Chapter 5
“Morning! Wow, did you see the weather report?”
Terry raised a brow at Mindy’s words as he stepped into the Shore Excursions office.
He moved to look over her shoulder at the computer screen, then frowned at the radar plot she had on display.
Bands of rain that were moving up from just south of Jamaica, spreading over Cuba and Dominica and heading toward the Bahamas.
“Where did that come from?” he asked, setting his bag down. “It was clear yesterday afternoon.”
Mindy shrugged. “You know the Caribbean in June. Cold front stalls in the Gulf while further south the sun is baking all our lovely water, incoming low pressure… boom, tropical depression.”
The weather in the Caribbean Sea and the South Atlantic was always a topic of interest among cruise ship crews, and Terry had as keen an interest as any of his coworkers.
Bad weather was bad for business. Guests didn’t much like it when rain closed the pools or rolling decks made them feel too sick to drink.
The extended forecast when they’d left Fort Lauderdale had been for fair weather all week, but the only constant about the conditions in the Caribbean in summer was that they could change suddenly.
“At least they rarely develop more than that,” Terry said, but he found himself annoyed.
Today was the dolphin swim excursion he’d been looking forward to, and he hoped it wouldn’t be canceled, although he was aware he was as eager to watch Mark Vandergoss as he was the dolphins. “Is the weather still clear in Exuma?”
“Yup. All excursions are a go.” She tapped at the keyboard, then handed him a small portable card reader that the cruise line used to check in guests for excursions, and then she peered at him closely.
“Did you get a haircut? And is that aftershave I smell? Wait! This is the excursion with that dreamy passenger, isn’t it? ”
Terry felt his cheeks heating, but he lifted his chin. “As a matter of fact, I did get my hair cut. It was starting to be out of regs. It has nothing to do with whoever is on the excursion today.”
“Liar.” She grinned, her eyes dancing with amusement. “Don’t worry, I won’t tell.”
“Like there’s anything to tell,” he shot back. Was he really that transparent?
“Ah, but you want there to be.” She stood and patted him on the shoulder. “Go for it, regs be damned. You better believe if I see Mr. Right among the passengers one day, I’m not going to let a piece of paper stop me.”
Terry nodded. He understood her point, but he wasn’t sure Mark was interested.
Sure, he always seemed to look at Terry at the pool, but that wasn’t the basis of a holiday fling.
He wasn’t certain why it mattered so much to him, but he felt an odd pull toward Mark, not just attraction but something more compelling.
The sight of Mark made him smile, made his heart beat faster in a way that had never happened to him before.
Maybe it was nothing more than lust, but Mark had a strange vulnerability, too, one that made Terry want to wrap his arms around him and make it all go away.
Another of their coworkers entered the office, and Terry went about getting everything together for the excursion.
He made sure he had a first aid kit, sunscreen, an extra sunhat, a few bottles of water, and some drink straws of electrolytes to fend off dehydration.
He’d also tossed in a couple of protein bars and some glucose tablets in case anyone experienced low blood sugar.
He knew the excursion providers were supposed to have basic medical supplies on hand, but Terry preferred to know that he had everything guests might need, whether they knew it or not.
It wasn’t for good customer service, either; Terry had very good first-aid training, and his instructors had always stressed prevention as well as reaction in a crisis.
Finally, it was time to head out to the dock to check-in the passengers on the excursion.
He stopped at the security desk before leaving the ship to pick up his diving knife.
The cruise line didn’t permit even crew members to have blades over 4 inches long, and his was a custom, top-of-the-line blade he’d gotten when he’d been certified for scuba instruction.
The port in Exuma wasn’t large, but it was scenic. When Terry stepped out on the dock, a brisk wind was blowing from the southeast, but the day was pleasantly warm. He spotted Mark standing with a group of people near the sign that indicated their excursion, and he smiled as he walked over.
“Good morning, everyone,” he greeted the ten passengers. He nodded at the boat captain for their charter, whose picture had been part of his materials for the day. “Are you ready to get started?”
Everyone appeared excited about the excursion, but Mark was bouncing on his toes like he was physically incapable of standing still, and his answering grin at Terry spoke louder than any words.
