Page 21 of Mister Daddy

I squeeze his arm gently. “It’s not lame at all. You found something you love to do, and you made a serious business out of it.”

“Thanks. It’s definitely worked out well for me. I wouldn’t be sitting here with you if I hadn’t bought that boat twenty-five years ago.”

“I’m glad you did,” I say.

“Me, too.” He bends over and kisses me lightly on the lips, surprising us both. “You know, I never ended up finishing college.”

This makes me laugh.

“With all of your business experience, you could probably get an honorary degree.”

“I have one of those, actually.”

I roll my eyes. “Of course you do. You could probably have one in every state if you wanted.”

“I wouldn’t say that. It was pretty cool to get a degree, though – especially since I got one without having to sit in the classroom. My parents are definitely proud. They were pissed when I quit school to run a cruise ship. They’re over it now; they still invite me to Thanksgiving dinner and everything. It just took some time for them to see that I could make a go of being a businessman without four years at the University of North Florida.”

“It’s good they came around to the idea.” Time to change the subject again. We’re getting close to an awkward silence, and I don’t want that to happen. “So, where do your cruises go?”

“The first one was just the Caribbean. It left from Miami and went to Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and the Florida Keys. It was a good itinerary to start with because there’s tons to do in every port. We were able to offer a lot of exclusive excursions.”

“I’ve always wanted to go to Jamaica.”

“You should go sometime,” he says. “They have these corn bread things there that are incredible. And the jerk chicken? You’ll be ruined on food forever. Nowhere has better food than Jamaica.”

My stomach rumbles quietly, but Carter doesn’t notice. Thankfully. “You’ve sold me. Jamaica is now number one on my must travel list.”

“You know, we have a cruise that goes there, this summer in fact.”

Is he telling me this because he’ll be there or because he wants more of my money to go to his line? I would ask, but the dealer declares the break is over, and I have to give my seat back to the guy actually playing.

“I’ll think about it,” I tell Carter, hoping my voice comes out flirtatious instead of confused. I give his arm one last squeeze when I stand up. The fabric on the chairs keeps my legs from sticking despite the island humidity. We’re inside, and even with the air conditioning, I’m still sweating through my dress.

Carter looks totally at home surrounded by his rich comrades, but there’s something different about his posture when he’s playing poker. He’s serious, almost tensely so. But not in a bad way. He just looks like he fits in with the other people at the table.

With me, he’s different. When he was telling me the whole story of his cruise line, he seemed so relaxed. He let his guard down. He fits in with these other rich guys, but it’s almost an act. Or it’s something he has to consciously put effort into.

I like that he doesn’t have to put effort into talking to me.

As I watch Carter playing poker, something he said earlier hits me. He started his first cruise line at twenty, and that was twenty-five years ago. That makes Carter forty-five now. I knew he was older, but I didn’t realize the gap between us was so large.

I’m only twenty-seven. The age difference is intimidating, but my heart doesn’t seem to care. I’m really starting to like this guy, and it’s only been a day.

Carter wins another hand and glances back to share his smile with me. I return it without hesitation.

Who cares if I was only two years old when he started his business?

He’s here with me right now, and that’s all that matters.

9

Carter

What was I thinking going on about my business with Abby? She seemed interested enough, but she was probably just being polite.

At least her questions didn’t revolve around how much money I have. The first few times I brought a guest down to my suite, I had to deal with awkward pillow talk about the millionaire lifestyle. And that was before I’d crossed the threshold to billionaire. I shut that down pretty quickly by shoving women out before it got to the talking part.

With Abby, I want the talking. I can never get enough of her talking.