Page 4 of Cruising with You (Swenson Sweethearts)

Nora

T he next couple of weeks go by in a blur of chaos.

The ship is huge and luxurious, and because Gem and I are heading up the entire cruise, we were able to board early to set everything up in a massive room with stadium seating.

There’s a smaller room on the opposite side of the ship that will be used for more intimate get-togethers, but this will be used for the keynote speakers.

As I take in the giant Written in The Stars banner splattered with gold, black, and white, I shake my head.

“What are you staring at?” Gem interrupts.

“I’m just impressed you pulled this off.”

“ We pulled this off,” she corrects me.

“Meh. I was definitely your sidekick in this little endeavor, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. No one knows this stuff like you do, Gem. Seriously. I’m so proud of you.”

With a sheepish smile, she tosses her arm around my shoulders and pulls me into a side hug while staring at the same banner that brought this topic up in the first place.

“I’m proud of both of us. I can feel it in my bones, Nora. This is going to be amazing.”

“Me too, Gem. I think it’s going to be a real hit.”

“Captain Ron wanted to let us know that they’re going to start letting passengers on board. Do you want to go freshen up, then we’ll meet for a celebratory drink by the pool?”

“I dunno, I feel guilty drinking while on the job––”

“No. No, no, no, no. Sorry, Nora, but we didn’t work our asses off for the past six months to plan this entire thing and not enjoy ourselves after it’s finally here.

We hired a shitton of people to run the day-to-day crap, so if there’s downtime, then you better damn well believe we’re going to take advantage of it. You hear me?”

“Ooo, bossy Gem is in the house,” I tease. “Fine. Drinks at the bar in….” I pull out my phone from the back pocket of my ripped black shorts that Gem insisted was the official attire for the Polished Magazine volunteers and look at the time. “Thirty minutes?”

“Deal. See you then.” She skips up the stairs toward the exit as I glance back at the banner, gold lights, and red upholstered auditorium seats.

It’s definitely going to be something else.

My white tube top one-piece swimsuit is a stark contrast to all the bikini-clad women lying on the sunbathing chairs, but I loved the ruffled top as soon as I laid eyes on it and don’t mind that it covers a bit more skin than the majority of swimsuits here.

What I do mind, however, is that my friend is missing.

Tapping my foot against the floor, I check the time.

She’s late.

She’s always late.

Chewing on the inside of my cheek, I look around the crowded pool area in search of my best friend.

Nope. Still missing.

“You look lost,” a deep voice murmurs beside me. With a grimace, I turn to it. And nearly swallow my tongue. “I’m Henri. Can I get you a drink?”

Dark mocha skin marbled with swirling tattoos. Rippled muscles peeking through a white tank top. Strong jaw with a bit of scruff. And the most killer smile I’ve ever seen in my entire life.

“Oh, uh….”

Kill me. Kill me now.

My face is burning as I search for something to say. Anything, actually. But I come up empty.

“Let me get you a drink. What would you like?”

“Umm…a Pina Colada, I guess?”

“You don’t look like a Pina Colada girl to me.”

“And what kind of girl do I look like?”

His eyes narrow as he scans me from head to toe, but there isn’t any heat in his gaze. I decide I like him instantly as he answers, “I haven’t decided yet, so a Pina Colada will have to do for now.”

“Sounds great.”

Rounding the corner, he disappears for a split second before reappearing on the opposite side of the bar. With a knowing grin, he begins flipping glasses through the air and whips me up an epic Pina Colada in minutes.

After he places a freshly-mixed beverage––complete with a wedge of pineapple on the edge of the tall glass––in front of me, he dips his chin. “Try it.”

I wrap my mouth around the straw and take a sip. The coconut mixed with rum, milk, and a hint of pineapple is freaking amazing.

“That’s the best Pina Colada I’ve ever had,” I admit.

He grins with satisfaction. “Perfect. Hopefully, it’s the first of many for this trip.”

“I hope so too.”

Something catches his attention behind me before he adds, “Would your friend like one too?”

Pulling my gaze from the sexy bartender who obviously doesn’t have a thing for me, I swivel on the barstool expecting to find Gem. My jaw drops in disbelief before I practically squeal. “Conner?!”

“Nora?!” my cousin returns before pulling me into a giant bear hug. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“I’m running this thing!” I tell him with a grin. “What are you doing here?”

