The Unknown Sister

by Rebecca Winters

  “Ever since that waiter, Steve, told her she had a double, she’s asked him to keep an eye out for you. When he remembered Jack’s name, he told her. That’s when she phoned Jack.”

  “Now I understand why he wanted to talk to you in the garage!”

  “Yes.”

  “Did Jack tell this Shannon about me?”

  “No. He said nothing for the same reason that I didn’t tell her I met you at the track. I didn’t have the legal or moral right to divulge something to you when you’re not a participant at the institute.”

  He shook his head. “Jack came to me because he knows it’s only a matter of time before she tracks you down. I knew you had no interest in your birth family, so I kept it from you, thinking you’d never have to know.”

  Shock didn’t begin to describe what Catherine was feeling. But somehow David understood. In the next instant, he’d crushed her in his arms.

  “Catherine, there was no easy way to tell you. Please forgive me.”

  “What’s there to forgive?” she cried, clinging tightly. “If anything, I hope you can forgive me.”

  “For what?”

  “For being an awful person,” she whispered. “At the moment, I don’t like myself very much. It’s embarrassing to have to admit that to you, of all people.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Because tonight you gave me some information that would seem terribly exciting to anyone else. But that’s not how I feel. My life’s been wonderful for twenty-eight years, and getting more wonderful all the time.”

  “I know.”

  “I want everything to stay just as it is. I don’t want to know anything about her. I’ve never had any sense of being a twin, of missing something. Her life has never had anything to do with mine. I can’t help that I don’t feel the way she does. The fact is, we’ve lived apart all these years. I have no desire to meet her, David. No interest at all.”

  “Then you don’t have to, and we’ll never discuss it again.”

  “You mean it?”

  “Catherine, what I told you places you under no obligation. The institute wasn’t created for the purpose of uniting two people who never knew about each other.

  “Shannon believed she had a twin and responded to our ad. But I told her at the beginning that unless her twin contacted the institute for the very same reason, a reunion couldn’t possibly happen.

  “Even though we live only a few blocks apart, the odds of my meeting you accidentally were pretty incredible.”

  “Yes. I still can’t believe it.”

  “Neither could I, at the time. And, like a physician, I was bound to a code of silence in this very delicate situation.”

  Catherine nodded.

  “When you asked me if you reminded me of Shannon, I was forced to reveal that the two of you bore a superficial resemblance to each other. You seemed satisfied with my answer. That was as much as I dared tell you. But the waiter’s actions have changed everything.”

  “I realize that.”

  “I’ll call Shannon and let her know you’re not interested in a meeting. She’ll have to accept that as final.”

  He got out of the car and escorted her into the building. She unlocked the door and didn’t understand why he didn’t walk inside with her. “David?”

  “The way I’m feeling about you tonight, if I come in, I won’t leave at all.” He pulled her into his arms. “Catherine, there’s something else I need to tell you. I’ve been putting it off. Today at Mother’s we made a decision to take a family vacation in Banff, our first since before my father’s death. Mother needs a change.

  “Mitch phoned me on my way to your condo. He said she wants to leave right away, tomorrow if possible.”

  Catherine groaned.

  “This is progress for her. We have to do it, for her sake. I’ll probably be home next Saturday night.”

  David was going away for a week?

  “I’m afraid I’ll miss your brother’s race here in Portland on Saturday, but we could plan to attend the one in Vancouver the week after. You’re invited to my mother’s for dinner a week from today. She can’t wait to meet you.”

  “I’m looking forward to meeting her, too,” Catherine whispered.

  A hand lifted her chin. “Don’t you know I dreaded telling you this? The thought of spending any time away from you is killing me! I’ll be calling you so often, you won’t get any work done.”

  “Ever since I met you, I haven’t been able to concentrate on anything but you.”

  “Me, too. My secretary, Louise, is ready to fire me.”

  She closed her eyes. “How am I going to let you go?”

  “If we hadn’t had this breakthrough with Mother—”

  “I know,” she cried softly. “I’m being selfish. It’s because I love you so much.”

  “Keep telling me that. I can’t hear it enough.”

  On a shaky breath, she said, “When you get back, let’s set a date.”

  “Catherine…”

  THE STEAK RESTAURANT in the Crompton warehouse didn’t start serving dinner until five o’clock.

  Shannon stood in line outside, waiting for it to open. Apparently, Wednesday brought in as many patrons as Friday night did.

  She was too far away to peer through the glass. Was Steve there this evening? If he didn’t work the Wednesday-night shift, then Shannon was wasting her time. Knowing how busy the waiters were, she’d decided against phoning the restaurant. The only thing to do was talk to him in person. If he wasn’t here, she’d find out his schedule and come back another time.

  To her relief the doors finally opened. She shuffled behind the others until the hostess greeted her.

  “How many are in your party?”

  “One. Could you tell me if Steve is working tonight? He’s a very good waiter. I’d like to be served by him again if I could.”

  “Wait just a minute and I’ll find out if he’s on.” Soon the hostess reappeared. “Yes. He’s here. I’ll take you to one of his tables.”

