Angie had been right. The idea of their parents coming around to seeing the folly of a whirlwind courtship had not worked. If he was honest with himself, Dev had had little faith in the plan from the beginning but nonetheless had enjoyed every minute of it.
Even last night, after the dinnertime revelation, they continued the charade that for him was no longer an act. They held hands, he’d rubbed her shoulders when she stretched, and she’d patted his leg when he’d made a good guess. They’d laughed, teased, and the kiss goodnight at her door had lasted a fraction longer than it had the night before, which had been longer than the night before that.
Like it or not, they were going to have to have a heart to heart talk about how he really felt, if only he wasn’t too damn scared that it might be the last talk they had as soul mates and the beginning of tedious conversations as step siblings.
“You look awfully serious. Coffee cold?” His dad took a seat beside him.
“No, contemplating the immortality of the crab.” He looked at his watch. “Angie saved us lounge chairs in the sun. I was getting one last cup.”
“You two work well together.”
“Yeah, we do.” He looked over his dad’s shoulder in the direction of the coffee station he’d come from. He was used to always seeing his dad and Angie’s mom at each other’s side. “Where’s Julia?”
“We had breakfast earlier. She’s gone to stake her claim to the slot machine. I don’t expect to see her for a while.”
“She really is enjoying that thing. Do you think she’s developing a problem?”
“With gambling?” His dad shook his head. “No, she’s just having fun with it. It’s hard to lose much money with nickel slots, and I think some of it is just the rare opportunity to relive something she enjoyed a very long time ago.”
“If you’re sure.”
His father nodded. “Very sure.”
“I thought that’s what you would say.” Dev pushed his chair away from the table. “I wish the two of you this happiness for the rest of your lives.”
“That means a lot to me. To us. More than you can imagine.” His dad slapped him on the back of his shoulder. “Now, about you and Angie.”
The ship’s whistle broke the peaceful lull of a lazy afternoon in the sun.
“Wonder what that’s all about?” Angie didn’t bother opening her eyes. It was the first day she’d finally got to enjoy the sun and fresh air without having to be somewhere or do something.
“Last ship I was on, that blasted whistle went off every day with one medical call after another. It’s amazing how many people trip and sprain something or just plain collapse from the heat.” Renee looked around. “Wonder what’s taking so long to mix up one little old Heavenly Haze.” She placed her hand on Angie’s arm. “You were so right about those things. Dee-licious.”
“Just be careful. They pack quite a wallop.”
The whistle sounded once again.
“And here we go.” Renee huffed, scrunching her face and mimicking, “Alpha, alpha, alpha.”
Except the loudspeaker voice repeated, “Bravo, bravo, bravo.”
Renee’s eyes popped open. “That’s a new one.”
Dev’s gaze drifted around. “It’s a fire.”
“A fire?” Renee squealed, snapping upright.
“I do hope it’s nothing serious.” Angie looked around for any signs of real trouble.
“Here you go, ma’am.” A broad shouldered bartender with eyes as blue as the ocean and a smile that made a woman’s mind wander places it had no business going, flashed a wide smile and held out the tray for Renee.
“Thank you,” Renee practically drooled.
“Enjoy.” The good-looking guy turned on his heels.
Her gaze still lingering on the man’s departing back, Renee blew out a soft sigh, “If only.”
“Oh, my. Look at that!” A few chairs over, a woman with a huge floppy hat waved her fingers in her husband’s sleeping face with one hand and pointed in the distance with the other. “That doesn’t look good.”
A plume of dark gray smoke drifted upward from the front of the ship.
Once again, “Bravo, bravo, bravo” bellowed from the overhead speakers. This time the voice sent the fire crew to a different location than before. At least she thought it was different. “That woman is right. This doesn’t sound good.”
“The crew knows what they’re doing.” Dev’s calm words didn’t match the sharp look in his eyes as he scanned the deck and horizon.
