Hearts Ahoy

by Stephanie Taylor

  In response, the woman glanced at her computer screen delicately. “That would be somewhat alarming,” she said with care. Her hair was swept off her forehead and knotted loosely in a bun pinned back with an orchid on a clip. Her skin was tanned and smooth, and she looked back at Julia with a kind smile. “It’s entirely possible that he would have disembarked here on Maui, but he would have had to let us know that he was doing so.”

  Julia shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “Right. Of course. Anyhow, his name is Martin Estrada.”

  The woman looked pensive for a moment. “Technically I shouldn’t be giving information to someone who isn’t traveling with the person in question,” she said quietly, casting her eyes about as if there might be hidden spies in her tiny office. “But if you told me you two were together, then how would I know anything different?”

  Julia felt a wave of gratitude. “We’re definitely together,” she said, not feeling as if she were stretching the truth too far. After all, they’d been together the past two nights.

  “Then let’s see if we can find out anything about Mr. Estrada,” the woman said, tapping at her keyboard and squinting as she scrolled through the information in front of her. “Mmhmm. Okay,” she said, nodding. She looked back at Julia and folded her hands together on the desk. “So, Mr. Estrada has officially disembarked. He also left a message for someone named Julia.”

  “That’s me!” Julia said, pressing both hands to her chest eagerly. The relief spilled out of her like a waterfall. “I’m Julia.”

  The woman gave her a sympathetic smile. “The message is being held at the concierge desk on the second floor. He must have left it just as he was about to disembark.”

  “Oh, thank god,” Julia said. Her heart beat jaggedly in her chest. Surely this whole thing could be explained away with whatever Martin had to say. “So just head down to the second floor?”

  “Yes, ma’am. The concierge office is located in the exact same spot on every floor.”

  “Thank you so much,” Julia said, pulling the door open hurriedly. “I mean it. Thank you.”

  “You are most welcome,” the woman said, smiling again. “And Julia?” she ventured hesitantly. Julia stopped and stood in the doorway, waiting to hear what she had to say. “No matter what the letter says, you should get off the boat and enjoy Maui. After today, we’re stuck on the boat for five days while we sail back to Los Angeles.”

  The weight of these next days on the ship without Martin hit Julia like a bucket of cold water in the face. “You’re right,” she said, considering this. “Thank you, I’ll definitely get off the boat today.”

  With a final tap on the glass door for luck, Julia rushed over to the staircase and hurried down the flights of stairs, not trusting the elevator to move quickly enough.

  The second floor concierge was a man in a white button up shirt with a sheen of sweat on his forehead, and he barely gave her more than a cursory glance as he slid the envelope across the desk to her.

  Julia stared at it. On the front, in what she assumed was Martin’s handwriting because she’d never actually seen it, he’d scrawled Julia Delmonico in blue ink.

  “Thank you,” Julia said, slipping the envelope into her purse. She’d thought that reading it would be the first thing she’d do, but now that she had some sort of an explanation for Martin’s disappearance in her hands, what she wanted more than anything was a cup of coffee and to hear her daughter’s voice.

  Once she’d stepped off the trolley in the heart of Lahaina, Julia found a small coffee shop that looked like a tiki bar. It was totally open to the ocean, with a grass hut roof that swayed in the breeze.

  “I’ll have a large Americano with extra coconut milk, please,” she said to a pretty, petite girl with sun bleached hair and matching eyebrows. She was barefoot and had a tattoo of a rainbow on one bicep. “Thanks.” Julia took her drink and stuffed a few dollars into the Mason jar that held tips for the baristas.

  At a small table that was halfway covered by the grass roof and halfway in the warm sand, Julia sat, sipping her coffee and watching the children and seagulls play in the sun. There had to be an explanation for why Martin was gone, but now she was almost afraid to read it. Instead, she took out her phone and dialed Christina.

  “Oh, look at you!” her daughter said, leaning in to the phone screen. “Is that the beach? I bet you’re calling to tell me that the ship’s captain married you and that guy, and you’re never coming home, right?”