  Shannon followed her to a corner spot. “He’ll be right with you,” the woman said, then handed her a menu and left. For want of anything else to do, she studied it.

  “Hello.”

  She lifted her head and saw pleasure on Steve’s face.

  “Hello. I’m glad you’re on duty tonight because I came expressly to see you.”

  “Does that mean you’re not going to eat again?”

  “No. I’ll have the same thing I had the first time.”

  His eyes danced. “Steak. Medium rare.”

  “That’s right. Steve, do you get a break in the next little while?”

  “Sure. I’ll put in your order. When it’s ready, I’ll bring it out and sit with you for a few minutes. Brad can cover for me that long.”

  “Thank you.”

  Steve must have rushed her meal, because he was back in less than twenty minutes. He served her, then drew up a chair.

  “I needed to thank you in person,” Shannon began. “Not only for driving all the way to Tacoma, but for going out on a limb for me. I was as discreet as possible. I told the man in question that I asked you if you remembered anything, and that you thought the last name was Casey. I tried very hard to make sure you wouldn’t get in trouble.”

  He folded his arms, eyeing her steadily. “I believe you. Now, are you going to go out on a limb and accept a date with me? I want to hear about this quest for your twin, but right now’s not a good time.”

  She hesitated. “How old are you?”

  “Twenty-four.”

  “Just as I thought. I’m twenty-eight, going on twenty-nine. I only date older men.”

  “I’m going on twenty-five,” he said. “Hey, that makes me older.”

  Shannon had to admit she’d never met a younger man as self-assured as he was. He was good-looking, too; Amy would say he was really cute with those dimples and that black wavy hair.

  “I’ll have to think about it.” She took a
bite of salad. “Before you go back to work, can I ask you an important question?”

  “Sure.”

  “If it was my twin you were talking to right now, would you be just as interested in taking her out?”

  A frown appeared on his face. “Hell, no! Are you accusing me of being some kind of womanizer or something?”

  “Of course not,” she tried to assure him, surprised by his reaction. “But you said we were identical.”

  “You are, physically. But in talking to you, I can tell you’re as different as night and day.”

  “Really? You can tell that just by taking our orders?”

  “You’d be surprised what you can learn about people from waiting on them.” His mouth curved in a slow smile. “If she’d been the woman I was attracted to, I would have called Jack Casey myself. I sure as hell wouldn’t have driven all the way to Tacoma and lost a night’s pay to give you something I could get fired over.” He looked at her thoughtfully. “I can’t explain why I’m attracted to you and not to her—but there it is.”

  He sounded genuine, and Shannon found she believed him. But she couldn’t imagine the two of them having anything in common.

  “As I said, Steve, I’m very grateful for everything you did for me.”

  “And?”

  “And I’m flattered.”

  “But you think it’s a case of an inexperienced younger man lusting after an older woman.”

  She shook her head—but that was exactly what she thought.

  Reading her mind, he said, “If you won’t give me a chance to erase that erroneous picture, you’ll be depriving yourself of something you’ll wish you hadn’t missed out on.”

  “I’ll think about it.” That was all she’d do. No one could compare to David. No one.

  “You do that. I’ll wait to hear from you. Ciao.”

  With her first goal accomplished, she left the restaurant and drove to Blue Spruce Drive. Amy had warned her she shouldn’t do anything until Jack Casey called her back. But that might take a long time. Shannon couldn’t see how it would hurt to see where he lived.

  If her twin was his wife or his sister, then Shannon wanted to find out how she’d lived all these years. If her twin was his girlfriend, she wanted to see what kind of man her sister was dating.

  After asking directions several times, she finally found the address. It was on the outskirts of Portland in a lovely wooded area. Blue Spruce Drive itself was a long, sweeping road lined with evergreens. Every so often, she glimpsed an estate surrounded by acres of private property. Whoever the Caseys were, they had money.

  When she found the mailbox, she took a left up the winding drive. It was still light out and she drove slowly, gazing around her. Taking one more bend, she could see a large, beautiful contemporary home in the distance. The people who lived here led a life of great comfort and luxury.

  This was as far as she dared go. Noting a driveway leading to an enormous garage, she turned into it, intending to reverse the car and head back to the road. A sandy-haired young man of medium height suddenly came out one of the doors. For a brief instant their eyes met.

  “CC!” he called. “Wait up! Where’s your MG? Did you buy a new car?”

  You’ve done it now, Shannon.

  He walked to the driver’s side and peered in. She saw recognition dawn. “You’re my sister’s twin! I thought you were going to wait until I called you back.”

  “I have been waiting, and I planned to continue waiting. But I was in town today for an interview at Sacred Heart Hospital, and I decided to satisfy my curiosity by driving out here. As you could see, I was turning around when you came out the door. I wasn’t going to approach anyone.”

  “Be that as it may, you took a risk that could hurt a lot of people. Drive back to the Sacred Heart Emergency parking lot. I’ll meet you there.”

  “All right.”

  She took off as fast as she could. Jack Casey was her twin’s brother! The last thing she wanted to do was upset him.

