Chapter Five
Weaving their way down the stairs and through the narrow corridors of the ship, Mari and Rosa found their room. Both of their suitcases sat outside the cabin door, much like others in the hall.
“They leave it in the hall?” Rosa asked.
Mari waved her room key by the electronic lock and heard a click. “If they had problems, they’d do it another way.”
Rosa shrugged.
Mari pushed the door open with her shoulder and dragged her luggage inside.
The ship had already left port.
The party on the pool deck was still going strong when they decided to return to their room.
Their group had the early dinner in the main dining room, and they both wanted to decompress before joining the San Diego Singles.
Mari wanted to get out of the T-shirt.
“How old do you think that boy at the bar was?” Rosa asked.
Mari placed her suitcase on her bed and opened it. “Chloe’s age . . . maybe.”
“He was hitting on you.”
“He asked to buy us drinks.”
“Same thing.” Rosa giggled.
“I don’t think so.”
Sandwiched between the mesh holding her underwear and her clothes, a red-tissue-wrapped gift, complete with a ribbon, stared at her.
The tiny note put there by Chloe said not to open it until they were on the ship. Mari noticed it when they arrived at the hotel the day before for their one night in Florida.
As much as Mari wanted to know what her daughter gifted her, she’d put it aside and waited for this moment.
“You don’t think so because it’s been so long since either of us have had the interest of a man, we’ve forgotten how it’s done,” Rosa said.
“He was a child. Not a man,” Mari told her.
“Ehhh.”
Mari sat on the edge of her bed and untied the ribbon. It was evident it was an article of clothing since the gift wasn’t in a box.
The dark red tissue paper unveiled a black nightgown. Silk, or at least a fabric that felt like silk. It had cap sleeves and a V-neck and fell just below her knees.
“How sweet.” Mari pulled the fabric to her cheek.
Rosa glanced up from the pile of clothes in her hand. “You like it?”
“What’s not to like?”
Rosa grinned like a woman with a secret.
“What?” Mari asked.
“I was with her when she bought it.”
Mari folded the nightgown back in the tissue paper and stood to put it in a drawer.
“Then you knew I’d like it.”
Rosa narrowed her eyes. “It’s a negligee.”
“It’s a nightgown.”
“To be worn in the company of a man.”
Mari looked back to the nightgown. “No.”
“Yes.”
“Chloe knows I’m not—”
“Not what?” Rosa interrupted. “A single woman on a cruise designed to help you meet a man?”
Mari lifted an accusing finger in the direction of her friend. “You’re the one looking for male companionship. Not me.”
Rosa laughed. “Chloe would like to see it otherwise.”
“So gift me a nightgown? That’s a jump, even for my willful daughter.”
“Well-intending daughter,” Rosa corrected. “I suggested she have you wait to open it until we were on board. I was afraid you’d accidentally leave it at the hotel.”
“I wouldn’t have done that.” Well . . . maybe. “She’ll be sad to hear that the only one who will see me in that is you.”
“That’s what I told her, but she insisted.” Rosa moved to the small closet.
Mari continued to stack her clothes into the drawer. “Even if we did find someone interesting here . . . a nightgown? Chloe should know me better than that.”
“What can she know? She didn’t know you before Paulo.”
“I barely knew me before Paulo,” Mari scoffed.
“I’m sure you dated other men.”
“Be serious, Rosa. I went to school dances with boys. The occasional movie. That was a lifetime ago. I’m a completely different person.”
“I’m just suggesting that maybe it’s time to enter the nightgown phase.”
Mari felt heat fill her cheeks. “Do we need to have a flag on our cabin door so I know when not to come in?”
Rosa opened her mouth, closed it again without saying a word. “Maybe.”
Mari choked on a laugh.
After tucking the now-empty suitcases in the closet, Rosa sat back on the bed and let out a long breath. “What if I did meet someone?”
“You deserve to.”
Rosa sat opposite her friend.
“If I did . . . would you judge me?”
Mari reached over and grabbed her friend’s hand. “How long have we been friends?”
“Over twenty years.”
“And have I ever judged you?”
“I don’t believe I’ve given you reason to.” Rosa’s eyes softened.
“You’re a grown woman who has the freedom to do whatever you want.
Now, if you meet someone that I think is going to hurt you, I will say something.
And not as judgment, more as a caution. Otherwise, you’ll get no pushback from me.
If you want to find a husband and need to kiss a few frogs along the way, I’m here to support you. ”
Rosa squeezed her hand. “And if I don’t want a husband?”
“You said you wanted that last week.”
“Last week I did. And maybe I still do.”
Indecision was written all over Rosa’s face.
