Cruising

“No, but my feeling is he will. I mean, why wouldn’t he?”

Kim shrugged, then snapped her bra into place. “I don’t know. Men can be so fickle about what they want.” She could see him grinning. “Okay, women can be also. I shouldn’t judge a guy I barely know.”

She was primping her hair when her phone went off. Patrick looked at her, smiled and nodded. “Gotta be your boyfriend,” he said.

It WAS her “boyfriend.” Scott wanted to know if she’d had breakfast yet. “No, she said, “but we will be in the dining room after my dad showers. He told me about seeing you in the fitness room.”

“Yeah, we traded sets of dumbbell presses. But look, I was hoping we could eat alone, just the two of us. Is that okay?”

“Ah, hold on.” She put her cell down, then whispered, “Dad, he wants it to be a twosome, just me and him.”

Nodding, Patrick said, “No problem. I can understand why he wants to be alone with you. Go ahead, I’ll be fine.”

Kim didn’t think that Patrick was totally okay with it. Still, she said yes. “I’ll meet you there in about fifteen minutes.”

She felt conflicted. This vacation was to be just a father-daughter thing. They hadn’t even reached the islands and already, three was a crowd.

Patrick could read her mind. He hugged her and said, “Kimmy, don’t worry about me. We’ll have our time together. What happened last night won’t be our last time on this boat.”

She looked up at him. “Last night was wonderful. I sure hope it won’t be our last time.”

“It won’t be. Now go have fun.”

*****

Patrick met Kim at the dining room entrance. Then they walked up to the second level which contained smaller tables for couples. Kim wore her white pants, a blue blouse and sandals. Scott had on blue shorts and a sleeveless white “muscle shirt.”

Staring at his thick delts, she said, “My dad was impressed with those heavy dumbbells you lifted.”

“Well, your dad’s in pretty good shape himself for a middle-aged guy. He told me he’s a racquetball player.”

“He is. He’s pretty good, too. Good enough to have won trophies in tournaments. So where are your parents?”

“Taking a stroll around the deck. They like to eat later, around brunch time.”

After a pause to peruse their menus, Scott said, “So I hope I didn’t come on too strong last night. I mean, we had just met.”

Kim pursed her lips and smiled. “No, not at all. If you recall, I’m the one who requested another kiss.”

He nodded. “And I’m glad you did. That second kiss was all I could think about when I returned to my room. Did you and your dad do something together later?”

She felt that familiar chill shoot down her spine again. “Do something, like what?” she asked defensively.

“Oh, I don’t know. Take in a movie. Hang out at the piano bar. Am I getting too personal?”

She needed to change her tone in a hurry. “No, nothing but watch TV. And I thought a lot about you also, Scott. You’re a superb kisser.”

Just then, a waiter came to take their order. Both ordered hot cereal, fruit and juice. The conversation flowed easy enough. They talked more about their home life. Scott’s dad did something with the federal government, something too secretive for Geoff to talk much about. His mom taught middle school in the Wilmington area. Scott wandered into personal territory again by asking if Kim had a boyfriend. “Not at the moment,” she said, and then asked Scott about HIS love life.

“Donna and I broke up a few weeks ago,” he revealed “Believe it or not, you’re the first girl I’ve kissed since.”

“Bad breakup?”

“Well, no breakup is good, I suppose. Someone always gets hurt. We both did, even knowing it was for the best.”

Kim wanted to know what was “best” about it but thought it BEST not to probe. Was he on the rebound? No, she wouldn’t ask that either.

The conversation segued into what they might do today. Scott said he’d like to join Kim on the jogging track. He needed more aerobics in his fitness regimen, he said. The pool also sounded like a good idea. His parents planned to hit the pool also. So far, they couldn’t complain about the weather. They decided to let their food settle, then meet on the jogging track in a couple hours.

When they got up to leave, she saw Patrick enter the dining room. They went to the first level to greet him. She thought he looked so sexy in his jeans and pull-over, his dark hair slicked back, still damp from his shower. When Scott left, she kept Patrick company on the more private upper level. Kim let him in on her itinerary. Aware that he might be feeling like a third wheel, she invited him to join them on the jogging track and at the pool.

