?” Claire asked.

Nicole managed a smile. “I’ve been better. I’m glad I’m going to have an orthopedic surgeon, instead of the one I had last time. Otherwise he would think I was doing this because I had a crush on him.”Claire shifted to the front of the chair she’d pulled up beside her sister’s hospital bed. “Would that be such a bad thing? A doctor. Our parents would be so proud.”

Nicole started to laugh, then pressed a hand to her midsection. “No. Don’t be funny. It hurts.”

Claire didn’t want to hear that. “Are you sure you’re okay? Nothing was ripped open when you fell?”

Nicole smiled. “There’s a visual designed to make me happy. Nothing ripped open. I’m sore because I pulled on the healing skin. There was a little oozing but nothing serious.”

“I wish it had been me.”

Nicole’s smile broadened. “Me, too.”

They looked at each other. “I’m sorry,” Claire said.

“Don’t apologize. We both fought. We were both reacting. I shouldn’t have yelled at you about Jesse. You were right. She’s your sister, too. I should have at least mentioned putting her in jail before I did it. Even though I’m so mad at her.”

“I know you are and you should be. You were right about consequences. I didn’t think that through. When Jesse called, I just reacted.”

“I’m not sure I would have done any different,” Nicole said.

Claire hoped that was true. She didn’t want her sister going back into surgery with the two of them still fighting.

“It’s probably good that you’re around with all that’s happening with Jesse,” Nicole admitted. “Someone needs to be the voice of reason.”

“I’m far from that,” Claire said, “but I want to help.” She clutched her sister’s hand more tightly. “I’m sorry I said you were a victim. You’re not. You’ve done so much on your own, with no one to support you. I totally respect that.”

Nicole blinked several times. “I don’t mean to play the victim. It’s just lately it seems like there’s always a surprise waiting around the corner and it’s rarely good.”

That made Claire think of other surprises.

“What?” Nicole asked. “You’re thinking about something. I can tell.”

Claire didn’t know if this was the time. “It’s nothing.”

“I’m trying to keep my mind off my impending surgery. Please, tell me.”

“Okay.” Claire sighed. “I had a big fight with Wyatt. When I was gone the other night, I was with him.”

“I sort of figured that.”

“He’s not happy about the virgin thing.”

“Did you tell him before or after?”

“After.”

Nicole winced. “Did he freak?”

“Pretty much. I don’t know what the big deal is, but he was all having a hissy fit.”

Nicole laughed. “I’ve never seen him have a hissy fit. That would have been fun.”

“I guess. He seemed okay with it at the time. But since then he’s had more than second thoughts.” She paused, remembering what he’d said, what she’d never considered. That there was a chance she was pregnant.