by Connie Cox
The tension between the security checker and Brandy crackled, proof that shipboard break-ups made for an incredibly uncomfortable environment.
Brandy turned to Annalise. “You know, Doc, this ship is large enough that a person could sail for a month without running into everyone on board. But no matter how big it is, when you’re trying to avoid someone, no ship is big enough.”
Annalise felt trapped, literally being caught between a man and a woman and their conflict. A clammy sweat started down her back as the old terror threatened to overcome her.
“Relationships. Not my thing,” she managed to choke out as her throat tightened up on her. She tried to laugh but it sounded strained even to her own ears so she coughed to cover it up. From bad to worse.
Behind her, the late passenger took a step forward, concern in his eyes. “Are you okay?”
His voice was a low deep rumble. Masculinity personified.
She could feel the heat from his body as he crowded her.
Annalise took a deep breath as the unreasonable panic settled. It had been a few years, almost a decade, since she’d had a panic attack. But too many memories in too few hours had taken their toll on the solid, secure world she’d built for herself.
The sooner she put New Orleans behind her, the better off she would be.
“I’m fine. Thanks.” She gave a numb nod and thrust her card at the security checker, careful to keep her fingers from brushing his.
The security checker took Annalise’s card and slid it through. “Welcome back, Dr. Walcott. Need some help with that load?”
“Got it. Thanks.”
The man behind her held his card out for inspection.
“Could you remove the sunglasses, sir?” the security checker asked.
“Of course.”
Annalise had the strongest urge to turn around so she could look into his eyes but practicality took over. What she saw there would have no bearing upon her.
As she tugged her cart, it turned sideways, crashing into this man who made her feel things she didn’t want to feel.
If she were only as graceful as she was independent. “Sorry.” She meant for her gaze to skitter across his face but his eyes ensnared hers.
Tiger eyes. Amber golden with specks of brown, rimmed in a darker brown. Tiger eyes with a depth of...sorrow, perhaps, behind the brightness.
“No problem.” He blinked, breaking their gaze and allowing her to blink as well. When he raised an eyebrow at her, she realized she’d been staring.
Flustered, she yanked her cart, banging into the counter and almost taking out the passenger scanner. He must think her a total klutz.
What did it matter what he thought? Odds were they would never see each other again unless he had a medical emergency. And he certainly looked healthy to her. Well-worn jeans and a wrinkled T-shirt couldn’t hide his physical fitness.
She bumped into passengers all the time. None of them elicited a significant response from her.
Annalise overcame the impulse to check him out one more time.
What was it about him that made her feel... What? Aware? Self-conscious? Tingly? That made her feel anything at all?
As she fought the cart into submission, she heard the security checker say, “Welcome aboard, Mr. Christopoulos. Passenger stairway is to your left.”
Christopoulos? That was the name of her patient with juvenile diabetes. What were the odds?
Annalise headed toward the staff elevators, grateful for the privacy and breathing room that safe little metal box promised.
“Hold the door, please.” A large tanned hand inserted itself between the closing doors. If the man had seemed to tower over her before, he loomed now. “You don’t mind if I ride up with you, do you?”
“Passengers are encouraged to take the stairs if they’re able.” Inwardly, she winced at her brusqueness. She had wanted to establish distance, not convey rudeness. Where was her balance?
“I’m nursing a leg injury.” He gave her a lopsided grin, as if he were embarrassed to ask for special treatment.
Annalise wished a hole would open up and swallow her. “Of course, then.”
She stared at the floor numbers as the door closed, not trusting herself to engage in polite conversation.
She needn’t have worried about the man being chatty. He leaned against the back wall of the elevator, closed his eyes and slumped as if he would fall asleep right then and there. Except there was nothing relaxed in the tightness around his eyes or the brackets around his mouth or the squareness of his jaw.
Annalise took a moment to gather herself the way she’d learned in therapy so many years ago, rationalizing that her edginess had been provoked by too many triggers in quick succession, the worst one brought on by her own need to know that someone in the world cared.
When she’d knocked on her mother’s apartment door while she’d been on shore leave, Annalise had half expected, even hoped, to be told that her mother had moved and failed to leave a forwarding address.
But she’d been there. Bright pink lipstick had leaked into the pursed lines around her lips and coated the end of the cigarette stuck into her mouth. Age spots showed on her chest and arms, exposed by her cheap orange tank top.
“Anna?” her mother had smoothed down her over-processed hair. “I hadn’t expected...”
Scented candles perfumed the air. Annalise recognized the odor. Her mother had always thought men were turned on by heavy oriental scents. The smell made her stomach turn.
“I was in town and just thought I’d drop by.”
The furtive look her mother sent over her shoulder to whoever was waiting in the back bedroom was less than welcoming.
“I don’t really have the time to come in and visit,” Annalise assured her.
The relief was obvious in her mother’s eyes. “Maybe another time.”
Her mother had closed the door between them without saying goodbye.
