“Look who I found in the hall,” Lydia said to the table of people they were approaching. Her voice was much kinder than it had been outside, as though she’d flipped on a switch.
“Uncle Ben!” Brady shouted in a flash of navy and red as he ran into Ben’s arms.
“Hey, Braidster!” Ben tossed him above his head, laughing, and Brady’s giggles filled the air.
“Ben,” admonished a tall, slender woman who looked so much like her brother that Katie knew at once she was Laura. “Don’t toss him like that. His tummy is full of lunch and you’re going to make him sick. Not to mention that you might drop him.”
“I’m not going to drop the Braidster,” Ben said as he held Brady to him with his muscular arms wrapped securely around the child’s hips. Suddenly, Ben’s mouth popped open in a breathy “O” as he teased his nephew by releasing him for a split second and then catching him again. He did it several times in quick succession, with Brady squealing louder each time he was dropped.
“Brady, stop squealing,” Laura said. “Ben, you’re getting him all riled up.”
“This is Ben’s friend, Kate,” Lydia said to the group, lingering a little extra on the label.
“Uh, it’s Katie actually,” Katie said as she lifted her hand in greeting. “Only my sister calls me Kate.”
Lydia’s brows rose. “I could have sworn my son just introduced you as Kate. Did I hear him incorrectly?”
“And Ben,” Katie added awkwardly as she made eye contact with him over Brady’s head. “Ben calls me Kate.”
The gray-haired gentleman stood and shook her hand, introducing himself as Ben’s dad, Martin. “You’d like us to call you Katie?”
“Uh, Kate is fine,” Katie said, despite protesting the name all her life.
Ben stepped forward to stand beside her. “She prefers Katie.”
She was surprised to hear him speak up for her. They’d never had a conversation regarding her preference for her name. In fact, she couldn’t remember ever hearing Ben say her name.
“I met Katie through her sister, who’s a close friend, so I was introduced to her as Kate, and the name kind of stuck. I need to work harder at unlearning it.”
Katie sent him an appreciative glance as he stepped forward to hug his father, and then she turned her focus to Ben’s sister, who was now standing and watching her alongside a tall blond gentleman.
“I’m Laura,” she said, “Ben’s sister, and this is my husband, Dale. That’s our son, Brady. It’s nice to meet you. We live so far away we rarely get to meet any of Ben’s friends.”
“Where do you live?” Katie asked, and then she realized that was probably an answer Ben’s girlfriend should know.
“In a small town in Northern California. I doubt you’ve heard of it. We lived here in Miami for a while, but we moved back home to be closer to Mom and Dad after Brady was born. Brady, can you say hello to Uncle Ben’s friend?”
“Are you his girlfriend? Do you kiss him on the mouth?” Brady asked, and Ben laughed as his sister chastised her son.
“Brady! That’s rude. Where on earth did you come up with such a thing? You need to apologize now. Say you’re sorry to Kate…er, Katie.”
“He’s fine,” Katie said. “He doesn’t have to apologize.”
“Yes, he does,” Laura insisted. “Brady, apologize now.”
“I’m sorry,” Brady said, his smile gone and his entire demeanor so crestfallen Katie couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.
“It’s okay,” she told him.
“I’m curious to hear the answer to the question,” said Dale with a leering grin. “The first one. The second one I can guess.”
“The answer is yes,” Ben said as he set Brady back on the ground. “Katie has officially taken me off the market.”
He put his arm around her waist, and the sudden closeness sent a ripple of gooseflesh skittering across her skin.
The peal of electronic chimes filled the air, and a man with an Italian accent introduced himself over the PA system before instructing all passengers to return to their room for the muster drill procedure.
“That’s the safety video thing, right?” Katie said to Ben. “I read we have to watch it and then check in somewhere.”
Brady turned to Laura. “Do we have to do that?”
Laura squatted in front of him, tucking her thumb beneath his chin. “Yes, everyone must do it. We’ve done it before, remember? They teach us how to get to the lifeboats in case the ship was to sink. That’s why you need to stay with Mommy and Daddy all the time, so that if something happens and the ship does start to sink, we’ll be able to get in the lifeboat together.”
“Christ, Laura,” Dale said, scowling. “Way to terrify the kid. This ship isn’t going to sink, buddy.”
“That’s what the passengers on the Titanic said.” Martin laughed at his own sick joke, but he was the only one of the group who did.
