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Page 205
drawn across a century, she now was certain of only one wonderful, agonizing fact: she had fallen deeply, irrevocably, impossibly in love with Mike Danziger.
She smiled sadly to herself and nestled closer.
From the darkness his deep and dear voice whispered, ''Abby, are you awake?"
She responded by tightening her embrace.
"You're not conspiring with Philip to steal Arlen's Kitchens from me." He spoke a statement, not a question, yet he did not sound convinced.
"No!" The cocoon of safety and warmth in which Abby had been furled crumbled about her. "How could you imagine such a thing?" She tried to pull away, but his strong arms still held her close.
"You knew about Arlen's Kitchens on the desert." His voice was muffled against her hair.
"I knew about Arlen. You look like him."
He gave a small, disbelieving snort. "And . . ."
She felt his hesitation through the tensing of his body. "What?"
"I saw you with Philip yesterday."
A new wave of Mike's emotion plunged through her, a piercing sense of betrayal. But it was not a current pain. She knew he was reliving the way he had felt when he had first seen her with Philip. Tears welled in her eyes, and she burrowed closer to him, holding him tightly, soothing him. She inhaled his pleasant masculine aroma, tinged with soap and heat and salt.
She began to explain. "I saw Philip outside your office when I returned." Her soft voice wa-

 
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