Page 35 of Cocky Cruiser

I arched a brow. “Meat pie?”

“You’ve never heard of a meat pie? What kind of chef are you?” Adele teased.

I laughed. “Not an Australian one. Is it as literal as it sounds?”

“Yes,” Adele replied. “Like a potpie but with minced beef inside.”

“That’s it? No vegetables or gravy or anything like that?”

“And onion,” she answered with a laugh.

“That’s … interesting,” I said, not wanting to offend her even though I thought it sounded unappetizing.

“Maybe I’ll make one for you sometime. If you’re lucky,” she offered with a wink.

“I’d like that.”

We chatted as we ate, then swapped dishes halfway through so we could taste each other’s cooking. Adele was nervous about her food, especially since I was trying it, but hers came out just as delicious as mine. “This is really tasty. Are you sure this is your first time?”

Adele laughed. “You’re just saying that.” She pointed at my ragu with her fork. “There’s no way mine is as good as this. There’s so much depth of flavor.”

I grinned. “Thank you. And for your first time making something as involved as venison ragu, you did really great. The flavors are spot-on, and you seasoned everything well. You truly did amazing, Adele.”

Her cheeks flushed as she smiled. “Thank you.”

Images of Adele and me cooking together in the kitchen flashed in my head. I could see myself trying new recipes with her, feeding her bites, and making love to her on the kitchen counter.

My stomach tightened. I couldn’t think like that. We were having a spring fling, and that was it.

I just hoped that my heart was on board with my mind when everything came to an end.

Chapter Eleven

“Ican’t wait to get off the ship today. I’m about to go insane being stuck on the boat all day and night,” I said as we waited in line to go to port.

“Me, too. Although I have enjoyed the extracurricular activities we’ve kept ourselves entertained with.”

My cheeks heated as Cohen’s eyes met mine. He waggled his eyebrows with a smirk, seemingly pleased with his innuendo.

I couldn’t help but laugh. We’d had sex so many times over the past four days at sea that I’d lost count. “I’m not complaining about that, but I need to feel the ground beneath my feet.”

Cohen slung his arm around my shoulders, then kissed the top of my head. “I know what you mean, guppie.”

The Moorea port was another tender like the Bay of Islands, and the destinations were breathtaking and very similar in appearance: turquoise waters, lush, hilly landscapes, and tropical beaches.

We were both particularly excited for Moorea because we’d be swimming with dolphins, but Cohen seemed more tense and anxious than usual. His expressions and posture weren’t as relaxed. I assumed his emotions were probably all over the place with the significance of today’s excursion, even if he didn’t say it.

The excursion was taking place at a dolphin education center on the island. Once we arrived, one of the trainers greeted us and promptly explained the schedule for the day.

After everyone in our group was fitted with a life jacket, our trainer led us to the lagoon where the dolphins were housed and gave us a brief overview. “We have three bottlenose dolphins in our care; one female and two males. Bottlenose dolphins live over forty years, and females typically live longer than males. The three we have here have all been under human care for over twenty-five years.”

“I didn’t know they lived that long,” I whispered to Cohen as the guide continued to talk about the center and their mission to spread awareness about dolphins.

The trainer led our group to the lagoon, where two of the dolphins were swimming. “This is their primary habitat. When not interacting with guests, the dolphins are allowed to roam around this lagoon, which is three-quarters of an acre of natural seawater and ranges in depth from ten to twenty feet.”

We followed the trainer to a smaller lagoon with one dolphin and another trainer. “This is where the interactions are held. You will have thirty minutes in the water with Kuokoa, one of our males. The depth in this lagoon is about ten feet.”

The trainers helped each person get in the water, then had us tread water along one of the lagoon's edges as they whistled for Kuokoa.

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