Page 69 of The Cruise Club

Without pausing to think, Carmen turned on her heel.

Oh, how it hurt, the pain was like an old coat, heavy and all-encompassing and her heart ached as she moved away. Blinking back tears, she knew she had to stop dreamingabout a man who’d never be hers. It was time to write her own ending, and it didn’t include Ruskin’s approval. Carmen had written a bestseller before and was determined to do it again.

Whatever wisdom awaited inside that room would have to go on without her.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Betty Cunningham and Holden Jackson were celebrating when Carmen got back to her cabin and heard music. ‘Are you all right?’ Carmen asked as she knocked on her mother’s door.

The door swung open, and Betty stood with a glass in her hand. She wore aDiamond StarT-shirt and cruise-themed cap. ‘Here she is,’ Betty said, moving back as Carmen entered the room. ‘My daughter has come to put a downer on our day.’

‘Of course I haven’t,’ Carmen said as she looked around the room, where Holden was sprawled on the bed wearing a T-shirt and cap that matched Betty’s. He spun a keychain between his fingers and sipped champagne from a logoed mug. ‘What have you both been up to?’ Carmen asked.

‘You might be surprised to hear that we won first prize at the Golden Oldies Dance Like No One Is Watching afternoon event.’ Betty grinned. ‘Holden and I showed off a few moves that impressed the judges and added a little humour to win us a few extra points.’

Carmen thought that the judges must be blind, and the audience certainly wasn’t watching. Her mother’s humour could clear a room faster than a fire alarm, and her wit was probably best enjoyed with earplugs and a stiff drink.

‘How wonderful, I’m very happy for you both.’ Carmen smiled. ‘Was the prize champagne?’

‘A bottle each and a bag full ofDiamond Stargoodies.’ Betty wandered over to the bed and sat down beside Holden.

‘How are your poor old bones after all that dancing?’ Carmen asked.

Betty sighed dramatically and reached out for Holden’s hand. ‘I’m in constant pain,’ she said, ‘but I wouldn’t want to hold my Holden back with my suffering. I just quietly grin and bear it.’

Carmen saw ‘My Holden’ smile sympathetically at his Bet and she knew it was time to leave the couple alone. Whatever magic he was weaving over Betty in the form of spiritual pain relief, Carmen hoped it would continue, at least until the end of the cruise.

‘Don’t wait for me this evening,’ Betty said. ‘Holden is treating me to dinner in the Atrium restaurant.’ She smiled lovingly and stroked Holden’s fingers. ‘He’s reserved a table for Jaden Bird’s tasting menu.’

‘That sounds like an amazing treat,’ Carmen said.

As Carmen closed the door, she thought about the cost of a meal in the Atrium and knew the tasting menu would cover a month’s shopping at home. Holden must be loaded. Entering her own cabin, she wondered if the dinner was to celebrate something special. Perhaps Holden was celebrating his birthday? Carmen flopped down on her bed,and as she kicked off her shoes, she fantasised wildly about Betty jetting off to the States to live in Holden’s Florida home, which was probably luxurious. Had Holden come on this cruise specifically to meet someone? After all, Betty was single and had assets that amounted to a tidy sum. Despite needing updating, Desbett House, set in an acre of grounds, was worth a great deal, and Carmen’s dad had left his family more than adequately provided for with investments that had paid substantial dividends over the years.

Carmen stared at the ceiling and considered that many older couples met on cruises. Sometimes, they even tied the knot on the ship. Carmen couldn’t imagine that Betty’s serendipitous meeting with Holden would lead to anything more than enjoyable company for both during their holiday. No one in their right mind would put up with Betty for long.

Carmen sighed and daydreamed about life without Betty. It would free her to pursue her own dream, filling her days with writing in a place of her own, somewhere that Carmen could truly call home.

She remembered Villa Galini in Maxos – the charming retreat overlooking the sea with steps patterned in pretty mosaic tiles and terracotta pots on either side of a blue front door. The villa, three stories high, boasted overhanging balconies and a terrace, and she could almost imagine the pleasure of sitting there, watching the world drift by.

Carmen stretched, turning to hug her pillow, allowing herself a fantasy of the lonely writer blossoming in her new home. Every morning, she’d wake to the soft rustling branches of the fir tree outside before throwing open theshutters to reveal the horseshoe-shaped beach below. Carmen would eat breakfast on a balcony, enjoying local yoghurt laced with delicious honey supplied by the elderly man who slept on the bench. Isolation would feel like a companion, and her words would flow in this peaceful place.

The phone rang, waking Carmen from her dreams. Wondering if Betty needed assistance with dressing for the evening, she answered it.

‘Hello, Mum, what can I help you with?’

‘Hello, my darling, isn’t it a fine evening to be alive?’ Theo’s voice held a hint of humour.

‘Hello you,’ Carmen began to smile, ‘I thought it was an emergency call from my mother, insisting that I zip her into a dress that she insists makes her look twenty years younger.’

‘It sounds like Betty has a special evening ahead?’

‘The Atrium, no less, for Jaden Bird’s tasting menu.’

‘A financial commitment, for sure,’ Theo laughed. ‘Do you think Holden is going to propose?’

Carmen nearly dropped the phone. ‘What! Propose to my mother?’

‘Why not? Stranger things have happened at sea. At their age, the only thing left to lose is time.’

---