  “Not exactly,” Julia said as she sipped her coffee. “I will definitely be coming home.”

  “But you did get married, right? Or at least have a passionate fling with a stranger?” Christina asked casually, as if it were the last thing in the world her mother might do.

  “Christina Elizabeth Delmonico,” Julia said in her firmest Mom Voice.

  “Ohhhhh!” Christina’s face lit up with a megawatt smile. “You did! You did! Mom, you kissed a dude!”

  The sheer enthusiasm in her daughter’s voice made Julia re-think telling Christina anything about her troubles. “I definitely kissed him,” she said, winking at her daughter. “Twice.”

  “Get outta town, you floozy,” Christina teased. “So where is he now? Can I meet Mr. Wonderful, or do I only get to meet your cupid guy?”

  Blaine. Julia groaned inwardly. She’d forgotten about him. All she could think of now was how he’d crow and preen when he found out that Martin had left her mid-cruise. She sighed. “Martin isn’t with me right now,” she said, weighing her options. “I’m actually on my way to meet him. I’ll send pictures later, okay?” The lie came easily, and Julia knew it was the fastest way to move on and save face, so she pasted on a reasonable facsimile of a happy smile and picked up her coffee. “I just wanted to check in with you, kid. See how you were.”

  “I’m great. I miss you. See you next weekend?”

  “Honey,” Julia said, staring hard at the screen and at the face of the person she loved most on the planet. “I cannot wait to see you.”

  After stowing her phone in her purse and taking a few more sips of coffee, Julia flagged down the barista with the rainbow tattoo. The young woman came out from behind the bar and walked across the sandy floor. She was barefoot and wearing frayed denim cutoffs.

  “Get you something else?” she offered pleasantly, holding a rag in one hand. Freckles dotted her nose and cheeks and she looked down at Julia, waiting to see what she could do for the coffee bar’s only current customer.

  “Actually,” Julia said, wrapping her hands around her cup. “I was hoping you might point a visitor in the direction of someplace magical.”

  “Magical?” The girl gazed out at the water with her icy blue eyes.

  “I’ve already been to the Garden of Eden,” Julia said, feeling her spirts lag just a bit at the prospect of a day alone on a gorgeous island. She’d fully intended to spend this day on Martin’s arm, and the fact that she wasn’t with him still felt surreal.

  “Okay, if you’ve been there, and if you don’t surf—I’m guessing you don’t surf?” the girl asked, eyeing Julia’s white denim capris and the red checkered top that matched her espadrilles. Julia shook her head. “Right. If you aren’t into catching waves, then I say go to the Temple of Peace. It’s on the North Shore so it’s gonna take a little while to get there, but it’s really special.”

  “Is that where you’d go if you had a day off?” Julia asked, moving the coffee cup around on the table absentmindedly.

  “I’d be out there,” the girl said, lifting her chin in the direction of the crashing waves. “No question.” Her eyes took on a faraway look as she daydreamed about being on a surfboard instead of serving lattes to tourists. “But if my mom came to visit, I’d send her to the Temple.”

  Julia smiled and tried not to look overly amused that this girl had pegged her as a middle-aged mom. It was easy to forget sometimes—one always felt the same on the inside, after all, and the visual or verbal reminders that she wa
s the age of someone’s mother and not a young ingenue always knocked her sideways for a second or two.

  “That sounds like a good choice,” Julia said, gathering her bag and her to-go cup. I’ll just get an Uber and head that way. “Thank you so much.”

  “No worries,” the girl said, her words and attitude as casual as her attire. “Enjoy!”

  It took about an hour to get from busy Lahaina all the way to the Temple of Peace, but as soon as Julia stepped out of the car and the Uber driver pulled away, she knew it had been a wise choice.

  The golden-domed temple reflected the sun, and she put one hand over her eyes, looking around and breathing in deeply. The ocean was near enough to touch, and everything around her was green: green plants, green grass, green trees. Julia made her way to a building and stepped inside, bells tinkling all around as she ducked to avoid a low-hanging wind chime.

