Between Sisters

“That’s what I thought. Go with her now. ”

“But Alison—”

“Sam can take care of Ali. I’ll let him know. ” She opened her purse and dug through it, finally pulling out a scrap of paper. She wrote something down and handed it to Meghann. “Here’s my cell phone number. Call me in an hour and I’ll let you know Ali’s schedule. ”

“Claire won’t want to go with me. Especially not after I nixed the dresses. ”

“And fell asleep. The snoring was especially poignant. Anyway, I got the impression from Claire that other people’s needs or wants didn’t matter much to you. ”

“You don’t pull any punches, do you?”

“Thus, the divorce. Take Claire out for dinner. Go see a movie. Look at wedding flowers. Do something sisterly. It’s about time. ”

THIRTEEN

CLAIRE KNEW HER LIPS WERE DRAWN IN A TIGHT, unyielding line that communicated displeasure. She’d honed that skill; the ability to convey anger without having to form the words that would make her feel regret afterward. Her dad often remarked on this talent of hers. Lordy, Claire, he’d say, no one else can yell at me without saying a word. Someday all that silent anger of yours is gonna back up in your throat and choke you.

She glanced sideways at her sister, who was behind the wheel, driving too fast, her black hair flapping behind her like some celebrity starlet’s. Sunglasses that probably cost more than Claire’s net worth covered her eyes. “Where are we going?” she asked for the fourth time.

“You’ll see. ” Always the same answer. Clipped and unadorned. As if Meghann were afraid to say more.

She’d fallen asleep.

It wasn’t as if Claire asked much of her sister. Hell, nothing was farther from the truth. She hadn’t expected her sister to join in the fun of buying a wedding gown. God, no. Meghann enjoy a day with girlfriends? Hardly.

What galled most was that Claire had asked Meg’s opinion first, even with Gina and Charlotte right there. Claire had put her neediness on the table: What do you think, Meghann?

She’d asked her twice. After the second time, she rectified her mistake and ignored Meghann completely.

Then she’d heard the snores.

That was when she’d felt the sting of tears.

It hadn’t helped, of course, that all of the dresses had been wrong, or that even ugly dresses were expensive these days, or that, by the end of the afternoon, she’d actually begun to think that a white sundress might be more practical. That had only brought the tears closer. But now Claire was just plain mad. Meghann would ruin this wedding; there was no doubt about it. Her sister was like an airborne virus. Ten seconds in the room with her and you began to feel sick.

“I need to get back to Ali,” Claire said, also for the fourth time.

“You will. ”

Claire took a deep breath. Enough was enough. “Look, Meg, about planning my wedding. Honestly, you—”

“We’re here. ” Meg tucked the silver Porsche into an empty parking spot on the street. Before Claire could respond, Meghann was out of the car and standing by the meter. “Come on. ”

They were in downtown Seattle now. Her sister’s territory. Meg probably wanted to show off her hugely expensive condo.

Claire frowned. They were parked at the base of a long, slowly rising hill. Up ahead—maybe six blocks away—she could see the Public Market. Behind them, also several blocks away, was the ferry terminal. A street musician played a sad tune on a saxophone; the music floated above the traffic noises. To their left, a waterfall of concrete steps spilled down the courtyard of a condo complex. Across the street was a Diamond Parking lot, the stalls mostly empty on this non-game day.

“Do you live here?” Claire asked as she grabbed her bag and climbed out of the sports car. “I always pictured you in some sleek high-rise. ”

“I invited you to my place a ton of times. ”

“Twice. You invited me over once that day Mama was in town for the el creepo convention and once for Christmas dinner. You canceled the Christmas dinner because you got the flu, and Mama took us out for dinner at Canlis instead. ”

Meghann looked surprised by that. “Really? I thought I was always asking you to see my place. ”

“You were. You just never set up a day and time. I was always supposed to stop by when I was in town. News flash: I’m never in town. ”

“You seem a little hostile today. ”