It had been over two years. What was another couple of years between family?
Being in her home city, seeing her mother in the old apartment she herself had once lived in, consulting with the little girl’s doctor in the same building where she’d attended those therapy sessions, and then meeting with her friend had been a bit much for one day.
And this man next to her, this man who exuded power and testosterone, this man who she was too aware of being just inches away from her, had her all off balance. Something was different about him.
* * *
The elevator bumped, threatening Niko’s balance. He shifted his weight. From beneath his half-closed lids, he watched Dr. Walcott do the same.
Something was different about her, something that intrigued him. An air? An attitude? A challenge?
Only problem was, Dr. Walcott didn’t seem interested. Could he change her mind? When had he last been challenged?
He rubbed his hand across his heavily stubbled face.
When he saw her eyeing him, he said rather self-consciously, “This boat has plenty of hot water, right?”
“The only reason you’ll take a cold shower onboard this ship is because you take one voluntarily.”
“I don’t see that happening.” He flashed his dimple.
She responded with the slightest of tight-lipped curves at the corners of her mouth. Polite, but just barely.
So much for winning her over with his innate charm. But, then, he wasn’t at his best.
A shower and shave and maybe a nap first. Then he might seek out the good doctor on the grounds of professional curiosity. She’d give him a tour of the facilities. He’d buy her a drink. They’d have a private meal on his room’s veranda and watch the sunset together—and maybe the sunrise, too.
“How is room service?”
“Ver
y serviceable.” She bit her lower lip then squared her shoulders and took a breath as if she were about to plunge into the deep end of the pool. “I use room service quite a bit. They are very prompt. You should try the salmon mousse.”
“And maybe a bottle of pinot grigio to share with a new friend?” With the shipboard doctor, he wouldn’t have to worry about expectations and entanglements.
“I’ve never tried it that way. But, then, I’m not very good at sharing.” She glanced down at his bare finger. “I’m sure your girlfriend would enjoy the romantic gesture, though.”
“No girlfriend at the moment.”
She nodded her acknowledgement while she adjusted her grip on her cart, pulling it more decisively between them.
He’d gone too far, too fast. Message received.
He leaned back and closed his eyes, giving them both space.
He might be a romantic but he was a lousy long-term lover.
His ex-fiancée would be glad to expound upon that.
Impatient by nature, Niko had known there was some deep-seated, instinctive reason he’d never agreed to a wedding date. When she’d insisted he choose, either her or his work, he’d finally understood what that reason was.
Any woman who couldn’t love him for who he was didn’t love him at all. Sadly, after they’d both said their goodbyes, he’d realized he hadn’t loved her either. He’d just thought he should because his family had insisted they were the perfect couple. And his family always knew what was best for him.
When it should have been a tragedy, breaking off their engagement had been a relief. It had also been the last tie to living the ‘normal’ life his family wanted him to live.
This trip was his parting gift, his apology for letting them down, his peace offering for following his dream when he knew that was the last thing any of them would want him to do.
But his lifestyle change was tomorrow’s problem. Let tomorrow take care of itself.
The elevator jolted to a stop, putting the brakes on Niko’s runaway thoughts.
* * *
“Your floor?”
Annalise jerked as his voice called her back to the present. She’d gone away in her mind to avoid an awkward situation as she had so often in the past. But she’d never let down her guard like that while in a confined space with a man.
He was still leaning against the wall, but one eye was cocked open. How long had the elevator been stopped with the doors gaping open?
Keep it together, Annalise. With that admonishment, Annalise pulled the tatters of her self-discipline around her, took a deep breath and determined to carry on. She gave him a sheepish smile. “Lost in thought.”
“Been there, done that myself.” He pushed away from the wall.
She tugged her heavy cart to get the rollers moving over the rough separation between the elevator and the hallway floor.
“Need some help?”
“No. I’ve got it under control.” She was making more of this chance encounter than it really was, wasn’t she? No man like that would be interested in a woman like her, would he?
“I’ll be seeing you around.”
Not if I can avoid it. She wasn’t ready. Not now, maybe not ever, to feel an attraction to a man, especially a man as virile as this one.
“Enjoy your cruise.”
He raised a suggestive eyebrow. “I already am.”
She ignored the shiver that went through her. As she pulled her heavy load toward her clinic, she worked hard at dismissing the man who would forget about her the second the elevator doors blocked her from his sight.
Christopolous. If he was connected to her young patient, she knew all about how to keep her professional self apart from her personal self. But was that what she really wanted?
What she wanted was to have a normal reaction to a normal situation.
She couldn’t help taking a look back.
He was watching her, appreciation on his face. He gave her a long, slow, deliberate wink.
Almost against her will her mouth quirked up at the corners, acknowledging—and enjoying?—his attention.
As she felt the ship’s engines begin to churn far below her, she felt confused. She’d thought she was on an even keel, that nothing and no one could ever rock her boat.
Obviously, she’d been wrong.
