Chapter Eleven
Day 1: Saturday
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Delaney
I really can’t believe I’m standing back in the terminal at Port Everglades. My stomach is doing all kinds of backflips as my anxiety and nerves are getting the better of me. This place is packed. It’s Pinnacle’s VIP cruise, and yes, I decided to find my cruise crush and tell him I love him.
It took me almost a week for my heart and head to get to this conclusion, but I realized there are no guarantees in life and love. I haven’t spoken to Andrew or his sisters and have no idea what his reaction will be. The conclusion I came to was that I have tried to live my life without regrets, and not being here would have been exactly that, a regret.
Our last interaction in the conference room was nothing short of disastrous. He said I was a distraction and that he needed to prioritize work. While my old self would have sunk deep into a hole, I realized I wasn’t ready to quit. I love this man, and my hope is that we can forgive each other. His work and my fears can’t be the reasons we sink. I’m just a girl on a boat, asking a boy to love me. #fingerscrossed.
As I review my itinerary from Kristen, I notice two familiar smiling faces walking toward me. Both are dressed in white officer uniforms and look very professional. Side by side, I don’t think their father could tell them apart. Thank God they’re wearing name tags.
“Delaney! Hi!” Ally greets me with a big hug. It’s unexpected but very welcome.
“I’m so glad you came,” Andrea jumps in and also hugs me.
I truly believe these women would be great sisters-in-law.
“Hi! Crazy week, but I’m here. Nervous. Excited,” I confess. “Is Andrew here?”
Their expressions turn to a serious demeanor.
“What’s wrong? He’s not here, is he?” I ask as I feel my stomach start to turn. Here we go again. My fears have popped up like whack-a-mole.
“No,” Andrea calmly states.
I can feel tears welling up and hope to God I can hold it in because I don’t want to create a scene. I turn my head and wipe my eyes. Looking back at the twins, I ask, “He didn’t come?”
“His flight was canceled, and he’s not going to make it,” Ally explains.
I gather my thoughts. “I think I’m going to bail.”
“No! You can’t do that,” Andrea pleads .
“Yeah, you can’t leave,” Ally seconds.
“I came here for him. I came here to tell him I love him. Although I’m sure the VIP cruise is going to be a wonderful event, he’s the only reason I’m here.”
“You’re already here, and I’m sure he’s going to try to catch up with the ship,” Ally says.
“Does he know I’m here?” I inquire.
“Not unless he checked the passenger manifest this morning. You didn’t confirm until twenty-four hours ago, so I don’t know,” Ally replies.
I’m really torn. If he tries to make it and I’m not here, we’ll both be in another tailspin. If I stay and he doesn’t make it, I’ll be in another tailspin. Ally and Andi can see the torment on my face.
“Ms. Fitzpatrick,” I hear a familiar voice behind me. I turn and see Mr. Russo with a beautiful woman on his arm. “Welcome!” he continues. “This is my wife, Olivia.”
“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” she says as she extends her hand.
“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Russo.”
“Oh, please call me Oli,” she requests.
“Are you ready to get on board the newest cruise ship on the seas?” he asks excitedly.
There’s a pause. He looks at me and then at the twins. He sees my hesitation.
“Ah, yes, AJ is not here,” he acknowledges.
Trying to not break down in front of his entire family, I fight the urge to cry. Making the decision to come was a big deal. Getting on the plane was even bigger. Standing in the cruise terminal is Huge! My stomach is doing more somersaults and backflips than my gold-winning floor routine, and my face cannot hide my anxiety.
“Ms. Fitzpatrick, let’s go have a seat,” his mother says, looping her arm in mine. She leads me over to a couple of empty seats as the rest of the family watches intently.
I don’t even have time to formulate an answer, much less decline her invitation. I quickly get the impression that Mrs. Russo has a gentle way of persuasion.
“I know your coming today was a big step.” Her voice is so calm and reassuring. “I’m sure you’re now feeling even more doubts and nerves since learning that AJ is not here. I spoke with him last night, and his staff is doing everything they can to get him here. And just to be clear, no one, and I mean no one, has talked to him about your meeting last week in the conference room.”
“Thank you.”
“I can’t tell you what AJ is going to do. I can’t tell you how he feels. What I can tell you is that he was hurt two weeks ago when he got off the ship. It was a pain I’d never seen him experience before. A serious loss and sadness. He tried to cover it up, but a mother knows when her son is hurting, and he was hurting.”
I feel my eyes starting to tear up again .
“And I know you were hurt that morning as well. A lot had happened, and I don’t minimize that. What I do know is that you are here now. You showed up, and showing up is half the battle.”
“I love your son.”
“I knew that the moment I saw you standing talking with the twins. I said to myself that if she shows up today, she loves him.”
“I do,” I confirm.
“Okay. Then let’s get you checked in and on board the most beautiful ship on the ocean.”
“I…I’m scared,” I admit.
“Me too. Here I am, encouraging you to finish what you came to do, and I can’t see the ending. But what I have learned is that there are no sure bets in love. There are no 100% guarantees. Look at Andi’s situation. But what I do know is that there are opportunities. Sometimes, we don’t see them. Sometimes, they’re spilled on us like cocktail sauce.”
“Wait…! You know about that? How?”
“Ally,” she replies.
We both share a smile. She holds my hand in a loving, encouraging way while not forcing me to make the decision. We both stand, looking over at Mr. Russo and the twins, who have not taken their eyes off us since we sat down.
“Let’s get this cruise started,” I declare.
She hugs me. I see the three of them over her shoulder relax and smile.
