As he hands it to me, an excitement bursts through me. I wrap my lips around the straw and suck back a huge sip, relishing the strawberry taste. It’s one of those cocktails that’s so well made I can’t taste the alcohol in it at all. But I know it’s there from the way that it makes my head spin.
“Thank you very much.”
He bows his head to me, which brings back the penguin memory. Honestly, it’s almost impossible not to chuckle at him. “You are very welcome, Miss.”
“My man steps closer, closing the space between us. My heart beats faster and my mouth runs dry with desire and lust. As I can feel the intense heat emanating off of him I’m filled with the most intense electrical sensation in the whole world…”
“Hello,” a voice bursts through my shock barrier, causing my eyes to tug away from the paper. It’s deep and chocolatey, melting me inside. “I saw you from across the deck a moment ago and I just knew that I had to speak to you.”
Hot damn, it’s him!
As I realize that it’s my dream man that I’m looking at, the one that I’ve just been writing about, I snap my notebook shut and swing my legs around to the ground. “Erm, hi.” I can feel my cheeks heating up, my body freaking out, I just know that I’m not acting in any way cool at all.
Hold it together, I warn myself. Don’t blow it because of shyness. I need to get my groove back
“Are you a guest on the cruise?”
“Huh?” I don’t quite understand the question. “Erm, yes, yes I am.”
He chuckles, the most adorable sound that I’ve ever heard in my life. “Ah I see, I work here you see.”
“You do?” In all honesty I haven’t thought much about the staff here. I see them about the place, serving all the customers, but I never really look at them. I feel guilty, what sort of person doesn’t notice staff? Am I more like my mother than I first realized? Just another thing that I desperately need to change… “What do you do?”
“I play music,” he says with a self-deprecating shrug. “I’ll be doing a show later on in the ballroom if you’re up for it?”
I haven’t watched any of the entertainment, mostly because it all sounded really lame, but I’ll sure as hell go to see this gorgeous guy playing. “Yeah, I think I’ll be there, actually.”
He smiles as if I’ve said something that he really likes and he extends out his hand to me. I take it, and as our skin brushes together I feel excitement coursing through my system. If he can make me feel this way with just a handshake, imagine how he will make me feel if he touches me everywhere…
Oh God, I need to sort myself out.
“I’m Stephen, by the way,” he says in a seductive tone of voice. As he smiles at me I spot the mischief in his eyes which draws me in deeper. I love that glint, it makes me think that of all the naughty things he seems to want to tell me. “Stephen Jones.”
“Yeah, I’m Tia. Tia Daniels. Are you from New Zealand?”
“I am actually.” He looks impressed. “Most people automatically think Australia.”
Stephen, what an amazing name Stephen from New Zealand. It rolls off my tongue and thrills me. I definitely want to go and see his show, I feel a spark of magic within me. This might just be the night that I finally throw caution to the wind and I have some much needed fun.
“I guess I’ll see you later, Tia,” he says while taking a step back from me. “I look forward to it.”
“See you,” I whisper back while biting down on my bottom lip to try and contain my smile. “Can’t wait.”
Chapter Four - Stephen
As I stand backstage, I feel an unexpected flurry of nerves racing through my system. I don’t usually feel anything like this before I play a gig, especially one so small time and with a clientele that really isn’t me, but today is different. Today the gorgeous brunette from the deck earlier on has promised to come and watch me play and I want to be good for her.
My heart beats a little faster as I think about her sexy, svelte body in that black, tight bikini she had on earlier. The way her dark hair spilled down her back and her brown eyes flashed when she got excited… damn, she’s hot. She makes this cruise so much less boring than it really is. I can’t wait to get to know her better.
“…and now, we have a wonderful show for you, ladies and gentlemen.” I hear the host calling out to the audience, ready to announce me. “Stephen Jones, a musical genius all the way from New Zealand.”
I breathe a little deeper, trying to compose myself, then I grab my guitar and I force my feet forwards. My heart races, my mouth runs dry with nerves, but I make myself smile brightly. I need to look confident, even if I don’t feel it. Acting the part allows everything else to fall into place.
I push the curtains open and step into the blinding lights. They’re so bright and white I can hardly see out into the crowd, but I know they’re there. The cheering and clapping proves that to me.
“Hello, everyone!” I yell while holding my hand above my head. “It’s great to be here tonight for Princess Cruises.” I pause for the excitably, drunk audience members to whoop. “Now, usually I would start with a big, wild number but I don’t know if that’s right for tonight.” I’ve been thinking about this all day long, I know my usual set pieces won’t work here. It just isn’t the same people as I get in dive bars. I can make it work though, what does it matter? “So, I’m going to start with a song I wrote called Midnight Blue.”
I perch my butt on the chair and I start strumming the guitar. As I do my nerves subside. Music is my everything, it calms and relaxes me in a way that nothing else ever will. This is why I left New Zealand, because this is what I need to be doing with my life.
