“You ruin all of my fun,” Ally complained. “You do it all of the time. You know that, right? When you’re not ruining my fun, my brother is ruining my fun. You’re quite the couple.”
“I’ll tell him you said that,” Mandy said dryly.
“You do that.” Ally lost her train of thought and stared at the sea while Mandy took advantage of the conversational lull to study Peterson up close and personal while he was fixated on Sophie.
“Speaking of your husband, where is he?” Peterson asked, smiling as he glanced at Mandy. “I was under the impression that he very rarely spends more than a few minutes away from you. That’s the rumor around the ship, that is.”
Mandy didn’t like his tone. “I didn’t realize we were the talk of the boat,” she said. “As for spending time together, this is sort of a vacation, so I’m not sure what harm there is in it.”
“There’s no harm in it,” Sophie said. “We’re all practically humping each other’s legs.”
Mandy bit the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d witnessed Sophie this drunk. It was kind of funny … and worrisome thanks to Peterson’s presence.
“That’s delightful,” Peterson deadpanned, rolling his eyes. Sophie missed the expression, but Mandy did not.
“James and the others are checking out the room of a missing girl,” Mandy supplied. “She’s been gone for more than twenty-four hours now and they’re starting to worry that the blood on the deck belonged to her.”
Peterson appeared legitimately surprised at the news. “Who is missing?”
“I can’t remember her name, but they said it was the singer in the main dining room,” Mandy answered. “She showed up for her shift last night and then disappeared.”
“I … well … that is just terrible,” Peterson said. “Are they sure she’s really missing and not just slacking on the job?”
“You’ll have to ask my husband.”
Peterson didn’t look happy with her answer, but he didn’t get a chance to press her further because the sound of someone clearing his throat drew the man’s attention to the space behind him.
“He’ll have to ask your husband what?” James appeared out of the darkness, Jake and his brothers close behind. He gave Peterson a cursory look before moving closer to Mandy. “Hello, wife. Are you drunk?”
“Of course not,” Mandy lied. “I’m completely sober.”
“Let me see your tongue,” James prodded.
Mandy stuck it out and laughed when he put his mouth over it to kiss her.
“I see you’re tipsy but not falling down,” James said after they separated, grabbing her glass from the nearby table and downing the remains himself so she wouldn’t drink it and compound the problem. “You’re done.”
“I was going to have another,” Mandy said, jutting out her lower lip.
“I’m definitely having another one,” Ally said.
“Oh, you’re done, too,” Jake said. “You have absolutely no ability to stop drinking when you’re with these guys. I’m going to stop for you tonight.”
“But … I want to have another one and then show you what my blue tongue can do,” Ally whined, causing Jake to blush.
“Oh, geez,” Grady complained, running his hand down the back of Sophie’s head. He was used to her being the calm one when it came to drinking. “That’s nice there, gutter mouth. I’m so glad you’re our baby sister.”
Ally made a face. “Oh, like you weren’t thinking it,” she shot back. “Sophie has a blue tongue, too.”
Grady looked intrigued. “Yes, well, it’s hot when her tongue is blue. It’s gross when you’re tongue is blue.”
“You’re gross,” Ally shot back.
“Take her to bed, Jake,” Grady ordered, pointing. “I can’t put up with her for another second.”
“You’re not my boss,” Jake complained, although he slipped his arm under Ally’s legs and hoisted her up. “Despite that, however, I need to get some water and food in her before she passes out. If I’m lucky, her hangover won’t be terrible.”
“I want to have sex, too,” Ally said, kissing his cheek. Mandy had the distinct impression Ally thought she was whispering when she said the words. The blue drink concoction clearly threw off her volume control.
“We’ll see how things go after the water, aspirin, and food,” Jake said. “Something tells me you’re going to pass out instead.” Jake nodded his chin in James’ direction as he headed toward the hallway. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“We’ll make a new plan then,” James said. “I have that special thing going in the afternoon. Don’t forget that. We’ll handle scheduling over breakfast, though .”
“I won’t forget,” Jake said. “Don’t worry about that.”
Mandy waited until he was gone to turn her attention to James. “What special thing?”
“Oh, I’m not sure I should tell you, wife,” James said, pushing a flyaway strand of hair away from her face. “You’re too drunk and it’s a surprise for you.”
“I’m not drunk … and I hate surprises,” Mandy griped. “Tell me.”
“We’ll see when we get back to the room,” James said, holding out his hand. “Can you walk, or do I need to carry you?”
Mandy was offended. “I’m perfectly capable of walking.” She stumbled as she stood, but luckily James saw it coming and caught her. “See.”
James chuckled as he swung her up in his arms and kissed her cheek. “I stand corrected.” He ignored Peterson as he passed, figuring Grady could handle him if he made a fuss. “You need some water and aspirin, too.”
“You should know I’ve decided something,” Mandy said as James reached for the door handle. “Don’t you want to know what it is?”
“No, because you’ll forget by tomorrow morning.”
“No, I won’t,” Mandy argued. “I decided this before we started drinking.”
James heaved out a weighted sigh. “Fine. What did you decide?”
