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I had learned a lot about myself in the last two days. For one thing, I wasn’t very good at surfing, which I’d assumed would be the case but had officially confirmed. For another, I disliked snorkeling just as much as I thought I would. Turns out fish are even creepier when they’re close enough to touch.
Finally, I learned that if I am trapped on a cruise ship with an attractive guy, my personal boundaries will become even more flexible than Ellie doing a handstand scorpion in her yoga practice.
I wasn’t sure if it was the gentle way Adam had applied sunblock to my back the day before, or even the adorably awkward way he’d asked if I wanted his help that had set me over the edge. It certainly hadn’t helped when he had zipped around like a professional surfer.
My thoughts took many forms: my mom’s voice, saying “Your Aunt Kathy won’t have anything bad to say about Adam.”
Also, Ellie’s: “Life is totally too short not to go for it, Jenna. Don’t worry about all the bad stuff that could happen!”
“But what about people like Amy who are just waiting to dish gossip?” I mentally argued with her. “I can’t start over again if this relationship goes bad.”
Imaginary Adam broke in with his own argument for falling in love. “Statistically, it’s quite unlikely that two people with strong social ties and compatible hormonal profiles would generate enough acrimony to break the bond.”
I didn’t even know if what my fictional version of Adam argued was true. Maybe the real Adam could cite the data?
I slipped on a pair of large, dangly earrings, hoping the geometric shape would give my dress a modern vibe. Ellie had been horrified I intended to pack the same gown she’d given me for her birthday party, though I pointed out that nobody on the cruise ship had seen it. It was the nicest thing I owned. Besides, Davis Hardcastle had called it stunning, and even if I didn’t totally “get” it, Davis’s verdict had to mean something.
Adam stepped out of his room in a black suit, adjusting his cuffs under the jacket. When he saw me, he did the kind of doubletake I thought only happened in the movies.
Maybe I should have chosen a different dress. I waved a hand over my pink tulle skirt. “I know what you’re thinking, and no, I am not preparing to take to the stage as a ballerina.”
“That’snotwhat I was thinking.” Adam folded his arms, his expression displaying a message I couldn’t pretend not to understand.
I should have jumped up off the couch and asked if he was ready to go, just like I’d done to break the spell between us when he’d finished rubbing sunblock on my back. If I wasn’t going to date Adam, it wouldn’t be a good idea to ask him to explain the warmth in his eyes.
I knew that, but I alsoreallywanted him to voice his thoughts. “Oh?”
He held my gaze. “I was thinking that you look really beautiful.”
“Thanks.” His compliment wasn’t particularly flowery or intense, but my cheeks still grew warm. “Um, you look nice, too.” He did; dark blue tie, slacks that tapered just enough to be stylish, and the wavy hair I still couldn’t stop thinking about.
Somehow, my tiny crush had developed into an enormous one despite my very best efforts to not let it. And it kind of seemed like he liked me too, however he might describe it—early-onset bonding disorder?
“Ready?” he asked, giving me a crooked smile that made my knees go weak.
For just a moment, I let myself imagine what it would be like if Adam really were my boyfriend. He’d probably kiss me before we left to meet his family in the hallway, and if we held hands, it would be because we were in love, not because we were putting on a show.
No. Not love. No matter how tenderhearted he’d been as a child, the adult Adam didn’t believe in that, just like I didn’t believe in dating a coworker.
I pushed all thoughts of romance out of my mind. “Yeah, let’s go.”
The dinner started out nicely enough. Grandma wore an adorable purple dress with sequins all over the bodice, and she was just as happy with her birthday party as she’d been about everything else on the cruise. The pecan-crusted salmon melted in my mouth, and Adam scraped his chocolate panna cotta dish clean.
The trouble started toward the end of the meal, after Beverly and Frank had consumed quite a bit of wine. Nicole suggested we each say a few words about Grandma, and she went first. “And to sum it all up, your support has meant the world to me. I love you.”
Grandma reached across the table and pressed her granddaughter’s hand. “I love you, too.”
Beverly, seated on Nicole’s right, should have been the next one to share. Instead, she threw both arms in the air. “This is my song!”
I frowned in concentration, finally recognizing the faint music in the background as an eighties pop ballad.
Beverly thrashed unsteadily by herself in her chair and then started singing along. Loudly.
Nicole rolled her eyes, and Adam put his head in his hands.
“She’s having a good time,” Grandma remarked serenely.
I edged my chair closer to Adam and laid a hand on his arm. He looked up when I touched him and then slid his hand into mine. It wasn’t the first time we’d held hands, but the act felt more significant after the last few days we’d spent with each other.