It occurred to Angie if something were seriously wrong, if they were in trouble, the crew would be around to deal with the people, but there wasn’t a crewman in sight. Not even a bartender. Except for the woman still pointing at the smoke, most of the people outside seemed unconcerned with the situation. Heck, most of the people still soaking up the sun didn’t seem to notice there was a growing situation. A couple strolled past them, holding hands, chatting softly, oblivious to the smoke, the whistles, or the handful of folks like herself watching with interest. “I can’t decide if I’m crazy for wanting to know why there’s smoke coming from below deck, or if all these people are insane for preferring sunbathing over safety.”
Renee smiled at Angie before taking another sip from the fruity drink. “Small fires must happen on these ships more often than any of us would know. I’m sure the crew will take care of it quickly.”
“I have heard stories.” Angie nodded, putting her concerns in check. “My friend Michelle enjoys cruising and she had me rolling in laughter over a story while standing at the buffet when an electrical fire started. Lots of commotion, but in the end, no big deal.” That little memory made her feel quite a bit better. Dev and Renee were right. The ship’s crew knew what they were doing. “I’m not wearing my watch. How much longer till we’re supposed to meet up with Mom and Ray?”
“Thirty minutes at the Champagne lounge.”
“Ooh. I love champagne.” On her second Heavenly Haze, Renee’s already good mood was improving with every sip.
“Not sure why they call it that, but Mom really likes the music they play. She says it reminds her of growing up and the songs her mom liked to listen to.”
Dev looked at the darkening smoke and sliding his hand around her shoulder, pulled her closer, and kissed her temple. “I think it would be a good idea to head downstairs a little early. Maybe find our folks.”
Renee’s husband nodded. “That sounds like an excellent idea. Come on, Renee.”
“But I just got my drink.”
Steve extended his hand to his wife. “Honey, there’s more where that came from. We really should beat the crowds.”
“Beat the crowds?” Renee clutched her drink more tightly. “You go ahead. I’ll wait for you here.”
“Renee,” he said more sternly.
Several short blasts of the ship’s horn sounded, followed by one very long blast.
“So much for beating the crowds,” Dev muttered.
“Isn’t that…?” Angie wasn’t the only one unsure if the change in blasts was indeed an emergency signal. A few of the people who had been lying back, ignoring everything around them, sat up straight. Others who had been strolling stopped and looked up as if the sky would have answers printed in the clouds.
“Come on.” Dev grabbed a tight hold on her elbow and nudged her forward. “We can find your mom and my dad on our way to your room.”
“Let’s go, Renee.” Steve urged his wife to move quickly.
“I’m not leaving my drink.” On her feet, she threw her cover up over one arm and carried her drink in the other.
Angie almost stumbled to a stop, making a conscious effort to force her feet to move forward and keep pace with Dev.
The same multiple blasts followed by one long steady blast sounded again. The sound of the speakers clicking on preceded the captain’s voice, “All crew and staff to their assigned stations.” He repeated the instruction one more time before the speakers clicked off.
“Not good,” Steve muttered.
“Agreed.” Dev picked up his pace.
“Will you people slow down,” Renee fussed.
Once again the siren sounded, only this time the captain urged all passengers to report to their muster stations. The casual indifference shared by the passengers disappeared. With the exception of one woman slathered in tanning oil who merely turned the page on her paperback, the people lying on lounge chairs sprang up like a shepherd dog on alert for a fox. A few, carefully gathered their belongings into bags, or flung them over their arms while others already on their feet with their wares clutched to their chests, looked ready to bolt if only they had an idea of which way they should go.
“This is definitely not good.” Dev scanned left then right and pivoted her around. “Looks like we might get below faster this way.”
A flash of orange sparked to the side and a starting gun at a race couldn’t have done a better job at sending people scurrying away. The people who had been casually strolling from one end of the ship to the other, picked up the pace as though rushing to catch a departing train at Grand Central Terminal. Kids were having the time of their lives racing past them, laughing and screeching. A perspective not shared by the people leapfrogging over the abandoned loungers in an effort to hit the hallways first.
