Page 21 of Examining Ella

“And I’m excited that you’re here,” he admitted. “I can’t say I’m surprised.”

“Really?”

He washed his bite of lobster down with a swallow of champagne and nodded. “I mean, the odds of us being on the same cruise are slim. But I’m not surprised you’re doing something…Little.”

“So you knew?” she said.

“You give off all the vibes,” he said. “Obviously, I wasn’t for certain until I saw you here. But yeah, I had a pretty good inclination.”

She thought about it for a moment, eating in silence and sipping more of the bubbling drink. A moment later, she said, “I knew you were a Daddy.”

“You even dreamed about me,” he said.

“Hey!” she said with an embarrassed giggle.

He laughed. “I can’t let you live that down. Besides, it feels good to be the object of a woman’s dreams.”

She snorted. “Trust me, you’re in plenty of women’s dreams.”

“I don’t know about that. But I do know I don’t care about any of those women, if they exist. Just you.”

He winked.

She nearly lost it right there.

It was already turning out to be a magical evening.

***

Ella left Bryan’s arms, twirling over the dance floor, loving every moment of the experience.

A live orchestra was playing standards from the 1940s. It wasn’t a formal affair, but it sort of had that vibe, even though folks were dressed casually. Some were even in Little attire, like Ella.

But she was wearing a long, red, slinky dress. The outfit was a tad out of place. But she looked hot in it.

She being the woman Ella had first seen at the waterslide earlier that day.

It was after the song ended and Bryan was going to get them another drink that Ella noticed the woman approaching him.

Ella hurried through the crowd. She wanted to hear what was being said. But her confidence waned as she approached. While her instincts first told her to take hold of Bryan’s arm so the woman knew they were together, she stopped short of actually doing so.

Ella and Bryan weren’t really together.

True, they’d been flirting all day. And there was that intimate exam earlier. But they hadn’t discussed anything. They certainly weren’t exclusive. What if Bryan was into this other woman and Ella was humiliated in front of her?

Plus, what if once Bryan saw them side by side—one tall, skinny, and sexy and the other frumpy and plain, not to mention older—he had a change of heart? He might stop all that flirting and leave Ella alone for the rest of the cruise. Then, she’d be stuck on that damn boat, seeing Bryan and this woman together every day! It would be dreadful. Salt in a wound.

Suddenly, Ella needed another drink.

She would take the fruit punch Bryan was getting, but she’d have a little something else first. She found another server, thanked him as she grabbed more champagne, and then downed the liquid.

She coughed as she returned the empty flute and replaced it with a full one.

She couldn’t hear what that woman was saying to Bryan. He just smiled politely, said something, and then walked back toward Ella.

She downed half the new champagne in one fell swoop.

Her cheeks were warming. The room was tilting slightly.

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