“Listen, we will be out and about once we dock in Mykonos. If you find me, then I guess it’s meant for us to have a drink. Just a drink,” Sarah said, not wanting to agree to a date, yet desiring to see this man again.
Charles stepped closer to her and grasped her hand, pulling it to his lips. Gently, he placed a kiss on the inside of her palm. His cologne, a subtle, masculine scent played havoc with her senses, and her body wanted… more. He leaned towards her ear and whispered,
“I believe in fate. I’ll see you for that drink.”
Hesitantly, he released her hand and walked to the balcony just outside of the dining hall.
“Oh, my God. I think I just had an orgasm,” MaryAnn said as they both watched him leave, his back looking just as good as his front.
“Holy shit, MaryAnn. I haven’t felt like that in years. Not even with Mason and I was married to him for twenty years.”
Sarah rubbed her hand across her chest, hoping to settle her erratic heartbeat. Tingles ran down her spine, and a small pool of wetness gathered between her thighs. Her hand burned in the spot where he’d kissed her. Chemistry. She hadn’t felt it since the first time she met Mason as a senior in high school.
“Honey, that man is downright edible. Geesh. Did you see the way he looked at you? If I wasn’t here, I think he would have eaten you.”
“And I would have eaten him right back. Jesus.” Sarah shook herself as if she could flick off the lust and excitement she felt.
“Hey ladies. Y’all ready to eat?”
Sandra stood behind them in a short hot pink sundress. Considering she was late, she looked less than rested. Black circles rimmed her big brown eyes, and her hair was thrown in a messy bun.
“Girl, where the hell have you been? You said to meet you at nine-thirty and it’s damn near ten o’clock,” Sarah huffed, irritation speedily replacing her arousal.
“Sorry, girl. I overslept, and my cell phone doesn’t work. I had no way to tell y’all,” Sandra said, casting her wearied eyes to the floor just beyond Sarah and MaryAnn. It was obvious she was lying, but Sarah didn’t have the energy or the patience to call her on it.
“Well honey, you just missed a show. Ooooh… Sarah has a date tonight.” MaryAnn sang as she danced a little jig in a circle.
“What? Who are you going out with?” Sandra asked suspiciously. Her once relaxed face morphed into a grimace that would scare a jittery person.
“You remember that guy who knocked over my bag in the port? Well, I accidentally ran into him when I stood to go fix my breakfast. This one over here told him he could make it up to me by taking me for drinks tonight when we dock in Mykonos.”
“God, that man could melt the panties off of a nun,” MaryAnn said, laughter and mischief gleaming in her eyes.
“I thought you said you weren’t on this trip for that?” Sandra mocked as if she was joking. Yet, the question was snippy, her tone biting and sarcastic.
Sarah rolled her eyes. She hadn’t been in Sandra’s presence but for a few minutes and she was ready to choke her. So, she snapped back, matching Sandra’s tone.
“Having drinks isn’t the same as having sex, Sandra. I can go out and have a free drink if I want to. Besides, I told him we will only go if he finds me. Fat chance of that.”
Sarah turned and walked over to the buffet table, grabbing a plate and loading it with eggs and bacon. MaryAnn fell in step, leaving a speechless Sandra standing at the table. After a moment, Sandra placed her bag down and followed.
* * *
They ate their meals in silence, tension thickening the air between them. Sarah people watched, refusing to look at Sandra. Some days she wondered why she even kept the woman in her circle. Being around someone didn’t make them a friend. She and Sandra had never really gotten along, though she didn’t understand why. It was like the woman purposely tried to press all of her buttons. MaryAnn, no longer able to stand the uncomfortable silence, said,
“So ladies. What’s the plan for the day? We are boarding in Mykonos. I hear the food is to die for.”
“You just finished eating. You still hungry?” Sandra sneered.
Sarah rolled her eyes but held her tongue. Sandra was getting to her, and she didn’t know how long it would be before they came to blows. MaryAnn, ignoring Sandra’s comment, said.
“Anyway… oh, I know. We can go to Chora. It’s a local shopping district. That should be fun.”
