Page 62 of Say Yes to the Death

Claire took a deep breath and got to her feet. She tucked her phone back in her carry-on and surveyed the bathroom for any items she left behind. Seeing nothing, she squared her shoulders and strolled back out into the airport. There was no choice but to move on.

“I just have one stop before home.” Claire rattled off Nicole’s address to the cab driver.She had taken over Rosie-watching duty for the day while Mindy went camping with Gavin.

Claire ran a hand over her neck. All the tension in the world seemed to have settled on her during the transatlantic flight.

The driver nodded wordlessly and put on his turn signal, pulling out of the airport.

She texted Nicole. She was definitely going to be surprised when she showed up a full twelve hours early—and without Luke. Claire leaned back in her seat. A sparrow flitted past her window.

Luke’s betrayal burned like a bee sting. Her cheeks were dry and tight where her tears had dried over the Atlantic.She had oscillated between pissed off and humiliated a dozen times during the trip.

She had felt so full and so safe just twenty-four hours ago.How had her life become such a mess? Again?

Nicole: Everything okay?

Claire: Yeah, just caught an earlier flight.

Nicole: Good. Can’t wait to hear about Paris :)

Her phone pinged with a series of texts from Luke, but she couldn’t bring herself to open any of them. Nothing he had to say was going to be worth her time.

When Claire pulled up in front of Nicole and Kyle’s apartment, the steps seemed as insurmountable as Mount Everest. But her furry best friend was waiting for her. “Keep it together, Claire,” she muttered to herself, then told the driver, “I’ll be just a second.”

He nodded and pulled a folded newspaper off the passenger seat, meter still running.

Claire knocked on the door, more than ready for her fur baby to leap into her arms.

“Hey, Coli—oh!” she exclaimed when Nicole opened the door and she saw their kitchen. Candles were arranged on the table, and a bottle of champagne was chilling.

Nicole was wearing a red mini dress, and her hair was carefully gathered into an elaborate knot. Kyle, who had a spatula in his hand, was dressed in a sports coat but wasn’t wearing any pants. The apartment smelled like marinara sauce and excess garlic.

A sudden realization dawned on Claire. “Oh crap, it’s the second, isn’t it? Your dating anniversary! I’m so sorry for intruding.”

Nicole smiled. “Stop it. You’re the reason why we started dating. It would be weird if you weren’t here. Oh, maybe you should tell that story for your maid of honor speech.”

“Please. It’s already in there.” She had written the six-page document the day after Nicole and Kyle’s engagement.

A streak of fur came sprinting out of the bathroom, part of a roll of toilet paper dangling from her mouth.

“Roro!” Claire dropped to her knees. Rosie launched herself at Claire like a shedding, ginger missile. She licked Claire’s face furiously, and Claire hugged her tightly. Rosie was the only living creature who could never disappoint her—no matter how many shoes she ate.

“I? see you weren’t being a good girl.” She laughed and tugged the toilet paper roll out of the dog’s mouth.

“Don’t worry about it. She was great,” Kyle said. “Only tried to knock the garbage can over seven or eight times.”

Claire laughed in spite of herself. “We’re working on that, but she’s been resistant to the training. Thank you so much for watching her. I’ll get out of your hair—the meter’s running.” She leaned over and picked up Rosie’s overnight bag.

“The meter?” Nicole paused as she tied an apron around her waist. “You took a cab? Was something wrong with Luke’s car?”

Claire straightened and gripped Rosie’s leash. “It’s no big deal, we can talk about it later.”

“Are you sure? There’s something you’re not telling me.” Nicole came closer and grabbed Claire’s hand. Her brown eyes probed Claire’s.

She should have known. Nicole was like a drama-sniffing bloodhound. “Everything’s fine. We’ll talk tomorrow. Enjoy your dinner. It smells amazing. And thanks again for watching this little terror,” she said, leaning in and giving Nicole a hug. There was no way she was ruining their romantic night with her stupid boy problems.

Get it together, Claire. She sniffed loudly, choking back the tears that were threatening to leak out.

“Wait. You’re not going home alone, are you? It’s not safe, Claire,” Nicole said, squeezing her hand.

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