Chapter Thirty-Two
The car rounded the corner out of the old town and into the harbour. Aliannah could feel the last of her stresses leave her mind as she saw the Adriatic Sea come into view. The Serenity was docked near the front of the harbour, and the crew waited at the harbour entrance to take their luggage. Marcus greeted them at the gangway to the Serenity.
“Aliannah! My favourite ex-stew!” He said as he pulled her into a big bear hug. Aliannah embraced the hug.
“Marcus! It’s so good to see you again!” Aliannah was beaming with joy. She accepted Marcus’s hand as he held it out to help her step up onto the gangway and boarded the Serenity. Ivan nodded his greeting to Marcus and boarded. The crew assembled in front of them after loading the luggage on board.
“Sir, we have had a change of crew, as you are aware. This is Casey, Jessica, and Ava. They are our stews this season. George, Stefan, and Damien are our deckhands this season. You are already familiar with Captain Joe.” Marcus motioned towards each crew member as he introduced them. Ivan shook Joe's hand, and the two of them disappeared up to the bridge to discuss the plan for sailings and dockings.
“I was delighted for a new crew this season. It is always great to have fresh faces to spend close quarters with,” Marcus eyed Aliannah. She laughed.
“Marcus! There will be none of that this season. I am certain the crew will be on their best behaviour,” she nudged Marcus’s arm in jest. Aliannah went up to the top deck and flopped on a lounger in the evening sun. She would gladly give up New York for this.
“Hawaiian Beach for you, Miss.” Jessica handed her a cocktail. “Marcus told us it is your favourite drink,” she smiled. Aliannah accepted the drink and returned her smile. Ivan joined her shortly afterwards.
“We shall cruise up and down the Croatian coastline for the next two weeks, and we can stop off in any town that takes your fancy, darling. We will leave the harbour at first light.” Ivan undid the top few buttons on his shirt and rolled the sleeves up. Aliannah drank in the sight of him; he looked delicious.
“That sounds wonderful,” she said, sipping her cocktail as she mentally undressed him with her eyes. The way the evening sun hit him made him godly handsome.
“If you keep undressing me with your eyes, we won’t get to see any sights at all.” He winked at her and walked away, shaking his head as he lifted his phone to his ear. Aliannah laughed at how well Ivan knew her.
The next morning, they sailed out from the harbour and anchored a distance offshore. They were far out enough that people were too small to be seen but still close enough to see the shoreline. Ivan had departed on the tender to meet with some business clients in the area. Aliannah was enjoying breakfast on the back deck with Marcus; they were catching up on all that had happened since Aliannah had left that night.
“I’m sorry. I had no idea Igor was even here until two days later. Milena went on shore leave the next day for a week, so I couldn’t even ask her anything.” Marcus's face was full of guilt and apology.
“It’s not your fault, Marcus.” Aliannah reached for his arm to reassure him. "None of this is your fault; we are past all that now.” She smiled at him. Marcus ran his hand through his hair and let a sigh of guilt out.
“Truly forgive me, Ali…. If I had known, then I would have told you Igor was here, and the Viktor situation could have been avoided,” he slumped his shoulders.
“Marcus enough, Viktor would have done what he did regardless of how he achieved it. I am fine. I am alive. I survived. I am here in paradise,” she waved her arm around; “I want to go for a swim. It is a beautiful day for it.” Aliannah got up and went to change. She chose a bright orange bikini and set off for the lower back deck. George was waiting with flippers and a snorkel for her.
“It is a fine day for a swim, Miss; the waters are clear.” George handed her the equipment. Aliannah thanked him, sat on the edge of the slip deck, put on the flippers and the goggles, and hopped into the sea. It was as beautiful as she remembered. Even though they were very far out, the water was so clear she could still see down to the sea floor. A rainbow of fish swam far below her. It was magical. She swam around the boat several times, looking at all the fish below her. Aliannah wished she were a mermaid so she would never have to leave such beauty. Her fingers had completely pruned up before she finally climbed back onto the slip deck. George took the gear from her and handed her a towel. Aliannah went up to the front deck to take in some sun and dry off.
Casey brought her a sandwich and a lemon iced tea. Aliannah’s stomach growled when these were placed on the table beside her lounger.
“Thanks, Casey. This is perfect.” Casey nodded and left. Aliannah devoured the lunch in minutes.
Ivan returned in time for dinner but did not seem to be himself.
“Is everything ok?” Aliannah asked while they enjoyed cocktails on the top deck.
“Yes, just a difficult client. He is so hard to get a hold of, so catching him on shore was a challenge indeed.” Aliannah could tell this was not the whole truth, but she decided not to press the matter. Ivan would tell her if she needed to know anything. It was part of the agreement between the two of them. He would keep no more secrets from her unless it were dangerous for her to know. This made processing the Igor and Viktor situation easier for her, knowing that there would be no more hidden truths or omissions.
Ivan remained quiet throughout their dinner. It was odd. The meeting this morning must have really stressed him out. Aliannah moved to stand behind him when she finished her dinner and started to rub Ivan’s shoulders.
“God, Ivan, you are so tense. Are you sure everything is okay?” Ivan’s shoulders had more tension in them than the chain, keeping the boat in anchor.
“Yes, darling, just a long day is all.” He turned over his shoulder to kiss her. "I have more calls to make. I am sorry, but you will have to entertain yourself this evening. I am not sure how long this will take.” He kissed her again before getting up and walking to his office. Aliannah was disappointed; it was unlike Ivan to put business first, but she understood that some timeframes don’t allow for slacking.
She decided to get into her pyjamas and watch a movie in bed with some chocolate strawberries. She tried to phone Michelle to chat, but her phone was off. Michelle always turned her phone off during her yoga classes. It was something about being switched off from the digital world to heal and inspire spiritual health. Michelle was all into that spiritual healing ever since she moved in with Gavin.