“Oh?” Jill’s eyebrows shot up at the smile on Devin’s face, but fortunately for him, the next group of passengers approached before she could ask anything further.
Once the last passenger had left the ship, Devin hurried down to the ship’s stores to help with the delivery inventory of the alcohol for the upcoming cruise. Once that had been completed to Greg’s satisfaction, Devin checked the time and arrived at Kate’s office just before his appointment.
“Right on time,” Brett said, greeting him as he walked in the door, then chuckled as he noticed Devin was out of breath. “Busy morning?”
“You know it,” Devin replied. “And I’m off for two weeks, so….”
“So you want to get on with it, I know,” Brett said. “Six months without any significant time off is rough. You’ve earned it.” He gestured toward the door to Kate’s office. “Go on in. She’s ready for you.”
“Thanks.” After taking a moment to make sure his uniform wasn’t askew, Devin opened the door and walked in.
Kate glanced up from her computer screen and peered at Devin over the top of her glasses. “Thanks for coming, Devin,” she said, waving him to an empty chair.
“No problem,” Devin replied, crossing to the comfortable chairs in front of her desk. He sat down, grateful to have a respite from the flurry of the morning. “I hope things are going well.”
“Another successful cruise in the books,” Kate said, appearing quite pleased. “You were part of that success, which is why I wanted to meet with you. I’d like to discuss some changes for when you return to the ship.”
Devin frowned in confusion. Normally any changes in a department were done in a meeting with everyone who worked in that department. “Changes?” he asked. “What changes?”
Kate shifted her chair to face him and folded her hands on the desk. “As you probably know, we have a career track for the kitchen staff with promotions based on performance more than longevity. After your vacation, I’d like to put you on that track. You’d start out as a sous chef with the opportunity to work your way up.”
Devin couldn’t believe it. It was the job he’d been hoping for ever since he’d come aboard. He wouldn’t be starting at the bottom either, since a sous chef was already a few rungs up on the culinary career ladder, especially on the ship. He’d wanted this for the past six months, and it seemed almost unreal that it was finally happening.
Then he thought about Paul, and it tempered his excitement. Not that they had any sort of commitment, but Devin had hopes. If they both worked for Triton, though, surely they could find a way to make it work.
“That’s… staggering news,” he said. “Thank you, Kate. It’s what I’ve been hoping for.”
“You’ve been an excellent addition to our crew,” Kate said, offering an encouraging smile. “Mr. Mercer spoke quite highly of you as well.”
“Thank you, but…. Mr. Mercer?” Once again, Devin felt confused. “I’ve never met Mr. Mercer. I thought he was in Charleston, at corporate?”
“Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot you didn’t know,” Kate said. “Paul Bailey is actually Paul Mercer. He’s Andrew Mercer’s son, and he’s preparing to take over when his father retires next year. He used an alias because he didn’t want to worry or intimidate anyone while he was on board. But now that the cruise is over, there’s no need to keep it a secret.”
All Devin could do was stare at Kate, unable to process what she’d said. Then he felt the blood draining from his face as numbed disbelief washed over him. “You’re telling me Paul is the man who is going toownTriton?”
Kate’s eyes widened with alarm, and she leaned forward. “Yes, he is, but like I said, he spoke highly of you when I met with him this morning. You don’t have anything to worry about.”
Devin drew in a deep breath, although he could feel his heart racing. Something was wrong, very wrong. Why hadn’t Paul told Devin who he was? They’d slept together! Devin even thought Paul might be falling for him, the way he’d fallen for Paul, but this reminded him of what had happened with Brad, when things had turned out not to be at all what Devin had believed them to be.
“He talked to you about me this morning?” he asked. Now he knew what it was like to truly be adrift at sea without a life preserver. He felt like he was floundering, a knife-sharp pain lancing through him. “He wanted you to offer me the position?”
“We spoke about it, yes,” Kate said, inclining her head in affirmation. “He thought it was an excellent idea and well-deserved.”
“I see.” Devin didn’t know what to think. Paul wasn’t who he had believed him to be, and as far as Paul wanting Devin to be offered the position he’d always wanted… what did it mean? Was this why Paul had been so pensive this morning? Was this something he was offering because he didn’t want them to have a relationship? Could Paul be trying to buy him off?
He wanted to talk to Paul and ask him why, so he stood up. “Um… I should thank him,” he said, knowing his explanation sounded weak. “Maybe if I run up to his suite, I can catch him before he leaves.”
“You can try, but I imagine he’s gone by now,” Kate said. “He had his luggage with him earlier, so I assume he’s debarked and on his way back to Charleston.”
The floor seemed to shift beneath Devin’s feet, and he sat back down. It was all he could do to keep from moaning in pain, as the truth finally hit him.
Paul was gone. He had spoken to Kate, and the job was no doubt a way of repaying Devin for the last two weeks. Maybe Paul wanted to avoid the possibility of Devin making a scene or being accused of having an inappropriate relationship with an employee. Whatever the reason, the message Paul was trying to send seemed obvious to Devin—that the future owner of Triton didn’t want a relationship with a cook from a backwater Texas town. No more than Brad Carter of the Houston Oil Carters had wanted him.
Devin stood up and looked at Kate, but he wasn’t seeing her. Instead he was picturing the way Paul had bitten his lip that morning and talked about the idyll being over, and reality returning. “I’m off for two weeks. Can I let you know, Kate? I hate to seem ungrateful, but I really need to think.”
Kate’s expression was quizzical, but she nodded. “Of course. You don’t need to decide today.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it.” It cost everything Devin had left to summon up a smile. “See you later.”
“I hope you enjoy your vacation,” Kate said.
“Thanks.” With a final nod, Devin turned and left the office, responding absently to Brett’s farewell.
Numb with shock and pain, he returned to his room, packed all his belongings in his suitcases and gathered up his identification. He had to go up to the Lido deck to turn his keys in to Greg, but he barely acknowledged the farewells from his coworkers. All he could do was stare at the statue of Triton that held a place of pride in the center of the pool, his weapon raised high above his head. Now he knew why Paul had seemed so familiar to him from the first. Paul had been the model for the statue, after all. That was one of the legends of the ship: the Mercer heir’s likeness had been immortalized as the symbol of the entire line, and Devin had looked at that statue every day for six months. The only wonder was that he hadn’t realized it before.
Still lost in a haze, Devin left the ship. He didn’t look back even once as he walked away. ThePearlhad been an exciting adventure, but he didn’t think he could bear to return to it, not after what had happened. The proud symbol of man’s conquest of the seas was now only a reminder of Devin having loved and lost.
It was time to go home to Buffalo Lick, where people didn’t pretend to be something they weren’t, and where the love of his family might someday help him recover from the memory of the love that had never been.
