Meg sputtered. “Don’t you dare hang up on me! You’re on a cell phone. Carry me with you.”
Shit, she had Anne there. “I can’t take you with me and tell you what you want to know. There are children on this cruise. Probably in the dining room too.”
“So, a quick recap,” Meg put in briskly. “You did hook up with an all-nighter hottie sexfest, but you don’t want to tell me about it. Am I correctly reading between those lines?”
“Um…well…yeah.” Wow, that was eloquent. Anne cringed at her own banality, heat rushing up her cheeks.
“Oh my God. I can practically hear you blushing. Anne Elizabeth Kirby is blushing.”
She heard Finn speak in the background. “You can hear a blush? Women and their psychic powers are weird. And so are wedding favors.”
“Oh, hush, and keep tying ribbons around the bubble containers. I don’t want people throwing bird seed at me and you can’t do rice anymore because it kills birds.” The phone rustled. “Okay, I’m back, Anne. Who is he? What does he do for a living? Why don’t you want to talk about it? Was it bad?”
Finn made an exclamation of dismay that echoed through the connection. “Gah! I’m going for a run. I’m very sure I don’t want this information.”
Anne heard Finn pop a loud kiss on Meg’s cheek.
“Bye, honey.” Meg’s voice went all soft and loving, and Anne felt a kick of jealousy. She pushed it away, as usual. The wedding with all three of her besties cooing and dancing with their men was going to make moments like this stretch into a day-long spiral of envy. It was enough to make her reconsider her no-dates-at-weddings policy. Then again, there were no men back in Half Moon Bay she’d want to take with her. Gabe’s face flashed before her eyes and she pushed that away too. No. Even if she was insane enough to want to take their affair home with her, he was working on the ship all summer. He’d be off on another cruise the day after she left.
“Anne!” Meg yanked her back to the present. “I need details, woman. Quit holding out on me.”
“Uh…Gabe Warren. Outdoor guide for the cruise line. No, it wasn’t bad.” It was the best sex of her life, but confessing that felt like a really stupid idea. There was no way to take back those words when she put the idea out there. Keep it to herself and it might go away.
Yeah, that sounded pathetic and illogical even in her own head, but she went with it anyway.
“Wait.” Meg turned dubious. “It was good but you don’t want to talk about it. You.”
Jesus, it wasn’t like she told her friends every move she made in bed. She wasn’t closemouthed about it, but she didn’t blab all the dirty details. Protesting would just make Meg more suspicious, so Anne went on the offensive instead. “Who are you and what have you done with shy Meg?”
Her friend fired back, “Shy Meg got a sex life, mostly because you strong-armed me into that trip to Vegas where I hooked up with Finn. You created a monster and now you have to live with the consequences.”
And Meg scored another point in this match. Anne shifted from foot to foot, hunching her shoulders. “It was nice. Really, really mind-blowingly awesome.”
“Ooooooh.”
Enough already. “Stop that.”
Jogging out of her cabin and down the hall meant Anne could make her way to the dining room as quickly as possible. But the extra speed didn’t save her from her friend’s maniacal giggling.
“It was good enough to make you blush, Anne. You! That must be a whole new level of orgasmic.”
It had been, but she wasn’t ready to tell anyone that just yet. Not even her best friends. Maybe especially not her best friends—and that was so out of character, she felt like she was having an out of body experience. No wonder Meg was confused. Anne managed a light tone. “I’m almost to breakfast, hon. I really should go.”
“Uh huh. I see what you just did there. This topic is not finished. Gabe Warren must be something else, whether you want to admit it or not. As all of your friends can tell you, it’s just fine to bring your vacation romance home with you if it’s worth keeping.”
“Please.” Anne snorted as derisively as she could. “He’s a bum—though a very man candy-ish one—who couldn’t keep the honest-to-God employment he had before he turned into a professional vagabond. Does this sound familiar in a drama llama way?”
