Chapter 6
An Unexpected Delay – Kayla
F or the most part, it seems like Denver was right, and Captain Bryant just wanted to make sure I had all my certifications, although I previously emailed him copies of my participation certificates, and made sure I knew the lay of the land.
As he speaks, I can tell that he is confident and knows what he wants. And I can’t help but admire that. His full captain’s outfit doesn’t hurt in making him seem stoic either.
“You see,” he says chewing on a pipe that isn’t lit and crossing one leg over the other, “I’ve wanted to be on the water for as long as I can remember.”
“Oh, wow.” I envy that. I’ve spent most of my life aimlessly. I went to school for finance for no other reason than that I am good with numbers. I never enjoyed any of my jobs in the field. As I said, it was a lot of old, white men telling me what to do.
“Now.” He leans over. “Please do not make it a habit of approaching Jack.”
My brow furrows. “What? How am I supposed to know what he wants…”
“He will tell you. But that’s what I’m saying. Only speak to him when spoken to.”
“Okay.” More white men telling me what to do. I’m starting to worry this was a bad idea.
“But other than that, you should be fine.”
“Okay,” I repeat.
He examines my certificates again. “You know, I’m really impressed you were able to get these so quickly.”
I shrug. “It wasn’t all that hard, really.”
He then gathers the paper and taps them on the table to straighten them altogether.
As we talk, a cluster of employees pass around us.
“There are a lot more people on here than I expected,” I admit after a break of silence.
Captain Bryant takes off his hat and scratches an itch on his head before putting it back on. While it hovered in his hand, however, I saw that he has small indentations near the corners of his forehead, indicating he was balding a little bit.
I don’t know why, but that’s always been kind of sexy to me.
Perhaps that’s a symptom of having daddy issues? Who knows.
“So, let’s cut to the chase here,” he says. While he has remained assured of himself throughout our talk, the conversation doesn’t seem to be fluid—and instead, it has kind of gone in all sorts of weird, choppy paths. However, part of that might have been me. His presence makes me anxious. Well, just being on board this yacht makes me nervous, to be honest.
I glance down at my hands and then meet his piercing gaze. “Okay.”
“You don’t have a lot of experience on a boat like this.”
“True.” I can’t lie about that.
“But I hired you anyway because I like your spirit.”
“Oh.” I’m not sure what that’s supposed to mean, but I’m flattered. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t expect the utmost professionalism and work ethic out of you.”
“Of course.” That’s why I’m here, after all. To prove to my brother and myself that I can work hard.
“Good.” He nods. “As we discussed during your interview, your main initiatives are to keep this place clean and tidy. Understood?”
“Yes, sir.”
“And that means everywhere ,” he reiterates.
“I got it.”
“When it comes to Jack’s clothing, you will need to take care in cleaning them exactly as the label instructs, and you will have to iron them with the keenest of eyes to detail.”
“Okay.” As a rich man, I already assumed his clothes were fancy and designer.
“If I haven’t gotten that message clear to you yet, he’s a very particular person.”
I kind of laugh. “So, I’ve heard.”
His face grows serious. “This isn’t a joke, Kayla.”
My stomach drops. “Sorry. I just meant—other people have already told me that.” He was much lighter during our Zoom call, but that was just about a prospective job. Now, I’m actually here to do it.
“Ah. Do you have any questions for me?”
“Um… I don’t think so.” I shift in my seat. “I’m just ready to get to work.”
He grins. “That’s what I like to hear. Let’s stop dilly dallying and get you a tour, shall we?”
“Sure.” He gets up, and I follow him.
“I have already seen my cabin.”
“Good.”
Instead of that area of the boat, he shows me the kitchen, where I will be expected to do all the dishes, the laundry room, and Jack’s master stateroom.
“But do not ever go into that closet,” I’m warned.
“Okay.” Like a little kid, that makes me instantly want to look inside of it. But I resolve to respect his boundaries.
I’m also shown Jack’s private bathroom and the rest of the lavatories.
“This is an area that we expect to be immaculately clean.”
“Got it.” I’m not psyched to clean up after everyone’s excrement, but I will. I assume it will help me build character and humility.
After that, he takes off his hat again and pats his thigh with his other hand. “I think that’s it. From here, if you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to ask me, if I’m not behind the control panels, or Denver.”
So, go to Denver. Got it. He is less intimidating anyway.
A few moments later, a frantic older man comes running up to us.
“Captain?” He’s wiping sweat off his forehead.
“Jenkins?”
“We have a problem.”
“Excuse us,” Captain Bryant says.
I nod and move out of their way.
While they’re attending to whatever the “problem” is, I go into my living quarters and change into uniform. Then, I check the bathrooms and make sure they are in pristine condition.
After that, I fluff Jack’s bedroom pillows and discard of some tissue on his nightstand before walking out onto the main deck again.
Denver is there, and he’s watching Captain Bryant, the man he called Jenkins, and Jack are all huddled together.
“What’s going on?”
His eyes are narrow, and his lips are pursed. “I don’t know yet.”
“Who is that man in the maroon polo?” I already knew his name, but I wasn’t sure of his job.
“Jenkins is the yacht’s engineer.”
“Oh.” My hands rest at the small of my back. “Does that mean there’s an issue with the boat?”
His large pupils shift over to me. “Most likely, yeah.”
The left side of my lower lip stretches out. “Yikes. That can’t be good.”
Denver glares at them again and shakes his head. “No. Jack is going to be pissed if this trip is stalled anymore.”
“And what happens when he’s angry?”
He turns to face me then. “You don’t want to know.”
Oh, shit.
“Is he violent?” Despite what Denver said, I think I should at least be aware of that.
“Not to people. But he’s trashed his stateroom from time to time.”
Wonderful. In that event, I am the one who will have to clean up after him. While I find him attractive, this new information about him throwing temper tantrums is a little off putting.
“You should’ve seen what happened after the pictures of Harper and Mateo Vincent at that club came out.”
I want to ask about this Harper person, but Mateo Vincent piqued my interest. “The fashion designer?”
“Yep. He went into his closet, took out all his clothes from Mateo’s label, and he cut them all up. Funny part was, Harper was still in your position, so she had to deal with the mess.”
Hmph. “Was Harper his…” If Jack was upset about pictures of her with another man, surely that means they were romantically involved.
“We really shouldn’t be talking about this,” he says curtly.
“Okay.” I’m a little caught off guard because he was the one who started on the topic. But I take his que to shut it.
Soon, Captain Bryant walks over to the bridge, picks up the phone, and relays the message that we’re going to have an overnight delay.
A chorus of “aw, man” breaks out among the staff.
“You are free to do whatever you want on the shore once your duties are complete.”
With that, Denver’s big eyes widen even further. “Do you like to drink?”
“I do.”