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one who had superpowers of observation.
She looked over and saw him watching her with amusement, his long legs stretched out
comfortably in front of him. Oh . . . whatever. Fine. So maybe her nervousness was making her a
touch cranky right then. In her defense, that was her sister they d wheeled out on that gurney, her
younger sister, her only sibling, for whom she d felt semi-responsible since they were kids. A sister
who she could still remember as a sweet five-year-old, waiting on the front porch of their house on
the day Sidney had returned from sleepaway camp the summer after their mother had died. She could
picture the huge smile on Isabelle s face as the car had pulled into the driveway, the way she d
bounded down the stairs and had hugged Sidney tight and declared that she was never, ever allowed
to leave again for that long. Not like Mommy, she d said.
And now Sidney was teary-eyed and sniffing.
Vaughn got to his feet, as if that settled it.  Okay, Sinclair. Let s go.
 Go where?
 Out of this waiting room, he declared.  You need a break. There s a Starbucks in the lobby with
a grande Frappucino with your name on it.
She scoffed.  I can t leave. What if they finish the surgery and Simon is looking for us?
 Well, lucky for you, you re traveling with an FBI agent. And I just so happen to be in possession
of a cutting-edge device that allows a person to track anyone down, anywhere in this city. Vaughn
pulled something out of his pocket and held it up: his cell phone. He looked around furtively, and put
his finger to his lips.  Shh. Don t tell anyone. We re talking supersecret FBI technology here.
She threw him a look.  Are we through with the comedy routine now?
He held out his hand to her, not saying anything further. He simply waited with that infuriatingly
confident look.
With a sigh it wasn t worth the argument Sidney let him lead her out of the waiting room. They
walked to the elevators and waited. She could see the satisfied gleam in Vaughn s eyes, and she was
about to comment when an elderly woman stepped out of the waiting room and joined them at the
elevator bank.
The woman smiled at the two of them just as the elevator doors opened and they stepped inside.
As the elevator doors closed, Sidney noticed that the woman kept looking at them.
 It s okay, I m a little emotional, too, she said to Sidney, with a kind expression.  My husband is
having his third heart surgery in two years. Sitting in those waiting rooms . . . it gets you thinking.
She gestured at Vaughn, smiling fondly.  I was watching you two. You remind me of my husband and
me thirty years ago. Oh, the arguments we used to have. We could go back and forth, all day long.
She winked.  My husband called it foreplay.
Alrighty, then. Nothing like a little too much information from a perfect stranger. But Sidney was
distracted by something else the woman had said. She pointed between herself and Vaughn. Sure,
maybe, for a split second she d contemplated the idea of having meaningless sex with the guy, but a
relationship? Hell to the no, sister.  Oh, we re not a couple.
 Definitely not a couple, Vaughn added emphatically.
 He doesn t do couples, Sidney explained.
 She has a checklist, Vaughn said.  With thirty-four things on it.
The elderly woman eyed them carefully, as if she wasn t buying it.  Uh-huh.
 See, her sister is marrying my brother, Vaughn continued. Like Sidney, he seemed to feel the
need for further explanations.
 He s the best man. I m the maid of honor, Sidney said.  And we keep getting stuck together
because of this whole big wedding and secret baby drama with our siblings.
 Probably, it s not so much a  secret baby if you tell everyone about it, Vaughn said under his
breath.
 She doesn t know us and it gives context to the story, Sidney muttered back. Then she smiled at
the elderly woman.  See? Clearly not a couple.
The woman smiled as the elevator stopped at the third floor.  Well. Obviously, I was mistaken.
Carry on as you were. With a friendly nod in good-bye, she stepped out of the elevator.
Once she was gone, Sidney and Vaughn shared an incredulous look.
 Why does that keep happening to us? Sidney asked.
 She s just thinking about her husband, Vaughn said.  She wants to see happy couples
everywhere.
The elevator doors sprung open at the first floor, and Vaughn put his hand on the door to keep it
open for Sidney. She took a step forward and suddenly felt a tug of resistance. She looked down and
then realized something.
She and Vaughn had been holding hands the entire time since he d led her out of the waiting room.
Vaughn stared down at their joined hands, seemingly just catching on to this fact himself. Then he
looked back up to meet her gaze.
They dropped hands instantly.
 You said something about coffee? Sidney asked, a tad overbrightly.
 Yep, I think the Starbucks is right this way, Vaughn said, his tone cheerfully nonchalant.
They scurried off, maintaining a good two feet of space between them.
" " "
AB OUT A HALF hour after Vaughn and Sidney returned from their coffee run, a relieved Simon came
to the waiting room with the news that Isabelle was out of surgery and that both she and the baby were
doing fine. He led them up to the fourteenth floor of the hospital, where Isabelle was recovering from
the surgery in a private room.
Vaughn fought back a smile as Sidney fussed over Isabelle s blanket and pillow, wanting to make
sure she was comfortable. These brief glimpses into the softer side of the oft-prickly elder Sinclair
sister were rather . . . cute.
 Did they say how long you ll be in the hospital? Sidney asked.
 Only twenty-four hours, since it was laparoscopic surgery, Isabelle answered drowsily,
obviously still feeling the effects of the anesthesia.  And then I need to take it easy for a week.
 A week or two, depending on how quickly you recover, Simon corrected her.
Isabelle frowned.  I ll have to call all my clients and cancel their appointments this week. And
then we have our tasting at the Lakeshore Club next Sunday. If we have to reschedule that, I m not
sure when we ll be able to get it in. We re running out of time.
Sitting on the opposite side of the bed from Sidney, Simon stroked Isabelle s forehead.  Don t
worry about the wedding stuff. I told you, all that will come together. For now, let s just stay focused
on getting you and the baby the rest you need.
 Do you want me to call Dad? Sidney asked.
Isabelle and Simon exchanged looks, as if they d discussed exactly that.  We d still like to keep
the fact that I m pregnant on the down-low, if we can. That is, if you two don t mind keeping up the
charade a little longer. Isabelle looked tentatively at Vaughn, who sat a little farther from the bed, in
the chair next to the window.
Vaughn was surprised she even had to ask. Yes, fine, maybe he wasn t  the guy people typically
talked to about love and weddings and babies, but he hoped there at least wasn t any doubt that he
could keep his mouth shut. This was Simon and Isabelle s business, and their news to share when they
were ready.  I m okay with that, he assured Isabelle.  In fact, I volunteer if you ever again need [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]