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He hesitated. “For the record, Sandy and I are both sorry that we encouraged you to go back to Bailey. We didn’t know about him then.”

“You didn’t,” she agreed. “And I was too ashamed to tell you. That’s all in the past. No worries.”

“You take care of yourself.”

She smiled. “I’ll do my best.”

“Some gentle exercise would help strengthen those muscles,” he added.

“So you keep telling me. I bought a Tai Chi DVD,” she added. “It’s made for people with arthritis. So far, I’ve managed one whole form without falling over the coffee table.”

He chuckled. “Keep it up.”

She grinned. “I will.”

SHEWENTTOthe counter and got her next appointment set, then walked outside. She pulled out her phone and hesitated. She really shouldn’t start anything with McGuire, she told herself. He didn’t like her, even though he’d been kind today. And she hesitated to put him in the line of fire. She should just call a cab.

She pulled up the internet on her smartphone and started looking for the number of the only local cab company. Before she could copy the number, a red Mercedes pulled into the parking lot and stopped beside her.

CHAPTER TWO

IDAPAUSEDWITHthe phone in her hand and her mouth slightly open as she stared at the man sitting in the big car beside her.

He powered down the window. “Calling somebody?” he asked. “A cab, perhaps?”

She felt a shiver inside. How had he known?

“Get in.”

She was too unsettled to argue. She climbed in beside him and fastened her seat belt. “How could you possibly know?” she asked.

He shrugged. “I get these wild notions sometimes. I don’t know where they come from. Well, that’s not quite true. An ancestor of mine ran afoul of the authorities in Salem, Massachusetts, in the sixteen hundreds.”

She pursed her lips and whistled softly.

“So I come by it honestly. I knew my parents were going to die. I dreamed it.”

“That must have been a hard gift to live with.”

“It still is. Do you have a prescription to pick up?”

She nodded. “I’ll check and see if it’s ready. You’re sure you don’t mind?” she added worriedly.

Silver eyes met hers and slid away. “If I minded, I wouldn’t be here.”

“Okay, then. Thanks.”

She phoned the pharmacy and spoke to Carol, a clerk she knew well. She asked about the prescription, smiled and thanked her.

She put the phone away. “She said they’re already working on it. They have the drug in stock.”

“What sort of drug?”

“Ibuprofen,” she replied and told him the milligrams.

“Good God, you’ll destroy your liver,” he muttered.

“Five days on, ten off,” she replied. “And you take it with meals three times a day.” She drew in a long breath. “It isn’t my first walk around the block with this drug, although it’s been a couple of years since I’ve needed such a dose. We tried other meds, but they weren’t working.”

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