she said, rubbing her forehead. She handed back the empty coffee cup and started to slip back down under the comforter.
“No, no,” he said, grabbing her arm. “Carbs first. It’ll help. Trust me.”
“I did that last night and look where it got me.” Her cheeks turned pink. “I’m sorry I ran off so quickly.”
“Understandable under the circumstances,” he said.
Her cheeks got pinker. “It was a lovely kiss. I wish I’d been in more of a position to appreciate it.”
“We’ll have to try again, when you feel better,” he said, and smiled at her. “Now, how about another bite of that croissant? You don’t want to miss Heidelberg.”
“I don’t,” she admitted, and took the croissant and bit off a piece.
“My brother’s doing the castle tour with his students, then he’s turning them loose and he and I are going to do our own thing. You and your sister can join us if you want.”
“Brother time? We don’t want to interrupt that,” she protested.
“You won’t be interrupting. You’ll be the frosting on the cake.”
“Chocolate?”
Dang but she was adorable. “Of course,” he said. “Drink some more water, take a shower. You’ll feel better soon.”
“Yes, doctor,” she joked. Then she took another bite of croissant and slid back down the bed. He took that as his cue to leave and slipped quietly out the door.
He hoped she’d feel good enough to leave the ship. He was up for seeing the city with his brother, but he really wanted Sophie to join them. The woman was more addictive than chocolate. And for a chocolatier, that was saying something.
* * *
Denise and her fan club finished breakfast and went to their respective rooms to primp, leaving Catherine and Sierra alone at the table to finish their coffee and pastries.
“I’m surprised we haven’t seen Rudy and Athena yet,” Sierra said.
After the previous night Catherine really had no desire to see Athena. “Maybe they already ate,” she said, then quickly changed the subject. “I hope your sister’s going to feel well enough to tour Heidelberg.”
“If Trevor has anything to say about it, she will. He seems like a great guy. I hope Sophie doesn’t blow it.”
A text came in on her phone and Catherine watched Sierra’s face turn pale as she read it. “Bad news?”
Sierra looked on the verge of tears. “It’s nothing.”
“Of course it’s none of my business,” Catherine hurried to say.
“My husband says we need to talk when I get back.” Sierra’s voice was barely above a whisper. A tear slithered down her cheek.
A text saying they needed to talk. Catherine understood the significance of that. “So it wasn’t just work keeping your husband from taking this cruise with you?”
“I thought it was. I guess I thought wrong,” she added bitterly.
“Maybe it’s not what you think,” Catherine said. Rather a stupid thing to say. It probably was exactly what she thought.
Sierra shook her head. “We don’t have the same goals anymore. I don’t even know how that happened.”
“I’m so sorry,” Catherine said. “We like to think we’ll stay the same as we were when we were first young, but people do change.”
Bill had. Somewhere along the way the responsibilities of a family had whittled off much of the carefree attitude he’d had when they were first dating, exposing some sharp edges. But she’d learned to balance them, and in the end they’d rubbed along fine, especially after becoming empty nesters. She’d so been looking forward to starting a whole new life once he retired. If she’d known she was going to lose him she’d have lobbied for not waiting for retirement to start checking off the items on the bucket list. He would have enjoyed this cruise.
“I still love him,” Sierra said, wiping away another tear.
Catherine found a tissue in her purse and handed it over. “Sometimes you can reassess and renegotiate. I’m sure you already know that marriage is all about give-and-take.”
“What if it’s too late for that?”
“Then you’ll reassess yet again. Don’t give up yet, though,” Catherine urged her. “Every marriage goes through rough patches but you can get through a lot if you’re determined to stay together and remember what brought you together in the first place.”
Sierra heaved a sigh and wiped away another tear. “I think he’s forgotten.”
“Then maybe you can remind him. Love can work miracles.”
“You are a wise woman, Catherine,” Sierra said.
Sierra was the second person who’d said that to her. Catherine wasn’t about to tout herself as wise, but it made her feel good to know someone appreciated her