CHAPTER1
Gabe
Gabe groanedas the alarm shrilled. Four thirty always came too early. Plus, it was turnaround day, which was always extra busy. Roughly thirty-four hundred passengers would disembark this morning, with about the same number of new passengers getting on the ship by lunchtime. And since Christmas fell during this cruise, there would be more children on this sailing. Even though his shift at Neptune’s Reef, the lounge where he worked every day, didn’t start until one o’clock today, he usually helped during disembarkation, assisting passengers who might need a helping hand when leaving the ship.
He showered and dressed as quietly as he could so as not to wake his roommate, Miguel. This was their first contract rooming together, and they got along pretty well. Miguel was an assistant waiter in one of the main dining rooms, and he’d need to be up soon too, but he always pushed it until the last possible minute. Gabe didn’t know how he did it. Gabe liked to be ready early, often arriving before his shift started so that he could help out with tasks that needed attention.
When he arrived at the crew mess, he grabbed some yogurt and fruit along with a cup of coffee and scanned the seating area. Seeing his friend Theo, he made a beeline for the seat across from him. Theo was the senior bartender in Neptune’s Reef, so they spent quite a bit of time together.
“Good morning, Theodor,” he greeting him formally, which always made Theo grin.
“Hello, Gabriel,” Theo replied in kind, smiling. Theo’s lilting Norwegian accent always stirred something in Gabe.
“You’re up pretty early today.” Gabe added cream to his coffee. He sometimes wondered if Theo knew that he had a crush on him. This was their second contract together, and Gabe had fallen pretty hard for him during their first. For the ship’s crew, contracts were the amount of time you spent on a ship before returning home, and one normally lasted anywhere from six to nine months, followed by a two-to-three-month break at home with family. When Gabe first started working on ships almost ten years ago, he often did six- or seven-month contracts. But now since he had no husband or children to go home to visit, he typically signed a nine-month contract. He’d go home to see his parents, but they weren’t very pleased with what they referred to as his “lifestyle choice,” so he’d stay for a couple of months—mostly to visit his friends—and then hurry back to the ship.
“Yeah, they’re trying something new, and I was asked to hand out mimosas in the Bluefin Bistro while the suite passengers have their farewell breakfast.”
“Interesting. Do you think they’ll start doing this all the time now?”
“I dunno. We’ll see how it goes.”
When they finished eating, they bussed their tables and headed to their respective places for morning duties. “See you later,” Gabe called out.
* * *
By the timehe was done helping some wheelchair-bound passengers off the ship as well as assisting a distraught mother in finding her six-year-old son who had wandered off while waiting to disembark, Gabe had just enough time to return to his cabin to freshen up a little. Then he rushed to the crew mess to have lunch before reporting to the bar for his shift.
It was embarkation day too, and the bar opened at ten thirty for passengers who arrived early. Normally, he’d be there before opening, but since he had other duties that morning, he would show up at one and relieve Anton, the bar waiter who had opened Neptune’s Reef earlier in the day.
He arrived about fifteen minutes early, waving at Anton—who was at the other end of the lounge—as he scooted around the bar. “Hey, Theo. How are things going?”
“So far, so good, Gabe,” Theo replied, wiping down a section of the bar. “It hasn’t been too busy yet, but I’m sure it will pick up soon. Manuela was here a little while ago, and she said more than fifty percent of the passengers have checked in already.” Manuela was one of the bar managers, and she popped in periodically to check on things. Neptune’s Reef had a pretty stable crew of five to six people, so they were used to each other’s habits and worked well together. Theo and Jason usually handled the bartending duties, making drinks and taking care of patrons sitting at the bar, while Gabe, Anton, and Callie handled the rest of the lounge. Plus, someone would rotate in during meal and break times to help cover. And all the bar waiters were also trained as bartenders and could pitch in to make drinks when things got too busy.
Gabe gazed around the lounge; he loved this place. He’d been assigned there during his last contract and made a good impression on everyone he worked with, so they’d kept him there. The lounge was decorated in relaxing shades of gray, mauve, and burgundy, with sofas and chairs clustered around low cocktail tables along the windows and down one side. A grand piano sat opposite the seating area, and a long bar took up the remaining space. Just past the bar were a couple of high-top tables. Since it was almost Christmas, evergreen garlands with strings of tiny white lights hung on railings along the entrance area, and a large tree festooned with silver and mauve ornaments stood in the corner just past the piano.
“Are you just gonna stand there daydreaming, or are you planning on working today?” There was a twinkle in Theo’s eye when he spoke, but Gabe was still embarrassed to be caught woolgathering.
“Sorry, I was just thinking how nice everything looks, all decorated for the holidays.” He scanned the bar area quickly. “I’ll get another bucket of ice, and it looks like we’re low on napkins. Once that’s done, I’ll tell Anton he can take his lunch break.”
“Relax, there’s plenty of time. I was just kidding you.” Theo poked him lightly in the ribs.
“Hey.” Gabe laughed, then ducked into the service area behind the bar to get the ice.
* * *
It was just past midnight,and the last customers were walking out of the lounge. Gabe had cleaned off almost all the tables and was racking dirty glasses, destined for the dishwasher. The cocktail tables were next; he’d disinfect them according to the company’s health-and-safety requirements while Theo and Jason tackled the bar. When they were finished, they all went through the service area to the crew corridor.
“You heading to bed?” Theo asked.
“I know I won’t be able to sleep right away.” Gabe shook his head. “I managed to nap during my afternoon break today, so I think I’ll go have a drink in the crew bar. Wanna join me?”
“Sure, but just for one.” Theo chuckled.
“I’m out,” Anton said. “Was doing laundry on my break this afternoon and didn’t nap. I’m beat. See you in the morning.” He turned in the opposite direction and went to his cabin.
They ordered their drinks, then sat at a small table in the nearly empty bar. “It’s always quiet on the first night of a new sailing,” Gabe said.
“Yes, for some reason, the day seems longer than usual, and everyone just wants to go to bed when their shift is over.”
