Page 38 of Love on Deck

“I don’t need your help, just your absence.”

This wreaked heavily of fishiness. “Why?”

“I just don’t. Please leave. I’ll change and meet you at the hot tub.”

“What if Sydney is the only one there? I can’t arrive by myself.”

“Then wait outside the door,” she said through clenched teeth.

“Or tell me where your suit is so I can help you.”

“I don’t need your help,” she repeated with exasperation. Her hazel eyes rounded widely. Her hair was pulled back in a clip, but her bare shoulder poked through the doorway and she looked like a heavy mix of obstinate and tired.

Something in her gaze tugged at my chest. She was so busy being independent she was missing out on one of the finer things in life: having people to rely on. “You know it doesn’t make you weak to accept help, right? There’s nothing wrong with letting someone do something for you.”

Her eyes tightened. “That’s not what this is about.”

“You just don’t want me to see your crabby pajamas? I got a good look at those this morning.”

“No.” She closed her eyes and drew in a breath. “Fine. Whatever. It’s in the second drawer down. Mint green.”

The drawers were inside the closet. I opened the one she indicated and pulled out her bathing suit—the only item in the drawer. Proof, I guessed, that she just didn’t want to have to ask me for help. Was I that unapproachable? I knew our original blind date—and this trip—didn’t have an auspicious beginning, but I’d started to feel like we were warming up to each other a little.

I tossed her the suit, and she disappeared into the bathroom again. Our balcony door was on the other end of the room, so I let myself out there while I waited and leaned over the railing, looking out at the vast black ocean. The sun had set, making the dark water appear fathomless and deep. Stars shone overhead, twinkling above the glittering water.

Familiar cackling laughter caught my attention and I looked down, finding three adults-only hot tubs lined up a few decks below us, but perfectly visible. A woman sat in one of them across from a guy, and while he was a complete stranger, she was not.

The balcony door slid open. “I’m ready—”

“Shhh!” I said quickly, putting my finger to Lauren’s lips. I nodded toward the hot tubs. “Sydney is down there, as predicted. She probably hurried just in case she could catch me alone.”

Lauren stepped out, peeking over the edge of our balcony. She wore a high waisted two-piece with ruffles lining the straps and neckline and a pair of shorts. The swimsuit was sleek and elegant, just like her. She might have been wearing a one-piece for how well she was covered, but it was still one of the most appealing things I’d ever seen.

Cool wind whipped over us, and Lauren gave a little shiver to the sound of Sydney’s laughter. “I guess you would have been the third wheel if you’d gone on ahead like I asked.”

“Thank you for saving me from such a fate.”

She stepped back into the room and pulled on a crew neck sweatshirt with a row of watercolor cactuses across the front. “Coercion is more accurate.”

I followed her. “I like to call it persistence.”

“Is that what they claimed on your last restraining order?”

“That’s confidential information,” I deadpanned, earning a small laugh. I closed the balcony door behind me and faced Lauren, but she didn’t move. I nodded to her sweatshirt. “Just like you. Prickly but cute.”

She didn’t react. “What happened at Bingo?”

My stomach tightened. “Annie won. We both lost. The cruise ship is eighty bucks richer for our participation.”

“That’s not what I mean.”

I knew that. “Why the sudden interest, Spreadsheets?”

Lauren did a double take, holding my gaze. “That nickname is not sticking.”

Anything to change the subject. “I like it. There’s a nice ring to it... might it be precision? Authenticity?”

She rolled her eyes. “Yes, I’m a nerd. You’re so funny for pointing it out. Why did Tucker’s party make you sad?”

---