Page 44 of The Cruise Club

‘Don’t be so sure. Betty could be quite the dominatrix with that silver-topped cane. Discipline, dominance, asserting authority. It’s right up her street.’

‘But how doyouknow about it?’

‘Let’s just say I stumbled into a party last night by mistake,’ Theo explained. ‘I thought my drink had been spiked.’

As Theo explained his predicament, Carmen began to laugh. ‘I wonder if the ship’s management knows about the UDPPC?’

‘I’m sure Peter does, and he probably turns a blind eye.’

‘Fancy,’ Carmen began to smile, ‘seniors being a little more adventurous in later life?’

‘Knitting by day, naughty by night.’

‘Wheelchairs and wild times…’

‘Bingo with a twist – dabbers at the ready!’

Theo and Carmen giggled like schoolchildren sharing a rude joke, but both looked up when Dicky appeared in the casino. Standing in the doorway, he paused. When his eyes alighted on a lady at a corner table, he moved swiftly across the room.

‘Crickey, her diamonds are brighter than the chandelier,’ Carmen said as she watched Dicky slide into a seat beside the woman, then snap his fingers to summon a server.

Theo closed his eyes to block the memory of the woman wearing only a diamond necklace as she leaned heavily on a walking aid. Returning to safer ground, he said, ‘Tell me what you were talking to Ruskin about, and why does he terrify you?’

Carmen shifted in her chair. ‘Oh, it was nothing really,’ she deflected the question. ‘But why don’t you tell me about your life as a celebrity chef?’ she asked. ‘When I was shopping with Fran, she told me that Sid idolises you and you’re going to be a guest speaker.’

‘Come to my talk and you’ll be bored in no time.’

‘Don’t be daft, you’ll be brilliant, and I want to hear all about your illustrious career. I also meant to ask if you found your bracelet?’

‘No, sadly I didn’t, and let’s save my career for another day.’ Theo waved the subject away. ‘I’m more interested in you right now.’

Carmen wasn’t sure if she should confide in Theo, but as she took another sip of champagne, she decided to give it a shot. They seemed to get along, and she desperately wanted to discuss her feelings. ‘I admire Ruskin for his writing,’ Carmen began, ‘and he inspires me.’

‘But you’ve still got writer’s block?’

‘After Ruskin’s talk, I felt inspired to write and my writer’s block lifted for a short while.’

Theo’s gaze softened. ‘But it’s more than admiration, isn’t it?’

Carmen bit her lip. ‘I’m not sure.’

‘Does your stomach flutter and your heart race when he’s near?’

‘Oh hell,’ Carmen slumped. Theo had figured it out.

‘Are you tongue-tied and unsure of what to say? Does the smell of his cologne intoxicate you?’

‘All right, all right,’ Carmen held up her hand. ‘You’ve clearly been there.’

‘Got the T-shirt.’ Theo nodded. ‘I had all those feelings every time Ruari stepped into a room or walked beside me.’

‘But what am I to do? Ruskin would never look at someone like me, and if I’m honest, I’m not sure I’d want him to.’

‘Why on earth not?’

‘Because I am a plain Jane at heart, stuck with my mother in a time-warp of a house. My life is nothing like his.’ Carmen’s voice was quiet. ‘It was all mapped out for me long ago, and writing is my only escape.’ Carmen explained the betrayal by her childhood sweetheart that had destroyed her trust and shaped her life.

Theo reached out his hand to encircle Carmen’s. ‘It’s never too late to change your life,’ he said. ‘Look at the change you’ve made in your appearance, was that so hard?’

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