“I walk through the midnight valley, thinking only of you…”
My eyes scan the crowd as I sing. Now that I’ve adjusted to the lights a little I can see, but not her. Not yet. I feel disheartened. Was she not as into me as I thought? Did I imagine the chemistry between us?
“…you’re the love of my life and losing you makes me blue…”
It isn’t the most inspired words I’ve ever written, but it’s my first ever song and it holds a special place in my heart. Plus, despite how cheesy it is, it’s a crowd pleaser. Even in the worst of dive bars with the hardest audience members, they seem to love it so I know these people will.
Oh my God.
All of a sudden my heart stops in my chest as I spot her. Tia Daniels. She’s sitting in the back of the room on a table on her own, with her dark hair pulled back and a dark dress that clings on to her curves perfectly. She looks heart stoppingly beautiful, which inspires me to sing even better. I can feel my voice crooning in the best way possible.
My lips curl up into a smile and she does too. We share a really nice moment which manages to blur out the other people in the room. I sing, only for her, and it feels incredible. I like this woman, there’s something about her that entices me in. I think I might like her more than the usual woman I hook up with. There’s something about her that I’m actually interested in.
Maybe the cruise will be the first day of me changing. Maybe, with time locked together on a boat where we can’t escape from one another I might actually give myself a chance to fall for someone.
I never started this trip thinking I would fall for anyone, but it isn’t completely unrealistic anymore.
As the song comes to an end, the cheers become almost deafening. Just as I suspected, everyone loves the slightly cheesier numbers, which I’ll stick to for the rest of the night. Who cares how I get my potential record label signing – if that ever happens for me – I need to get it somehow, and Mom is right. These rich people might have connections anywhere in the world.
“I dedicate this next song to the beautiful brunette sitting in the back,” I say into the microphone, causing everyone around to look at Tia. She blushes brightly which only makes her look even more adorable. “I hope she’ll meet me later on at the bar for a drink once I’ve finished playing here.”
&nb
sp; Wolf whistling bursts out around the room which makes me chuckle. Maybe there was a big warning when I first got this job not to sleep with the guests, but that wasn’t serious, was it? I don’t think anyone really sticks to that. I can always pretend I said that as a joke anyway if it gets me in shit. Plus, there’s only a few more days on this cruise anyway. Even if I get kicked off, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.
There will always be other opportunities anyway. US is full of them. That’s why I came to America, that’s why I left everything behind.
“Right, here it goes…”
I strum happily, my smile growing brighter. This is going to be an awesome night, I just know it. I can’t wait to see where it leads.
***
“Yes, okay, I know.” The manager will not stop going on about my little comment out there. I don’t want to be a dick but she’s really hashing my buzz. That was the best show that I’ve ever played and now I’m pretty sure that Tia is out there waiting for me, and I’m stuck in here being told that I cannot under any circumstances sleep with anyone who has paid to be on board. I get that, I understand what she’s saying to me, but in all honesty I have no intention of listening to her. “I won’t do anything silly, it was only a joke.”
“Because you understand we can get sued? It reflects badly on the company as a whole.”
I smirk and fix my eyes on the ground. This woman is pent up, in her mid to late forties, and in desperate need of a good shag herself. Maybe if I didn’t already have my eyes set on someone else I would think about offering up my services. Maybe.
“Yes, I know. So I’m going to head straight back to my room now. You won’t need to worry about me.” I fake a yawn. “I’m so very tired. I just need to sleep now.”
She gives me a disapproving look, I know that she can see right through me but what can she do? Unless she can full prove that I’ve had sex with Tia, there’s nothing that she can do. With her hands on her hips and her eyebrows raised, she gives me a sharp nod. “Fine, you get out of here. I will see you soon.”
I stifle a chuckle and I shove my hands into my pockets as I leave. I move slowly so as not to raise suspicion, but I’m sure we both know where I’m headed. I won’t be able to have a drink with Tia at the bar like I originally planned, but that doesn’t mater. We can go back, to her room will probably be the safest thing, and things can progress from there. Of course it will lead to sex, there’s no way it can’t with me., but we’ll talk too… probably.
“See ya.”
I kick the door open, relishing the sound as it infiltrates my ears. It’s too quite in the office, I’m sure every room on this whole damn boat has been sound proofed. I don’t like the quiet, I don’t do well with it. Noise suits me much better. My whole life has been noisy, and that’s the way I love it.
Maybe that’s why I love music. It’s noisy, but in a really pleasant way.
I quickly spot Tia sitting at the bar. She has a glass of wine in her hand and a bored expression on her face. A drag queen has taken my place up on the stage, and while everyone else seems to be loving the jokes, Tia looks anxious and bored. She’s waiting for me to take her away.
“Psst,” I hiss quietly to her from the corner of the room. “Tia.” She doesn’t hear me at first, which means I need to say that a little bit louder. “Tia, over here.”
She spins quickly and sees me. Once her eyes fall on mine her whole face lights up. As her expression brightens she looks even more beautiful than before. She makes my pulse race and my body trembles.