Laura took Brady’s hand and then nudged Dale. “We should go.”
Dale sat back down in his chair as he held his glass up toward his wife. “I haven’t finished my drink. I’m not going anywhere until I do.”
Laura frowned and put her hand on her hip. “They’re trying to clear the lounge, and the longer we stay, the crazier the elevators are going to get. Brady can’t do nine flights of stairs, Dale.”
“By the time I finish my drink, most of these people will be back in their rooms and the elevators will be fine.”
“Yes, but then everyone would be waiting for us. They can’t end the muster drill until everyone has watched the video and checked in at their station. You know that.”
Dale’s eyes were hard as he stared at his wife. “I’m going to sit here and finish my drink, and no one is going to rush me. If you want to go, go.”
“C’mon,” Ben said to Katie, and the two of them followed Martin and Lydia out of the lounge with Laura and Brady close behind.
Martin clapped Ben on the shoulder as the group walked toward the elevators. “It’s nice to see you, son. I’m glad you could make it. Things still going well in Barcelona?”
“Yes, sir. Very well. I sold another sculpture this week.”
“That’s good, that’s good. You keep doing your thing.” Martin’s wide grin was similar to his son’s, and Katie realized Ben and Laura both took after their father more than their mother. “Katie, we didn’t get to talk much with this muster business, but we’ll see the two of you for dinner, no?”
“Yeah, we’ll be there,” Ben responded. “Six-thirty, right?”
Lydia leaned forward to look at her son. “You should be there at six-ten. The closer it gets to the seating time, the more crowded it is at the doors. And please do dress appropriately.”
Katie hadn’t realized the last comment was directed to her until she noticed Lydia giving a once-over, allowing her pierce gaze to drift down Katie’s body.
The disdain evident in the appraisal left Katie feeling exposed, even though the sundress she wore came to her knees and covered her breasts completely, leaving only her shoulders and arms bare. Still, she was tempted to cross her arms over her chest to hide from Lydia’s scrutiny, but before she could give in to the urge, Ben put his arm around her in what felt like a protective move.
“We know how to dress, Mother.”
“I was just trying to be helpful, dear. Based on her comment about the muster drill, she clearly hasn’t cruised before.”
Ben’s arm tightened around her ever so slightly. “No, but we’ve both eaten in restaurants, and not surprisingly, the dress code at sea is much the same.”
An elevator opened, but it already had several people inside it, so Ben motioned for his family to go ahead.
“You guys take this one. We’ll wait for the next one.”
To her surprise, he didn’t move his arm from her shoulders once his family had gone, and to her even greater surprise, she didn’t either. It felt nice. Comfortable. Close.
It was only seconds before another elevator opened, and since this one was less crowded, Ben stepped forward and held the door with his hand so she could enter.
“All things considered, I think that went pretty well,” Katie said once they’d exited the elevator and were alone. “Wouldn’t you say?”
Ben stopped and turned to stare at her, his eyes wide and his brows high on his forehead. “What was with that kiss? I mean, I’m not complaining, not one single iota, but I sure didn’t see that coming.”
Katie flushed hot with the memory of the kiss and the embarrassment of his questioning. “I was following your signal, your lead. What made you change your mind?”
“What are you talking about? What signal?”
“When I came out of the bathroom, you were telling your mother you were interested in me and asking her to be nice. I figured you must have changed your mind and decided to go with Plan B—trying to convince her you’re in a relationship and happy.”
“Oh, I was definitely happy in that moment.”
“But that’s what you were doing, right?” Katie crossed her arms and shrank into herself a bit as she began to suspect that she might have screwed up. “You were setting up the ruse? Please tell me I didn’t totally misread the situation and kiss you out of nowhere for no reason.”
“No, you’re good. And hey, even if you had, it was worth it. That was some kiss!”
He grinned as he headed toward their room, and Katie laughed as she followed him with a mixture of relief and bashfulness, wishing the memory of the kiss didn’t still make her lips tingle.
What if they needed to kiss again before the week was through? She wasn’t opposed to the idea, but how would she explain to her ridiculously overreactive body that it was all pretend?
“Hey, and I’m sorry about the Kate thing,” Ben said as they continued down the passageway toward their room. “That’s what I’ve always heard Maya call you, so I guess I assumed it was your name. I should have paid better attention. I’ll work on calling you Katie from now on.”
