Page 14 of Wanting a Family Man

“I thought it would be that boat you were using this morning. This is…a cruise ship, isn’t it?” It was as long as two busses and seemed to have three floors. “Is that a rooftop patio?”

“With a disco ball and everything,” he said in what she hoped was a joke. “Thanks for reminding me. I have to refuel the bowrider we borrowed this morning.” He unclipped a crosspiece on the rail and lifted it, then casually grasped the bar that was still fixed. He took one long step up into the gap. He turned back to look down on her. “Do you need the steps or…?” He bent to offer his hand.

The deck was three feet above where she stood, but she reflexively started to grasp his hand. He slid his grip past her palm and closed his firm hand behind her elbow. As she put her foot where he had, he straightened.

She kind of flew upward and staggered to find her balance beside him while the deck bobbed slightly beneath her feet.

“All right?” He kept his hand on her elbow until she caught a nearby handhold and nodded.

The truth was, she was mostly bowled over by being so close to him and his casual strength and open collar and his blade-sharp profile as he released her and stepped to the door.

“Do you know Storm’s birthday?” he asked.

“October twenty-ninth.”

“Then you know how to get in.” He punched the numbers into the keypad and opened the door. As he stepped inside, he paused to secure the door open so the breeze drifted in to freshen the interior.

“Oh. Wow.” Cloe was agape as she entered. She had never seen anything like this outside of movies. “You live here? This is, like, your house?”

“No.” His tone dismissed that as laughable. “Tiffany bought two of these to offer whale-watching tours. I run the Wednesday departure. The other one leaves on Sundays. This is the main saloon and galley.”

Cloe took in the living room and the island that separated it from the kitchen. It was very roomy and luxurious, considering the limited space. There was a built-in sectional facing a big-screen TV, a dining nook with bench seating all around it, and the appliances were stainless steel. In one corner, a curved staircase led to that mysterious top floor.

“Staterooms for the guests are below.” He pointed to stairs that descended beneath windows that looked over the bow. A pair of armchairs faced a bank of screens that she presumed were for navigation, not video games. “The crew cabins are in the stern.”

He took her into a stairwell and, without moving, pivoted to open the three doors, one at a time.

“This is my cabin.” It held a twin bunk with a flannel shirt tossed across its foot. Two drawers were built in beneath it. There was a tiny desk with a mirror above it, a small square window, and a door at the foot of his bed that seemed to lead to an outer deck.

“My room is the emergency exit onto the stern. Staff share this head.” He closed his door and pivoted to open the adjacent one, revealing what looked like a shower stall with a toilet and sink inside it. The third door revealed another cabin. “My first mate and steward sleep in here. They both live in Bella Bella so I pick them up with any passengers who aren’t already on board. Take whichever bed you like. Those sheets are clean.” He pointed at the folded bedding on the top bunk.

This cabin was similar to his, but the beds were singles and installed at an angle so the person in the lower bunk didn’t bash their head when they sat up. There was no door leading outside from this room and the curtain over the window was closed.

“Look around while I run the bowrider over to the fuel station. Help yourself to whatever’s in the fridge. There’s not much. I haven’t picked up the grocery order yet.”

“You’re not afraid I’ll steal your fancy boat?” She was still feeling the weight of suspicion.

“Do you want to be keel-hauled for piracy?” He kept a completely straight face.

“I presumed the punishment was walking a plank.” She managed an equally sober expression, even though she was so relieved at his joking with her, she had to fight not to laugh.

“The plank is for mutiny.” He shook his head at her ignorance. “There’s a handbook of marine law in the library. Maybe bone up before you head out on your joy ride.” He walked out, leaving her with her hand rising to cover her fluttering heart.

Wasthere a library? It was probably between the tanning salon and the indoor pool.

Curious, she left her bag on the bottom bunk and moved back to the saloon in time to see Trystan’s long strides taking him up the wharf without looking back.

She slipped downstairs for a peek and it was another big “Wow.”

There was a very fancy cabin in the bow with a queen-size bed that had built-in cabinetry all around it. It was surrounded by a V of windows that let in plenty of light. The bathroom—head—held a separate shower stall and a sink with a proper vanity plus tons of drawers and cupboards for storage.

There were four more cabins down here, two with stacked single bunks and two with queen beds, each with their own head.

Since she was here and desperate to ingratiate herself, Cloe made up the beds. She had worked in nearly every kind of minimum-wage job through high school including housekeeping so she got it done quickly. She even popped up to the top deck long enough to see that it wasn’t a nightclub or a penthouse apartment. It was what she presumed was the main cockpit or bridge. It had another armchair facing another set of instruments along with a snug built-in dining area behind it. The windows had a view in every direction.

Slipping back to her cabin, she made up the two bunks then lay down on the lower one to see whether it would be comfortable.

Yeah. That’s what she was doing. She wasn’t collapsing in mental and physical exhaustion.

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