10
Ten
“Quinn … .”
Rowan felt as if she was caught in a maelstrom, things spinning out of control as she fought to keep the ship upright. She expected Daphne to continue being a pain – that’s the way she rolled, after all – but Quinn’s reaction was completely out of the blue.
“Oh, what? You didn’t want me to tell him that he wasn’t your boyfriend?” Daphne made an exaggerated face. “Sorry to ruin your night.”
She didn’t sound sorry at all. Even worse, she slurred her words here and there and Rowan realized she was well on her way to being falling-down drunk. “You didn’t ruin my night,” Rowan said, pushing herself to a standing position. “You’re doing a great job of embarrassing yourself, though.”
“I’m hardly embarrassed.” Daphne waved off Rowan’s insult as if it was nothing more than a pesky fly attacking her lunch. “You’re the one who should be embarrassed. You hurt this poor boy’s feelings, crushed his heart.”
Daphne shifted closer to Quinn. “I can make you feel better if you want.”
Quinn heaved out a sigh, frustration overwhelming him. The expression on Rowan’s face was almost painful. He wasn’t angry with her. He had no right to be. That didn’t mean her easy dismissal of their relationship wasn’t hurtful. He had no intention of discussing that in front of an audience, though.
“Okay, well … .” Quinn shoved out his chair and stood, shaking his head as he tried to get a handle on things. “Rowan, I’m going to walk Ms. DuBois back to her room. She’s clearly not fit for public interaction this evening.”
Rowan opened her mouth to argue and then snapped it shut. “Okay. What about dinner?”
“I’ll meet you on the deck in a little bit. We can eat up there.”
“Meet her on deck?” Daphne dramatically rolled her eyes. “Are you kidding me?”
“No, I’m pretty far from a joking mood right now.” Quinn deftly grabbed Daphne’s elbow and pointed her toward the door. “Walk that way.”
“You’re not the boss of me.” Daphne attempted to jerk back her arm, but she was so drunk she almost toppled over. “I’m here to eat dinner.”
“I’ll have a meal sent to your room so you can sober up,” Quinn informed her. “It’s within my purview to decide when guests are too drunk to be left to their own devices. You’ve definitely crossed that line.”
“I’m not drunk!” Daphne spat the words, spraying Quinn’s face with saliva. He disgustedly wiped his face but otherwise remained calm. “I’m eating with my executive team. You can’t stop me.”
“It’s okay, Daphne,” Penny offered, flapping her hands in front of her waist as she hopped from one foot to the other. “We can have breakfast tomorrow morning to make up for tonight.”
“I don’t want to eat breakfast with you!” Daphne said the word “you” as if she swallowed a bug at the same time and was struggling to hold it together so she didn’t vomit. “I’m in charge here. Me!” She thumped her chest for emphasis. “I don’t have to do anything that this guy says.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.” Quinn shoved Daphne toward the door, his jaw set and grim. He spared a glance for Rowan as he moved past her, his eyes dark and emotive. “I’ll meet you on the deck as soon as I can. Get us a private table if it’s possible.”
“I … okay.” Rowan nodded. “I’m sorry for all of this.”
“You didn’t do anything you need to apologize for.” Quinn managed to muster a smile for her benefit, but it was weak. He growled as he fought Daphne’s efforts to remain in the dining room, ultimately forcing her to march past a bevy of curious onlookers as she gritted out a litany of complaints.
“I’m sorry about this,” Penny supplied once she was alone with Rowan. “She’s never like this.”
Rowan tilted her head to the side as she looked the young woman up and down. She hadn’t been able to spend much time with her – despite her best efforts to the contrary – and she figured Quinn might be busy for an extended period of time so she gestured to his empty chair. “Why don’t you sit for a minute.”
Penny widened her eyes, surprised. “I thought you were leaving.”
“I think Quinn is going to be a few minutes with Ms. DuBois. I have time.”
“I … well … okay.” Penny dutifully sat. She was clearly used to being ordered around and didn’t have a lot of fight within her. That was one of the things Rowan wanted to talk about.