  “Welcome,” said a shirtless bald man in a sarong. He could have been anywhere from fifty to ninety, and Julia wouldn’t have been able to guess. “Is this your first visit?” He put his hands together as if in prayer and studied her intensely.

  “It is,” Julia said, glancing around the octagonal building. “Someone told me this was a beautiful place—a must-see—so…here I am.”

  “If I might make a recommendation?” he asked carefully, his hands still in front of his chest.

  “Of course. I’m completely open to suggestion.”

  The man smiled, revealing deep wrinkles around his eyes and mouth that made him look slightly older, but also more wise. “There are always the grounds to wander, but if you’re going to spend the afternoon here, the Aqualani Spa is wonderful. The herbal steam room and sauna will do wonders for whatever ails you, and we have a hot tub and a cold plunge pool. We also offer colonics, if that interests you.”

  “Oh!” Julia put one hand to her cheek. She knew what a colonic was, but Martin’s departure was enough of a shock to her system for one day. “I think I’ll go with the general spa stuff—is that all one price?”

  “Mmm,” the man said, gliding almost soundlessly toward a wooden counter. “Yes. Let me get you set up for the day.”

  Before she knew it, Julia was inside a rustic-looking bamboo structure hung with colorful hanging flags and filled with a variety of throw rugs. There were two other women, both older than her, shuffling around in the thin robes and flip-flops she’d been given by the shirtless man. She ducked into a curtained changing area and came out clutching her purse and clothes.

  “Things are very relaxed here, honey,” one of the other women said. “You can just leave your stuff on a chair—trust me, it’ll be fine.” She waved a hand and then unbelted her robe, tossing it toward a chair and walking to the sauna in nothing but her flip-flops.

  It took some time, but Julia settled in on a wooden lounge chair and leaned back, closing her eyes as she breathed in the thick scent of lavender that wafted through the bamboo hut. No one spoke, and outside she could hear the intermittent chatter of birds and the distant sound of crashing waves. With a feeling of contentment slowly replacing the anxious, uncertain sensation she’d felt all morning, she reached over to her purse and slid out the envelope with her name on the front, holding it in her lap.

  Julia Delmonico. She looked at it, running one finger over the words. Martin had written this just that morning, and she touched it as though the ink might still be fresh.

  Unable to wait any longer, she lifted the flap and slid a single piece of stationary from the cruise line out of the envelope. She took a deep breath and unfolded it.

  Julia—

  This is not easy.

  “Oh, you think?” she muttered to herself out loud, then looked around to see if anyone had heard her. The other women had disappeared into the hot tub and sauna rooms. She turned back to the letter, her eyes already stinging from the shame of knowing that the words that followed would probably somehow cause her pain.

  I got a call from Esme in the middle of the night—that’s who texted me while we were having dinner on the beach last night. Our granddaughter had a seizure and was admitted to the hospital in L.A. for further testing. As of right now, we don’t know what’s wrong, but she’s in a medically-induced coma. I’m so torn up now with worry, but leaving you is not without consequence. And not waking you up will certainly not be without consequence…I just couldn’t stand your disappointment or the thought that you might ask me not to go.

  Anyhow, I’m catching a flight from Maui to L.A. and I want to be there for my granddaughter, for Esme, and for Jonathan. If I can ever be there for my son, it’s right now. I’ll call you as soon as I possibly can, and I hope you’ll take my call.

  With deep regret—

  Martin

  Julia finally exhaled—had she really been holding her breath that whole time?—and then re-read the letter twice more.

  Of course he should be with his family! She felt the blood pounding through her veins at the very thought of a tiny girl clinging to life and sending her parents and grandparents into spasms of worry and fear. Under no circumstances would she have wanted him to be anywhere but with his family at that time.

  Folding the letter and putting it back into its envelope, Julia thought about the fact that he hadn’t woken her for fear that she’d beg him not to go. She sincerely hoped that he didn’t think that little of her—that he didn’t imagine her to be the kind of selfish woman who couldn’t put a legitimate family emergency before her own happiness. But they’d work that out later. He’d call and she’d reassure him that he’d made the right choice.

