Chapter Eight
Eight
I lay on the top bunk, gearing myself up for the dreaded pre-dinner small talk.
Barbie Queue had been so kind and generous with her time, and I wondered if there was a way to work this feeling of relief into the pitch.
She could easily have walked on by and ignored my distress, but she’d gone out of her way to help me out.
I barely knew her, yet I felt genuinely cared about.
There was a kernel of an idea in there about the connections people make on a cruise.
A transient group who know nothing about each other, holidaying together for a fortnight and all the shared experiences before you disembark and go your separate ways.
I closed my eyes to think. A cruise was so many things.
A million different realities, every type of holiday in one, the cruise-connection, the fortnight-family…
my head was spinning with ideas as I drifted off to sleep.
‘Uh-oh, someone’s in trouble!’ Leo said, overtaking me with a smirk, immaculately dressed in a white suit and bow tie. ‘Although that someone is looking a million dollars tonight, hey?’
‘Oh… thanks,’ I said, automatically breathing in. ‘Do you mean me?’
He stopped and looked me up and down. ‘Of course I mean you.’
‘Why am I in trouble?’
‘I’ll give you a hint – Thiago is about to make his evening speech.’
My stomach flipped. ‘Is he? Really? I’m not late, am I?’ I hurried after Leo, checking my phone which flicked from 18.59 to 19.00 as the grandfather clock started to chime.
I felt the heat from Heidi’s glare zapping me across the room on the eighth bong and I gave her a confused smile.
Leo shrugged. ‘I’d call it perfectly on time, but Heidi’s on the warpath for some reason. That woman is never satisfied.’
A deep voice sounded over the microphone. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats for dinner.’
Shitttt. So much for being early and cornering Brooke.
I pushed through all the Champagne Charlies and made it to the captain’s table, with Leo in tow, as the second mate tapped his fork against a glass.
Heidi gaped at my dress, beaming at first, as if I were a guest, and then giving it a double take when she realised it was me wrapped in cream silk.
‘Where the hell have you been?’ she hissed as I slid in next to her. Our tag-team approach on Brooke would have to wait.
‘I’m so sorry, my phone must still be on London time,’ I whispered, sounding like a twelve-year-old who hadn’t done their homework. She glared at me as Thiago cleared his throat.
‘At least you look the part,’ she muttered. ‘Where have you been hiding that?’
‘Good evening, ladies and gentlemen,’ Thiago started, and I was grateful for the distraction.
‘I hope you have all had a wonderful first day aboard the Esmeralda. My team are here for you day and night, around the clock, to ensure you have the best holiday of your life.’ He stopped with a smile to acknowledge the smattering of applause.
‘We have three days of sailing to enjoy before we reach Terceira Island and we should reach the port in time for breakfast on Monday morning.’ There were lots of oohs and aahs, and a tinkling of champagne flutes in appreciation.
‘For now, please enjoy your dinner. As we say in Portuguese, saúde, or in English… cheers,’ he said, raising his glass.
The crowd chorused back with a mash-up of saúde, and cheers and the humdrum of chatter continued.
I sensed Heidi side-eyeing my dress. The knowing of a woman being watched.
But I hadn’t expected to catch Leo’s eyes on my neckline from across the table as well.
After all this time. Men could never ever get away with a sneaky look at the cleavage; they always got clocked.
Although who could blame him? Ivy was pristine and the girls were bursting out of the bodice nicely.
I caught his eye and raised my eyebrows, and he quickly turned to Brooke, his button nose in the air.
His profile had barely changed in ten years.
I’d zoomed in on a much younger version of that face when he’d updated his LinkedIn with the Engelman job, scribbling non-stop in my diary: Why?
?? What has he got that I haven’t? I was a straight-A student, with a gold Duke of Edinburgh award, no less.
I’d taken guitar lessons and learnt recreational Spanish.
I’d done everything my teacher had suggested to make sure my application stood out.
Prove you’re fully rounded, she’d said. That you’re accomplished as well as academic; that you have a personality.
By the end of the process, I had an entirely new personality, and it was as round as a freshly grown peach.
‘Why are you staring at Leo like that?’ Heidi asked, interrupting my thoughts as the red mist started to swirl.
‘Sorry,’ I said, shaking myself out of it.
