Oh my god. GO, SIMONE!
I hurry off, clutching my guidebook to my chest, only slowing once I realize I don’t have a clear destination in mind. I don’t want to go inside the yacht without my cover-up on. It’d feel strange to traipse around in front of Cristiano’s crew in nothing but my bikini. Out here, at least, it’s expected.
I spot Daniella sitting up on her lounge chair, checking her phone. Rocky start or not, suddenly I feel bad she’s all on her own. Annika, Simone, and I haven’t exactly gone out of our way to include her this morning, and I’m sure she’s feeling a little left out without a group of her own girlfriends. Sure, she could have made life easier for herself by being nice instead of calling memartini girl, but I can let it go. It’s not that big of a deal.
“Such a pretty day,” I note breezily as I approach her with a small smile. She looks up and nods, dropping her phone back into her designer swim bag. I take it as a good sign and proceed with caution. “Have you eaten yet? I’m going back for seconds.”
She looks over at the table where they’ve placed yetanotherround of delicious-looking food. She sighs, bored. “Yeah, I guess I could eat. Nothing else to do around here until Juan Carlos comes back up. Where’d Cristiano go?”
“To talk to the captain.”
She wilts like a flower, not bothering to hide her disappointment. It’s clear I’m the last person she wants to be spending her time with, but maybe we can push through this awkwardness and come out the other side, if not as friends, then at leastfriendly.
“I really like your suit,” I offer.
It’s neon green and fits her perfectly.
She looks down. “Oh, thanks. Yours too,” she finishes almost as an afterthought.
We don’t say anything more as we make our way to the food table. I study her as I linger over a fruit salad, trying to figure out anin. Surely she has interests and hobbies, things we could bond over outside of Cristiano.
I’m considering asking her what kind of books she likes to read when she looks at me across the table, her hand pausing over the lobster tails. She looks concerned. “Listen, you seem nice enough, so I’m just going to say this, because I would want someone to warn me if I were in your shoes.” She lowers her voice. “Girl to girl, Cristiano doesn’t sleep around with his employees. He keeps that part of his life separate, just so things don’t get messy.” Her gaze flits over me dismissively. “I just figured maybe you should know before you get your hopes up.”
I stiffened at the start of her whispered warning, but now I force my shoulders to relax. I should have known things weren’t going to change with Daniella that easily. She’s nothing if not goal oriented. “Gotcha. Sounds like a good policy to have. Sleeping with employees would become an HR nightmare…”
She smiles genuinely for the first time since I met her. Clearly she’s glad her warning is sinking in for me. “Exactly.He’s super uptight about that kind of stuff. He cares a lot about his staff.”
We could continue dancing around the issue of Cristiano, but I don’t feel like goading her. Instead, I move to a safer topic. “Is Juan Carlos a good friend?”
She goes back to filling her plate, picking over the lobster tails, looking for the best one. “Yes, he and I went to university together in Barcelona. We’ve been in the same friend group ever since.”
I wonder if Cristiano was in that group, but then I remember he’s older than Daniella and Juan Carlos. I start to ask what she studied in college, but I don’t get the chance.
“I met Cristiano through Juan Carlos,” she adds. “He and I go way back, too.”
Oh good grief. Any last shred of hope I had for this friendship goes up in smoke. Clearly, for her the sun rises and sets with Cristiano, and while I can sympathize with that obsession, it’s getting a little old. “Thanks. You know what? On second thought, I’m not that hungry.”
I set down my plate and curve around the table, deciding I’d rather take my chances inside the yacht than spend another second with her.
I didn’t get my tour earlier, so I might as well do a self-guided one now. Sliding glass doors sweep open automatically when I approach, and as I reenter the air-conditioned interior, goose bumps trickle down my arms. I wish I had my cover-up on as I sneak through the second floor, peeking into staterooms and bathrooms, a gym, sauna, and massage room. Fortunately I don’t bump into a single person. I assume there’s a skeleton crew working today since we’ll only be out on the water for a short while. It makes no difference to me. In fact, I like it this way.
I find stairs that lead down to the lower deck, opting to avoidthe upper decks just in case Cristiano is still up there talking to the captain. I don’t want him thinking I came wandering in here after him. I’m just distracting myself while I give Felix and Simone some time to figure their feelings out. I hope they’re enjoying a full-on make-out session right now. Felix better be getting handsy! I’m sure Simone will give me the full scoop later.
I walk quietly down the stairs and find more staterooms. Near the front of the yacht, I stumble upon the largest one yet, with a sprawling king bed and separate sitting area, a coffee station and wet bar.Ooh la la.I could easily call this room home for a week or two.
I’ve only barely dipped my toe past the threshold when Cristiano suddenly walks out of the adjoining bathroom. I’m ashamed to admit the very first thing that pops into my head as I watch him toss a hand towel into a hamper is Simone’s stupid comment speculating about why hereallycame in here. My cheeks burn beet red, which is fine because Cristiano can’t read my mind. As far as he knows, I’m just embarrassed to have been caught snooping.
When he notices me, he looks surprised but not upset to find me here.
“Hi. Sorry. I hope it’s okay that I was showing myself around… Didn’t mean to invade your space.”
He nods, dismissing the apology as if he didn’t need it. “It’s fine.”
I tilt my head and smile. “Is this your room?”
He glances at the space, looking at it with fresh eyes. “The main stateroom, yes.”
My brows rise as I look around. I feel a little zing of excitementto get to see inside his inner sanctum. His scent lingers, and I’m intimidated to stand here with him watching me. The lack of clothing isn’t helping matters, either. He didn’t put his shirt on before coming back inside. I have the perfect view of his broad chest and toned stomach.