That shut Meg up. At least for a moment. “I don’t think you’d hook up with someone as irresponsible and flaky as your mother, not even for a fling. There’s more to this than you’re saying, because it’s simply not like you to be so reticent.” She probed with all the shrewdness of a friend who knew Anne too well. “What’s the real problem here? Is it that he has the kind of outdoorsman lifestyle you’d kill for if it didn’t make you irresponsible and flaky like the drama llama?”
Yes. It felt as if she’d been sucker-punched. All the air rushed out of Anne’s lungs and she had to lean against the nearest wall to stay upright. “I do not want to be a flake like my mother. That was out of line, Meg. I can’t even believe you’d say that to me. I just…I need to go now. Breakfast.”
“Wait, Anne, I—”
And then, for the first time in her life, she hung up on her best friend.
The cell started ringing immediately, but she turned it off and walked into the dining room. Though the staff was already cleaning up, she managed to snag a paper cup of coffee and a remaining bagel that she quickly slathered with some cream cheese. Then she slipped out onto the deck, plopped on a lounger, and picked at her food, trying not to run the last part of her conversation with Meg through her head on an endless loop. She failed pretty miserably.
So she was pathetically grateful when Bridget hobbled up and plopped onto the empty lounger beside her.
The other woman sighed as she propped her bulky cast on the cushions and laid her crutches on the floor beside her. “I hear you stopped by to visit me yesterday. I don’t remember any of it.”
“You were pretty looped on painkillers.” And not incredibly coherent, so Anne wasn’t the least bit surprised.
“Still am, just a slightly lower dose.” Bridget grinned cheekily, but her expression slid into sly in a split-second. “I also hear my boys threw a monkey wrench in your date night with Camper Guru.”
Anne slurped her coffee, exuding as much innocence as she could. “Who said anything about dating?”
“I’m trying to be PC.” The mother of three folded her hands behind her head and managed a far more credible leer than Gabe’s roommate.
“PC was never my best skill.” Anne shrugged and changed the subject. Who knew she’d ever be so eager not to talk about something taboo? “How’s the leg?”
“What leg? I mentioned the awesome painkillers, right? I’m feeling very nice and floaty today.”
“Nice.” Anne chomped on her bagel. She still wasn’t particularly hungry, but if her mouth was full, she couldn’t be expected to talk.
Not to be deterred, Bridget took advantage of Anne eating to go right back to her favorite topic. “So, you’re shagging Gabe.”
Deciding it was better not beat around the bush—also not her best skill—she met the other woman’s gaze squarely. “Yeah, why?”
“Look, I’m a happily married lady.” She blushed. “But allow me a moment to live vicariously. Mark is the best of the best, and I adore him, but he will never reach Gabe’s hotness level.”
“Yes, he is every bit as good as he looks. Better, actually,” Anne replied, sotto voce. “Any other questions?”
Bridget looked disgruntled. “Millions, none of which I’ll ask out loud.”
“Good girl. Now let me finish my coffee.” Anne didn’t want to answer questions, because then she might have to admit aloud how truly mind-blowing the experience had been.
She might also have to admit that Meg was right. Anne would love to stay on this outdoorsy, adrenaline-la
den sexfest of a cruise forever.
Even having left corporate America behind, Gabe couldn’t escape meetings. A sad but simple truth. He’d been with the cruise line long enough that he was the senior guide, so he had to relay information to the other guides—most of whom were leading various activities this morning. The captain did a debrief of the accident with Bridget, reviewed their itinerary for the day, made a few announcements. Mostly housekeeping updates, nothing too big.
Which was a very good thing, since Gabe’s mind wasn’t as on task as it probably should have been.
First, because he was bone-tired. Yesterday had been long and fraught with stress, then he hadn’t slept more than an hour total the night before. Not that he had any complaints about that part, but his eyes felt gritty and he was smothering a yawn every thirty seconds.
Oliver came up after the meeting, offering a cup of coffee. “Long night?”