“How long have you worked for Ms. DuBois?”
“This is my third year,” Penny answered. “I honestly want to apologize again. She never gets like this.”
Rowan arched a dubious eyebrow. “I very much doubt that, so there’s no reason to lie.”
Penny balked. “I’m not lying. She’s a great woman.”
Rowan decided to take a direct approach, and it wasn’t simply so she could maintain proper time management. “You know these women talk a lot when they’re broken up into smaller groups, right?”
Penny swallowed hard. “I … what do they say?”
“No one likes Ms. DuBois. In fact, I believe the word ‘hate’ is bandied about quite often. They respect her and want to be like her, but they don’t enjoy her attitude or company.”
“That’s just jealousy,” Penny sniffed. “Mrs. DuBois is a great woman. Great women inspire jealousy. She told me that on the day she hired me. I realized it was true pretty quickly.”
“Yes, well, I think a lot of women use the word ‘jealousy’ to cover a myriad of sins,” Rowan argued. “I don’t really care. We see a new group of people on this ship every week. It is what it is. I’m worried about you, though.”
“Me?” Penny was dumbfounded. “Why are you worried about me?”
“Because you’re stuck in a very unsavory position. You work for a woman you clearly hate – and she’s not overly fond of you either, quite frankly. She tries to keep you down because she wants you to elevate her. It’s standard practice in offices with a lot of female workers. Men are overtly aggressive when it comes to competition. Women? Not so much.”
“I don’t believe that.” Penny smoothed the front of her peasant blouse. “You don’t know Daphne. From your perspective, well, I’m sure she’s been a pain. She’s not easy to get along with but that’s only because she likes things a specific way. That’s not necessarily a bad thing.”
“It’s not,” Rowan conceded. “There are different ways to get your point across, though. Ms. DuBois always seems to choose the hardest way possible.”
“You simply don’t understand her.”
“No, I guess I don’t.” Rowan pressed her lips together and studied Penny. The woman was loyal. There was no way she would speak ill about her boss, at least in front of someone she barely knew. “You need to be careful. If someone did attack your boss on the deck last night, they could still be out there.”
Penny knit her eyebrows, the shift in the conversation clearly taking her by surprise. “Why would anyone want to hurt me?”
That was a good question, and Rowan didn’t have an acceptable answer. “I’m not saying anyone wants to hurt you,” she clarified. “I’m merely saying that you need to be careful because your boss believes someone wants to hurt her.”
“Believes?” Penny was smart and put things together fairly quickly. “You’re not sure if anyone really attacked her, are you?”
Rowan shrugged. “I’m not in charge of security. You’ll have to take that up with Mr. Davenport.”
“He seems to have his hands full.”
“Yes, well, it’s been a long day for him.” Rowan’s smile was rueful. “Just be careful and walk back to your room with a group of other guests. You’ll be perfectly safe if you do that.”
“Okay, well, thank you.”
ROWAN’S earlier excitement about spending time with Quinn had lapsed into weariness by the time she hit the main deck. She picked a table at the tiki bar, ordered burgers and fries in to-go containers, and sipped a chocolate m
artini as she waited for Quinn to arrive. She hoped he wouldn’t be caught up overly long with Daphne, but the woman was obviously a belligerent drunk so there was no way to tell.
The evening air was humid and Rowan played with the condensation ring from her glass as she waited, expectantly lifting her head when a shadow obliterated the moon. Instead of finding Quinn, though, another familiar face floated into view.
“I … .” Rowan searched her memory so she could place the man’s face. When she finally did, she was more confused than when she started. “You’re the guy from the shop on the mainland, the guy who liked my dress when I was shopping and wanted to take us out for drinks.”
“You have a good memory.” The man beamed as he sat across from her without invitation, extending his hand. “I’m Jamie Dalton. It’s nice to officially meet you.”
“Rowan Gray.” Rowan shook the proffered hand, unsettled. “You’re on this cruise? I … why?”
Jamie arched an eyebrow, the question catching him off guard. “Is there a reason I shouldn’t be on this cruise?”