  With the letter read and the feelings of dread and humiliation gone, Julia stood up and looked around before unbelting her own robe and walking over to the sauna room. It was time to clear her head and enjoy her last afternoon in paradise.

  Back on the water, Julia felt adrift—both literally and metaphorically. She wasn’t interested in attending any more of the matchmaking events, and a part of her wondered why she hadn’t been smart enough to rush back to the ship and grab her things and just fly home from Maui herself. But there she was, floating across the ocean for the next five days on a boatful of people looking for love, and all she was looking for was a little peace and quiet.

  Her room phone rang loudly the following morning at nine o’clock, and Julia pulled the pillow from over her head reluctantly.

  “Hello?” she croaked.

  “Wake up, sunshine!” Blaine said with more cheer than Julia felt she could muster even if she threw her back into it. “I’ve got plans for you now that things have changed.”

  “Uhhhh,” Julia moaned, rolling over. She hoped it sounded more like a firm NO rather than the uncertain noise of a woman who could still be convinced.

  “I’m going to knock on your door in thirty minutes,” Blaine instructed. “And no offense, hon, but I’m not looking to find you in a nightgown with some sort of mussed hair and a come-hither gaze.”

  “Ew,” Julia said, sitting up and shoving her hair back from her face. “As if.”

  “As if is right, doll.” Blaine paused. “Now get in the shower, brush your teeth, put on something appropriate for the day, and I’ll bring you coffee. Thirty minutes,” he reminded her.

  Before Julia could respond, he ended the call. She sat there with the phone receiver in her hand, blinking into the mid-morning light. Her first day at sea without Martin or even the promise of bumping into him. And worst of all, Blaine was coming for her. With a heavy sigh, she hung up the phone and swung her feet to the floor.

  By the time Blaine rapped on her door, Julia was dressed in a flowered skirt, white Converse, and a tank top under a cropped denim jacket. Her hair was still wet, but she’d brushed her teeth as instructed and put on some makeup.

  “You happy?” she asked, her voice thick with sarcasm as she threw open the door.

  Blaine looked her up and down with an arched eyebrow. “Well. I guess I’ll have to be. Here. Drink this.” He thrust a paper cup of coffee in her
direction. “Besides, even if I’m not thoroughly impressed with this sartorial wonder,” he said, waving a hand at her choice of attire, “I’m not going to risk your wrath by saying anything. So let’s go.”

  Julia reached back to the counter and grabbed her purse, drinking the coffee greedily as she let her door slam behind her and tried to keep up with Blaine.

  “First things first,” Blaine said when they reached the bank of elevators. He pushed the button. “Mr. Man is gone, I presume?”

  Julia took another long pull from her coffee. “I’m sure you know all the details already.”

  Blaine glanced around and lowered his voice. “Word amongst the cupids is that he got kicked off the ship for trying to steal diamonds from the jewelry store. I heard he had a long con going and was here to pull of some elaborate heist.”

  “Good lord.” Julia closed her eyes momentarily, feeling the distant echo of an oncoming headache. “I’m not even sure how to respond to that.”

  “Listen, I know a woman your age needs a bit of excitement in her life,” Blaine said, reaching for her elbow and guiding her onto the elevator as if she were elderly and in need of assistance. She shook him off with a frown. “But aiding and abetting a hardened criminal is a bit extreme. Even for a middle school teacher from Maine.”

  “High school,” Julia corrected him. “And I’m from Oregon. You’ve got your Portlands mixed up.”

  Blaine held up his hands in surrender and pursed his lips into a mock-apologetic O. “Of course, milady. No offense intended. But Julia, we can do better for you than a man with a record. A hot man, to be sure, but do you really want to live with someone who has to register with the local police everywhere you live for the rest of your life?”

  “Blaine,” Julia said with a disbelieving laugh. “He doesn’t have to register with the local police—that’s a whole other type of crime you’re thinking about. And he wasn’t here for a jewelry heist, so let’s just put that to rest.” The elevator stopped on the fourth floor and the doors slid open. “Also, he wasn’t arrested and dragged from the ship, he left to fly home from Maui because of a family emergency.”