“About the same number of hours as always,” Gabe answered evenly, but he accepted the liquid ambrosia anyway. He was most definitely going to need it.
Everyone else filed out of the room, getting back to work, but Gabe wasn’t on duty until the bird watching trip that afternoon, so he propped his feet on the empty seat in front of him.
Oliver turned a chair around and mounted it. He grunted, “Lucky bastard. You hooked up with the hot redhead.”
“I’m not telling you anything,” Gabe returned mildly, though if he were honest, he’d admit he felt like a lucky bastard.
Sure, he’d been a bit disappointed that Anne judged his career choices with the same harshness he’d gotten from former coworkers. He was surprised by how much it stung. He’d always firmly believed that those who minded didn’t matter and those who mattered didn’t mind. The ache in his chest made that a lie for the first time in five years. He wasn’t certain what to make of it, but since Anne would only be part of his life for another two weeks or so, his unexpected and unwarranted feelings didn’t matter much. It couldn’t matter much, could it?
So, he was just going to relax and enjoy this for as long as he could. Anne was as amazing in bed as she was out of it. She was fun, uninhibited, and he’d done his level best to match her every second of the night. This was about having a good time, and he’d made sure they both had a damn good time.
Lucky bastard, indeed.
“You suck.” Oliver shook his head. “You got the only gorgeous, single woman on this cruise.”
Gabe made a scornful noise. “It’s not like you were making any moves toward her.”
“Only because you scooped her up the second she stepped on board.” The captain stabbed his finger at Gabe’s chest, though his gaze shone with wry humor.
“I can’t help if my parents dragged her over and introduced her.”
“Your mommy had to fix you up.” Oliver tsked. “That’s shameful.”
Gabe shook his head, giving his friend a pitying look. “Your jealousy is so sad to see.”
“Fuck you, man.” But Oliver couldn’t keep up the pretense and laughed.
“Thanks, I don’t swing that way, but your offer is touching.” Rising, Gabe slapped his buddy’s shoulder while Oliver tried to duck out of the way. Gabe grinned. “Speaking of my parents, I need to meet them in a few minutes.”
“If they find another hot chick, have them send her my way.”
“I’ll be sure to pass the request along.” Gabe set his empty cup on a tray for the housekeeping staff to pick up.
“Later.” Oliver scratched a thumb over his bearded cheek and yawned.
That just set Gabe off and he yawned so hugely his jaw popped. He shook his head, left, and loped up the stairs to the forward deck. His father was playing ping-pong against Anne while his mother and Bridget served as sarcasm-infused cheerleaders.
Gabe dropped a kiss on Mom’s cheek, patted Bridget’s shoulder and flopped onto a free lounger. “Who’s winning?”
“Your father, but Anne’s not really on her game this morning.” Mom tapped her chin.
Bridget added casually, “Maybe she didn’t sleep well. That’ll throw a girl off her stride.”
Yeah, as if he was stupid enough to comment on that one. Bridget’s look was just a little too knowing for his comfort. Then again, so was his mom’s. Awkward. He went with a neutral, “Mmm.”
Both women gave him the kind of sideways glance that only mothers could pull off to make their children squirm. Oooookay. Time to extract himself from this weirdness. He hopped out of his chair. “Hey, Dad. Take a break and let me give her some real competition.”
His dad huffed. “Competition? I’m winning, I’ll have you know.”
“By one game! And it was because the boat rocked too hard during the first set.” Anne protested from her side of the table. “I want a rematch.”
Dad swung his paddle in an arc. “Didn’t mess with my balance, did it? Just admit I’m better.”
“Never!” Anne hollered, laughter in her voice.
“A remat—”
“Save me from Mom. She’s asking questions,” Gabe whispered.
Looking between Gabe, Anne and Peggy, Vince arched his eyebrows. “You know it’s a temporary reprieve only. Your mother is a rabid pitbull with lockjaw when she sets her mind to something.”
“And we love her for it.” Gabe sighed.
Vince blinked. “Do we?”
