The small stutter and flicker of nervousness told Sarah she hadn’t entered some alternate universe. With a smile for the older couple, Gina pushed her chair back. Sarah did the same.
“Let’s go down to Chapel Bridge,” she suggested. “We can talk there.”
The Rebstock sat directly across the street from Lucerne’s centuries-old Church of Leodegar, named for the city’s patron saint. Just beyond the needle-spired church, the cobbled street angled downward, following the Reuss River as it flowed into the impossibly blue lake. Since the Reuss bisected the city, Lucerne could claim almost as many bridges as Venice. The most famous of them was the Chapel Bridge, or Kapellbrücke. Reputed to be the oldest covered wooden bridge in Europe, it was constructed in the early 1300s. Some sections had to be rebuilt after a 1993 fire supposedly sparked by a discarded cigarette. But the octagonal watchtower halfway across was original, and the window boxes filled with spring flowers made it a favorite meandering spot for locals and tourists alike.
Zigzagging for more than six hundred feet across the river, it was decorated with paintings inside that depicted Lucerne’s history and offered wooden benches with stunning views of the town, the lake and the snowcapped Alps. Gina sank onto a bench some yards from the watchtower. Sarah settled beside her and waited while her sister gnawed on her lower lip and stared at the snowy peaks in uncharacteristic silence.
“You might as well tell me,” she said gently after several moments. “Whatever’s happened, we’ll find a way to fix it.”
Gina exhaled a long, shuddering breath. Twisting around on the bench, she reached for Sarah’s hands.
“That’s the problem. I came here to fix it. But at the last minute, I couldn’t go through with it.”
“Go through with what?”
“Terminating the pregnancy.”
Sarah managed not to gasp or groan or mangle the fingers entwined with hers, but it took a fierce struggle.
“You’re pregnant?”
“Barely. I peed on the stick even before I missed my period. I thought... I was sure we were safe. He wore a condom.” She gave a short, dry laugh. “Actually, we went through a whole box of condoms that weekend.”
“For God’s sake, I don’t need the details. Except maybe his name. I assume we’re talking about your ski instructor.”
“Who?”
“The cuddly ski instructor you texted me about.”
“Oh. There isn’t any ski instructor. I just needed an excuse for my sudden trip to Switzerland.”
That arrowed straight to Sarah’s heart. Never, ever would she have imagined that her sister would keep a secret like this from her.
“Oh, Gina, why did you need an excuse? Why didn’t you just tell me about the baby?”
“I couldn’t. You’ve been so worried about Grandmama and the doctor bills. I couldn’t dump this problem on you, too.”
She crunched Sarah’s fingers, tears shimmering in her eyes.
“But last night... After I canceled my appointment at the clinic...it all sort of came down on me. I had to call you, had to talk to you. Then, when I heard your voice, I just lost it.”
When she burst into wrenching sobs, Sarah wiggled a hand free of her bone-crushing grip and threw an arm around her.
“I’m glad you lost it,” she said fiercely as Gina cried into her shoulder. “I’m glad I was close enough to come when you needed me.”
They rocked together, letting the tears flow, until Gina finally raised a tear-streaked face.
“You okay?” Sarah asked, fishing a tissue out of her purse.
“No, but...but I will be.”
Thank God. She heard the old Gina in that defiant sniff. She handed her the tissue and hid a grin when her sister honked like a Canadian goose.
“I meant to ask you about that, Sarah.”
“About what?”
“How you could get here so fast. What were you doing in Paris?”
“I’ll tell you later. Let’s focus on you right now. And the baby. Who’s the father, Gina, and does he know he is one?”
“Yes, to the second part. I was so wigged-out last night, I called him before I called you.” She scrunched up her nose. “He didn’t take it well.”
“Bastard!”
“And then some.” Her tears completely gone now, Gina gave an indignant sniff. “You wouldn’t believe how obnoxious and overbearing he is. And I can’t believe I fell for him, even for one weekend. Although in my defense, he gives new meaning to the phrase sex on the hoof.”
“Who is this character?”
“No one you know. I met him in L.A. My company catered a party for him.”
The bottom dropped out of Sarah’s stomach. She could have sworn she heard it splat into the weathered boards. She stared at the snow-covered peaks in the distance, but all she could see was the surveillance video of Gina. At Dev’s house in L.A. Catering a private party.
“What’s...?” She dragged her tongue over suddenly dry lips. Her voice sounded hollow in her ears, as though it came from the bottom of a well. “What’s his name?”
“Jack Mason.” Gina’s lip curled. “Excuse me, John Harris Mason, the third.”
For a dizzying moment, Sarah couldn’t catch her breath. She only half heard the diatribe her sister proceeded to pour out concerning the man. She caught that he was some kind of ambassador, however, and that he worked out of the State Department.
“How in the world did you hook up with someone from the State Department?”
“He was in L.A. for a benefit. A friend introduced us.”
“Oh. Well...”
Since Gina seemed to have finally run out of steam, Sarah asked if she’d eaten breakfast.
“No, I was waiting for you to wake up.”
“The baby...” She gestured at her sister’s still-flat stomach. “You need to eat, and I’m starved. Why don’t you go back to the hotel and order us a gargantuan breakfast? I’ll join you after I make a few calls.”
“You’re not going to call Grandmama?” Alarm put a squeak in Gina’s voice. “We can’t drop this on her long-distance.”
“Good Lord, no! I need to call Paris. I raced out so fast last night, I didn’t pack my things or check out of the hotel.”
Or wait for Dev to hotfoot it back to the Hôtel Verneuil. Sarah didn’t regret that hasty decision. She wouldn’t have made the Swiss Air flight if she’d waited. But she did regret the anger that had flared between them.
No need to tell Gina about Dev right now. Not when she and Sarah were both still dealing with the emotional whammy of her pregnancy. She’d tell her later, after things had calmed down a bit.
Which was why she waited until her sister was almost to the exit of the wooden tunnel to whip out her phone. And why frustration put a scowl on her face when Dev didn’t answer his cell.
She left a brief message. Just a quick apology for her spurt of temper last night and a request for him to return her call as soon as possible. She started to slip the phone back into her purse, but decided to try his hotel room. The house phone rang six times before switching to the hotel operator, as it had last night.
“May