Chapter Ten #2
“I mean, I wish one of you would have told me before the producers did,” she amended, playing with her long dark hair. I made a mental note to ask her to put it up when this conversation was over. “Him being my boyfriend, you being my roommate…”
“Honestly, I didn’t think it was worth telling you about,” I said, filling the last glass and stashing the bottle of champagne away. “It was a very short-lived relationship, if you could even call it that.”
“It doesn’t take years to fall in love.”
Her words were like a board sweeping under my feet. It felt like they’d thrown me to the ground, knocking the wind from me in an instant.
I knew the truth under them more than I’d ever admit to her.
“But I’m not mad or anything. We’re good. I’m just glad it’s all behind you guys and we can be professional. I don’t know what I’d do if you were still obsessed with him or something.” She laughed, flicking her hair over her shoulder. “Drama!”
She sang the word, stretching out the ah at the end like she was the carefree, fun one and I was the unhinged ex.
I somehow managed a smile, lifting the tray of glasses filled with sparkling gold. “No drama necessary. Finn and I are just friends.”
That word still stung when I said it.
“That’s what he said, too.” Gisella’s lips curled — a soft smile but with a biting edge to it. “I’m glad we’re all friends. It would be a bit awkward otherwise, wouldn’t it?”
She laughed again, but this time, there was something smug about it. Something that said, I have him now. And you? You don’t matter.
You are not a threat.
My throat felt like I’d swallowed sandpaper.
Captain Gary called over the radio that guests were approaching, and I’d never been so thankful for a charter starting in my life. “Let’s get out there. Pull your hair back for me, will you?”
“But it looks so much nicer down.”
I smiled wider. “I understand, but it’s more professional to have it pulled back and tidy.”
“The guests won’t care.”
I ground my teeth. “Well, Captain Gary will.”
“He’s already seen me. He—”
“Gisella, put your hair up and get on deck.” My voice was steel, my patience at its frayed edge. “We may be friends, but right now, I’m your boss. And you’re wasting my time and energy arguing over something you should know after two years in the industry.”
Gisella snapped her mouth shut, head popping back a bit like I’d surprised her.
Good.
She may have been stepping in to help, and she may have been the queen when it came to Finn now. But that was where her power ended.
I was in charge of this interior.
And I was not having another subpar charter on my watch, no matter what the universe tried to throw at me.
If Poseidon were real, he was certainly sending us a gift with the current charter guests, because them being a cool group was the only reason interior wasn’t completely falling apart.
Captain had Leah go to the hospital, mostly to make sure what she was suffering from really was food poisoning and not something the rest of the crew could catch from being in close contact with her.
He also wanted her to get fluids to help her stay hydrated.
She was back now, but still feeling rough, and I knew we were going to have to survive another day without her.
Bernard wore his exhaustion like an extra stripe as he helped me and Finn prepare for the beach picnic the guests had asked for.
He’d been a rockstar on dinner service with me last night, despite the fact that Gisella had acted like she was an extra deckhand just floating around with nothing to do.
I’d had to repeatedly call for her on the radio to help carry plates when they were ready to go.
As soon as we served them, she was gone again.
But she always had an excuse when I called her on it.
I was checking cabins.
False. Because Bernard had already done them.
I was working on laundry.
False. Because it was still a mess in there when we wrapped dinner service, and I had been the one to sort through it all.
Palmer needed me on deck.
False. We were anchored, the water toys were already put away, the sun had set, and there was nothing more to do until Eli cleaned while on night watch.
The only reason we were surviving right now was because the guests were clearly not used to the yacht life, or they were just ridiculously gracious.
Because I knew that dinner service had been clunky and slow, drinks while they relaxed on the sundeck before had been delayed, their cabin refreshes during dinner were mediocre at best, and we were now running thirty minutes behind, and counting, for their beach picnic.
“Oi, you’re smashing it,” Bernard said, pausing where he was packing coolers long enough to grab me by the shoulders and give me a little shake. I’d been pinching the bridge of my nose and forcing some calming breaths, but I didn’t feel any more at peace than two minutes ago.
I tried to force a smile. “Thanks. You okay?”
“Fit as a fiddle,” he lied.
“I want you to go down for a break once you get the cabins in order,” I told him, checking my watch. “I’ll have Gisella make the welcome drinks for when we get back.”