“Come here,” I repeat, using my finger to draw her towards me. She furrows her eyebrows in confusion. “Come on, you have to come.”
She glances around as if she’s in the middle of a spy movie or something before she slowly moves towards me. I grab hold of her hand and drag her out of the ballroom with a giggle bursting out of my chest.
“What is going on?” Tia asks me in shock. “Why are you dragging me away from my drink?”
“I’m sorry, I don’t mean to. I just cannot be seen with you in there.”
Tia stops dead where she is in the middle of the hallway and throws her hands onto her hips. She looks fiery and determined which I love. This woman is awesome, there’s just something about her.
“What do you mean?” she demands. “What the hell is wrong with me?”
“No, no, no, it’s nothing like that.” I step closer to her and wrap my arms around her waist. “I just had a lecture from my boss about being anywhere near guests. It’s super frowned upon, so I just don’t want us to get into any trouble.”
“Oh.” She nods as if she understands but I’m pretty sure she doesn’t. “I see. So, what now?”
“We could…” I need to word this carefully so she doesn’t think I’m a dick. “We could go to your room? Maybe have a drink there?”
“We can’t go to yours?” she teases. When she acts coy I can tell that I have her. She’s playing with me, which is an awesome sign.
“No, the staff rooms are off limit… and also shit,” I laugh awkwardly, hating myself for making my shitty excuses. I just didn’t want to get caught with Tia if I could help it, I didn’t want our time together ruined. “I don’t think it’s good enough for someone like you.”
“Someone like me?” She cocks her head and pouts out her lip towards me. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
Oh crap, have I put my foot in it? I need to use some of my award winning charm to make this work. “Someone beautiful, like a princess. Someone who deserves it all.”
She nods and takes my hand, taking control of the situation and proving that my charm won out again. Then she pulls me down the hallway and towards the stairs. My heart races as we get closer to her room, I’m excited. This isn’t just a sex thing I’m feeling inside. It’s something more, and that’s actually pretty awesome…
Chapter Five - Tia
What am I doing? Am I really going through with this?”
Sure, I told myself to throw caution to the wind before I stepped onto this cruise, but now that’s actually happening I’m not so sure. It feels good, I’m really excited about it, but I’m just not a one night stand sort of girl. I mean, I barely know this guy. What I know about him I do like, but that doesn’t mean… that’s not a sign that I should just go for it, is it?
Then again, it’s been a long time. Maybe this is exactly what I should be doing. I barely know anymore.
My fingers tremble as I find the keys to my room and I push them into the lock. With a little kick to get it moving faster I pushed the door open to reveal the room inside. I left the curtains open by mistake when I left for the night but now I’m glad because we can enjoy the massive expanse of the ocean in front of us.
“Wow, your room is incredible!” Stephen gasps with shock. He drops my hand and spins around as he walks through the room. “You have so much room here. I’m so glad that we came here instead of my room. You would have been disappointed.”
I smile to myself and close the door behind me with a click. This is fine, if I didn’t do this right now I would always kick myself for passing up on this opportunity. I need to get over what happened to me in the past, once and for all. Sleeping with this random hot guy is just another step on my journey.
“Do you want a drink?” I ask while moving through the room. “There’s a mini bar, you could get something from there if you like…”
I don’t get to finish my sentence because Stephen steps towards me with giant strides because of his long legs. With him close enough to me for me to breathe him in, I feel that electrical sensation, the buzz that I’ve been searching for forever. My heart thunders against my rib cage, my breath balls up in my throat, I feel the fire ignite in my belly.
“You are stunning, you know that,” Stephen comments as if it’s fact. “Really beautiful, and that dress looks amazing on you.”
“It… it does?” I’m acting like I didn’t spend hours picking it out earlier, like I didn’t ex
amine my body in the huge full length mirror to see me from every angle. “Thank you.”
With that, Stephen dips his head down to kiss me, and boy does he kiss me. He literally claims me with his mouth, stripping the remaining air from my lungs, leaving me panting and breathless. Fireworks explode inside of me, I feel like I’ve been dead for a very long time and now this is the kiss of life, bringing me back.
This man is fucking incredible. I like him so much.
I circle my hands around his waist and I pull him in closer to me. My body molds into his, feeling like it’s meant to be there. His strong grip keeps me fixed in place and I freaking love it. I feel safe and protected, happy and exhilarated all at the same time. There’s nothing quite like it.
“Sorry,” he murmurs, taking a step back from me. I instantly hate the cold, lonely sensation I get when he’s gone. “Maybe I shouldn’t have done that, I just find you irresistible. I’ve liked you from the very first second I laid eyes on you.”
I stare up at him, loving the dark, hooded desire in his eyes. This guy is a sexy musician.. He could have anyone he wants, he probably does have anyone he wants. Yet tonight he’s here with me. There’s something extremely thrilling about that. I like that he wants me, it makes me feel truly desired in a way that I haven’t done in a very long time.
“I like you too,” I whisper back. “Now come here, will you, I’m not done kissing you just yet.”
Broken: A Mountain Man's Romance Page 59
