Page 92 of Crossing the Line
“Are you kidding me? That’s amazing! Holy shit, when are you coming back? Oh my God, we have to go school shop…”
“And I see you just landed on the conclusion that I completely missed until Xavier told me five minutes ago.”
“Oh my God. You can’t go.”
“Not until Ganim is caught.”
Kate swore ripely in Waverly’s ear. “Listen, don’t give up on this, Wave. We’ll come up with something even if we have to trap the asshole ourselves.”
Waverly felt her lips curve. “I miss you. I wish you were aboard the floating loony bin with me.”
“Things that good, huh?”
“Mom caught Dad licking the tonsils of the twenty-two-year-old bartender in the grand salon.”
“Guess that means your mom is mixing her own drinks, ha. Sorry. Bad joke.”
Waverly laughed anyway and then sighed. “Am I damaged? I mean, it’s not possible to come from them and not be damaged, is it?”
“If you are, you’re the least damaged damaged person I’ve ever met. And I’ve met a lot of damaged people.”
“Awh, thanks, pal.”
“Anytime. So I guess I’ll see you in London in a couple of days,” Kate said. “We can start scheming how to catch a creeper and get your ass to college.”
“Sounds good. Go back to sleep.”
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Waverly stayed in her room until late afternoon when her stomach demanded sustenance. She’d yet to hear a peep through her door or see any bodies flung over the side through her window. She hoped it was a good sign.
She decided it was as good a time as any to go up on deck, maybe let the sun bake away some of her pain. She changed into a new bikini, grabbed her sunscreen, and headed out.
Even after her talk with Kate, dejection clung to her like a florid perfume. She could see no way out, and if she were confined to this life much longer, she might never find one.Should she just embrace it as her mother had? Or was normal worth fighting for? Waverly wanted to know.
She trudged up the stairs and finding no signs of life on the main or upper decks she climbed to the highest level. She found Xavier on the sun deck, dressed in shorts and an open button down shirt.
There was a beer on the table in front of him.
“Rough day?” She heard the bitterness in her own voice and shook her head. “Sorry. I don’t mean to take anything out on you.” She sat down on a sunny bed and tried to focus on the beauty of the view.
Xavier picked up his beer and joined her. He said nothing just sat next to her in silence.
It was quiet up on deck. The lap of the water against the hull was far below. A light breeze teased her hair and relieved the unrelenting heat. Mikonos rose before them out of the water like a statue.
“Not all men are like your father,” Xavier said finally.
“Thank God for that.”
“I mean, not all men think only with their dicks.”
“Why are you telling me this, X?”
“I don’t want you to think that what we did was because you’re young and beautiful, and I was trying to prove something,” he said rolling the bottle in his hands. “You are young and beautiful—I mean. Shit, I’m making a mess out of this.”
“Maybe start over?” she suggested.
“You asked your dad to think about how his actions affect you. You’re his daughter, and you see him running off with anyone with a rack and a mouth. Girls your age. Not all guys are like that. They don’t just take something because it’s pretty, and they think it reflects on them. And then throw it away after it’s served their purpose. That’s not why I… why we…”
