Rock the Boat (19 page)

“Which one has tequila?”

He points to most of the top row, making my decision a little harder. The print is too blurry for me to read, so I point to the most colorful, hoping it’s also the strongest.

“Anything else you need?”

“Nope, just keep the drinks coming, please.”

“Are you on a mission?”

“A mission to forget. Sometimes things aren’t what they appear to be, ya know?”

He nods his head, taking back his menu and hurrying back to the bar. I can’t blame him for running. He has better things to do than listen to me ramble about another broken heart.

About a half hour or so later, Aki comes by my chair with a pitcher in his hand, and asks if I’d like a refill. Of course, I don’t turn it down. I end up drinking three more before I realize I don’t need my sunglasses anymore. The sun’s beginning to set and the bathing suits that have been surrounding me all afternoon disappear. In their place, tanned bodies are dressed to the nines in fancy dresses and suits.

As I look around, I realize all the couples surrounding me met for the first time this week. I stare at them, completely fascinated at how far along so many of them seem to be. Easton and I weren’t much different than them, but we weren’t in love either. We did our best to work around his schedule, and we always made up for it come midnight. I deserved a decent man as much as they did, yet I’m the small part of the population who’s sitting all alone.

“Do you want something to eat?”

I turn my head toward Aki, wondering why he’s been personally serving me all day. It’s definitely not in his job description. “Are you taking me to dinner?”

He smiles, but says, “As much as I would love that, Easton would serve my ass on a platter. If you’re hungry, I’ll bring you something from the café though. Since you’re not dressed.”

I glance to the bar he’s been manning all afternoon, which to my surprise is empty. “What about the bar?”

“This one’s closed for the night. I’m off until morning, actually. How about a burger and fries before I go?”

Considering I don’t have any place I need to be, I take him up on his offer. It saves me from finding something on my own. “Throw in one more drink and you have a deal.”

“You got it. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

I couldn’t tell you how much time passes, only that it’s almost dark outside by the time he brings me a plate of food and another drink. I hadn’t realized how hungry I actually am. “Thank you.”

He sits on the edge of the chair next to me while I eat. “Are you coming to Easton’s show?”

I glance at my outfit, shaking my head. “Don’t think I’m making it tonight.” My hair’s in a matted braid, my skin still slippery from the lotion. The only place I’m going is to the shower.

Aki glances at his watch. “You have an hour to get ready. Easton wants you there.”

I take the last bite of my French fry before setting the plate on the end of my chair. “I don’t really care what he wants anymore. Besides, he has someone else on his mind. He won’t even notice I didn’t show up.”

“He finally told you about Shay?”

My head snaps in his direction, not expecting him to put a name with the face. “I don’t know all the details obviously, but I know enough. He’s not who I thought he was.”

“Because he didn’t tell you from the start? I tried to tell him it would blow up in his face if he kept it from you, but you can’t reason with Easton sometimes.”

“I think I have every right to be upset, don’t you?”

Aki shrugs his shoulders. “I’m not sure you can hold his past against him. Not this time, anyway.”

The world of rock and roll must operate differently than the real world because I don’t know a single girl who would be okay with their guy having more than one girlfriend. But it doesn’t really matter what I think—he’s the one making his own rules. “This whole trip was a stupid idea.”

Aki doesn’t ask any more questions. He only watches me swing my legs over the side of my chair and slide my flip-flops onto my feet. It takes me a couple tries before I get them on the right feet, but when I try to stand up, he anticipates my moves, like he’s expecting me to fall flat on my face. I admit, had he not reached out for me, there’s a chance I might have.

“Do you want me to walk you back to your room?”

“No, I’m good.” If I was smart I’d let him help me get back to my room, but admitting I need help only makes me look as pathetic as I feel. Lark Williams doesn’t need a man to take care of her. She’s capable of screwing up all on her own.

“You’re sure?” Aki seems hesitant to leave me, most likely because he’s the one who fed me drinks all afternoon to get me drunk in the first place. Not that anyone forced him, I wanted to forget.

“Just point me in the right direction before you leave.”

He turns my shoulders so I’m facing the nearest entrance to lido deck. “Straight through the double doors. The elevators are on the right.”

“Thank you.” I shuffle my feet inside, my balance either off from the rough seas or the alcohol—I’m not sure which. There’s a clump of passengers standing next to the elevators already waiting for the doors to open. When the next one arrives, I slide inside with them making sure I can hold onto the wall the entire time. But as soon as the last person takes their place in front of the door, I remember Noelle asked for the room tonight. Even though I’m desperate for a shower, I get off on the first floor we stop on.

There’s a rush around me, everyone hurrying to wherever it is they need to be. It makes me miss home that much more. Especially when wandering eyes turn to stare at me every so often, probably wondering why there’s an underdressed, drunk girl holding onto the wall for support. I must look as pathetic as I feel.

