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We finish dessert and go upstairs to the lounge to enjoy the nightly entertainment. Iris leads us to a seating area for six in front of the bar. I strategically sit in one of the chairs, giving me an unobstructed view of Dane as he stands at the counter mixing drinks.
He looks up and immediately spots me. Our eyes lock, and he smiles. I swear I can feel my heart flutter.
"That man is so handsome. You're a lucky woman. Let me know when you're ready to give him up." Iris nudges my arm and winks, making me laugh.
"Always a hussy," Dahlia barks.
Iris pats her hair by her ear and snickers. "And again, proud of it."
Dahlia scoffs, her nose in the air as she turns to look at our pianist, who is playing a lively and much more modern song this time.
Andre joins us to take our order. I ask for a hurricane. The others request glasses of chardonnay.
"Oh, Lord. Does that man never stop?" Rose is scowling, her focus on someone in the group seated next to us.
I follow her gaze and shake my head, irritation swatting my melancholy mood away. "Jerry, again. No, he doesn't stop. I seem to be the bane of his existence."
"It seems so, and he'll be watching you even closer after what happened last night," Rose says.
"You mean sneaking Dane into my cabin?"
"That and making a fool of him," Iris says.
"He sounded angry as a wildcat, coming away from his accusation empty-handed," Rose adds.
I stare at them, shocked. "You heard all that?"
"Everyone on our deck likely heard it. But there's nothing to worry about. At this point, everyone simply wants Jerry to shut up." Iris reaches over and pats my hand. "No one is judging you, my dear. If anything, most of the women on this ship wish they could trade places with you."
"Thanks, but that doesn't make me feel better. I'd prefer not to be the topic of the ship's gossip and have everyone aware of the goings-on behind my cabin door."
"So, what's the game plan for this evening?" Marigold asks out of the blue. There's an aura of happiness radiating from her that hadn't been there before. "We can help sneak Dane into your cabin again tonight. After all, if you don't pursue what you want, you could miss out on the best thing to ever come into your life." She glances at Larry, then looks at me, her expression sincere. "I know Iris had you switch seats with me on the bus so I could meet Larry. Now, we'd like to offer our help if you need it."
"Thank you," I say, overwhelmed by her offer.
Larry reaches out and takes Marigold's hand, holding it tenderly.
"I have an idea," Iris says. "Jerry watches Brittany more than Dane, making her the prime target. So, what if one of us slips Dane the key card to her room, and he goes there first, right after finishing for the night? As long as Brittany is still in the lounge, I bet Jerry won't leave. He'll assume Dane can't go to her cabin until she's there."
"You might not want to underestimate Jerry. He's smarter than you think," Dahlia warns. "He returned to the lounge after he left last night. Apparently, none of you saw him, but I did. He returned every fifteen minutes to see if Dane was still behind the bar. When the lounge quieted, he stopped checking and staked out the passenger corridor."
"Now, how would you know that? We were in our cabin by then," Iris demands, curiously eyeing her sister.
"Because I came back up here to see if there were any cookies in the basket at the coffee station while you were in the shower. I passed Jerry on the stairs as I was going up. When I came back down, he was staking out the hallway."
Iris cocks an eyebrow at her. "And were there any cookies in the basket?"
"No."
"Serves you right for sneaking out," Iris says smugly.
"For your information, I got my cookies anyway. That young lady with the ponytail and tattoo on the back of her neck pilfered some from the kitchen for me."
Iris glares at her. "No wonder there was a napkin in the trash can with cookie crumbs on it."
"You two, stop it so we can get back to our discussion," Rose snaps. "Iris's plan should still work. Who's going to give Dane the key card?"
"I'll do it." Larry shifts on the couch and turns to Rose. "I'm the last of us he'd expect to get involved. Maybe one of you can distract him so I can hand Dane the key card at the bar?"