* * *
Her little half-smile was more intriguing than the Mona Lisa’s.
She was perfect. A woman in her profession would understand that any romance Niko allowed himself to indulge in would end when the ship docked.
Niko watched the good doctor walk away on her long, strong legs until the elevator doors closed, blocking her from view. This trip was supposed to be about family, about paying back all the sacrifices they’d made for him—even if they’d never know that part of it. But surely he’d find time for himself, time for a harmless shipboard flirtation, wouldn’t he?
And if the good doctor wasn’t interested, there were plenty more fish in the sea, right?
A wave of exhaustion overcame him. His long hours and primitive living conditions must be to blame. That sinking feeling certainly couldn’t have come from the thought of possible rejection. His ego wasn’t that big, was it?
If so, his brothers would soon set it to rights.
Niko opened the door to his home away from home for the next three weeks. While not a huge cabin, it was certainly bigger than the tent he’d been sharing with a nurse and an anesthetist for the last month.
The private veranda was big enough to dine on—and do other things on, too. Yes, this cabin would do just fine.
The quick shower he took refreshed his energy as well as his attitude. The restorative powers of hot water and a bar of soap were nothing short of miraculous. Fresh underwear was a close second.
He picked out the least wrinkled casual dress shirt and pants from his rolling bag, shaking out the mustiness. Not too bad. Packing was a skill he’d had a lot of practice with.
From the connecting door he heard a hesitant knock.
“Uncle Niko, is that you?”
“Yes, Sophie, it’s me.”
He finished with the last of his shirt buttons then unlatched and opened the door between them and immediately gathered up an armful of six-year-old girl. Her bouncy black curls smelled of baby shampoo and her breath smelled of sugar and spice. Too much sweetness? A hint of fruitiness? Juvenile diabetes sucked.
“Sophie, when was the last time you checked your blood sugar?”
Before Sophie could answer, a voice worn with age but sharp nevertheless, said, “What? Not even a hello first, grandson?”
He looked past Sophie, snuggled on his shoulder, to the four-foot-ten-inch paragon who ruled the Christopoulos family with an iron skillet in one hand and baklava in the other.
“Hello, Yiayia.” He put down Sophie and bent to give a hug to the one woman who had always been there for him. “I’ve missed you.”
“There’s a way to prevent that. No one is making you stay away.” Despite her prickly words, her hug was warm and comforting. She took a step back to look up into his face, keeping both her gnarled hands on his arms as if she could hold him in place. “Wanderlust, like your uncle and your grandfather. At least you have sense enough to keep yourself from getting killed. If I hadn’t won this trip, I don’t know when we would have seen you next.”
Niko squirmed inside while he kept his smile brightly in place. “Livin’ the dream, Yiayia.”
His mercy missions meant everything to him. But his family would not be pleased if they knew he put himself in such danger, risking his life in areas where lives were lost in wars over water wells as frequently as they were from malaria. His thigh throbbed in memory.
The life of a an overworked, barely paid medical relief doctor was
not the life his family had envisioned for him as they’d all sacrificed to send him to college and on to medical school.
He owed them so much. Could he do it? Could he follow his passion, leaving his family with loans and bills and kids to put through college—like they’d put him through all those years.
Yiayia pointed her bony finger at him. “The Christopoulos men are all lucky in love. Someday soon you will find the perfect woman and give me beautiful great-grandbabies.”
“Maybe someday, Yiayia.” It was easier to agree with her than to argue. And he certainly didn’t want to start off a three week vacation on her bad side.
He was so unlike his three brothers in so many ways. Not being cut out to be a family man was the one that hurt the most. He’d dated his fair share of women and then some but he’d not found one he wanted to spend a week with, much less a lifetime.
He flashed the smile that always worked with her. “You’ve set my standards too high, Yiayia. No other woman can compare.”
Yiayia reached up and pinched his cheek. “How can I stay mad at a face like this?”
Sophie had waited as long as she could. She jumped up and down to get attention. “I’m hungry. Ice cream, Yiayia! Ice cream!”
Yiayia’s eyes sparkled as bright as Sophie’s. “It’s included in the trip, Niko. Did they tell you that? Any time we want some. And fine dining each evening, too. Such a dream come true.”
It felt good to give back to the family that had sacrificed so much to give him his dream. They would have never accepted repayment for all the support they’d given him through the years. And they all certainly needed a break after the year and a half they’d just been through. If only he hadn’t had to set up such an elaborate ruse...
“All right, little one. Let me get my room key.” Yiayia turned to find the key.
Niko stopped his grandmother with a gentle hand on her arm. “Wait, Yiayia. What’s Sophie’s blood-sugar level?”
Yiayia had always made her little ones feel better through food and didn’t understand why it had to be different with Sophie—which was one of the main reasons why Niko had agreed to oversee Sophie’s care while onboard ship. All his brothers concurred that he had a way with Yiayia that none of the other three had.