Who could blame her after what she’d been through? “Still not my place to judge.”
A half smile split Rosa’s lips. “Not a word to anyone when we get home? You know . . . if anything happens.”
Mari sat up tall, removed her hands from Rosa’s. “We tell everyone we had a wonderful time and met a ton of people. That’s all anyone needs to know.”
“And if they want specifics?”
Mari repeated herself with a grin. “We had a wonderful time and met a ton of people.”
Rosa sighed. “I love you, my friend. Thank you for doing this for me.”
“You’re welcome.”
They both laughed while Mari slid off the bed and pulled the T-shirt from her shoulders. “I need to get out of this if I’m going to be your wingman.”
“My what?”
“Wingman. That’s what Chloe suggested I am. Help you find a date but keep you safe doing it.”
Rosa bounced off the bed like a woman half her age. “Andiamo.”
The main dining room was beautifully appointed, with tablecloths and perfectly matched place settings. It opened to the deck above, where another mass of tables with chattering guests filled the room with noise.
Once Mari and Rosa told the hostess which group they were with, the two of them were ushered to the tables set aside for them.
A couple of familiar faces smiled and waved them over.
“Hello again,” Mari said as they took a seat.
“Hello. I’m sorry, you’re going to have to remind me of your names,” the brunette said.
“I’m Mari, and this is Rosa.”
The brunette pointed to her chest. “Amanda and Jill.”
“Amanda and Jill,” Mari repeated aloud, then to herself several times, hoping the information would stick.
“Have you been to the singles events at home?” Amanda asked.
“I have once,” Rosa announced.
Mari shook her head.
“Newly single?” Amanda asked.
“Yes and no,” Rosa answered. “Newly divorced. But my ex left many years ago.”
“That sounds complicated,” Jill said.
“It was.”
“And you?” Amanda turned her attention to Mari.
“My husband passed ten years ago.” Mari had stopped using the term widow. Without an immediate explanation, the quick response from everyone was sorrow. The decade of time pulled some of that weight aside.
“That sucks,” Amanda said. “You’re just now getting out there?”
“No. I’m here for Rosa.”
Rosa nudged her arm. “Keep me out of trouble.”
It was comical hearing Rosa talk that way. Even more entertaining was the excitement on her face as she said it.
“Where is the fun in that?” Amanda asked.
“What about you two?”
“I have a thirteen- and fifteen-year-old at home. Their dad is an ass. Shows up every other weekend when it’s convenient.”
“It’s never convenient,” Jill added.
“We’ve been divorced for four years.”
“I’m sorry,” Mari said.
“Don’t be. Did I mention he was an ass?”
They laughed.
“I’ve never been married,” Jill told them. “Got close a couple of times. Have one engagement ring to show for it.”
“What happened there?” Rosa asked.
“He didn’t quite understand that marriage meant monogamy.”
Rosa huffed. “At least you learned that before you married. Some of us weren’t as lucky.”
“If someone had told me that I’d reach forty and not have a husband or kids, I would have said they were crazy. But here I am.”
Mari felt her heart sink for the woman. “You wanted kids?”
“I always thought I would have them. Now it’s too late.”
“You can still—”
“Please. No.”
“I don’t know what I’d do without my children,” Mari said. “Or my grandchildren.”
“You’re a grandmother?” Amanda asked, eyes wide.
“Two,” Mari said with pride. “Two more on the way. Twins.”
“How old are you?” Jill burst out.
“Fifty-four.”
As words of surprise escaped their lips, other guests arrived at their table. All of them women.
Eventually, the waiter came around, and a mix of conversations ensued.
The other four women at their table were part of the younger group.
Even though they were likely close to Chloe and Dante’s age, they seemed so much younger.
Mari instantly wanted to warn the young women against drinking too much.
Which was already too late since they spoke nonstop about their time at the pool and the men buying them drinks.
In the end, it wasn’t Mari that gave them advice . . . it was Amanda.
“You girls watch out for each other. No disappearing with someone without the others knowing where you went.”
“We have a plan,” one of them said.
Mari gave up on memorizing their names from the minute they sat down.
“Pictures of their driver’s license and the number of their stateroom.”
“And preapproval from us.”
The girls thought that was hysterical and went on to talk about not letting a man’s accent sway them to get naked.
“Words should never take you to a man’s bed,” Mari said a little louder than she wanted. “Only his actions.”
“That’s what I was saying,” one of the girls announced.
Any more advice would have fallen on deaf ears.
These girls were determined to have a story to tell by the end of the cruise. She couldn’t help but wonder if her own children acted this way when they were among their friends.
She wasn’t naive enough to think that halos hovered over their heads.