Walking onto the boat, I see a familiar gentleman dressed in white.
“Welcome aboard, Ms. Fitzpatrick,” he announces. “It’s nice to see you again.”
“Thank you, Captain.”
“Does everyone know I’m here?” I turn and ask Andrea.
She smiles.
The ship is gorgeous, so much bigger than the Gem . The colors are bright but not gaudy. There’s a lot of natural light from the skylight and large, round windows on each side of the ship. I hear live music from the small group of men playing steel drums in the corner. Crew members are all smiles and dressed to the nines. The ship has that new car smell. Crisp. Fresh.
Vloggers and bloggers are walking around with their phones, documenting their experiences. Just by their expressions, I can tell they are just as impressed with the ship as I am.
“My parents would like you to join us for dinner if you’re available,” Ally requests.
“That would be great, thank you.”
Ally and Andrea walk me to the elevator bank.
“We’ll see you tonight. You will find all the info in your stateroom,” Andrea says .
Andrea reaches in and presses the button for, wait…what? Seriously? The 15 th floor? As the doors close, I can see them smile on the other side of the glass door before the elevator ascends.
I look down at my room key and notice the stateroom number. What the fuck?!
Walking down the long hallway, I notice the shaped sconces and colorful artwork on the walls. I navigate around the luggage that is already waiting by the staterooms as I make my way toward my room.
I see the end of the hallway and have now determined I’m in the front of the ship. As I get to the end, I notice a small hallway on my left with room numbers listed on a small placard on the wall. I follow the small hallway and stop at my stateroom, 15001. My heart beats faster. What are the chances? Like a million to one?
As I open the door, I realize immediately that this is not just any room. At first glance, it looks very similar to Andrew’s stateroom. I drop my bags and notice a large floral bouquet on the granite island. My heart beats faster…is it from him? I grab the card.
Damn it! Nice touch, but I was secretly wishing it had been from him. I explore the rest of my stateroom and still can’t believe I’m in this room. I walk into the bedroom and notice the artwork on the wall. There’s a picture of the Gem and the Pearl next to each other. In the corner hangs the picture of the Gem with the Prima Amore that was in Andrew’s stateroom and the Pinnacle conference room.
The room is just like Andrew’s. The color scheme is slightly different, but the size is the same. I look at the granite island, and a flashback of him lifting me onto its cool surface causes goosebumps on my arms. I hope I can get these images out of my head, but do I really want to?
It’s been a long travel day, and I would like to get a quick nap before dinner tonight with the Russo clan. I pause because the main reason I’m here is to see Andrew. It feels odd to be having dinner with his family tonight, knowing he’s not here.
Andrew
Fuck! I can’t believe I’m missing the launch today! I know there’s nothing anyone can do about the weather but damn it! If I were stuck in Atlanta or Tampa, I would just rent a car and drive. Being in Europe, the alternatives are somewhat limited.
It’s been a very productive week with our European Team, but missing the VIP cruise does not sit well with me. I know my parents are there, and they can work with the board. My sisters are more than capable of filling in for my duties, and the ship couldn’t be in better hands than with Pieter. That being said, I hate missing it. More importantly, a small part of me wonders if Delaney is going to come.
I don’t know what happened after I left the conference room, but my father and sisters have been uncharacteristically tight-lipped all week. I know my father invited Delaney to the VIP cruise to write about the new ship and complete her review of the cruise line, as he knows she was navigating “distractions” on her last cruise. According to Kristen, as of forty-eight hours ago, Delaney hadn’t replied to my father’s invitation.
Delaney Fitzpatrick, Olympic gold medalist, DJ Austen, travel writer, and the woman I fell in love with. I have no idea how I didn’t recognize her. Our last meeting in the conference room was nothing short of disastrous. I accused her of using me to gain access, and she accused me of pursuing her to get a better review. Neither was the truth. Just misunderstandings and poor communication.
Fucking poor communication is at the root of all relationship killers. I even said this while we were sitting on my balcony one night. To make it worse, I actually implied that our relationship was a distraction. I’ve got to get my head out of my ass! I didn’t want to leave her in the conference room, but I’ve only balanced work and more work. Adding love into the equation is not in my wheelhouse. That needs to change. She caught me off guard last week, as she was the last person I expected to see. I wasn’t prepared with my thoughts or feelings like I am today.
When I look at my watch, I quickly calculate that my family is probably floating just about 100 miles off the coast of Florida. I’m stuck in this airport hotel in Rome until I get confirmation that I have a seat assignment on a flight back to the States. I’m still holding out hope that I can fly into a port and catch up with the ship.
I hold up my phone as I watch more YouTube videos of Delaney during the Olympics. She was really good. I mean, really fucking good. Fast, flexible, poised, and solid. Her hair is longer now, and she has obviously grown into a woman, but her smile is the same. I recall her doing a handstand naked on the pool deck at Bella Vista. Fuck, that was hot as hell !
Bling…
Kristen
Just got a message that you have been cleared to fly tomorrow morning @ 10:30 to JFK.
Andrew
Great news. Where can I meet the ship?
Kristen
Working on that right now.
Andrew
How was the party?
Kristen
According to Andi, it was fabulous! She said your father did a great job welcoming everyone and explained you were held up in Rome.
Andrew
He is the expert at those events.
Kristen
Yes, he is. Ok…looks like you can join the Pearl in two days in Puerto Rico. I will send you the updated itinerary when I finalize it. Go to bed and make sure you’re on that flight in the morning.
Well, two days late is better than nothing. I set the alarm for an early wake-up call, then turn out the lights and try to turn off the thoughts racing through my head.