“I decided that you can’t marry anyone else when I die because I’m not going to die. I’m going to live forever.”
James’ eyes lit up as studied her face. “I think that’s the best plan you’ve ever had.”
“Good.” Mandy rested her head against her husband’s shoulder as he navigated the hallway that led to their room. “Oh, and James?”
“Huh, baby?”
“I want to have sex, too.”
12
Twelve
“How do you feel?”
James sat with his back propped up on the pillows as he flipped through a file and kept one eye on his stirring wife the next morning. Mandy took a moment to rub the sleep from her eyes and roll to her back so she could stare at the ceiling. The antics of the previous evening rushed back relatively quickly. Thankfully for her, she didn’t get an accompanying headache when it happened.
“I feel okay,” Mandy replied after a beat. “My tongue is a little dry. I have cottonmouth.”
“Here.” James had a bottle of water and two aspirin tablets ready. “Let me see your blue tongue again.”
Mandy stuck out her tongue and made him smile. “Happy?”
“I’m always happy with you, wife,” James said, flipping another page in the file before focusing his full attention on Mandy. “Are you hungover? Be honest.”
“I’m okay,” Mandy said. “We only had four drinks. I was a little tipsy when you found us – and I would’ve been hungover had I downed another drink, so good call there – but I feel solid.”
James smiled at the admission. “Good.” He pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. “I was worried when you passed out before your requested sex came to fruition that it was going to be a rough morning.”
Mandy made a face. “I passed out? I’m sorry.”
“Well, I would rather have you pass out than not remember it,” James teased, rubbing his thumb over her cheek. “Did you at least have fun with the girls while we worked?
”
“We had a good time,” Mandy confirmed. “I decided that you don’t have to worry about marrying someone else after I die because I’m just going to live forever.”
“You told me that last night.”
“Oh.” Mandy shifted on the bed. “I don’t remember telling you that either.”
“Yes, I think I cut you off at the exact right time,” James said. “I’m glad you’re not hungover.”
“That makes two of us,” Mandy said, rolling to her side so she could look at the file in James’ hand. “Is that the missing girl?”
“It is,” James confirmed. “She’s twenty-seven and has been bouncing around cruise ships for the past four years. I have Maverick running a deeper background check to see what he can get. He should have more tonight.”
“Are you sure she’s not on the boat?”
“No,” James said. “This place is huge. Someone could easily be keeping her in a room or another part of the ship without us knowing. Searching this place from top to bottom is going to be a big chore if we go that route.”
“She also could’ve been killed and her body dumped overboard,” Mandy pointed out.
“I haven’t ruled that out either.”
Mandy involuntarily shuddered as she drew closer to James, causing him to arch an eyebrow.
“Sorry,” Mandy said instantly, moving to pull away. “You’re working.”
James slipped his arm around her waist to still her. “I can hold you and work at the same time,” he said, resting his chin against her forehead as she settled her head on his chest. “Holding you always takes precedence.”
“I’ve noticed.” Mandy was quiet for a moment. “I love you.”
The words were barely a whisper, but they were so heartfelt James couldn’t stop himself from clutching her tighter. “I love you, too,” he said. “I’m glad you’re never going to die. That made my night.”
Mandy giggled. “Ally says that our biggest problem is that you and I like to fall on swords for each other. Do you think that’s true?”
“I’ve never considered myself a sword man.”
Mandy slipped her hand beneath the covers and cupped James’ manhood, eliciting a groan as she tested her theory. “You feel like a sword man to me.”
“You’re on dangerous terrain there, wife,” James said, shoving his file on the nightstand and moving his hips so they were pointed in her direction. “I don’t suppose you want to fall on my sword, do you?”
“I thought you would never ask.”
“EAT UP, baby,” James said as they shuffled through the buffet line an hour later. “You’re going to need a full stomach for what we have planned today.”
Mandy creased her forehead as she glanced at him. “What are we doing today?”
“It’s a surprise.”
A memory niggled the back of Mandy’s brain. She didn’t remember all of the events of the previous evening, but she was almost certain James said something similar when carrying her to their suite. “What surprise?”
“Get a lot of food, Mandy,” James prodded, refusing to answer. “Get eggs, bacon, hash browns, and toast. Make sure it’s a full breakfast. I don’t want you running on fumes later.”
“James … .”
James ignored Mandy as Grady moved to the spot next to him in the line. “Anything?”
“She’s still missing and the security team claims they’ve searched every common area – including all of the storage rooms in the work areas – and they’ve come up empty,” Grady answered.
“Why did you say claimed like that?”
“Because they didn’t exactly strike me as diligent.”
James rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, I’m having the same problem,” he said. “They don’t strike me as bad people, but I’m pretty sure they’re making ten bucks an hour and that’s not exactly high-priced talent in this field.”
“You’ve got that right,” Grady said. “They’re like rent-a-cops, only less qualified.”
Mandy’s mouth dropped open when she realized James was purposely ignoring her. “Hey! What’s my surprise?”
“The surprise is that you need to eat a full breakfast,” James said, pressing his hand against her hip and urging her forward. “Do as I ask.”