“Dad.”
“Kidding!” His father grinned.
“Give me that.” Gabe jerked the ping-pong paddle from his father’s hand. “Go sit in time out and think about how much you adore your wife.”
“I love her so much I’ll rev her up and turn her loose on you at lunch. You’ll never survive.” His father smirked and went over to join Bridget and Peggy.
But Gabe ignored him because he was facing Anne for the first time since he’d left her bed that morning. She did look a little drawn and tired, slight circles under her golden eyes. She offered him a challenging smile. “You’re going down, Warren.”
He couldn’t help it. His gaze dropped to her waist and would have gone lower if his view weren’t blocked by the table. He’d certainly gone down the day before. And she’d liked it.
Catching his less than subtle change in focus, she laughed softly. “Pervert.”
“Proudly, yes.” He stroked his clean-shaven jaw. “No red marks today?”
“Nope.” She glanced over to see if their audience was watching them. Apparently not, thank God.
“Excellent.”
She swung her paddle experimentally. “You know what this thing might be good for? I never did get a chance last night.”
“I had protection with me.” Like her, he wasn’t necessarily interested in the Fifty Shades stuff, but if she changed her mind, he couldn’t say he wouldn’t be willing to give it a try.
“Such a good boy,” she purred.
“If what you told me last night means anything, I’m a very good boy.”
“Hours ago.” She flicked dismissive fingers. “It’s so hard to remember.”
“I’d be happy to remind you, if you’d like.” He twirled his paddle between his fingers. “Best three out of four? No rematches. Winner gets to be on top tonight.”
He smiled at her and she smiled back. He had no idea which of them had the more wicked expression, but he doubted anyone looking thought this was an innocent exchange. She hefted the ping-pong ball and swatted it at him.
Let the games begin.
Chapter Six
Frigid wind kissed Anne’s cheeks as she faced a massive wall of ice that reached the height of a four-story building. Excitement pumped through her veins, fizzing like champagne. This was one of the reasons she’d picked this cruise company, because halfway through the trip, they offered an ice-climbing expedition. And here she was. A waterfall had frozen in place, tumbling over the side o
f a cliff in a beautiful white-blue curtain. And she was going to climb it and look down from the top of that mountain for a view that would, without a doubt, be utterly breathtaking.
She couldn’t wait.
They’d scale the icy falls, hike for a few hours across the plateau at the top and then rappel down the far side, meeting up with the ship at the end of the day.
It was going to be epic. Anne was ready to break into song and dance, she was so thrilled. This was the kind of thing she lived for.
Remembering what Meg had said made her smile dim a little. Yes, she loved her adventures. It didn’t mean she wanted to give up her job and security to do this full-time. There was no future in this lifestyle. What happened when she turned fifty or sixty or seventy? Health failed eventually. This wasn’t the kind of thing one did forever. Only someone as impractical as her mom would think so. In fact, Dinah’s make up consulting was far more reasonable as a job than an outdoor guide.
There was a depressing thought.
“Hey, Anne. Is this right?” Bridget’s oldest son walked up, fiddling with his harness.
Gabe stood at the bottom of the ice, working with their other guide, who was climbing to the top to set the belay anchor for the rest of them.
“You have this buckle wrong.” She adjusted the offending clasp for the kid, and then checked him over to make sure everything else was secured correctly. Several of the other less experienced climbers came over to ask her for help, including an older teen girl that Bridget’s boy was drooling over.
The two wandered off talking, though the girl didn’t seem to notice the boy was hanging on her every word.
Gabe joined Anne, bumping her shoulder with his. “Nice work. Thanks for the assist.”
“Of course. I’m happy to lend a hand.” It honestly hadn’t occurred to her not to help. She was a teacher and she had many climbing hours under her belt—combine those two and she was unlikely to keep her opinion to herself. Luckily, everyone seemed to appreciate her pitching in.
Tilting his head back, Gabe squinted at the cliff. “Should be heading up in a minute.”
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