Mark was already wearing his swim trunks paired with black canvas slip-on shoes and a white tee shirt that read, “Trust me, I’m a software engineer. ”
Terry chuckled as he began scanning the cruise cards of the passengers.
Once that was finished, the captain gave a safety briefing.
After that, it was a short walk to a different pier where they boarded a catamaran.
Everyone was given a life jacket by the two additional helpers the captain had onboard, and in short order they were skimming out across the blue waters in the stiffening breeze.
The passengers were chatting among themselves, and Terry took the opportunity to take a seat next to Mark.
“Hey,” he said, smiling as he resisted the urge to scoot closer. “I’d ask if you’re excited, but I can see you are.”
“I’ve wanted to do this since I was a kid,” Mark said, one knee bobbing with sheer anticipatory energy. “I can hardly believe it’s happening.”
Terry couldn’t help but laugh at Mark’s eagerness, which was adorable.
“Yeah, I know what you mean. The first time I got to swim with dolphins I thought I’d died and gone to heaven.
” He leaned closer. “Just so you know, I brought my waterproof camera. Since you’re here alone, I can get some pictures if you want me to. ”
Mark gave him a smile of pure gratitude. “That would be great! Thank you so much.”
“No problem.” Mark’s smile made Terry’s heart beat faster.
It was ridiculous; it was dangerous for his job and likely his sanity, but he couldn’t help it.
Mark would get off the ship in four days and likely never think of Terry again.
But if he had pictures, maybe he’d think of Terry from time to time.
He wanted Mark to remember not only the trip, but him, too. “Where are you from?”
“Currently, I live in Atlanta,” Mark said. “But I grew up in Darien, Georgia, which is right on the coast, so I got plenty of swim practice. What about you? How did you end up on a cruise ship?”
Mark’s curiosity was gratifying, especially since he seemed interested and not just making small talk.
“I grew up in Tampa, was on the high school swim team, got a swim scholarship to U of F. I was good, but I wasn’t Michael Phelps good, if you know what I mean.
I majored in business, so I gravitated to the tourism sector after graduation.
The cruise industry is huge, you know? So I decided to see what life was like on the ships, and I’ve enjoyed it a lot.
Lots of travel, meeting lots of people. I’m planning to start my own travel agency in the future.
Working on the ship and having basically all my expenses covered has let me save up.
” He was hoping he didn’t sound like he was drifting through life.
Mark gave off vibes of being solid and established, and Terry didn’t want Mark to think he was flaky.
But Mark nodded. “That’s a smart move,” he said. “You’ll need a hefty nest egg if you want to start your own business, plus you’re gaining lived experience in the travel industry, so you’ll have a strong knowledge base to call on when you’re helping your clients.”
Terry grinned in delight. “Yes! Exactly! My parents think I should settle down and work at someone else’s agency, but I think that’s because they want me close by because I’m an only child.
But I got the travel bug in college when we went all over for competitions.
So much to see, so much to do, and I prefer to do it while I’m young.
” He paused, and his smile grew crooked.
“Though I admit I would love to have someone to share the adventure with.”
“Oh, you’re single?” Mark glanced sidelong at Terry, his tone overly casual. “Yeah, me too.”
It was all Terry could do not to pump his fist in the air.
He’d thought it likely Mark was single — people with partners rarely cruised alone -—but having confirmation was encouraging.
“Yeah, single because it’s not fair to a partner for me to be gone so much.
” He paused before adding, “Um, but I’m not into one-night-stands or anything.
I know people who work on cruise ships get kind of a reputation, but it’s only a few who are into that.
Not that there’s anything wrong with it, of course! It’s just not for me.”
“Single because it’s not fair to a partner for me to work so much,” Mark said with a wry twist of his lips.
“I’m not into hooking up either. Otherwise I could’ve had company for every minute of this cruise,” he added with a little snort-laugh.
“Sorry, I don’t mean to sound full of myself, but the sheer number of times I’ve been hit on since I stepped foot on this ship is mind-blowing. ”
Terry laughed, but he was pleased to learn Mark had standards. “I can believe it! I’ve gone through it myself, though it’s mostly women hitting on me.” He held up his arm with the rainbow tattoo. “I got this as a form of self defense. It’s helped a little, but not on this cruise.”