Page 35 of The Second Chance in the Mediterranean
“My family didn’t know I was gay until I was eighteen. That was pretty impressive, honestly.”
I laughed. “Okay, I’ll give you that one.”
“Did you hook up on your last boat too? Seb would never tell me.”
Seb was a better secret-keeper than I was. A nervous flutter went through my belly. Maybe Seb knew better than to tell Roy. They were best friends—how had he not told him? “Well, then I’m not going to tell you either.”
Roy pouted but picked the dishes back up again. “Fine. My point is, the next time Seb doesn’t sleep in his own bed, I’ll back you both up.”
I squeezed his forearm. “Thanks, Roy.”
* * *
I wasup before the sun, intending to help Roy with a fresh breakfast for the crew, but he shooed me out of the galley.
“Go watch them leave the dock and get the sails up,” he suggested. “It’s pretty cool.”
While we had briefly sailed with the charter guests on board, I hadn’t had time to enjoy the view. I climbed to the main deck and took a seat on one of the aft couches, where I could see the entire boat. The deck team was running around, prepping lines and putting gear away. I felt the ship rumble to life underneath me, the engine starting up. I hadn’t put my earpiece in, but I got to listen to most of the conversation anyway while the crew discussed getting off the dock.
Marina staff on the wharf helped us untie our lines and then threw them back to our crew. Slowly, the stern ofThemispulled away from the wall. Early-morning passersby stopped to watch as Dom smoothly maneuvered her away from the dock.
WithThemis’s bow pointed out to sea, the crew filtered away until there was just Edie and Toby on deck. Together, we watched as the sails unfurled as if by magic. Everything was electronic—so different from what I’d seen onEik. The masts pivoted as we passed the entrance to the bay, andThemispicked up speed. Within a few minutes, we had our engines off and were coasting along.
Conditions weren’t incredibly calm, butThemiswas so big, it was nothing like what I’d expected. I stood up and wandered along the deck, casting my eyes up to the sails often. The square sails, if you could ignore the carbon fiber around them, made it look like we were on a historical ship from the 1800s, a weird way to feel on this modern, tech-savvy superyacht.
Standing at the side rail, I looked over and watched the water rush past.
“It’s pretty cool, right?” Seb sidled up to the rail and joined me.
I tore my eyes from the sea and nodded at him. “It’s a bit different from what I was expecting, I guess.”
“Nothing likeEik?”
“No, totally different,” I said. “She moves a lot differently in the water.”
“My first sail onThemiswas my first sail ever.”
I turned to face Seb. “Really?”
“Yeah. It’skind of this beautiful, peaceful thing. I didn’t think I would like it, but I do.”
“Is that why you want to do that sailing coaching?”
“Yeah. I’m really racking up my sea time for my licensing, but I like the idea of diversifying a little bit. I’ll never be a professional skipper or tactician, but perhaps I can get my sailing endorsement and more job opportunities.”
“What’s a tactician?”
“It’s the person who plans out the strategy, plots the course. The Boyds fly a professional tactician in for whenThemisraces.”
We stared down at the waves for a few minutes.
“I’ve got some time off before my next shift. You?”
The wind whipped hair into my eyes, and I pulled back and smoothed my hair down. “I’m pretty free today.”
We eyed each other.
Seb cocked his head. “I can be down at your room in ten minutes?”
