Page 110 of Falling Overboard

Hunter had done this. I had told him how important it was to me to go to Italy, especially Naples, and he had arranged it.

While it was probably a little less impressive, given that his parents owned the boat, it was still thoughtful and I knew that he had done it for my sake.

“Here, all done,” Andre said. I started grabbing trays and balancing them on my arms. I could have called for help but I didn’t particularly want to see anyone else at the moment.

One foot in front of the other,I told myself. I could get through this. I would concentrate on doing my job and eventually I would have that conversation with Hunter.

I threw myself into service, waiting on the Cartwrights. The thing that struck me was not only the resemblance Hunter bore to both of his parents, but how ridiculously in love they seemed to be. They were probably closing in on three decades of marriage but they were acting like they were on their honeymoon. After I’d served all the trays, Susan said, “I’m sure you have so much you need to attend to. Don’t worry about us. We are totally fine.”

That had never happened before—I was at a bit of a loss. I’d never had guests tell me to go do something else and not run around fetching whatever struck their fancy. It was thoughtful on her part because there was a lot that needed to be done.

I went down to make sure their cabins were prepared by getting their bags unpacked. Emilie should have put away their clothes by herself, but she, once again, had not. She was on her phone.

“This is a serious problem,” I told her. I had cut my sisters off financially. I had discovered that I actually had a backbone. I could deal with Emilie, too. “You need to start contributing or I’m going to have to go and speak with your uncle about your behavior and how you don’t do what you’re told.”

She put her hands on her hips and glared at me. “He told me that you’re in charge of me, that my actions reflect on you. If you go to him, that won’t end well for you, either.”

I thought of that phrase Hunter had used—mutually assured destruction. She wanted to threaten my job? I would call her bluff. “Of the two of us, I’m the one he can least afford to lose.”

“Go tell him and let’s find out,” she challenged. “And when I speak to him, I’ll be sure to tell him that either you go or I go and I think we both know who he will choose.”

Emilie might have been surprised at the decision the captain might make. Not that I could a hundred percent guarantee it, but I was pretty sure he’d keep me. Captain Carl might have been abrasive and demanding, but he had to realize that I was good at my job. The old me probably would have panicked endlessly about this situation but I knew that I was needed on this ship. We had one less stew than we normally did and Emilie was like a barnacle clinging to the hull. Totally unnecessary and weighing the rest of us down. She could easily be let go and we wouldn’t miss a beat.

“Fine,” I said, my decision made. When I got the opportunity, I would speak to the captain and then we’d see where things ended up. “Start unpacking Mrs. Cartwright’s bags and take out any dresses that need to be steamed.”

I would stay in here and watch her and make sure she worked. Of course she moved as slowly as was humanly possible, but at least she was working.

When we were nearly finished, Georgia texted me.

Pieter gave Hunter a two-hour break. Maybe you should take yours now, too?

It was my job to schedule all the breaks for the stews. I was entitled to a two-hour break every day. And I would have taken it on a more regular basis if I weren’t having to constantly clean up behind Emilie.

Today I would be taking that time. I needed an explanation and I wasn’t sure I could wait another twelve hours before I got one.

“Take those dresses into the laundry room and steam them,” I said to her. Hopefully she would actually do it and not deliberately wreck any of the clothing in the process.

Although if she did, it would certainly give me some additional ammunition when I went to the captain.

The thought of speaking to him about how awful his niece was caused me more anxiety than the thought of the conversation I was about to have with Hunter.

Why was there such a difference? It was probably because I trusted Hunter. Maybe I shouldn’t have, given the lies, but I always felt safe with him. Like he was a good man who had my best interests at heart.

It was the opposite with Captain Carl.

I also believed that Hunter would be honest with me. That he must have had a good reason for covering up his background.

When I got to our cabin, he had apparently been about to get into the shower, as he had his shirt off. He was on his phone. When I opened the door, he glanced up and gave me a half smile.

“Lucky, I’m so glad you’re here. I really need to talk to you. To explain.”

Chapter Thirty-Six

Hunter

My family just showing up now was not how things were supposed to go down. They weren’t scheduled to visit until the very end of the season. I had planned on telling Lucky about them after I told her that I loved her. When we were in a more secure and stable place and knew what we meant to each other and what kind of future we wanted to have together.

I had tried to tell her a couple of times, but we had gotten interrupted or I had been busy kissing her.

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