“I don’t know about jogging, but the pool sounds like a good idea. His parents will be there too?”

“Scott said they would.” He started to laugh. “What’s so funny?”

“Well, you know how I sometimes get horny at pools, especially when you’re there. Somehow, I’ve got to keep my thing from popping up.”

Kim giggled, thinking how Scott’s parents might react if they saw it. “No problem. Just turn over on your stomach, like you do at our neighbor’s pool.”

“I’ll try. But no promises.”

*****

Scott could hoist heavy dumbbells, but he had a way to go before he could keep up with someone who jogged regularly. Kim went easy on him, keeping a pace that he could handle. She was impressed that he felt secure enough in his manhood to laugh about it.

Later, they shared the pool deck with their parents, along with a throng of others, relaxing on their blue canvas loungers. Angela Thatcher, Scott’s mom, wore a white one-piece. Looked damn nice in it, too. Per Kim’s impression, this was a woman who took care of herself. Geoff looked to be no slouch either when it came to his appearance. His physique lacked the bulging muscles of his son, but it was obvious from his slim, athletic physique that he exercised regularly.

Kim, wearing a yellow bikini, leaned over and whispered in Patrick’s ear. “Is everything under control?”

Knowing what she meant, he threw his head back and laughed. “Yeah, so far. Angela looks great for her age. Now, if only I could meet someone like that on this cruise.”

“Give it time, you might,” Kim said, rubbing more sunscreen onto her legs.

“You look so hot doing that,” he said. “If we were alone, I’d be doing it for you.”

Kim nodded, looking up to see if anyone might have overheard their whispered conversation. Thinking it didn’t appear so, she said, “If we were alone, I’d insist that you do more than that.”

The day wore on, a day of reading, listening to music through earbuds and dips in the pool, long enough for doing laps when not so crowded. Scott and Kim made dinner plans, just the two of them. She had a feeling that their “date” would involve more than just a meal together. She still wasn’t sure what she’d do if Scott asked her back to his room. ‘Things can get so complicated so fast,’ she thought.

Meanwhile, Patrick’s wandering eye caught sight of a gal lounging across the other side of the pool. She was alone and looked to be around his age. He asked Kim, “What do you think?”

“Go for it, dad. What do you have to lose?”

“Yeah, go for it, Mr. Kellerman,” Scott said, amused at the goings on.

Patrick kept looking. She was wearing a white bikini, reading a book that she had propped up against a bent leg, sunglasses atop her head. Occasionally, she’d stop to look around, then return to her book. She couldn’t really be alone, could she, a cute gal like that alone on a huge cruise ship? If she was, maybe she wanted to remain that way.

He kept looking long enough to see her bookmark her place, take off her sunglasses, and then slide into the pool. Swimming underwater to the other side, she then emerged and shook the water from her short blond hair. She stayed in the water, arms resting atop the pool deck just feet from where Patrick and company were lounging.

Kim bumped him on the shoulder, then whispered, “Okay, dad, here’s your chance.”

He chuckled, then said to the blond, “I noticed you reading over there. Any good?”

She wiped water from her eyes and smiled. “It’s called The Beach Trap. Very good. One of those books I can’t put down.”

He nodded. “What’s it about?”

“Two sisters…well, half-sisters who were close and then became bitter enemies after a secret is revealed. I’ll say no more in case you’d like to give it a try.”

“Is there romance?” Kim asked.

“Yes, the blond answered. “But it’s more about the relationship between the half-sisters.”

Where to go with this next, Patrick wondered, among other things. “Does your traveling companion read also?”

“Companions, you mean. Yes, both my sister and her husband read.”

“So, another third wheel?”

“Excuse me?”

“My daughter and I are on this cruise together. Then she met this guy (he pointed at Scott), leaving me the third wheel. I’m Patrick, by the way.”

Kim, then Scott and his parents introduced themselves.

“Hmm, interesting. Well, I’m Madeline. Where y’all from?”

“Maryland, and from that accent,” Patrick said, “I’d say you’re from the South. Texas maybe?”