He arched a brow. “You certain?”
“You need rest.”
“So do you.”
“Chief stews don’t rest.” I winked at him through my sleepy smile. “Alright, let’s get these coolers in the tender.”
I called for Eli and Cameron’s help over the radio, and once they’d lugged the coolers away, it was just me and Finn in the galley.
“Okay,” I breathed, running over the list in my phone.
“We’ve got the drinks, glasses, ice, tables, décor…
napkins, plates, flatware… towels, sunscreen…
” I paused where I was checking off items long enough to call to Palmer on the radio and make sure he had umbrellas and the tent for shade.
Once he confirmed, I continued. “And you have everything you need?” I asked, finally looking up at Finn.
“All the appetizers already prepared, everything you need for the grill?”
Finn was wiping down where he’d prepped the citrus and herb couscous salad that would be served as a side.
He was also watching me in the most curious way.
His mouth was tilted at the edge, his eyes shining like the water outside the small galley windows behind him.
“What?” I asked.
“You were built for this, you know that?”
The words were soft, lilted by his accent and subtle appreciation.
I chuffed a laugh. “Yeah. I’m slaying it.”
“You are.”
“If we’re judging by these first two charters, I think everyone in the world would argue the opposite.”
“No one in the world knows you like I do.”
He said it casually, but the moment the words were in the space between us, the air grew heavier. Finn paused where he was cleaning, his smile waning, and I furrowed my brows as I looked at him and waited.
For what? For him to apologize, to explain those words away?
For him to double down and say them again?
Neither happened, because Gisella swept into the galley, and I cleared my throat, turning my attention back to the list on my phone.
“I’m so sad I don’t get to go with you to the beach,” Gisella pouted, throwing her arms around his shoulders. “It’s not fair.”
I rolled my eyes, and that was just enough of a glance in their direction for me to see Finn swallow.
“Trust me, it’ll be more fun on the boat with the guests gone. Beach picnics are hard work.”
“Sure, such a misfortune.” Gisella sighed. “I guess it will be nice to get a bit of a break. I feel like I’ve barely come up for air this charter, balancing both deck and interior.”
I couldn’t help it. I snorted a sarcastic laugh that felt as awkward as it sounded. Both their gazes slid to me, and I tried to cover it by pretending to cough, making my eyes water.
“Something in my throat,” I muttered through another fit.
“I’m going to head over with this tender and start getting everything set up.
Gisella, I’ll radio when we’re ready for the guests.
I told Bernard to go down for his break as soon as we’re gone.
Can you take care of cabins and make sure we have a welcome drink for the guests when we return? ”
“So much for that break,” Gisella said to Finn, as if it was quiet enough that I wouldn’t hear when she pinned me with a fake smile. “Yes, ma’am.”
Ma’am.
As if I were ten years her senior.
I wanted to smack that smirk right off her gorgeous face, but in a feat of restraint I was surprised I had, I mirrored her smile and just said, “Thank you.”
Before heading to the beach, I popped down to Leah’s cabin, knocking softly and sitting on the edge of her bed in the dark room.
“How are you feeling?”
“Getting better,” she said, wincing as she maneuvered her way to sitting up. She took a sip of the electrolyte drink next to her. “Although I’m absolutely devastated to be missing this beach picnic.”
“I did promise you I’d let you get off the boat as soon as we had one, but…”
“Yeah. Throwing up on the guests probably wouldn’t make for a good tip.”
I smirked, squeezing her knee.
“Y’all okay?” she asked.
God, no, I wanted to reply, but I forced a smile, instead. “We’re just fine. You rest up and we’ll all be back to normal soon.”
“I feel awful, Em.”
“I know. But it’s okay. I promise.”
I patted her leg, ready to tell her to get some rest and I’d check in on her later, but she stopped me.
“Em?”
“Yeah?”
“What’s the story with you and Finn?”
My gut churned. “What do you mean?”
“Well, you guys used to date, and now you’re here together again, but he’s with Gisella… and I don’t know, I just feel like there’s some animosity there. Was it a bad breakup? Were you together long?”
I blew out a breath. I shouldn’t have been surprised that the whole crew knew about me and Finn now, the way gossip travels on floating tin cans like this. I was fairly certain the producers had a hand in the wildfire spread of our past, too.
“It was only four months,” I said, though my body betrayed how casual I made those words sound.