“It’s mostly cosmetic saleswomen. Do you work for Cara G Cosmetics?”
“Not last time I checked.” Jamie laughed dryly. “I’m just here with my old college roommate. We decided to go on a cruise because we thought it would be a good way to meet women.”
He was cheeky – almost charming, in fact – and Rowan couldn’t help but smile. “You picked the right cruise. This ship is full of women … and they’re all ready to party.”
Jamie chuckled, genuinely amused. “That was an accident. We’re not complaining, though. I didn’t realize you worked for the Bounding Storm until we had drinks with Sally that night. I would’ve pressed you harder to join us had I known.”
Rowan realized it had been days since she talked to her friend. She’d almost forgotten about the woman’s “date” with the two strangers. She hadn’t bothered to ask how things went, which made her feel guilty. “Oh, well, I still would’ve begged off. Still … did you check in through normal means? I take photographs of all the new guests on checkin day and I think I would’ve remembered seeing you.”
“Yes, well, we saw that line when we got our room assignments and weren’t really interested in photographs,” Jamie admitted. “I think that’s a chick thing … no offense.”
That made sense. Rowan didn’t blame them for forgoing photographs. She remembered the line from checkin and it was obscene thanks to the special Cara G Cosmetics display. “That’s okay. I would’ve known you were here days ago if you had waited in line, though.”
“If it’s any consolation, now I wish I would’ve put up with the line,” Jamie teased, his eyes twinkling. “Oh, look, your drink is empty. What are you having? I’ll buy you another.”
“Thank you but … .” Rowan wasn’t in the mood for another drink. If she added more alcohol to the mix she would pass out in ten minutes flat. She didn’t get a chance to convey that, though, because Quinn picked that moment to find her on the deck. He didn’t look happy when he realized she wasn’t alone.
“Sorry to interrupt,” he grumbled.
“You’re not interrupting,” Rowan offered hurriedly. “This is Jamie Dalton. I met him on the mainland the day I was shopping for my new dress for our date. He and his friend – I don’t think I ever caught his name – are staying on the ship. They went out with Sally that night.”
Rowan talked so fast she almost stumbled over her words, but she was keen to make sure Quinn was aware that nothing untoward was going on. For his part, the security head looked amused rather than annoyed.
“You don’t have to explain yourself,” Quinn supplied after a beat. “I’m sorry our dinner got screwed up, by the way. I had quite different plans for our night.”
“How is Daphne?”
“Out. I made her drink a gallon of water and then told her to go to bed. She kept trying to get me to join her – I swear she has invisible arms that come out when she’s feeling horny or something – but she passed out fairly quickly.”
Rowan chuckled, amused. “That’s okay. I talked to Penny a bit before coming up here. I actually ordered us burgers and fries in to-go containers because … well … I thought we could take them back to my room and eat there.”
Quinn’s eyes brightened at the suggestion as Jamie shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “That’s the best offer I’ve had all day.”
“And I can see I’m in the way here.” Jamie flashed an apologetic smile as he got to his feet. “It was nice to see you again, Rowan Gray. I’ll let you get back to your night.”
“Have a good time,” Rowan called to his back. “Be careful on your woman hunt. You might get more than you bargained for on this particular cruise.”
“That’s what I’m hoping for.”
Quinn watched the man go for a moment before shifting his eyes to Rowan. “If you’d rather go with him … .”
The corners of Rowan’s mouth shifted down. “Are you really going to go there?”
Quinn tilted his head to the side, considering. “No,” he answered after a beat. “I’m too tired to go there.”
“That’s why I got food to-go … and here it comes.”
Quinn accepted the two containers from the waitress and extended his hand to Rowan. “Let’s get out of here before we’re interrupted again.”
“That sounds like a plan.”
ROWAN AND QUINN inhaled their dinner, offering minor bouts of conversation as they sat at the small dinette table in Rowan’s room. The meal was comfortable, but the specter of heavy conversation hung heavy and obliterated the ambiance.
