Page 9 of Waylaid in Whittier

Millie backed up, nearly colliding with a tall, dark-haired man she hadn’t noticed standing in the galley doorway. “Whoops!”

“I’m sorry,” he apologized, quickly sidestepping her. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“It was my fault. I wasn’t watching where I was going.” Millie offered him an apologetic smile and walked over to the RTG meal rack, thinking a small snack to go along with the salmon pie would tide her over until dinner later that evening.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Annette hurrying toward the man. He leaned in and they began talking in low voices.

Millie’s sharp eye noted their body language, how they stood close together. Trying not to gawk, she furtively studied them through lowered lashes, thinking the man looked vaguely familiar.

Amit did an about-face, catching up with Millie, who had decided on a turkey wrap with a side of fresh veggies and dip. “The turkey wraps are a good choice. I added fresh avocado slices.”

“I’m sure it will be delish. I can’t wait to dig in.” Millie grabbed Amit’s arm and whispered in his ear. “Who is the guy Annette’s cozying up to?”

Amit glanced over his shoulder. “His name is Jose Juan Carlos Garcia Santiago Hernandez. He used to go by the name Gary, but now he’s asking everyone to call him Jose. He worked on board Siren of the Seas several years ago before transferring to another ship.”

Millie repeated his name. She snapped her fingers. “I remember him. I ran into him right after I boarded Siren of the Seas way back when. What’s up with him and Annette?”

“I will tell you.” Amit placed a light hand on Millie’s back and whisked her out of the galley. They crossed over to the other side of the corridor, a safe distance away. “He and Miss Annette, they…like each other.”

“In a romantic way?”

He nodded. “They were a couple. One day, out of the blue, he was gone. Here one minute and gone the next. I asked Annette about it after he left, but she did not want to talk.”

“So maybe he dumped her.” Millie’s brows knitted. “And now he’s back.”

“Between you and me, Jose, Gary, or whatever he wants to be called, is not a good person.”

“Annette is no dummy. You think she’s making a mistake taking up with him again?”

“I do.” Amit nervously licked his lips. “Please do not say anything to her. She would not be happy.”

Millie promised she wouldn’t.

“I must get back to work.” Amit strode across the corridor. He waved goodbye and disappeared inside.

An uneasiness settled over Millie as she stared at the door. Looking back, Jose had given her an uncomfortable vibe way back when.

Call it women’s intuition or an overall uneasiness over finding out someone who had walked out of her friend’s life was now back in the picture. Whatever it was, Millie hoped Jose was on the up and up and Annette knew what she was doing.

Chapter 4

“How was your day off?” Millie watched her right-hand gal, assistant cruise director, Danielle, breeze into her office early the next morning.

“Awesome.” She flopped down in a chair across from Millie. “Brody and I hung out in my cabin. We watched a marathon of old movies and ate junk food.”

“And did you catch up on your sleep?”

“You bet. It was at the top of my to-do list before Brody showed up for our nothing to do day started.” Danielle pressed her hand to her chest and closed her eyes. “It was heaven.”

“Good for you. You deserved it.” Millie tapped her pen on top of her notepad, thinking about her semi-restful night, except for the stretch of time when she was wide awake worrying about Elvira, Sharky and Jose.

“I ran into Andy. He showed me the picture of you standing in the new snow shower.”

“More like getting dumped on.” Millie grinned. “I wouldn’t admit it to him, but I was honored to be the first to test it out. Me and Scout. He loved playing in the snow.”

“Did I miss anything important yesterday?”

“Elvira Cobb is in Whittier. She and Sharky got into a fight after she told him she was waiting for our ship so she could hop on board and cruise south with us.”

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