“That’s cool. I can spend some money,” Sandra said dryly.
“I was hoping to just chill on the beach today. I spent quite a bit of my savings to get here, and I’m trying to watch what I have left. So, no shopping for me,” Sarah said. Still refusing to look at Sandra, she directed her comment to MaryAnn.
“Alright. No problem. You chill on the beach, soak up the vitamin D; and Sandra and I will go to Chora. Then we can meet up for lunch. How does that sound?”
“Sounds good,” Sandra agreed, happy to be putting some space between her and Sandra for a while.
“Works for me,” Sandra said as she stood from the table. “The ship is docking soon. We should get changed and meet up in about an hour.”
It was on the tip of Sarah’s tongue to ask if she was going to show up on time. Again, she grappled with wanting to put Sandra in her place.
“That’s fine. We can meet in my room and leave together,” MaryAnn said through a tight smile.
Sandra left with no parting words.
“What is up with you two?” MaryAnn asked.
“I don’t know. She just gets on my nerves. You would think she would be happy that I was giving a man a chance. Instead, she throws my words back in my face as if I can’t change my mind. I am so sick of her.”
Sarah throws her hands in the air, annoyed but more disappointed in her supposed friend.
“I know, Sarah. Just remember, we are here to have a good time.”
“How? How do I have a good time when my friend is being such a bitch to me?”
“I don’t know what’s up with Sandra. But you have to make more of an effort to ignore her when she gets in these moods. This trip is supposed to be for you and about you.”
“Then why is it every conversation we have is about Sandra? That’s my point. Everything becomes about her. She’s acting stank, and we don’t know why. Now, we’ve got to pull it out of her like we’re dealing with a toddler who has no control over their emotions. Damn, MaryAnn. We are in our forties. This shit is getting old.”
MaryAnn listened, offering no response and no advice, just allowing Sarah to vent. She’d known for a long time that the friendship between Sandra and Sarah was tenuous and getting more unstable with each passing day. Honestly, Sarah and MaryAnn just couldn’t get rid of Sandra after they met her on the playground all those years ago in middle school. Every lunch period, every recess, every study hall, every event. She was just there, and soon they stopped trying. Not that there was much effort. Sarah would always suggest they hide from Sandra, but it was never in MaryAnn’s heart. For whatever reason, she knew Sandra needed them, regardless of her acting like a bitch towards them most of the time.
After Sarah quieted from her rant, MaryAnn asked,
“You feel better?” Then she rubbed Sarah’s arm the way a consoling mother would her angry child.
“I’m good. I just needed to get it out. Let’s go.” Sarah stood, grabbing her bag, and headed for the door.
When the elevator arrived on their floor, they parted ways, promising to be ready to go within thirty minutes. MaryAnn hoped the day would end better than it had started. Just as Sarah was tiring of Sandra’s pettiness, she was tired of them both.
5 - You Can’t Get Away From Me
Sandra walked from the table, leaving her best friends stunned and brewing. Jealousy boiled in her belly. Life can be so damn ironic. It wasn’t even funny. Sandra wasn’t in competition with Sarah, per se, but she’d be lying if she didn’t admit that she often despised Sarah’s faultless journey through life. B
esides the woman’s broken marriage, Sarah seemed to live life in a fairy tale most days. Perfect job. Used-to-be-perfect husband, who she didn’t appreciate. Perfect house. Perfect car. Some days, Sandra wished she could switch places with her bestie and show her how to appreciate her blessings.
Sandra wasn’t unhappy, she just wished things panned out the way she wanted them every once in a while. Her job at the school was… alright. But, if she was honest, being a school counselor wasn’t what she really wanted to do. Those brat kids annoyed her most days. Still, she kept smiling and hoping they take a bit of her advice seriously. It’d been six long, aching months since she and her last boyfriend broke up. Why did they break up? She was too needy, he said, whatever the hell that meant. Did she need love? Yes. Did she need sex? Yes. Did she need romance, attention, gifts, and adulation? Yes, yes, yes, and yes? His inability to give her those things should have been the initiator of their demise, but she foolishly hung on, hoping he’d one day see how wonderful she was. Fuck him.