Once he was finished, Quinn wiped the corners of his mouth and gave Rowan an unreadable look. “I know we need to talk about all of this – we didn’t get to compare notes properly before Daphne showed up – but I don’t suppose we could table the conversation until tomorrow morning, could we?”
Rowan was surprised by the suggestion. She was also secretly relieved. “I can live with that. I’m exhausted.”
“Me, too.” Quinn gathered the empty food containers and dumped them in the trash bin before stripping out of his shirt and shorts. Rowan widened her eyes as she watched him crawl into her bed.
“What are you doing?” The question came out shriller than Rowan expected.
“I’m sleeping,” Quinn replied. “So are you.” He patted the empty spot beside him. “I promise I’m too tired to make a move. I’ll give you ample notice before that happens so there won’t be any misunderstandings.”
Despite the surreal situation, Rowan belted out a laugh. “That sounds fair.” She hit the lights right away, only stripping out of her clothes and tugging on an over-sized T-shirt when she was sure Quinn couldn’t see anything. She rolled into the bed next to him, snuggling under the covers as he pressed his chest against her back and spooned up behind her. “Um … goodnight.”
Quinn kissed the tender spot behind her ear. “Goodnight. I promise we’ll talk in the morning. I’m just … so tired.”
Rowan patted the hand resting at her waist. “I’m tired, too. I was a little worried we were going to have a fight, if you want to know the truth, but I’m glad we’re not.”
“Oh, I didn’t say we weren’t going to fight,” Quinn whispered. “We’re simply going to sleep first.”
Rowan’s heart rolled. “Oh.”
Quinn chuckled. “I wouldn’t worry. I’m doubtful it will be a big fight.”
Rowan brightened. “Oh, well, in that case … thank you for the flower and I’ll see you in the morning.”
Quinn was already well past the point of return and he barely registered Rowan’s words. “Morning. See you in the morning.”
And with that, they both slipped into dreamland.
11
Eleven
Quinn woke first, taking the opportunity to quietly study Rowan as she slept. Her face was peaceful, the weariness that threatened both of them the night before seemingly beaten back. He rested his head in the hollow
between her head and shoulders and sighed, content to remain exactly how he was until she woke naturally.
“You sound as if your mind is working a million miles a minute,” Rowan offered, her voice sleepy. “I can hear something grinding in there.”
Quinn chuckled as he tugged her tighter against his chest. “I was trying to be quiet.”
“You have a certain presence that is stronger than words.” Rowan stretched as she shifted to face him. “You look better than you did, though.”
“You, too.”
“I was worried you might fall down because you were so exhausted.”
“We didn’t get a lot of sleep the night before last and it was a long day,” Quinn noted. “I feel much better now.”
“That’s because we slept for ten hours.” Rowan checked the clock on her nightstand to confirm her suspicion. “Yup. Ten hours. I haven’t gotten that much sleep since I was in college and we drank until four in the morning.”
“I’m not sure I’ve gotten that much sleep since I was a teenager,” Quinn admitted, gently running his fingers over Rowan’s temple so he could move a stray hank of hair behind her ear. “I didn’t go to college so I’m unfamiliar with college partying habits. I was a good boy.”
Rowan snorted, amused. “I’ve heard stories about basic training, so don’t run that on me. I interviewed quite a few national guardsmen in my day because the Selfridge Air National Guard Base was local.”
“Well, we might’ve done a little partying during basic training,” Quinn conceded, smirking. “Only on the weekends and after a long week of training, though.”
“I guess that’s fair.” Rowan exhaled heavily as she traced her fingers lightly over Quinn’s bare chest. “How are you feeling otherwise? I mean, how do you feel about Daphne now that you’ve been able to get some rest?”
Quinn narrowed his eyes, agitation returning. “Are you asking if I have feelings for her?”
“No,” Rowan answered hurriedly, shaking her head. “I was wondering if you were worried about forcing her into her room last night. I get the feeling she’s big on complaining. I don’t want you to get in trouble because of it.”
Murky Seas (A Rowan Gray Mystery Book 2) Page 9