  Long before she reached the hospital, he’d passed her in his Porsche. The man drove too fast, but she had to admit he handled speed like a pro. When she saw him parked at the far end of the lot, she pulled in next to him.

  He got out of his car and walked toward the passenger side of her Jetta. She unlocked the door for him.

  He slipped inside and began speaking without preamble. “As you know, my name is Jack Casey. And you’re Shannon White.”

  She nodded.

  Once more his eyes made a meticulous sweep of her body, from her hair to her feet.

  “Are we as identical as Steve said we were?”

  “Yes.”

  Tears filled her eyes. “Thank God I’ve found her. Does she know she has a twin sister?” Shannon asked eagerly.

  “Yes.”

  Shannon’s spirits plummeted. The talk with David came flooding back.

  Maybe she knows she’s adopted. Maybe she knows she’s a twin. But what if it doesn’t mean anything to her? That’s entirely possible.

  “How long have you known you were a twin?” Jack Casey asked her.

  “My parents adopted me when I was an infant. But it wasn’t until my widowed mother was dying a year ago that she told me I had a twin. That’s all she said.

  “I didn’t know if it was a boy or a girl. I wasn’t even sure if the whole thing was a figment of her imagination. There were no documents or papers for me to check.”

  “Do you have other brothers or sisters, Shannon?”

  “No. I was an only child. What about my twin?”

  “She has two brothers besides me.”

  “You call her CC?”

  He nodded. “Her name is Catherine.”

  “Catherine Casey. That’s a beautiful name. She has three brothers? What a lucky girl!”

  “Are you dating the waiter at the Crompton Steakhouse? Is that why he was willing to give you information?”

  “Oh, no. But since he mentioned seeing you with my twin, I asked him to help me find her and he obliged. I can tell you’re upset, but please don’t blame him.”

  “I don’t. So who was the man you were with when you went to dinner there the first time?”

  She averted her eyes. “David Britton of the Britton Institute. I’m in love with him and had hopes our relationship would end in marriage. I would give anything in the world to be his wife. But apparently he’s met someone else since we were together. He says it’s serious.”

  She swallowed hard. “I’m rambling. Sorry. You’ve caught me at an emotional moment.”

  “I’m sorry I caught you at all.” Jack half-grimaced, half-smiled. “Unfortunately what I have to tell you is going to be even more painful.”

  “You mean your sister doesn’t want to meet me.”

  “That’s right. It’s nothing personal. It couldn’t be.”

  His words killed the hope in her heart. “Are you going to tell her you’ve met me?”

  “No. I’m not going to do anything. It’ll have to be up to her to decide if she ever wants to make contact with you.”

  “Then it could be a long wait.”

  “It might never happen.”

  “I realize that now.”

  He cocked his head. “What do you mean now?”

  “The man I’m in love with warned me how delicate and complicated the situation is when one twin isn’t looking for her sibling.”

  “Take my word for it. In this case, it is complicated. And delicate. If it’s any consolation, I hope she decides to look you up one day.”

  “I do, too.” Her voice trembled. “Thank you for being kind enough to meet me here and talk to me.”

  “Now I feel guilty,” Jack muttered.

  “Why?”

  “Because in coming here, I’m afraid I’ve caused you to spend the rest of your life waiting. Don’t do it. Don’t wait for something that might never happen. Goodbye, Shannon.”

  “Wait—” She reached into the back seat for the manila envelope S
teve had returned to her. “Please take this. It has a picture and some information about me. In case she ever feels curious…”

  She thought he was going to ignore her. But at the last second, he took it from her hands and got out of the car. Before she’d had a chance to back out of her spot, his Porsche had shot away like an arrow in flight.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  SATURDAY’S RACE was over. Catherine and the rest of her family, including Mark and Brody, waited for Jack and Melanie to arrive at the house. Their mother had planned a victory dinner for him.

  When Catherine glanced out the living room window, she could see a couple of the crew parking Jack’s race car in the garage. She waited until she saw his Porsche, then hurried out of the house and down the drive to congratulate him on his win.

  Today’s race had helped pass the time. For Catherine, this had been the longest, loneliest week of her life. No number of phone calls or flowers from David could take the place of being in his arms. But the wait was almost over, and she was euphoric. Later tonight, he’d be coming by her condo. Meanwhile, she would enjoy this celebration with her family.

  As she entered through the side door of the garage, Jack and Melanie were getting out of his car.

  “That was a terrific win today! I got it all on the camcorder.”

  They both turned. Melanie was beaming, but Jack’s normal victory smile was missing.

  “It was great to see the whole family at the track today. It meant a lot to me.”

  He said the right words, but he sounded strange. His eyes played over her face, as if he hadn’t seen her for a long time and needed to take a good, hard look.

  “David not back yet?” he asked.

  “No. I don’t expect him until later this evening.”

  “That’s good, because there’s something Melanie and I need to tell you before you see him again.” She’d hoped they were going to announce their engagement, but with that comment, some of her happiness evaporated.

  “What’s wrong, Jack?”

  She noticed he was out of breath, as if he’d been running a great distance. Now that she studied him more closely, she saw that he looked pale, and there were beads of perspiration near his hairline.