Page 65 of Too Far To Sea
Onboard, she put her backpack under the seat in front of her as McKay stowed his bags above.
“Do you know what Amy-Kate was talking about? I was so careful not to do anything that might get you in trouble. Did the day in Galway cause you problems?”
A muscle twitched in his jaw. “I have an idea, and I promise I am not trying to be evasive, but she has things mostly wrong, and it has to do with Mr. Fairfax and an ongoing investigation.”
“An investigation into Chandler? This isn’t going to come back on Cheyanne, is it?”
“No. Please don’t worry about your sister. She had nothing to do with the problem we discovered.”
Dana nodded. Years of training kept her face neutral, but she wasn’t a fan of vague secrets, especially when they had something to do with someone she loved. In her industry, the wrong secret could be dangerous.
As dinner was served, Dana replayed the events leading up to the discovery of Chandler and Amy-Kate in the passageway near her room. Questions filled her mind. Ones she’d ignored while consoling her sister.
“Was there anything wrong with my original room?”
McKay looked up from his mini roll he was buttering with a bamboo knife, “No.”
“Was it your idea to move me?”
“I opposed it.”
He knew about the plan. Dana picked at her asparagus, removing the rosemary leaves. “Why me?”
McKay paused for a long time. “I don’t think I can tell you.”
Dana stuffed the cheese wedge in her mouth to keep from saying anything until she thought it through. Most of the questions she had would likely fall into the ‘unanswerable’ category.
“Were any other passengers moved?”
“No. There really had been a problem with that particular cabin when we sailed. They were not able to solve it until we reached Galway, when a part was delivered. No one was disturbed by moving you.”
“Oh.” Dana finished her meal in silence. Each bite tasted like cardboard in her increasingly dry mouth. After the trays were collected, she excused herself to go to the restroom. Two other people stood in line.
Amy-Kate came up behind her. “I thought with your standards—” she used air quotes. No one used air quotes, making her sister’s former friend even more annoying. “—that you wouldn’t date someone who lied to you.”
“I really don’t think you have much to say at this point.”
“Entrapment?”
“What do you mean?”
“Mr. Hot Security Dude had to know Chandler and I were there. He must have sent you down the hall hoping you would cause a scene. If you hadn’t caught us and started the fight, they couldn’t have done anything since we were just kissing. They needed Chandler to assault you. Face it, they used you. And you are so desperate for a guy to like you that you fell for it.”
“Why would they do that?” She fought to keep her emotions under wraps.
“Because security realized a crew member must have told Chandler about the spot that no camera could see. They wanted to know if someone was selling information, as if it matters. I got questioned by INTERPOL like I was a criminal. And if you hadn’t made a scene, no one would have ever known.”
A passenger exited the restroom and squeezed his way past them. Dana waited a moment before continuing.
“Chandler purchased the information about an onboard meeting place where there were no cameras?”
“Yes. Although I wished I had just gotten an extra suite so we could have really been alone. He said he didn’t want to be tempted. Not as if we hadn’t shared a bed before. But he said we couldn’t during the cruise.” Amy-Kate rolled her eyes.
Didn’t she even care what she had done to Cheyanne? Or that someone else could have purchased that information?
“That is so wrong.”
Amy-Kate scoffed. “He loves me more than Cheyanne. She is such a prude. He says he’ll come get me as soon as his father forgives him.”
