Page 39 of Hook, Line and Single

‘Oh, look over there!’

I follow his gaze and see Sam and Robin chatting to Barry briefly before they hand over their green badges and he replaces them with red ones.

‘We have our first couple, ladies and gentlemen!’ Barry yells. ‘Congratulations to Sam and Robin, and all the best with your budding romance. Now, don’t forget to hand in your papers before you go to dinner, everyone else. If you want to be the next golden couple and enjoy Barry’s Bonanza, you have to be in it to win it.’

I glance down at my speed dating card, which unsurprisingly has no names on it, fold it carefully and slip it into my pocket. Although I probably deserved it, and I escaped unscathed this time, I’m going to have to watch both Sam and Cameron like a hawk if I’m to stop them signing me up for anything else. I’m also stupidly pleased that Cameron didn’t write anyone down either. Is that wrong?

14

‘Are you sure you don’t mind?’ Sam asks. We’re finishing breakfast and I’m mentally kissing goodbye to the tour of Malta that I’d booked because Sam has not only dropped me like a hot brick to spend the day with Robin, which she did at least have the decency to warn me about last night, but she’s also just revealed that she wants to take him on the tour that I’d meticulously researched and was looking forward to. To be honest, although I should be annoyed, I’m not that bothered as I have much bigger fish to fry, namely the note that was posted outside my cabin last night.

‘It’s fine. You lovebirds go and enjoy yourselves,’ I tell her, plastering on a smile and trying to act normally. ‘I can’t believe you’ve gone all the way to red.’

‘It was Robin’s idea,’ she confides. ‘But I’d met enough of the other people at the speed dating to know that none of them appealed like he does, so it wasn’t a difficult decision.’

‘Any progress on finding out what he does for work?’

‘None. I have found out where his cabin is though, and he’s either keeping a low profile or he doesn’t earn that much because it’s on deck four, near the back.’

‘What does that mean?’

‘It’s pretty simple. On a cruise ship, the higher your cabin is, the more you pay. Also, cabins in the middle of the ship are more expensive because there’s less movement. So, a low-down cabin at the back near the engines is going to be one of the cheaper ones.’

‘Is that a problem?’

‘Of course not. I’m just gathering as much evidence as I can to see if I can work out what he does.’

‘He promised me last night he’d tell you when the time is right. Maybe you should trust him instead of going full-on private investigator?’

‘Hmm. Maybe you’re right, but I can’t resist a mystery, as you know. Anyway, what are you going to do today?’

‘I don’t know yet.’ This isn’t completely true; my first task is to track down Cameron so I can find out why he and I seem to have been selected for Barry’s Bonanza. I don’t want to embroil Sam in it though; she’ll only get the wrong idea.

‘I’m really sorry I’m not spending much time with you. I will make it up to you, I promise.’

She won’t, but I smile nonetheless. ‘I know you will. Now go and enjoy your day.’

I watch as she hurries off to get ready before meeting Robin. As soon as she’s gone, I start urgently scanning the room for Cameron, finally locating him fiddling with the coffee machine.

‘Good morning,’ he says cheerfully as he settles himself opposite me.

‘Never mind that. What the hell is going on, Cameron?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘You know what I mean,’ I tell him, spreading out Barry’s note. ‘This.’

To give him his credit, he doesn’t falter. ‘OK, don’t be cross with me, but it was pretty obvious last night that Sam was going to blow you out again today. She has blown you out, hasn’t she?’

‘Yes. What’s that got to do with this though?’

‘So, I, umm, may have staged a bit of an intervention.’

‘Just spit it out, Cameron.’

‘OK. Well, I couldn’t help noticing that you didn’t hand in your date card last night.’

‘What?’

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