Chapter 15
Ace
Who the fuck knows me on a fucking cruise ship on the Rhine fucking River in fucking Germany?
As a spy, I’m prepared for almost anything, but not for being recognized here on this damn boat.
I get to my feet, instinctively blocking Shannon from view.
The face in front of me is one I haven’t seen in a while, and probably the last one I expected to see here.
“Chris?” I probably look like a deer in the headlights staring at him, but he doesn’t have any such qualms and reaches out a hand.
“Good to see you! Been a long time.” His blue eyes twinkle with unspoken humor at running into each other considering our history, but the attractive woman beside him doesn’t seem at all suspicious.
“It has been.” I nod as I shake his hand.
“This is my girlfriend, Aubrey.” He slides an arm around the auburn-haired woman’s waist.
“Nice to meet you.” I shake Aubrey’s hand and then reach for Shannon’s, hoping she’ll fall into the role of girlfriend.
And of course she does, because she’s Shannon and we know each other far too well for two people who’ve only been together a week.
“This is my girlfriend, Shannon. Shannon, this is Chris Brenner and his girlfriend, Aubrey.”
“Hi.” Shannon smiles, shaking their hands.
“Fancy winding up on a cruise like this together.” Chris seems highly amused, and I wonder if his girlfriend knows what he did to stay safe during the two years he spent in prison.
“It was a last-minute decision for us,” I say. “Our first vacation as a couple. Shannon teaches at an American school here in Cologne so we hopped on a day late because of her final exam schedule.”
“How fun.” Aubrey smiles. “How do you know Chris?”
I look to him, since I have no idea what Aubrey knows.
“It’s okay,” he says quietly. “Aubrey knows everything.”
Now Shannon is the one looking confused.
“Chris was in prison,” Aubrey says to Shannon, when neither Chris nor I continue. Then she turns to Chris knowingly. “I’m assuming this is the Ace who kept you safe while you were there.”
He gives her a brief nod.
Shannon frowns. “But…”
“I’ll tell you about it privately,” I tell her. “Let’s not talk about it here in such a public place.”
“We’ve been out all day, so we need to freshen up,” Chris says, “but how about we share a table at dinner? I’d love to catch up.”
“Sounds great.” I nod, glancing at Shannon. “Okay with you?”
“Of course.”
Chris and Aubrey head off, and Shannon sits down again, leaning against me. “They seem nice. Dare I ask why he went to prison?”
“He beat the shit out of the man who raped his sister.”
Her eyes widen. “Oh. Well, good for him. I hope prison wasn’t too terrible. There aren’t a lot of honorable men in prisons, I don’t think.”
“I made sure he was protected.” I speak quietly, right into her ear.
“There was a very bad man at the prison with him, and I needed someone to watch him. Everyone he spoke to, what he ate, who he hung out with, everything. Chris did that and more, but the details don’t matter.
He got me information I couldn’t get anywhere else, and I kept him safe.
Over the course of about eighteen months of visits, we got to know each other pretty well, and he’s a good guy. I’m glad he got his happy ending.”
“Are we telling them about my stalker?” she asks.
I hesitate. “Let’s see how it goes. If it comes up and you feel it’s pertinent, I trust Chris completely. So, I’ll leave it up to you.”
“Okay.” She looks down. “I’m in jeans and a T-shirt. Should I get dressed up for dinner?”
“The info they gave us didn’t say anything about formal attire, but you can change if you want. I have a pair of dress pants and a button-down shirt I can wear.”
“We may have to go shopping,” she says, grinning at me. “I can’t have you wearing the same slacks and dress shirt every night.”
I chuckle. “We can go shopping if you want. Tomorrow we’re in Rüdesheim. I don’t know much about it, but they must have stores.”
“I’m sure they do.”
We head down to dinner promptly at seven, and I’m having a hard time thinking about anything except Shannon.
She’s wearing a calf-length black dress that hugs her curves.
Especially her spectacular ass. She has a fantastic body in general, but this dress leaves very little to the imagination.
Everything is covered, of course, but the cleavage peeking out of her low neckline and the way it shows every detail of her slim figure has me imagining her naked.
Very naked.
Very soon.
Chris and Aubrey come down the stairs just as we get to the restaurant, and we walk inside together.
“Welcome.” One of the waiters approached us. “Would you like to sit where you sat this morning or somewhere else?”
“We’d like to sit with Mr. Ross and his girlfriend,” Chris said. “Is that all right?”
“Of course. Come.” The waiter leads us to a table toward the back. We have a great view of the shore, with lighted buildings and homes. It’s dark outside now, so we can’t see the water, but there are enough lights on shore to make it pretty to look at.
No one says anything at first, but within minutes someone pours us all flutes of champagne, brings baskets of bread and butter, and hands us menus.
