Page 33 of It Had to be You

Maybe it was the sun she’d absorbed that day, or the excitement of the evening that wrung her

energy from her.

"I should go and get some sleep before I blurt out something else I don’t really mean."

Tatum lifted her gaze to meet his own. She was frightened of what she would see.

But, like so many times before, in just these few days, he made her feel… understood.

"The best thing about this cruise is that we’re going to have the time to get to know each other. And before you start worrying that I don’t know you well enough to know that I want to spend this time with you, or that just because we’ve connectedthis quickly that it might not be ‘real,’ I want you to remember that we’re standing here together, after an amazing day in San Juan."

"So, you’re telling me not to worry so much?" Her smile deepened.

"That’s just it. Let’s see where this cruise takes us." He wrapped her arm around his and tucked

her against his side. "I’ll walk you to your cabin and we can both get some rest. I’m looking forward to class in the morning. I hear the teacher is really talented."

She walked beside him, trading little jokes back and forth. When they reached the elevator banks

there was an elevator ready almost immediately. Alexander stepped in after her and asked her which deck. He looked surprised when she didn’t mention one of the upper decks.

As the elevator descended, he gave her a curious look.

"What?" She shook her head. "I’m a minor member of the crew. So, I have a crew cabin along with

the same people who work in the kitchens and do the entertainment shows."

"What kind of a view do you have in your room?"

Her laughter was punctuated by the soft DING of the elevator. When the doors opened, she stepped out. "You can leave me here and go up to your deck. That’s just fine."

Alexander reached out and held the door open with his hand. "I’m walking you to your door."

Tatum gestured at the open elevator door. "Here’s the door."

He stepped off of the elevator and shook his head at her. "It’s ‘a’ door, but not ‘your door.’"

"I should know better than to argue over words with a man in publishing."

He grinned at her. "Thank you for proving my point exactly."

She rolled her eyes and adjusted the bouquet laid over her arm to make sure it wouldn’t suffer

from the narrower hallways below deck. "Fine. Come on, my room’s down this hall."

Their conversation was soft as if they had instinctively lowered their voices just in case they could be heard. Some of the crew with the early morning duties were likely asleep.

There was something about Alexander’s demeanor that was shifting the further they moved

down the corridor.

Maybe it was too much to wish that he just might kiss her goodnight, but a girl could hope.

Right?

Reaching into her pocket for the key, she unlocked the door and pushed it open. "Do you want to

see how the ‘other half’ lives? You can take a look if you’d like. I think I left it fairly clean."

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