As she walked to the elevators, she saw Charles walking on the balcony. He was just as handsome as she remembered. Casual in shorts and a shirt, but somehow the sexiest outfit a man could wear. Last night, she quarreled with herself, forcing the idea of hooking up with him from her mind. By two am, she’d convinced herself that all she wanted was to chill with her girls. Of course, that changed when she found out about Sarah having a date. Life was such a bitch sometimes.
Sandra looked behind her, ensuring Sarah and MaryAnn still sat in the dining hall, before turning to the balcony. Charles laid across a reclining lawn chair, sunglasses pulled low, one arm over his head and the other resting on his chest. His sneakers sat to the side of the chair, and his feet hung over the edge, a testament of his height. Relaxed, he looked like he didn’t have a care in the world. Sandra wanted to be with this man. Not for a lifetime, but the life of the cruise would be a start. She knew she’d come on too strong. It was clear Charles was fighting demons he wasn’t willing to share with her. This time, she would act more like a friend than a sex-crazed vixen and see how far that got her.
“Hey stranger,” she said, smiling at the slight jump in Charles’ shoulders at the sound of her voice.
“Hey,” Charles said, immediately recognizing her. Ever the gentleman, he went to stand. But Sandra gently pushed him back down, taking the recliner next to him.
“No need to get up. I just came to apologize.”
“Apologize for what? There’s no need…”
“No, no. Let me get this out, Charles. I was wrong. I came on really strong. I was acting like a hormonal teenager rather than the adult that I am. I’m sorry.”
Charles turned and sat on the edge of his recliner. “Thank you for that,” he said, gently squeezing her hand.
“Start over?”
“I’d like that,” Charles said, grateful that he wouldn’t have to dodge her for the entire trip.
“So, we are docking soon. Do you want to have lunch together? Or get a drink later tonight?”
“Um… I may have some plans for lunch. But maybe we can meet up later. We can meet back here on the ship and head out together. Say around five-thirty?”
“That’s perfect. See you then.”
Sandra stood, not wanting to linger over their unspoken truce. Although she didn’t look back to see if he watched her retreat, she put an extra sway in her hips, just in case. Always leave them wanting more. She hurried back to the elevators, excited that Charles was still an option, even if he didn’t know it.
6 - More Than Expected
Agios Stefanos Beach was breathtaking. Crystal clear waters beat against Sarah’s legs, crisp and cool on her warm, sun-soaked skin. Tension seeped from her strained muscles and for once, in a long while, she felt at ease. The beach was full of cruise passengers, tourists, and locals, though not overly crowded. Children played freely, running from the spilling waves, then back again. Sarah smiled, although the pain of missed motherhood swelled in her chest. Yachts caused slow ripples as they tread water in all their glory. Fat Lady. Manhandled. Singing Betsy. All refined, all white, all at home in the waters. Sports fanatics sped through the water on their jet skis or gingerly rowed their kayaks. Sarah envied their bravery. Couples walked hand in hand, in love and falling faster in their gorgeous surroundings. Unbidden, tears welled in Sarah’s eyes, threatening to fall. Only her pride kept them in place. Mason, her ex-husband, wasn’t worth any more of her tears, grief, or heart.
Their divorce had been finalized almost three years ago, with two of those years being a vicious battle. Sarah had met Mason in college at a frat party. It just so happened that both of them were pursuing a business degree; him pursuing Finance and she pursuing Accounting. His charm and confidence only improved his brilliance. Docile in his hands after one conversation, she reveled in their battle of the minds. After their second date, their future together filled her dreams: graduation, jobs at prestigious firms, wedding, honeymoon, and then children.
Their life played out like a movie reel. Mostly, it all happened just the way she’d dreamed. After they both graduated with honors, Mason took a job at an investment firm as a financial advisor. She accepted a position with a local accounting firm. Straight out the door, they both started their careers with six figures. Their wedding was small, mostly family and a handful of friends. Sarah and MaryAnn had been there, of course. They honeymooned in Tahiti, drinking Mai Tais and enjoying each other’s company as they relaxed under the gazebo. From the outside looking in, their life was perfect. Sandra had commented on it enough to make Sarah uncomfortable.
