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Will ran his fingers through Eddie’s hair, pulling him close for another lingering kiss. He wanted to rid Eddie’s eyes of their haunted look. Wanted to replace the disappointment with contentment. Will grinned when Eddie laughed and fanned himself.
“Do I get you hot under the collar?” Will teased, running fingertips down the curve of his spine until he had a nice handful of Eddie’s arse in his palm and squeezed.
“Yes, Captain. You do.” He narrowed his eyes and smiled before running his nose down Will’s and kissing him again. They quietened then, holding each other close. Eddie curled into him, resting his head on Will’s arm and burying his nose into Will’s chest. As he lay a trail of opened-mouthed kisses up Will’s pec to his throat, then across his cheek, Will turned and captured Eddie’s mouth.
Will lost track of time as they lay there making out. Neither took it any further, even though both were tenting their underwear. Content with just being close, Will nuzzled into Eddie, who returned to his spot against Will’s chest.
“Sweet dreams, handsome.”
“Night, Eddie.”
*****
“So, I heard a rumour last night.” Felice’s attempt at feigning casual was terrible. “And I might have seen a bit of evidence to back up the claim.”
“That’s nice,” Will muttered, triple checking the charts to make sure they were still on course. Noumea was the only country on his route that they docked at. All the others, they simply moored in the channel and had smaller boats called tenders transport the passengers to shore. Walking back to the windows surrounding the bridge, Will checked the ship’s progress into the deep seaport. The shanty huts of the nickel mine workers passed them on one side, and on the other was the capital city of the most developed of the Pacific Island nations, New Caledonia. “Slow to two knots,” he ordered, spying the dock up ahead. They were pulling into an industrial shipping port, but they were welcomed in true traditional islander style with singers and dancers greeting the ship with song.
Most of the passengers would disembark for a few hours, heading over to the tourist sites and swimming in the quiet bays. Will was two hours into his shift and had another ten to go, but it would be a day filled with maintenance, meetings, and communications with head office rather than sailing.
His mind returned to the beautiful man he’d left in his bed that morning. Eddie was in a deep sleep when his alarm had gone off, and Will had quickly silenced it. He’d picked up his uniform and slipped out, heading straight over to the dance studio to shower and dress for the day. Eddie hadn’t even moved when Will had stopped back in to drop off his things before his shift started. He liked knowing Eddie was there, that he’d been able to stretch out on Will’s sheets and…
“Thrusters off. Prepare for reverse thrust as we dock.”
“Yes, Captain.”
It wasn’t long before they had the ship moored against the dock, and Will waved hello to the performers as the guests stood on their balconies and around the public decks to get a glimpse of the island welcome. He had no time to waste, and he busied himself with the long list of tasks that needed completing before they departed again.
ten
Eddie
The talk at lunch seemed to be about one thing—the lap dance Eddie had given the captain two nights earlier. He was doing his best to block out the whispers and ignore the pointed stares, but it was difficult. He didn’t mind it for himself. Being the subject of constant critique, reviews, and social media commentary had made him develop tough skin. But the captain hadn’t ever had that thrown at him, and Eddie was determined to shield him from anything that could tarnish his reputation or expose him to negativity.
He snapped out of his thoughts when Gerard dropped into the chair next to him, scooting it close. He leant into Eddie’s personal space. “So, did you fuck him?”
Eddie repressed the shudder that shook through him and clamped down on the unease of being around Gerard. He was in public. He was okay. “Do me a favour and don’t ask me questions like that. I’m not gonna tell you anything about my private life. If you see something I do, make of it what you will, but I’m not telling you shit.” Eddie’s tone was short, his words clipped and louder than normal. He sounded a lot braver than the terrorised teenager he was inside.
Not one person who’d stopped to talk to him had any interest in him. All they were asking, most in a more tactful way than Gerard was, was whether he and the captain were together. He’d heard some debating who was the pitcher and who was the catcher, and others were asking in a not-so-subtle way whether he could pull some strings now that he was Will’s apparent plaything. He’d expected gossip but he’d hoped for a little more tact and maturity.
Eddie needed to get out of there. To get away from Gerard. He stood abruptly, his chair tipping and crashing to the floor. Snatching his tray of food off the table, he stepped over the fallen chair and away from Gerard, who’d moved even closer.
Every eye in the room was trained on Eddie, watching him like a hawk. Waiting for him to react. Frustration and impotence stole through him. He was sick of the gossip mill firing and the ruminations over everything about Will being muttered in hushed words. He ground his teeth together, glaring at every person in the room, daring them to start another one. He spoke loud enough that the dozen or so tables surrounding him heard, “All of you need to butt the fuck out too.”
“Eddie,” Katya called, motioning him over. He reluctantly went. He didn’t want to tell his superior to do the same as the others, but he was at the end of his tether. “You’re welcome to sit down here. I won’t ask any questions other than whether you’re excited about tonight’s show.”
“Oh my God, yes.” He beamed, sitting down. The first night’s show was an interpretation of an island holiday, and he couldn’t help being reminded of theGilligan’s Islandreruns he’d seen his old man watching years back. The second night—the one that had sparked all the tongues wagging in the room—was a tribute to all the queens—Beyoncé, Christina, Brittney, Whitney, Madonna, Diana, and so many others. There had been two more spectaculars and that night’s performance was 1980s hair bands. It was wild fun, crazy costumes, dance moves like no others, a whole lot of strobe lights and wigs that were so full of hair spray they were fire hazards. It was the sort of show Eddie had dreamed of being a part of as a young dancer.
They talked mostly about work—the activities they were running that day and what the other shows had in store for them. Katya was good people, not once asking him about Will, and Eddie appreciated that more than she could know. Eddie wanted to shout to the world how wonderful the captain was, but he could only imagine how twisted a rumour it would become within only a matter of whispers. There was no way he would risk Will’s reputation because Eddie couldn’t keep his giddy mouth shut.
*****
Will
The Next Day
Whispers stopped as Will walked down the corridor after his shift. He smiled and nodded where staff and crew looked at him, and he bade those that turned away quickly a good evening. He’d never been the subject of rumours like this before, but there was a first time for everything. The whispers had been following him around like a bad smell, the staff, and crew all wanting to get a look at him, then scurrying off as soon as they did. Will had no idea why, but it was laughable.
It was still going, and Will was getting frustrated. How had nothing else interesting happened? Why was he still the subject of all the gossip? He wondered whether Eddie was faring any better; they’d had little chance to catch up. Their shifts crossed, and downtime was scarce for both of them. All he wanted to do was fall into Eddie’s arms, but it seemed that the schedule demanded by the cruise was conspiring against them. Even when they’d both had a ten-minute break and had arranged to meet for a coffee in the staff room, Will had received an urgent report from the doctor regarding a patient who was admitted with suspected food poisoning. It was enough that Will was a few minutes late and, as a result, they’d been like ships passing in the night. The stolen kiss they’d shared made Will ache for him even more.
