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  For Suzie & Jack.

  Love, Jim

  For my beautiful bride, Christine.

  Love, Howard

  Prologue

  WHODUNWHAT?

  THINGS AREN’T ALWAYS as they appear.

  One minute, I’m totally fine.

  The next, I’m hunched over and clutching my stomach in sheer agony. What the hell is happening to me?

  I have no idea. All I know is what I feel, and what I feel I can’t believe. It’s as if the lining of my stomach is suddenly peeling away with a corrosive burn. I’m screaming and I’m moaning, but most of all I’m praying—praying for this to stop.

  It doesn’t.

  The burning continues, a blistering hole forms, and the bile trickles out of my stomach with a sizzling… drip… drip… drip… over my entrails. The smell of my own melting flesh fills the air.

  I’m dying, I tell myself.

  But no, it’s worse than that. Much worse. I’m being skinned alive—from the inside out.

  And it’s only just beginning.

  Like a firework, the pain shoots up and explodes into my throat. It cuts off all air and I struggle to breathe.

  Then I collapse. My arms prove useless, unable to break the fall. Headfirst I hit the hardwood floor and bust open my skull. Blood, plum red and thick, oozes from above my right eyebrow. I blink a few times, but that’s all. The gash doesn’t even factor in. Needing a dozen stitches is the least of my current problems.

  The pain gets worse, continues to spread.

  Through my nose. Out to my ears. Right smack into my eyes, where I can feel the vessels popping like bubble wrap.

  I try to stand. I can’t. When I finally manage to, I try to run. All I can do is stumble forward. My legs are leaden. The bathroom is ten feet away. It might as well be ten miles.

  Somehow I make it. I get there, lock the door behind me. My knees buckle and, again, I collapse to the floor. The cold tile greets my cheek with a horrific crack! as my back molar splits in two.

  I can see the toilet but like everything else in the bathroom it’s moving. Everything is spinning and I reach for the sink, arms flailing, to try and hold on. No chance. My body begins to thrash as if a thousand volts are coursing through my veins.

  I try to crawl.

  The pain is officially everywhere, including my fingernails, which dig into the tile grout and inch me forward. I desperately grab the base of the toilet and drag my head up over the lip.

  For a second, my throat opens and I gasp for air. I begin to heave and the muscles in my chest stretch and twist. One by one, they tear as if razor blades are slashing through them.

  There’s a knocking on the door. Quickly, I turn my head. It’s getting louder and louder. More a pounding now.

  Were it only the grim reaper to put me out of this excruciating misery.

  But it’s not—not yet, at least—and that’s the moment I realize that I may not know what killed me tonight, but I know for damn sure who did it.

  Part One

  PERFECT COUPLES

  Chapter 1

  NORA COULD FEEL Connor watching her.

  He always did the same thing when she packed to leave on one of her trips. He’d lean his six foot three frame against the doorway to his bedroom, his hands buried in the pockets of his Dockers, a frown tugging on his face. He hated the thought of their being apart.

  Usually he wouldn’t say anything, though. He’d just stand there in silence as Nora filled her suitcase, occasionally taking a sip of Evian water, her favorite. But that afternoon he couldn’t help himself.

  “Don’t go,” he said in his deep voice.

  Nora turned with a loving smile. “You know I have to. You know I hate this, too.”

  “But I already miss you. Just say no, Nora—don’t go. To hell with them.”

  From day one, Nora was captivated by how vulnerable Connor allowed himself to be with her. It was in such sharp contrast to his public persona—a very rich and hard-driving hedge-fund manager with his own successful company in Greenwich, with another office in London. His puppy-dog eyes belied the fact that he was built like a lion. Powerful and proud.

  Indeed, at the relatively young age of forty, Connor was pretty much king of all he surveyed. And in Nora, thirty-three, he’d found his queen, his perfect soul mate in life.

  “You know I could tie you up and keep you from leaving,” he said jokingly.

  “That sounds like fun,” said Nora, playing along. She lifted up the top of her suitcase, which was lying open on the bed. She was searching for something.

  “First, though, could you maybe help me find my green cardigan?”

  Connor finally chuckled. He got such a kick out of her. Good jokes, bad jokes—it didn’t seem to matter. “Do you mean the one with the pearl buttons? It’s in the master closet.”

  Nora laughed. “You were dressing up in my clothes again, weren’t you?”

  She headed for the cavernous walk-in closet. When she returned, green sweater in hand, Connor had moved to the foot of the bed. He stared at her with a grin and a twinkle in his eye.

  “Uh-oh,” she said. “I know that look.”

  “What look?” he asked.

  “The one that says you want a going-away present.”

  Nora thought for a moment before flashing a grin of her own. She dropped the sweater on a chair and slowly walked up to Connor, purposefully stopping just inches from his body. She was wearing only her bra and panties.

  “From me, to you,” she whispered in his ear, leaning in.

  There wasn’t that much to unwrap, but Connor took his time anyway. He gently kissed Nora’s neck, then her shoulders, his lips tracing an imaginary line downward to the jutting curves of her small, pert breasts. There he lingered. One hand stroking her arm, the other reaching around to remove her bra.