Sarah remembered the day as if it had just happened. The memory was ingrained. It was July, and the day flew by quickly with the buzz of excitement for a nice long holiday weekend. Since she and Mason hadn’t been spending much time together, she thought she’d plan a quick getaway. Life had gotten busy, and their marriage was feeling more like a business partnership. The hope was to remind them of why they got married. Maybe fall in love again, center them as a couple. The travel agent booked them a trip back to Tahiti but needed Mason’s driver’s license number. It was going to be a surprise. So Sarah didn’t want to call him for it, but she knew there was a copy in a folder at home from when they’d purchased their house. She tried not to be a packrat, but her affinity for keeping important documents was a help in this case.
Arriving home on her lunch break, she noticed Mason’s car in the yard. She thought it unusual, but since his office was less than a ten-minute drive from the house, she saw no cause for alarm. It was she who had to make up some excuse to get his driver’s license number without tipping him off. The sounds of unadulterated pleasure greeted her before the scene. She’d caught her husband of twenty years in the arms of his secretary, Jason. Well, it wasn’t exactly his arms he was in. Mason and Jason. She would have laughed had the pain in her chest hadn’t stopped her ability to breathe. The doctor said it was a panic attack. She was sure it was her heartbreaking into a million pieces.
A single tear rolled down her cheek as the pain once again radiated from her chest to her arm. It was too damn much. How could she not have known? They’d been together for half of her adult life. How did he hide he was bisexual, but preferring men more and more each day? Shaking the thoughts from her mind, she imagined the pain as small animated people drowning in the roll of the waves. Small mewing sounds escaped as the water overtook them. She was so engrossed in her imagination that she missed the rider of the jet ski that came too close to the edge of the beach.
The inexperienced woman lost control and strained to turn the large piece of equipment back to deeper waters. Cool water sprayed from the rotors, hitting Sarah in the face. The stranger yelled, “Sorry!” as she gained control and sped off in the opposite direction. Patches of sand broke Sarah’s fall, knocking the wind from her. Before she could get her bearings to stand, a wave knocked her down again, pushing her back into the sand, face first. She spat and sputtered, but couldn’t get a breath befo
re another wave hit her. What a way to die, she thought. Death by twelve inches of water.
Strong arms pulled her to her feet. Relief jellied her legs, and she fell into her savior as she took large gulps of air. Granules of sand filled her throat, choking her and stalling her effort to breathe.
“Here. Drink this,” her savior said as he placed a water bottle to her lips.
Sarah couldn’t find the energy to care that she could be drinking after someone with a cold sore, meningitis, or some other horrid disease. She hesitated a second before her savior calmed her by saying,
“Don’t worry, it’s a new bottle.”
She drank deeply then, feeling the gritty sand slide down her throat. Swishing the water around her mouth, she spat it out, hoping to clear the rest of the tiny menaces from her mouth.
“Better?”
Blindly, she grabbed the water bottle and poured the water onto her face. She felt a towel swipe across her face, clearing her eyes. Blinking, Charles’ charming smile came into focus.
“I don’t know how to thank you, Charles. You’re a lifesaver.” Sarah whispered as she righted herself, strengthening her legs to hold her weight.
“It’s no problem. I’m a sucker for a damsel in distress.”
“I don’t even know what happened. One minute, I’m standing here, overly absorbed in my thoughts. The next, a face full of water knocked me over, and I couldn’t stand.”
“Yeah, some kid on a jet ski got too close. She sprayed you with water. It was an accident. She didn’t know what she was doing.”
“Just great. Well, I hope she is okay,” she said as she made her way back a few feet to her beach chair.
Beach chairs covered by grass umbrellas lined the beach. She splurged and rented one, thinking they’d be perfect to relax in. Now, she just wanted to fall into one, and pray the anxiety currently holding her in its grip would fade away.
“That’s very gracious of you,” Charles said as he followed her.
Another Chance (Seven Days to Fall in Love #3) Page 3