Page 15 of The Second Chance in the Mediterranean
Seb and Roy both climbed the stairs out to the main deck and I was left alone again. Seb’s words played over in my mind—she seems to hate me now—and I felt awful for making him feel this way. But hate was better than other feelings. It was less risky.
Eight
My sandals clickedon the floor as I walked into the galley. Just like the previous night, the half of us off work for the evening were gathered in the lounge and galley, and chatter filled the air over the sounds of Roy cooking.
He spotted me and wolf-whistled. I grinned at him before taking a deep inhale of the Bolognese sauce that simmered on the stove, carefully holding back my long hair from the steam.
“Ready for your hot night out?” Roy asked.
“Cat and I are going to dinner.” I tipped my chin at the more rambunctious crowd in the lounge. “Not to the club like the rest, but to a café.”
He smiled and stirred. “Are you more of a quiet evening kind of girl?”
“Good food and good company. Yes, please.”
“You look great.” He eyed my pin-striped romper. “Don’t you think so, Seb?” Roy’s eyes snapped up over my shoulder, and I turned. Seb stood still in the doorway, eyes wandering along my body. My legs were on display—my favorite asset, and one hidden more often than not under chef’s pants—and Seb’s eyes devoured them.
In the heavy moment of silence, a memory surfaced of my legs pressed against Seb’s torso, my ankles on either side of his neck and his eyes hot and intense on mine. It was the same look he was giving me now, and I could nearly see the scene echoed in his mind. My whole body tightened.
“Marcella?” Cat’s voice broke the tension, and Roy cleared his throat next to me.
I pasted a smile on and pivoted toward Cat on the other side of the galley. Her olive-green wrap dress swayed as she leaned against the doorway. “Hey, yeah, I’m ready.”
Passing Roy, I patted him on the back with my clutch. “Have a good service tonight.”
“You got it.”
I followed Cat, weaving through the rest of the crew, and we made our way up to the main deck. The sun had set already, but the sky was still colorful, lights flickering on in the city and in the sky. I felt a pang of longing forEik—every evening, as often as we could, we’d watched the sunset together. Back in the professional world, I didn’t have the luxury to stop meal prep for even a few minutes and appreciate the surroundings.
Cat stepped off the gangway with a sigh. “It’s like flipping a switch from boss lady to regular human being.”
“It certainly is,” I agreed.
As we walked, Cat pointed out some sights around Tivat, and I asked her about activities in the area. Roy and I had traveled all over the city, but with work in mind. Cat, with her experiences here in the city and years of practice being a quick tourist, was full of advice for how to make the most of limited time.
She had picked out the café, and as we settled into the seats, she left her menu on the table and leaned close. “Did you bring the pictures?”
I pulled out my phone and she squealed. Together, we flipped through picture after picture from my time onEik. Cat was fascinated, asking tons of questions in between ordering dinner and sipping our drinks. When I showed her a picture of the crew—me, Eivind, Jonas, Elayna, and Lila—on a hike in Tahiti, she grabbed my phone and squinted, carefully inspecting our faces.
“My God, these guys are young. And handsome. Holy crap.” She fanned herself.
I pointed at the photo, naming each person.
“What a trip. Are you tired of talking about it?” she asked.
“No, not yet.” I took the phone back, looking at the picture again. We’d been driving around Tahiti and stopped to watch the waves pound the cliffs and blast up through a blowhole. It was one of my last days with the crew. Lila squealed every time the waves crashed in, and Jonas and I, the oldest two, had rolled our eyes at the antics. I missed Jonas; we’d been close, him a steady rock holding the crew together. Eivind was the kind of guy who adored any food and was easy to please.
I shook off my nostalgia. It would be more work here, harder to please the charter guests and the Boyds, but it would be worth the reward.
Cat sipped her gin and tonic. “So, I hear you’ve worked with Seb before?”
“Yes,” I said carefully. “In the Caribbean.”
She folded her hands on the table in front of her. “I like working with him. He’s mature for his age, I think.” She watched me carefully. “When I came into the galley, it seemed likethere was something going on?”
My whole body tensed. I was not going to be causing drama onThemisand I certainly didn’t want Cat to suspect anything was happening—because there wasn’t. It was bad enough having Roy see our interactions together, and hearing the way he talked about me with Seb, I knew he had his suspicions.
“Nothing is going on with Seb,” I said firmly. Maybe too firmly, based on the way one of Cat’s eyebrows rose up. “What about you?”