Another ten minutes pass and I’m no closer to figuring out a plan than when I left Aki. Part of me wants to go find Easton. The part that deserves an explanation even if I don’t want to hear it. The other part would rather lie down and go to sleep, pretending the entire day never happened.

I get my chance when I stumble upon the solarium—the adult’s only retreat that’s both calm and quiet. A place I can easily hide out in until I’m ready to face the rest of the world again. There’s even a chair in the back corner of the room surrounded by tropical plants.

As soon as my body hits the cushion covering the chair, I close my eyes and pray sleep will come and take me away. Reality is too much to handle today.

As soon as my shift in the lounge ends, I search the room for Aki. He’s been watching over Lark all afternoon while I was stuck working. If it was up to me, I would have quit the job entirely, that’s how much it killed me to walk away from her when she was so upset with me.

Aki’s call from the bar when Lark showed up only made me want to quit that much more. But if I couldn’t be with her, at least I had a guy I trust looking out for Lark until I could make us right.

“East? Where are you going? We have to be in the theater in fifteen minutes.”

“Have you seen Aki?”

Dom scans the crowd, searching for the Dominican bartender we’ve both depended on more times than I can count. “Na, but he’ll be here if he said he was coming.”

Just as I’m debating if I have enough time to make it up to Lark’s room before show time, Aki rounds the corner. “How is she? Please tell me you know where she is.”

“I watched her all day. She pretty much drank and sat in her chair the whole time. Before I had to leave, she ate the food I brought her and then went back to her room.”

“How was she when you left her?”

“Stubborn, but decent. She wouldn’t let me walk her to her room like you wanted.”

“Why didn’t you follow her?”

“She doesn’t know me, man. It wasn’t right. I pointed her in the right direction and then I came here.”

“And she’s been drinking all day?”

He nods his head. “Yeah, I made all her drinks though. Had she been completely sober to begin with, she would have noticed I was shortchanging her on the alcohol. Thankfully, she was fine with what I was refilling her glass with. But she’s still had more than enough to feel it.”

“Thanks, Aki. I owe you one.”

“You don’t owe me anything. It’s actually pretty damn good to see you finally giving a shit about someone other than yourself. I thought you were a lost cause with all the tail you turn down, but you’re finally back in the game.”

“I wouldn’t say I’m back in the game. We’re both in The Perfect Match. It’s not like I picked her up at the bar.”

“Not entirely, but you did meet at the bar.”

“You know what I mean. She wasn’t a random hook-up. Meeting Lark was Gina’s doing.” Whether I was ready for her or not, Lark managed to get under my skin this week. Aki’s right, I’m invested.

“I’m just glad you told her about Shay. I’m not sure you could have gotten anywhere with that kind of secret hanging over your head.”

I snap my head in his direction wondering what he’s talking about. “I didn’t tell her a thing about Shay. If you let something slip, I swear to god, Aki.”

Aki holds his hands up as soon as he sees the rage building inside of me. It’s my decision when I decide to tell Lark, not his. I’m the only one who knows the entire story.

“She said she knew. I told her she can’t hold your past against you, not under the circumstances, but she didn’t seem to agree with me.”

I run my hand through my hair, wondering how things got so messed up so fast. Everything was fine. We were on the same page. “This makes no sense. Lark has no idea about Shay. I’m positive.”

“Maybe she’ll show up and then you’ll set the record straight. Right?”

I watch the door the entire time Aki’s talking to me. I couldn’t even tell you what he’s rambling about because Lark’s the only thing on my mind. Each minute that passes, I wait for her to walk through the door. But the longer I wait, and the closer it gets to show time, I realize she’s not coming. Whatever’s going on inside that pretty little head of hers, I’ll have to wait until after the show to find out what it is.

The cruise director takes the stage, announcing Midnight Fate. Dom gives me the signal and I move toward the curtain. Before I take my mark on the stage, I turn around one last time. “Aki, watch the door—just in case.”

“She’s not here, is she?” Dom asks, as I grab my guitar and sling it around my neck.

“Doesn’t appear to be.”

“Sucks, dude. I’m sorry it’s not working out, but thanks again for your help with Gina earlier. For a minute, I thought we were done.”

I love Dom like family, but the two of them fight constantly. Today wasn’t even the first time I’ve had to haul Gina’s drunk ass back to their room. And then it hits me like a tsunami crashing into the side of the ship, flipping us over and over with its force.
Lark saw me with Gina.
“Fuck!”

Dom cringes as he looks over his shoulder toward the manager’s office, waiting for all five feet of Buck to run out with our contract in hand, threatening to cancel it for the tenth time in six months. We’ve gotten more than one warning about our behavior, and constant reminders this isn’t one of our regular shows. As he would tell us, this is a job on a family oriented cruise line. Not that I needed reminding, I’m well aware of where I am and the world I left behind.