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He stepped onto the cruise liner hired out by the tech billionairesse. There was no red carpet. Instead, it was neon pink and yellow with glowing painted arrows directing traffic. Partially clad bodies, some also in glowing neon, roamed the main deck in trunks and two-piece swimsuits. The aesthetic was beach resort meets warehouse party with a pool at the center of the party, deck chairs fanning out, and a massive dance floor with bodies moving and gyrating.
There couldn’t be more than one hundred people on board the massive ocean liner that easily carried five thousand or more. Zhi was noticing more and more how the rich flushed money down the toilet. Probably because he knew how to fix toilets now.
"Omar, you made it.” A tall, thin woman in cargo pants
stepped out of the crowd with her arms wide. The rainbow colored hair announced that she was the event’s hostess and the woman whose interest Zhi hoped to garner.
“Parker.” Omar embraced the young woman. She was engulfed in the massive arms of his friend. After the hugs and pleasantries, Omar turned to Zhi. “Parker, allow me to introduce my dear friend, Diego Zhi Wen de Bernadino, the Duke of Mondego.“
“Wow, that’s a mouthful.” Parker grinned.
Instead of an open-armed hug, she stuck out her hand. Sideways with her fingers splayed, not palms down in preparation for kissed knuckles. When Zhi went to turn her knuckles up for the more noble greeting, she clasped his fingers in a firm handshake. Undaunted, Zhi turned her palm down and brushed his lips over her knuckles. When he looked up, she had one brow raised and the other lowered in a quizzical look.
“Europeans,” Parker chuckled. She grinned good-naturedly and patted Zhi’s hand.
The gesture reminded Zhi of how his mother used to pat his hand or his cheek when he’d done something to make her proud of him.
Zhi released her hand. Maternal pride wasn’t the direction he was aiming for with this woman. At this rate, he was headed right into the friend zone. Or possibly worse, the little kiddie zone.
He straightened to his full height. But found that he only had about half an inch on Parker. She was tall and wearing flats.
“Let me get some kandi for you both.” Parker dug into the shoulder bag resting on her hip.
Zhi took a deep breath and clenched his teeth. He knew Parker was into the rave scene from reading the article, and a few other articles he’d found about her on Google. He’d never been one for the drug scene. He could never be with a woman who casually did drugs.
He frowned as he watched Parker slide colorful neon bracelets over Omar’s wrist. She turned to Zhi holding a few more of the strung beads. He wondered if they were perhaps edible? But as she slid them over his wrist, he could tell they were nothing but plastic.
“Why don’t you two go put your bags down,” she said. "The party’s about to get started."
The party hadn’t started yet? There was loud music playing, bodies swaying, and drinks flowing. He began to wonder even more what he had gotten himself into. Parker gave Omar another huge grin and shoulder squeeze, then she turned to greet the next set of guests to come aboard.
Zhi watched after her for a moment. She wasn't the type of girl he typically dated. She was in cargo pants and a graphic T-shirt. Dark eyeliner lit her brow, and only a coat of lip gloss touched her lips.
She hadn’t given him the googly-eyed gaze he was used to receiving from the opposite sex. Nor had she tried to engage him in conversation. He would’ve thought that she was into Omar with the hugs and grins she gave him. But she was doing the same to the next group of young women and men who’d come onboard. Perhaps that was just her personality.
So, why not with him?
Zhi wasn’t used to working hard to get a woman’s attention. He’d never had to work hard at anything until recently. Perhaps there was a YouTube video on this too?
A quarter hour later and the same indistinct loud music blared as he came back to the main deck. The sound halted him in his tracks. Songs that had no business being together crashed one into the other as though shoving through a door that was too small.
The pulse brought on a headache the closer he got to the source. Unfortunately, he’d have to go right into the eye of the storm because that’s where she was.
Parker jumped and swayed and spun at the center of it all. Her multi-colored hair bounced like a rainbow shimmering after a morning’s rain. At the end of that rainbow might be a pot of gold. So, with a long sigh, Zhi made his way through the crowd.
He was jostled by bodies jumping not only up and down but side to side. He dodged flailing arms and elbows. No one heard, or simply didn’t pay heed, to his calls of excuse me and apologies. Finally, he realized the only way to get through the crowd was to join in on the insanity.
He jumped up and down flailing with the rest of them. No one was more surprised than Zhi when he didn’t sustain a single injury in the melee. And then he was right next to her.
For a moment she simply danced alongside him. When Parker finally looked up, surprise lit her dark brown eyes when recognition dawned. She offered his shoulder a squeeze, then she threw her hands up and threw her body even more fervently into the dance.
They continued to dance close. As close as two people could get while jumping and bopping and flailing limbs. It wasn't one of the ballroom dances or partner dances Zhi was accustomed to. He wished he could just pull her close into his arms and gaze into her eyes in order to capture her full attention. Trying to jump in sync wasn't working.
As though the gods of the sea heard him, the beats slowed. Zhi wasn't sure if he was imagining it, but he thought he heard the sounds of a violin mixing in with the drum beats. Was that one of Bach’s fugues?
Zhi held still to listen. The notes were unmistakably Bach. Unfortunately, the true mistake was standing still on the dance floor.
The tide had changed. Parker had been swept up. She was now dancing away from him. Before Zhi could make a move to change course, a scratch sounded, and the music changed.
