“I think so,” Theo said. “What about you?”
“I might as well since it’s only Christmas once a year.” He handed the bag to Theo. “Um, so … I got this for you. Merry Christmas.”
Theo smiled widely. “Thank you, Gabe.” He walked into the service area and quickly returned with a package of his own. “Merry Christmas to you, my friend.”
Theo pulled a festively wrapped rectangle out of the bag Gabe had given him and quickly opened it. He held up two books and read the titles aloud. “Eddie Muller's Noir Bar: Cocktails Inspired by the World of Film Noir. The Complete Whiskey Course: A Comprehensive Tasting School in Ten Classes—A Cocktail Book. Oh my God, I can’t believe you got these for me.” Theo sounded a little choked up.
“I remember you talking about them a while back. I didn’t think you’d buy them for yourself, so I thought they would be a nice gift.”
“They’re perfect. Thank you so much, Gabe.” Theo reached over and hugged him. “Okay, your turn.”
Gabe unwrapped his gift to find a new Kindle e-reader. His had stopped working a couple of months ago, and he was saving up to get a new one. “Oh, Theo! This is too much!”
“It’s not. I know you’ve been reading on your phone, and that can’t be good for your eyes. I really wanted to do this for you, Gabe.”
“Well, I love it. Thank you so very much.” They hugged again, then parted a bit awkwardly.
“I guess we should go and get that drink,” Theo suggested.
* * *
The next fewdays passed in a blur. Their shifts might start a bit slow, but it was busy for the LGBTQ meetup before dinner each day and remained steady until they closed sometime between midnight and one.
Gabe made sure to stay his typical cheerful self, greeting folks by name whenever he could and smiling when he delivered drinks. He even found time to find someone for Stefan, that coral-shirted boy from the first night of the cruise. From what Gabe could see, he and Chase seemed to be hitting it off.
When the last guest left for the night, they cleaned up quickly and efficiently. Gabe was wiping down the bar’s back counter, having already cleaned each of the bottles. A metal gate would be lowered to secure all the alcohol, but the counter needed a thorough disinfecting, and Gabe wiped at it furiously.
“Easy, Gabe,” Theo told him, smiling. “What did that counter ever do to you?”
“Sorry, I’m just a bit distracted. Is there anything left to do?”
“No, Anton and Callie just finished all the tables. Are you going to the crew bar for a drink tonight?” Theo asked.
“I don’t think so. Since we’re in San Juan tomorrow and we don’t open until three o’clock, I thought I might get off the ship early and do some shopping.” They didn’t often get time off but were often awarded a few hours in a couple of different ports, depending on the ship’s itinerary.
“That’s a really good idea. Can I join you?”
“Sure. What time do you want to leave?” The thought of spending some time on shore with Theo sounded like a great idea to Gabe. Maybe he could convince him to have lunch after they shopped.
“Well, we’re scheduled to dock by nine, so how about we plan on leaving around ten?”
“That’s perfect.” Gabe glanced around the bar. “Okay, it looks like we’re done. See you in the morning.”
* * *
When Gabe enteredthe crew mess the following morning, he noticed Anton and Carlos sitting together, chatting. While that wasn’t really unusual, something about the look on their faces made Gabe think they were up to something. Once he grabbed some food, he sat beside Anton.
“Good morning, guys. What’s going on?” he asked them.
“Nothing much,” Carlos replied. He glanced at his watch. “Are you getting off the ship this morning?”
“Yeah, I’m meeting Theo in about an hour. I want to pick up a few things at the CVS and then maybe get some lunch somewhere. We don’t open Neptune’s Reef until three today.”
“Lucky you. I have to be back to work the buffet by noon, so I’m gonna head out now. See you guys later.”
“So what were you and Carlos talking about?” Gabe asked Anton.
“Huh? Nothing, really. We haven’t seen each other in a couple of days and were just catching up.”
“Hmmm, why do I think it’s more than just that?”
“Because you have a suspicious mind.” Anton grinned. He finished his coffee and stood. “I think I’ll head off now too. If I get back early enough, I can take a nap before we start our shift today.”