Releasing me, he explains, “I moved down here a few months ago after my internship ended in New York. I didn’t know you put this thing together.”

“I know! If I’d known you were coming, I would’ve gotten you the friends and family discount.”

“Aww, ain’t you sweet,” he teases. “But it’s all good. A buddy of mine at work already got us free drink cards and a balcony upgrade or some shit, so it was actually a pretty good deal.”

Dropping my voice low, I tease, “Oh, so he must’ve heard about us through our Volt advertisement. Good to know it brought some good-looking guys to help offset all the estrogen on the ship.”

“That it did, cousin. I came with three other bachelors who are looking for a good time too. You guys definitely downplayed the whole astrology shit in the ad, though.”

I grimace. “I know, right? Why do you think we had to advertise in a guy’s magazine in the first place?”

“Ah, it all makes sense now. Well, at least the women are hot as hell. That definitely helps soften the blow.”

“Glad they’ve met your approval.” I roll my eyes and smack his shoulder, pulling a deep laugh out of him.

“Me too. After the shit I went through at my last job, I’m in desperate need of a distraction. Did your brother come too?”

“Nah. He’s busy with his son, which is where his attention should be so….”

“Good point.”

“Hey, sorry I’m late,” a confident Gem announces before stepping back and scanning Conner up and down. Her lips tilt up in amusement. “Why, hello there. I’m Gemini. And you are…?”

“Gemini?” Conner asks, checking her out just as openly as Gem did. His eyes light up in approval. I don’t really blame him. Gem is all curves in her deep red bikini with her long, curly black hair hanging down her back. Hell, even I think she’s hot.

“With a name like that, I’d say you’re in the right place,” he adds, offering his hand for her to take. “I’m Conner, Nora’s cousin.”

She shakes it firmly. “It’s nice to meet you. Nora, you didn’t mention your cousin would be joining us.”

“I didn’t know he would be. Talk about a small world, right? He saw our ad in Volt magazine.”

“Yes! I knew that would reel in some pretty fish.” She winks playfully. “Is it just you or…?”

“I brought a few friends too. I’m actually supposed to meet up with them.” He scans the pool area before lifting his chin at a group of guys near one of the cabanas. My eyes widen when I recognize one of them in particular.

“We can catch up later,” I offer, trying to hide my panic. “Gem and I should probably go check the auditorium to make sure everything is in place, anyway. We’ll see you later.” I tug Gem before she can argue.

As soon as we’ve turned the corner and are out of view from Conner and his friends, Gem demands, “What the hell was that?”

“That was the guy!”

“What guy?”

“My…,” I cough. “My fiancé.”

With a gasp, Gem goes to peek around the corner, but I tug her back.

“No! Don’t look!”

“Come on, Nora. The picture from the school paper was shit. I couldn’t see how good-looking he was. You gotta let me sneak a peek.”

“School paper?” I screech.

Grimacing, she explains, “Oh, did I forget to mention that I did a little research after you told me about the whole fiasco? One of the students at the university saw the whole thing and wrote an article about it. The picture was crappy, so I didn’t really get a good look at the guy.

You looked gorgeous, though,” she adds like that’s going to help.

“I told you not to go snooping!”

“And I ignored you completely,” she counters. “Which you knew I would do, so don’t act all surprised, missy. Tell me…is he cute? And did he see you?”

My palms are sweaty as I wipe them along the thin, white fabric of my swimsuit. “I don’t know if he saw me.”

“You don’t know?”

“I mean…I don’t know! It all happened so fast! I don’t think so. Maybe we won’t run into each other? Maybe––”

“Dude. He’s friends with your cousin, who is really cute, by the way. How did I not know you had a cute cousin?”

“He’s my rich uncle’s son––”

“Ooo, so he’s wealthy?”

“Gem!” I snap. “Not the time!”

“Sorry. You’re right. Let’s get back on track, shall we? Wait. Quick question. Is your cousin single? Then we can get our hands dirty with your little fiancé.”

“He’s not my real fiancé––”

“Well, you didn’t tell me his real name, so that’s all I have to go with.”

I growl in frustration, though the stupid waterworks are threatening to make an appearance. Again. Because that’s what I do. I cry whenever I’m angry. Or sad. Or frustrated. Or scared. Or…pretty much all the time.