  Nora shivered, her body tingling. Cute, funny, and very good in bed. What more could a girl ask for?

  Connor knelt and kissed Nora’s stomach, his tongue lightly drawing circles around her little wink of a belly button. Then, with a thumb resting on either side of her hips, he began to roll down her panties. He charted the progress with kiss after kiss after kiss.

  “That’s… very… nice,” whispered Nora.

  Now it was her turn. As Connor’s tall, muscular frame straightened out before her, she began to undress him. Quickly, deftly, but sensually.

  For a few seconds they stood still. Perfectly naked. Gazing at each other, taking in each and every detail. God, what could be better than this?

  Suddenly Nora laughed. She gave Connor a quick, playful shove, and he fell back onto the bed. He was fully aroused. A prodigious human sundial lying there on the duvet.

  Nora reached into her open suitcase and removed a black Ferragamo belt, pulling it taut in her hands.

  Snap!

  “Now, what was that about tying somebody up?” she asked.

  Chapter 2

  THIRTY MINUTES LATER, donning a plush pink terry-cloth robe, Nora descended the sprawling staircase of Connor’s 11,000-square-foo
t, three-story neoclassic Colonial. Even by the standards of Briarcliff Manor and the other surrounding towns of tony Westchester, his home was impressive.

  It was also impeccably furnished—every room a superb blending of form and function, style and comfort. The very best New York City antiques shops meet the best of Connecticut—Eleish-Van Breems, New Canaan Antiques, the Silk Purse, the Cellar. Signature works by Monet, Hudson River School star Thomas Cole, Magritte. A George III secretary in the library that had once been owned by J. P. Morgan. A humidor originally presented to Castro by Richard Nixon, with provenance documentation. A walk-in wine cellar that held four thousand bottles and was nearly full.

  True, Connor had hired one of the very best decorators in New York. In fact, he was so impressed with her, he asked her out on a date. Six months later she was tying him up in bed.

  And he’d never felt happier, more excited, more alive in his entire life.

  Five years before, he’d found love, marveled at it, treasured it, but his fiancée, Moira, had died of cancer. He’d thought he could never find love again, but suddenly there she was, the amazing Nora Sinclair.

  Nora walked through the marble foyer and past the dining room. Before she had to leave, there was just enough time to take pity on the appetite she’d worked up in Connor.

  She entered the kitchen, her favorite room in the house. Prior to enrolling at the New York School of Interior Design, she’d thought about becoming a chef. Even gone as far as taking courses at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris.

  Though she chose to decorate homes instead of plates, cooking remained one of Nora’s passions. It relaxed her. Helped clear her mind. Even making something as basic as Connor’s favorite: a big, juicy double cheeseburger with onions—and inside, caviar.

  Fifteen minutes later, she called out to him, “Honey, it’s almost ready. Are you?”

  Back in cutoff Dockers and Polo shirt, he made his way downstairs and ambled up behind Nora at the stove. “No place else on earth…”

  “… I’d rather be,” she said, taking her cue. It was one of their things. A shared mantra. Little testaments of making the most of their time together, which, given their bustling careers, was always at a premium.

  He peered over her shoulder as she sliced into a large onion. “They never make you cry, huh?”

  “No, I guess they don’t.”

  Connor took a seat at the kitchen table. “When is the car service picking you up?”

  “Less than an hour.”

  He nodded, fidgeted with a place mat. “So where is this client of yours who’s making you work on a Sunday?”

  “Boston,” she answered. “Retired guy who just bought and renovated a huge brownstone in the Back Bay.”

  Nora cut a kaiser roll and loaded it up with the sizzling double cheeseburger and onions. She grabbed an Amstel Light for Connor and another Evian water for herself from the fridge.

  “Better than Smith and Wollensky,” he said after the first bite. “With a far more attractive chef, I might add.”

  Nora smiled. “I’ve got some Graeter’s for you, too. Raspberry Chip.” Graeter’s was the best ice cream she’d ever tasted, good enough, great enough, to have it shipped all the way from Cincinnati.

  Nora took a sip of water and watched him make quick work of her cooking. He always did. Such a healthy appetite! Good for him.

  “God, I love you,” he suddenly gushed.

  “And I love you.” Nora stopped and stared into his blue eyes. “I do. I adore you, actually.”

  He raised his palms in the air. “Then, really, what are we waiting for?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, you’ve already got more clothes here than I do.”

  Nora blinked a few times. “Is that your idea of a proposal?”

  “No,” he said. “This is my idea of one.”

  He reached into the pocket of his shorts and removed a small box, Tiffany blue. Dropping to one knee, Connor placed it in her hand. “Nora Sinclair, you make me incredibly happy. I can’t believe that I found you. Will you marry me?”

  With a completely stunned look on her face, Nora opened the box to see an enormous diamond. Tears welled in her green eyes.

  “Yes, yes, yes! Yippee-yes!” she cried out. “I’ll marry you, Connor Brown! I love you so much.”