“I’m not doing as you ask,” Mandy argued, her eyes flashing. “To be fair, you haven’t asked anything. You’ve ordered me to do things. There’s a difference.”
James tugged on his limited patience as he locked gazes with her. “Will you please eat a full breakfast?”
“Not until you tell me what my surprise is,” Mandy answered. “I heard some people talking and know we’re stopping at a port today. Does that have something to do with my surprise?”
James tilted his head to the side, considering. “Yes.”
“Are you taking me shopping?”
“Maybe tonight because I thought we could have dinner at port, but that’s not your surprise,” James said, his smile wide as he exchanged a conspiratorial look with Grady. “Eat your breakfast.”
“I can’t believe you haven’t told her,” Grady chided. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me until last night either. This is possibly the biggest thing that’s ever going to happen in her life and you’re keeping her in the dark. You’re a bad, bad man.”
Mandy’s heart rolled at the teasing. “What’s my surprise?” She was so loud she caused a few heads to snap in their direction.
“Take it down a notch, baby,” James admonished, using his hand to address her volume issues. “I’m still working here.”
“I’m sorry.” Mandy meant it. “I just … you know I hate surprises. You have to tell me.”
“You don’t hate surprises,” James countered. “You love them. You hate that I keep secrets from you. There’s a difference.”
“James, I’m honestly going to have a meltdown if you don’t tell me,” Mandy said. “I’ll … cry … if it comes to it.”
James’ expression darkened. “That’s emotional blackmail.”
“I know, and I don’t like that I have to do it,” Mandy conceded. “I need to know, though. I’ll die otherwise. Do you want that?”
“You just told me this morning that you’re going to live forever,” James reminded her.
“That was before I knew you were keeping something from me.”
James licked his lips as he rolled his neck. In truth, he no longer had to keep the secret. They were an hour away from her finding out anyway. “Fine. Do you really want to know?”
Mandy was practically salivating as she bobbed her head. “Yes.”
“We’re going on a special boat where you can get in a cage and see Great White sharks.”
Whatever she was expecting, that wasn’t it. Mandy swallowed hard at the news, terror and delight warring for supremacy in her busy brain. “W-what?”
“You heard me,” James said, smiling. “Now eat your breakfast. We have a full day ahead of us, baby. You’re going to need your strength.”
“OKAY, we’re having the security team search every common area again once the ship docks on the island,” James said as he munched on a strip of bacon and focused on Grady, Jake, and Finn. “They weren’t happy, but Will put his foot down when I explained how important it was for us to be able to clear the ship and move in another direction on Zoe’s disappearance.”
“They’re not going to find anything,” Jake said. “They don’t know what they’re doing.”
“I agree, but we have to exert due diligence,” James said, resting his hand on Mandy’s knee under the table as his wife stared at her uneaten breakfast. “Baby, if you don’t eat that food, I’m going to feed you myself. This is exactly why I didn’t want to tell you about the surprise.”
Mandy’s features were ashen as she reached for her fork. In truth, she was unbelievably excited about seeing sharks. She was also terrified that something would go wrong and she would end up as an appetizer at a human smorgasbord. “I … .”
<
br /> James squeezed her knee. “Eat.”
“Maverick is working his magic on Zoe to see if he can come up with any motive,” Grady said. “He’s also going to run the passenger list to see if there are any obvious warning signals. He doesn’t expect to get back to us tonight with the second list because it’s simply too big.”
“Yeah, this whole thing is problematic because we’re not technically in charge and our options are limited,” James said. “I’m glad we never took on cruise security as a full-time thing, just for the record.”
“That makes two of us,” Grady said. “This is really a nightmare. We have no power and if a murder did occur, it happened in international waters so jurisdiction is iffy. We have a boat owner who seems more interested in profit than anything else and a missing girl who appeared to have ties to no one.”
“Yeah, our benefactor seems to be confused about what’s the right thing to do, doesn’t he?” James leaned back in his chair and cast a sidelong look in Mandy’s direction as he tried to hide his lazy smile. “Baby, you need fuel. We’re going to have a long afternoon with the sharks. That means you’re not getting lunch. You won’t eat again until dinner.”
“I’m eating,” Mandy said, making a face as she snatched a slice of bacon. “Stop being a pill.”
“I was just checking,” James said, holding up his hands in a placating manner as his eyes twinkled. “Make sure you eat the entire plate. Lick it if you can.”
Mandy was so lost in her own thoughts she merely nodded. “I’m eating.”
James pursed his lips as he turned to Grady. He was enjoying himself immensely. “So we have Maverick running a background check and we’re otherwise stuck in the middle of nowhere without a body. Zoe could be spending her time in another room … or knocked unconscious somewhere … or voluntarily missing.”
“She could also be dead,” Jake added, rubbing the back of Ally’s neck as he pointed toward her half-eaten breakfast. “You need to eat, too.”
“Why?” Ally asked. “I’m not going on that shark boat with Mandy. Don’t even try talking me into it.”
Deadly Waves (Hardy Brothers Security Book 23) Page 10