Brides And Blessings

“I stand corrected.” Suzann wiggled her nose teasingly. “Now, back to Mike.” She put her hands on her knees. “I want you to feel free to phone him at any time and for any reason.”

“All right.”

“He’ll also be your escort whenever you go out socially, so he can tell you who is who among my circle of friends. Any problem with that?”

“Not at all. I’ll need to be with someone who knows who I really am. Otherwise I would never be able to go through with this—this disguise.”

Suzann’s throat felt dry and sore. However, she’d learned long ago that mentioning one’s aches and pains proved pointless. The show must go on—no matter what.

She reclaimed her mug from the coffee table and blew away invisible steam before lifting it to her lips. The warm liquid soothed her burning throat.

Somehow, the sugary taste and the scent of fresh coffee also triggered still more thoughts on her physical condition. Was she sick instead of tired? Impossible. Suzann Condry was never ill.

She swallowed slowly and glanced back at her sister. Holly had already demonstrated what a kind, straightforward person she could be. Still, how could Holly possibly fit into the world Suzann had left behind? And deep down, was Holly wishing she’d never suggested that they make the switch?

Five weeks ago Suzann didn’t know she had a twin sister. Now that she’d had the opportunity to know Holly, they had bonded in ways Suzann never thought possible. A lump formed in her throat. It wouldn’t be easy to say goodbye.

“Holly, it’s not too late to back out. Are you sure you want to go through with this?”

“I’m sure. And I have no intention of backing out.”

“You can’t know how much this means to me,” Suzann said. “And how much I appreciate what you’re doing.”

“You’re my sister. We’re family now.”

Suzann reached over and hugged her sister. “You’re great.”

When the sisterly embrace ended, Suzann took Holly’s hand in hers and held it. After all the years of living as an only child, it felt good to have a sibling.

Yet in a few minutes, Holly and Mike would take a limo to the airport in San Antonio and fly to California. Suzann would settle into Holly’s apartment here in Texas. They wouldn’t see each other again for months, and there were still so many things they had never discussed.

“Holly, what’s the real reason you agreed to do this?”

Holly hesitated as if she was going over something in her mind. “I’m doing this because of you.”

Suzann pressed her hand to her chest. “Me?”

Her mother’s locket under her palm felt cold and as unyielding as Greer Fraser’s heart. Suzann moved her hand to her face, touching her chin with her forefinger.

“You hardly know me,” Suzann added.

“Don’t be silly. You’re my twin sister. Why, I already love you.”

“Is that the only reason you’re doing this?”

“Not entirely.” Holly focused her full attention on Suzann. “I happen to think there’s something missing in your life. Something important. Stepping into my shoes for a few months, you might find out what that important something really is.”

Suzann inclined her head toward her sister, planning to ask what could be more important than a normal life. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mike, standing in the doorway.

“How long have you been there?” Suzann asked.

He grinned, first at Suzann and then at Holly. “Not long. And it’s time to go, Sue. It’s a long drive, and our plane leaves in less than two hours.”

Holly didn’t move a muscle.

“He means you, Holly,” Suzann said. “You’re the only Sue in this room now.”

“I know he meant me. It’s just that—” Holly’s voice cracked with emotion “—after all these years, I’ve finally found my sister. I’m not ready to give her up yet”

“I’m not ready to give you up, either.”

Holly and Mike left a few minutes later. Suzann stood at the window until the rented limo disappeared behind a hill.

She gathered her things and locked the cabin. Then she settled behind the wheel of Holly’s compact car and flipped on the heater. At the fork in the gravel road, she turned onto a narrow, two-lane highway, speculating about what lay ahead.

She already missed Holly, and there was so much to do and so much to remember. Recalling everything Holly had told her about Oak Valley and her new life there might prove more difficult than memorizing a scene from a movie script.

Now what was the name of that good-looking assistant pastor who also served as the youth director at Holly’s church? Oh, yes, Josh Gallagher. Suzann smiled to herself. After hearing Holly rave about the man for two weeks, her curiosity level had reached an all-time high.

The highway snaked around rocky hills and over numerous low-water crossings. Holly had prepared her for huge trees, clear running water, and a hint of fall colors brightening the landscape. Yet the sheer beauty of a late-October morning in the Texas hills astounded her. If she didn’t know better, she would swear she was driving through the autumn countryside in Vermont or Connecticut.

Suzann had grown up in L.A. Holly had spent her growing-up years on a Texas ranch. Though their lives couldn’t have been more different, some similarities were astounding.

As children, both twins hated math, loved art and music, and were poor spellers. Both sucked their thumbs until they were four years old, got the chicken pox the Christmas they were six, had big orange tabby cats as pets and liked to keep things neat and tidy.

If that were not enough, Suzann and Holly put on identical blue sweat pants and matching tops on their second morning at the cabin without knowing what the other twin planned to wear that day. Suzann still couldn’t understand it all. However, Holly had suggested she read a book on twins who were separated at birth. Suzann resolved to buy a copy.

A white water tower in the distance told Suzann she would soon arrive in Oak Valley. Holly had said the town all but shuts down by noon on Saturdays. Suzann glanced at the hand-drawn map Holly had given her. A native Californian should be able to find Holly’s apartment with no problem at all.

The apartment on the second floor of a mom-andpop apartment house looked even smaller than Suzann expected. Still, a rush of excitement filled her as she opened the door for the first time.

Inside the doorway, her eyes widened, taking in the deep blue and off-white color scheme, and the quaint, antique furniture. Just what I would have chosen, she thought. And lace curtains. Perfect. She put down her suitcases. It seemed identical twins—even when separated at birth—were more alike than she had dreamed possible.

A document in a wooden frame hung over the bookcase. Suzann crossed the room for a closer look. Holly’s college diploma stared at her from behind clear glass.

Her twin sister had said she was a university graduate. Now Suzann also knew that Holly graduated from Baylor with a degree in English and library science. Very impressive.

Suzann always dreamed of going to college. But how could she? As the main breadwinner in her tiny family, it was a wonder she managed to graduate from high school.

Oh, she’d taken courses in drama at an exclusive school in New York City, but that didn’t count. Her studio paid for the courses, and she was pressured to take them.

Pressured should have been her middle name. Growing up, adults manipulated her constantly. Was it surprising that now, as an adult, Suzann had a problem making decisions?

Suddenly tired, she sat down and leaned back, gripping the maple arms of an aged rocker. The wood felt good under her hands, strong, like solid families. She’d never experienced that kind of closeness. She’d merely simulated that emotion when the movie script called for it.

Oh, her mother had loved her, all right, and was always just and kind. Yet for whatever reason, her adoptive mother, Nancy Condry, was distant—seldom kissing or hugging Suzann. As an adult, she still struggled to fully understand.

Her adoptive father died in a car accident less than two years after Suzann was born, and her mother had needed a means of support for herself and her baby daughter. It couldn’t have been easy, rearing a child alone.