The strength of Dev’s arm pulled her more tightly against his side. “This isn’t going to be as easy as I’d like.”
At the doorway inside, the same guy who had served Renee her drink now donned a life jacket and pointed to the glass in her hand. “I’m sorry, ma’am, but no food or beverages at muster.”
“I’ll just wait here for y’all.” Renee pivoted in the direction they’d just come.
“Renee, this isn’t a drill,” her husband reminded her.
“Okay. Fine.”
Where Angie expected her new friend to put the drink down or hand it off, instead she kicked her head back and downed the entire thing in one very long swallow.
“This could get interesting,” Dev whispered in her ear.
“I’m afraid so.”
Compared to the near chaos on deck, inside the ship seemed much more orderly. Considering the captain had ordered all passengers to their muster stations, which meant first they had to go to their cabins to retrieve their life jackets, most people appeared to be milling about as if this were just another drill.
“I want to stop at my mother’s cabin.” Angie leaned into him but kept her eyes forward. “I know we’re not supposed to, but…”
“I know. Let’s see how it goes.” Dev wanted very much to give Angie what she wanted, but he knew how quickly this situation could turn. Even though she and her mom coincidentally shared the same floor, they were on opposite ends of the ship. As with any fire situation, elevators were blocked. The designated crew waved all passengers toward the staircases. Packed tighter than a can of sardines, moving the passengers down the stairwell was a very slow process. Hitting both rooms might be pushing their luck.
By the time they reached Julia and Ray’s floor a hint of smoky aroma teased at Dev’s nostrils, and strobe lights were flashing in the halls.
“Disco,” hands up in the air, Renee shook her shoulders and sing songed, “where the happy people go.”
Somehow Dev had missed when the woman who had downed her drink in a single gulp had slipped her shoes off, and now had one dangling from one hand, and in rhythm to her shimmying shoulders, twirled the other shoe from her other hand. Too bad there was no time to stop for coffee.
“Here we are.” Angie slowed as they approached her mother’s door. “Oh, it’s open.”
Dev reached the door a moment before she did and nudged the solid surface open all the way. The small room matched almost every other cabin on the ship. Except other passengers in their cabins were hurriedly banging doors, bumping into each other, retrieving the life jackets from the closet, and rushing back to the main stairways.
“Oh, dear.” Angie straightened. “What…?”
From where he stood, all Dev could see was a man’s rear end in dark shorts, white socks and sandals, with his head stuffed under the bed.
“Ooh. Party games!” Renee squealed, peeking over Dev’s shoulder, then her brows dipped and her mouth twisted into the perfect pout. “What game is that?”
“Never mind, dear.” Renee’s husband, tugged his wife away from the doorway. “We’ll get our jackets and meet you guys back on deck.”
Dev nodded and returned his attention to the man squirming on the ground. Angie had nailed it. “What the hell?”
A strong thud followed by “ouch” sounded seconds before Ray Miller scooted out from halfway under the bed, rubbing the back of his head with one hand and dragging a couple of orange life jackets out with the other. “Has anyone ever told you that your mother is one stubborn lady?”
Obviously he was talking to Angie. At least, Dev thought so.
His dad pushed to his feet. “Julia wanted more closet space so she put the jackets under the bed.”
“That explains why you were under the bed.” Angie nodded. “But what about my mother?”
“You mean where, not what. I can’t get her away from the slot machine.”
“What?” Angie flung her gaze from Ray back to Dev as if he had any answers.
“She thinks it’s nothing serious and will be over before we get the jackets.”
“That’s insane.” Angie blew out a deep sigh.
“That about covers it.” Ray nodded, walking past them. “Maybe you can explain it to her.”
Static sounded overhead and the captain made a muffled announcement. Between the commotion in the hall and the alarms in the background, it was hard as hell to understand.
“What did he say?” Ray stared up at the speaker in the ceiling.
Dev sighed. “They’re lowering the lifeboats.”