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She hugged him. “Aw, you’re so sweet. Tell you what, if I get lucky enough to meet a special guy, you sing at my wedding and we’ll call it even.”
“Deal.” He grinned. “I saw the guy you were with. Should I be getting a song ready?”
Karen laughed. “You might want to hold off on that. Like I told your wife, I have no idea where the man lives.”
“Janae and I started as a long-distance relationship,” he pointed out.
She ignored his comment. “You have a long line of people waiting.”
He chuckled. “Okay. I can take a hint. See you later. We’re celebrating tomorrow night. Janae will fill you in.”
“All right.”
Karen went back to her room and took a short nap. Eating all that good food and being in the sun had drained her. When she woke up, she still had a couple of hours before dinner with Damian. Picking up her novel off the nightstand, she slid the balcony door open and stepped outside. She stared out over the water as the boat moved farther away from Nassau.
They had one last stop in Key West tomorrow before reaching Miami the following day. The week seemed to have flown by and went much better than she had anticipated. Nowhere in her wildest dreams did she ever think she’d meet a man like Damian. Would he want to continue what they had started or relegate her to his past? Sure, they had several things in common and got along great in and out of bed, but would that be enough?
She released a heavy sigh. Everything was going great until things moved past the physical to the emotional. And this is why I shouldn’t let my feelings get involved. Karen lowered herself into one of the cushioned chairs and opened the book. She tried concentrating on the words, but her mind kept wandering to dinner with Damian. After sitting there for nearly an hour, she closed the book, got to her feet and went inside to shower. She dressed, styled her hair and applied light makeup. The closer it got to seven, the more nervous she became.
When seven o’clock came and went, her nervousness turned to concern. The phone rang and she snatched it up, hoping it was Damian.
“Hey, girl,” Janae said when Karen answered.
“Hey.”
“I wanted to let you know that some of Terrence’s musician friends are throwing us a party tomorrow night. It’s going to be in the Sapphire Room again at eight. You’re welcome to bring Damian. Are you guys getting together tonight?”
“We were supposed to go to dinner, but I haven’t heard from him.”
“What time was dinner?”
“Half an hour ago.”
“Maybe he lost track of time with his friends. I’m sure he’ll be there.”
“Maybe.” But she wasn’t convinced.
“Well, I’ll let you go in case he’s trying to call. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“All right.” Karen placed the phone in the cradle.
As the minutes and hours ticked off, she realized Damian wasn’t coming. She never thought he’d be the type of man to do something like this, but she was wrong. Again. She changed into her pajamas and crawled into bed, vowing not to let her guard down ever again.
Chapter 8
Damian could hear the music and laughter floating through the open French doors leading to his balcony. Kyle and Troy had tried to get him to join them, but he couldn’t be bothered. What he wanted was to be with Karen. He rose from the chair he had been sitting in for the past hour and stepped out onto the balcony. Folding his arms across his chest, he tilted his head back and closed his eyes. He had only come on the cruise to get his friends off his back. He never intended to meet a woman, much less form an instant connection with one—a connection that he seemed to have no control over. Did she feel it, as well?
Tonight he had planned to fill in all the gaps, starting with her last name and where she lived. He shook his head, not believing he hadn’t even asked her last name. Damian didn’t care where she lived, as long as she agreed to keep seeing him. He wanted to tell her that he shared her passion for teaching and the joy of seeing new minds come alive. He still would...if he got the chance. Would she accept his apology? Even if she did, it was no guarantee she’d want to continue what they had started. A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. He went back inside, crossed the spacious suite and opened the door to find Troy and Kyle standing there. Damian stepped back and waved them in.
“What are you guys doing here? I thought you’d be well into the night action by now.”