  Pop! went the champagne. Dom Pérignon ’85 that he’d chilled in anticipation. He’d also bought a bottle of Jack Daniel’s for himself, just in case Nora said no.

  With two glasses poured, Connor raised his high and made a toast. “To happily ever after,” he said.

  “To happily ever after,” echoed Nora. “To yippee-yes!”

  They clinked glasses, they sipped, they held hands. Madly in love and giddy with excitement, they hugged and kissed.

  Soon, though, the celebration was interrupted by a horn in the driveway. Nora’s car service had arrived.

  She quickly dressed, and moments later, as the limousine started to drive away, Nora called to Connor out the open back window. “I’m the luckiest girl in the world!”

  Chapter 3

  NORA COULDN’T STOP staring at the dazzling ring for most of the ride to the Westchester airport. Connor had done well. The diamond was at least four carats, a brilliant round stone, at least D or E color, and flanked by baguettes. All set beautifully in platinum. It looked amazing on her, she thought. It looks like it belongs.

  “Will you be needing a pickup upon your return, Ms. Sinclair?” asked the driver, guiding her out of the Lincoln Town Car in front of the terminal.

  “No, I’m all set,” she said. “Thank you.” She handed the man a handsome tip, popped up the handle on her suitcase, and rolled on inside—past the exceedingly long line for coach check-in and right up to the first-class counter. With each step she could practically hear Connor’s voice and the start of one of their other shared mantras.

  “Less hassle…,” he’d say.

  “Is always worth more money,” she’d respond.

  After a smooth takeoff and a climb to cruising altitude, Nora finally took her eyes off her engagement ring. She opened up the latest issue of House & Garden. One of the feature pictorials was a home she’d decorated for a client out in Connecticut. DARING IN DARIEN, read the title. The shots were glorious, and the accompanying article glowing with praise. The only thing missing was any mention of her name.

  Precisely how she wanted it.

  An hour later, the plane touched down at Logan Airport. Nora picked up her rental car, a Chrysler Sebring convertible. With the top down and her sunglasses on, she started on her way toward the Back Bay section of Boston.

  The presets on the radio led her to believe two things. First, Beantown had too many all-talk stations. Second, the previous driver had no business renting that car. A convertible requires music.

  She hit the SEEK button and found a tune to her liking. With her hair blowing freely in the wind and her tan skin soaking up the mid-June sun, she sang along with a classic. “I Only Have Eyes for You” by the Flamingos.

  Soon Nora pulled up to a magnificent old brownstone on Commonwealth Avenue just down from the Public Garden. The relative quiet of a summer Sunday afternoon had lent itself to a bit of luck: a visitor space in front. “Goodie,” Nora said.

  She shifted into park and spent a moment making a minor adjustment to her hair. Barrette? No barrette? Barrette! Before reaching for the door, she glanced at her watch. It was showtime.

  Chapter 4

  AS SHE WALKED up to the oversize double doors of the old brownstone, Nora reached inside her purse for the key she’d been given when Jeffrey Walker first hired her. With the place so big and the buzzer a little temperamental, he’d asked that she just let herself in. A little voice in her head whispered, Sweet.

  “Hello? Is anyone here?” Nora called as she stepped inside. “Hello? Mr. Walker?”

  She stood in the center of the foyer and listened. Then she heard the distant sound of Miles Davis and his magnificent
trumpet trickling down from the second floor.

  She called out again. This time she heard footsteps overhead.

  “Nora, is that you?” came a voice from atop the stairs.

  “Were you expecting someone else?” she answered. “You better not be.”

  Jeffrey Walker hurried down to the foyer. Then he swept Nora up in his arms. He twirled her around as they kissed for a full minute. Then they kissed again.

  “God, you’re so beautiful!” he said, finally lowering her back to the floor.

  She gave him a playful punch to the stomach with her left hand. Connor’s four-carat diamond had already been replaced by Jeffrey’s six-carat sapphire set with diamonds in a three-stone arrangement.

  “I bet you say that to all your wives,” she said.

  “No, just the gorgeous ones like you. God, I missed you, Nora. Who wouldn’t?”

  They laughed and kissed again, deeply and passionately.

  “So, tell me, how was your flight?” he asked.

  “Good. For commercial anyway. How’s the new book coming?”

  “It’s no War and Peace. No Da Vinci Code, either.”

  “You always say that, Jeffrey.”

  “It’s always true.”

  At age forty-two, Jeffrey Sage Walker was an international bestselling author of historical fiction. He had fans numbering in the millions, the majority of them women. They liked his writing and strong female characters, but his rough-hewn handsomeness on the dust jacket certainly didn’t hurt. Never had tussled bleached-blond hair and razor stubble looked so good.

  Suddenly he swooped Nora up and threw her over his shoulder. She howled as he climbed the stairs.

  Jeffrey was headed for the bedroom, but Nora grabbed a doorjamb and made him turn into his library. She had her eye on his favorite chair—the one he did his writing in. “You always say you do your best work in it,” she said. “Let’s see about that.”

  He lowered her into the worn brown leather seat cushion and changed the music. Norah Jones, one of their favorites.