She nodded towards Brooke. ‘Time for some client schmooze,’ she said and I whirred into action like some kind of sleeper cell PR bot. Brooke was laughing with Leo, and I leant over and joined in, planting myself in the middle of the conversation.
Brooke stopped in surprise. ‘Are you OK, Kat?’
‘Ahhh, yes,’ I said, sipping my wine. ‘I’m just having the BEST time. I’ve been on a lot of Excalibur Cruises, but this one really is exceptional. Esmeralda has taken the brand to a whole new level. Don’t you think so, Heidi?’
‘Couldn’t agree more,’ she said, nodding vigorously.
‘Have you boys been away with Excalibur before?’ I asked, widening the circle to bring in Zach – and knowing full well they hadn’t.
‘Nope,’ Leo shot back confidently. ‘Which I’m really pleased about, because we’re the exact target audience Brooke and Greg want to attract – new-to-the-brand cruisers.’
‘Nothing beats fresh eyes for thinking up fresh ideas,’ Zach added, with a wicked smile.
‘And while we haven’t been on an Excalibur cruise, we’ve been on plenty of others: P it was already in my throat and stuck.
I gulped down some water then spluttered as it met with a more assertive cough and Heidi flashed me an irritated look as I tried to clear my throat again.
Leo locked eyes with me across the table and offered a discreet thumbs up as I launched into a full coughing fit.
I shook my head and he sent a glass of red flying as he ran around the table and dragged me out of my chair.
Suddenly waiters were rushing at me from all sides, and I caught sight of my face turning puce in the mirror as someone slapped me hard on the back.
‘What’s happening?’ Heidi stood up, then froze.
I tried to take a breath, but there was no air, and just as I started to really panic, Leo’s arms grabbed me around my ribs and Heimlich-manoeuvred me off the ground.
On the third jump the tickle disappeared and a tiny bone shot out of my mouth as I bent over gasping, flooded with relief.
‘Thank you,’ I whispered as soon as I’d caught my breath, my heart thumping. Jesus Christ, this cruise was turning out to be a lot more stressful than I’d imagined and I couldn’t even retire to my cabin for a bath.
‘Are you OK there, doll?’ Brooke asked, concerned.
‘She’s fine,’ Heidi replied on my behalf. ‘Aren’t you, Kat?’
I nodded on auto-smile and sat back down. It felt like the whole room had stopped to watch and one by one they slowly turned back to their food. ‘Totally fine,’ I croaked. ‘Sorry, I had a frog in my throat.’
‘Which is now on the carpet.’ Zach sneered, pointing to a blob of green phlegm.
‘Oh.’ I grabbed my napkin and covered it up, mortified.
‘I’m a qualified first aider,’ Leo said, solemnly, ‘and I think –
no, I know – you need some space and a lie-down after that. For the shock. You should pay a visit to the nurse.’
I smiled gratefully. ‘Thanks, Leo, I think I will. I do feel quite shaky.’
‘But you’ll miss dessert?’ Heidi said, her undertone clear.
‘I honestly couldn’t eat another thing,’ I replied, smiling sweetly around the table. ‘Thank you for your hospitality, Thiago, and for the invitation, Brooke, and for your er… help there, Leo.’
‘For saving your life, you mean?’ Zach piped up.
‘No need to exaggerate,’ Leo said, putting him in his place.
‘Who knows, maybe you did,’ I said, standing and gathering up my dress. ‘Thank you Leo.’
‘Anytime.’ His face was full of concern. ‘Should you have someone walk with you to the medical centre? Heidi, perhaps?’
She snorted. ‘Nice try Leo. Trying to get rid of both of us now?’
‘I’ll be fine. I just need some air and to get out of this dress.’
Leo’s expression changed and I felt myself go pink.
‘Anyway. Goodnight everyone.’
I hurried off and couldn’t work out if it was the shock or something else that was making me feel light-headed, but my knees were wobbling and I didn’t want to embarrass myself any further.
I’d forgotten about this side of Leo. He’d been a caring soul back in our internship days and always made sure everyone got home safely on team nights out.
That I’d got home safely. And I’d been grateful for him.
He had a gift for anticipating problems and had seen I was in trouble before anyone else.
Thank God his instinct had been to leap into action.