Stupid Cancer traits.

Oh, great. Now, even I’m starting to drink the Kool-Aid.

“Gage. His name is Gage. And no, my cousin isn’t dating anyone.

He’s one hundred percent single, and his eyes lit up as soon as he saw you, so you should definitely get on that.

I mean, maybe not literally right off the bat but…

. Oh, and yes. He’s loaded. Any more questions? ” I choke out, my lower lip trembling.

“Aww, Nora. Come here, babe.” She pulls me into a hug and rubs her hand up and down my back.

The combination makes me feel like a little kid.

“You’re going to be just fine. I’m sure we can keep you from bumping into him.

I mean, what are the odds of that happening on a”––she gulps––“decent-sized cruise ship?”

I whimper, though it’s laced with amusement. “You’re a terrible liar.”

“Or you’re just a really good lie detector,” she mutters before releasing me.

“Seriously, though. Even if you do run into him, it’ll be fine.

You guys were engaged for a whole…what? Five minutes?

And it was a total joke. You know this. He knows this.

He even asked for your number after the funny exchange. ”

“Yeah…and then he ran in the opposite direction as fast as he could.”

“Look. You’ve got this. And if for some reason you don’t have this, then I’ll just tell Captain Ron to throw him in the brig.”

My eyes light up at the prospect. “Can you even imagine? That would be one of the funniest things ever.”

“And he would totally deserve it for making my best friend cry.”

“To be fair, if that was the logic you lived by, I’m pretty sure even the Chinese food delivery guy would be in there.”

Throwing her head back, she laughs even harder, and the sound is contagious. “Good point. How dare he bring you Orange Chicken instead of good ol’ Pon Pon?”

“Exactly. I’m fine. He’s fine. I’m just…awkward. And I want to hide under a blanket for the foreseeable future. That’s all.”

“In a swimsuit like that, it would be a shame, my friend. You look adorable, by the way.”

“Why, thank you.” I curtsy. “You look pretty hot yourself.”

While adjusting her top, she replies, “I know, right? So, where’s that drink we were going to get anyway? I’m dying!”

“My Pina Colada!” Peeking around the corner, I find my cousin and his little posse have vanished.

Phew!

There are a few open seats at the bar, and Henri appears to still be whipping out beverages like a champ, so I grab Gem’s wrist and tug her with me.

“I see you’ve brought another friend,” he mentions. “What can I get you?”

She opens her mouth to reply before he raises his finger and interrupts. “Wait. Let me guess. Something with tequila, perhaps?”

Gem quirks her brow into a fine arch.

“Yeah. Definitely tequila.”

“I don’t like tequila,” she challenges.

“Then you haven’t been drinking it right,” he returns just as confidently. “Trust me. If you don’t like it, then the drink’s on me. Deal?”

With pursed lips, she nods. “Deal.”

Henri goes about making her drink as I whisper, “You won’t regret it. The guy made me the best Pina Colada that’s ever graced the earth, even though he insisted that I’d prefer something else, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.”

“I can think of something I’d like him to put his finger on.”

“Gem!” I whisper-shout.

“Come on…it was funny!”

“If you’re not careful, it’ll be you that ends up in the brig for harassing the staff.”

Scanning Henri up and down another time, she concedes, “Good point. I guess your cousin will have to do.”

I roll my eyes. “That sounds promising.”

Getting comfortable on our stools, we chat for a few minutes before a bright yellow and orange drink is placed in front of her.

“Tequila Sunrise,” Henri announces. “Enjoy.”

Her eyes are nothing but tiny slits as Gem raises the glass to her lips and takes a sip before they widen in surprise. “You sneaky little bastard. This is delicious.”

He grins. “Another one bites the dust. As for you”––he turns to me––“I finally made my decision.”

“Oh, really? And what’s that?”

“I think you’re more of a Mojito girl. Do you trust me?”

“Uh…yes. After my Pina Colada earlier, I’m pretty sure I could marry you for your bartending skills.”

With a wink, he replies, “Just wait ‘til you try my Mojito. I’ll be back in a few.”

Then he leaves us to search for the right ingredients.

“Another proposal? Is that your third? Should I be jealous?” a familiar deep voice asks behind me.

Swiveling in my seat, I cringe. “Umm…Gage, right?”

Kill me. Kill me now.