There are nightly specials as well as items that are apparently always available, like pizza and hamburgers.
I haven’t seen any children on the cruise so far, but I figure there have to be adults who were picky eaters too.
“He’s fine,” Chris said softly to Aubrey, gently taking her phone from her.
Aubrey sighs and then glances up. “It’s my first time away from my son. He’s three, and his dad isn’t in the picture. I mean, he’s with my parents so I know he’s okay, but I check my phone constantly to make sure they’re not trying to reach me.”
“I’m sure it’s hard,” Shannon says with an understanding smile. “I don’t have kids, but it seems to me you should take advantage of having time alone with your significant other. My friends tell me it makes a big difference.”
“Oh, it does. I’m just a little nervous.” She reaches for her glass of champagne.
“Let’s have a toast,” Shannon says, picking up hers as well. “To old and new friends and a fantastic adventure this week.”
“I’ll drink to that.” Chris lifts his glass, and we clink them together.
“So how long have you been dating?” Aubrey asks.
“Well…” Shannon glances at me. “We knew each other briefly back when I was in college, but he was in the military and about to be deployed, so we kind of lost touch. We ran into each other about a week ago and picked up right where we left off. And a friend told us we could get on the boat here in Cologne, which is where I live, so we did something a little romantic and a lot impulsive.”
“A week, huh?” Aubrey glances at her husband. “Sounds a little familiar.”
“Really?” Shannon’s eyes twinkle. “Do tell.”
The girls talked about how Aubrey and Chris met just six months ago, while Chris and I have a separate conversation.
“How are you doing?” I ask him. “Everything been okay since you got out? I meant to check in, but I heard you were good.”
“Yeah. Met a great girl, going back to school, ride my bike a lot—can’t complain. What about you? Still jetting off around the world being a hero?”
I snort out a derisive laugh. “Yeah, kinda.”
He arches a brow. “Do I sense a change in the air?”
“I don’t know. My life is complicated.” I glance across the table at Shannon. She has her champagne flute in one hand, laughing at something Aubrey is telling her, her eyes sparkling as they talk.
“Why?” He follows my gaze briefly and then brings it back to me. “Looks pretty simple to me.”
“Do you even know me?” I start to laugh and he does too.
“Well, if you want to talk, I plan to be at the gym at seven. Aubrey will be sleeping in.”
“I don’t know what Shannon’s plans are but—”
“You’re welcome to go to the gym without me,” she interrupts, laughing. “I have no interest in getting up that early to work out. I’ll sleep in, and maybe Aubrey and I will meet for coffee while you two do whatever exercise thing you want to do.”
“Well, I guess I’ll see you in the morning,” I tell him.
* * *
We spend the evening with Chris and Aubrey, moving to the lounge after dinner and talking and drinking late into the night.
Chris was in the Air Force when the incident with his sister’s rapist happened, and now he’s finding a new way forward but I’m really enjoying his company.
He has a bawdy sense of humor, so he has us all in stitches.
Surprisingly, Shannon is a lot of fun when she’s drunk, telling hilarious stories about her students over the years.
We drink way too much champagne and tell far too many dirty jokes, but when the DJ plays “Something About The Way You Look Tonight” by Elton John, I have to dance with her. She follows me onto the dance floor and moves into my arms—as usual—as if we’ve been dancing together forever.
Now that she’s up against me, the restraint I’ve been showing all night begins to slip.
I want her so much it’s physically painful, but I’m trying like hell to be patient and let her come to me.
Not when she’s this drunk, though. I won’t do more than kiss her when she’s like this.
If we’re going to make love, it’s going to be when we’re both able to remember every second of it.
“You smell nice,” she murmurs. “I don’t remember you wearing aftershave before tonight.”
“I only wear it when I’m on a date,” I whisper against her ear. She’s moving with me, her body practically molded to mine. And I’m getting hard again. Jesus, I normally have better control than this.
“Is this a date?” she asks softly.
“What do you think?”
“I think I want you to kiss me.”
“Honey, I already told you once I start kissing you, I might not be able to stop, and that could go very wrong on the dance floor here in front of all these people.”
“Mm, I suppose.” She closes her eyes, pressing her cheek to mine. I’m about six inches taller than her, but she’s in heels, so it’s a comfortable difference in height.
I close my own eyes, enjoying the feel of her body, the way the air practically sizzles with the electricity between us. It’s subtle, much like the two of us in general, but it’s there and if I feel it this acutely, she probably does too.
“It’s been ten years and seven months since we danced,” she says suddenly.
“Ten years, seven months, and twelve days.”
She lets out a delighted little sigh. “You counted the days… It’s been such a long time since that night, Ace.”
“But I’m here now, baby.”