AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Romeo: I'm calling you!
My phone rings. I take a deep breath and answer it.
"Hello?"
"Sweetie, talk to me. What did she suggest, and what did you do?"
"It's a long story. I'll give you the highlights if you have time to listen?"
"More than enough time. I'm in the office early, and Katherine isn't coming in until noon. I want the dirt, all of it, not just the highlights. So shovel away and don't skip a single detail."
I take another deep breath. "Okay, here it goes. But don't blame me when you fall on the floor from shock."
"Now you're really scaring me. Is this going to be one of those conversations I won't be able to get out of my head and end up drinking my lunch?"
"No, but you're never going to look at me the same again."
"I'll be the judge of that. Now tell me. What happened?"
I spend the next fifteen minutes going over the sequence of events, from my first interaction with Dane outside my hotel to his bringing a dish of crème brûlée to my cabin last night. Romeo lets me talk, quietly listening with an occasional gasp or chuckle audible on his end of the phone. When I finish, I play with the hem of my shirt while I wait for him to say something.
There's a long pause.
"Well! I'm shocked!" he blurts, shattering the silence. "Not lying on the floor level of shock. But I'm shocked. I can't believe you did the sexy with a stranger. That's so not like you. Now that you've spilled the beans, I need to know, and you better tell me the truth. Was he good?"
"Jesus! I can't believe you asked me that."
"What can I say? Inquiring minds want to know, especially since he sounds gorgeous."
"You're horrible."
"No, I need some entertainment. It's boring around here when you're gone. There's no one traumatizing the staff or causing chaos and mayhem. Who else is good at blowing up microwaves or making a pot of coffee without the pot and causing the janitor to curse your name to the heavens? And yesterday was frightening. I had to listen to one of Drake's jokes, which almost killed me. So don't hold it against me if I need some excitement right now."
"Fine. It was a toe-curling experience, and I mean that in the best way possible." There's a sound on the other end of the phone, almost like Romeo is slowly letting out his breath, and I can picture him sinking into his chair. "Are you happy now?"
"Completely, and I think you're making more out of this than you need to."
"Excuse me? The man portrayed himself as some suave international businessman, got my hormones raging, and sleptwith me. Then I discover he isn't who he says he is. How is that not a big deal?"
"It sounds to me like you solicited him. It was your idea to do the wham, bam, and scram. He just played along. And some of what he told you was more like a white lie, at least concerning his nationality. And the mere fact he brought dessert to your cabin and came to check on you tells me he has some level of interest in you and isn't a completely rotten guy. Sweetie, if I were you, I'd take advantage of his proximity, use him, find out the real story, and then leave him hanging…pun intended."
"Great. Laurel thinks I should ignore him like he doesn't exist, and you think I should do the opposite. And in the meantime, I don't know who the hell the guy really is. Fortunately, I already have an idea of how I want to handle this, and, no, I'm not going to share what it is. Right now, I need to get off the phone. I had Candace research Voyager River Cruises and its owner, and I want to review her notes. I'll check in with you later and let you know how everything's going."
"All right, sweetie. I'll let you go. And remember, you have a scrumptious dessert at your fingertips, so don't pretend you're on a diet. Devour those calories and enjoy every morsel of him while you can."
"Cute analogy. Thanks for the meal recommendation. I'll talk to you soon." I hang up and lean my head back in the chair. Between Laurel and Romeo, that was more advice than I needed, and now that I've heard it, I'll ignore it. I'll follow my gut this time.
I switch chairs, slipping onto the stool at the small desk next to the dresser. I have several hours to kill, so now is as good a time as any to go over the information I have on the company and draft an outline for my article. Opening my laptop and Candace's research file, I browse through the notes. The cruise line is owned by sixty-two-year-old Arthur Evansand is headquartered in England. He's married to forty-year-old Charlotte Cogsdon, heiress to Cogsdon Medical, a major medical equipment manufacturer in the United Kingdom. They have one child, a six-year-old daughter, Beatrice. I browse the company's statistics and financials, then start on the outline, already having a basic idea of what I want to include in the story. If all goes well, I should make decent headway on it before dinner this evening and the next episode ofThe Lying Waiter, which I expect will be another riveting show.
Dinner wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Dane was missing again, and Iris…well, Iris was Iris, her comments colorful, and her attention focused on Luka and the rest of the staff as usual. She's a white-haired spitfire with more than her share of spice. I wouldn't be surprised if she causes Dahlia to blow a gasket one of these days, although I'd swear Iris irritates her on purpose.
We leave the dining room, and I join the ladies and Larry in the lounge for drinks and entertainment. We occupy a seating area toward the middle of the room with a clear view of the piano player singing an oldie from decades ago that I've never heard before. The ladies ooh and ahh over the song and are adorable to watch. One of the staff checks on us—Andre, based on his name tag—and they all order wine.
But I want something else.
"No wine for me. Could I get a hurricane instead?" Based on the way the gentleman is staring at me, I can tell he's confused and has no idea what I've ordered. "A hurricane is made with light and dark rum, orange juice, lime juice, passion fruit juice, simple syrup, and grenadine. Can you make it?"
"I'll ask Dane and Luis. One of them should be able to make it." Andre motions toward the bar before hurrying away.