“We’ve already told your family that you call me Kate, so you might as well keep doing it. It’s okay. I don’t hate the variation. I’ve just always preferred Katie. Which is probably why Maya started calling me Kate when we were young, but honestly, it was so long ago, I don’t even remember why she started. But it stuck. To her, I’m Kate. And to you, I suppose. I noticed your mother calls you Benjamin.”
“Or Benjamin David, if she’s mad.”
“She seemed…nice.”
Ben cut his eyes toward her. “Pfft. No, she didn’t, and you don’t have to say that.”
“We’re supposed to be positive, remember?”
He unlocked their door and stepped aside so Katie could enter. “We may be lying to everyone else, but we need to stay honest with each other.”
“We forgot to tell someone to make it twins,” she said as she stared at the bed.
“No problem. I’ll call the room steward. Turn on the TV so we can watch the safety video. Once it’s done, they’ll tell us a number to call to verify we’ve seen it, and then we’ll have to go check in at our muster station.”
She grabbed the remote to turn on the television while Ben called, but he got no answer.
“The stewards may be participating in the muster drill somehow. It’s fine. We’ll find someone before they do turndown.”
They watched the safety video and checked in at their assigned station, and then the two of them went up on the highest deck for the sail-away celebration.
“We’re moving,” Katie said as she grabbed onto the rail, “but I don’t feel us moving. I see that we’re passing things, but I don’t feel the movement.”
“You might not feel it much the entire trip. Some are more sensitive to it than others. It rocks and sways more if the seas get rough or if the ship is in a hurry to be somewhere, but of the most part, the stabilizers do their job and it’s smooth sailing.”
Once the ship was underway, Ben nudged Katie with his elbow. “We probably should head back downstairs if you want to shower before dinner.”
“Ah, I do, but I hate to leave this view.”
“It’s gonna be pretty much the same for the next few days except when we’re in port. In the daytime, we’re surrounded by beautiful turquoise blue water, and at night, we’re surrounded by the deepest, darkest black you’ve ever seen.”
“Can we come up back up here at night?”
“Of course.”
They went back to the room, pleased to find their luggage had already arrived. After deciding who got which drawer and shelf, they began to unpack.
“I was thinking I’ll hop in the shower first, if that’s okay,” Ben said as he gathered his clothes for dinner. “I’ll only be a few minutes, and then I can head out so you have the room to yourself to get ready.”
“That would be great, thanks. I’ll take a walk. How much time do you need?”
“Oh, I can get dressed in the bathroom. You don’t have to go anywhere.”
“Are you sure? I don’t mind.”
“It’s up to you. If you want to take a walk, then by all means, you should. But if you’d rather hang out in here to finish unpacking, I’m fine changing in the bathroom.”
He was done and dressed for dinner by the time she had everything put away, and at the sight of him in a black dress shirt and black dress pants with his hair still damp from the shower, she questioned her sanity for ever thinking this was a good idea.
“You look nice,” she said, breathing in the clean, woodsy scent of his cologne as he rolled back the cuffs of his sleeves.
“Thank you. The water gets extremely hot very quickly, so be careful. I left the dial in a spot that was perfect for me, but I’m not sure how you like your water. I’m going to head out, but you should be able to message me through that ship app we downloaded onto your phone. Just buzz me when you’re ready, and I can either meet you here or somewhere near the dining room.”
“Got it. What about the beds?”
“Usually, the room steward comes by to introduce themselves, so I hope we didn’t miss them when we were out exploring earlier. I’ll try and track someone down, but if they happen to stop by while you’re getting ready, just tell them we need separate sleeping arrangements. We can try to call again, too.”
“Okay, I’ll do that while you’re gone, just in case you don’t find them and they don’t stop by.”
She got ready as quickly as she could, not wanting to keep him waiting and not wanting to make them late to meet his parents.
The black dress was borrowed from Maya, and she’d loved it when she tried it on at home, but it hadn’t seemed so short back then. It fit great, and it showcased her legs quite well, which was why she’d liked it at the time, but she feared Lydia might find it inappropriate.
With a swear beneath her breath, she went through the closet again to find an alternative, but with two nights being formal and two others being themed, her options for tonight were limited. All of them were short, which was evidently the only style of dress Maya wore.
As the clock marched closer to their meeting time for dinner, she finally decided that she wouldn’t allow Lydia to determine her skirt length or what was appropriate for her.
The dress covered everything it should and was neither too revealing nor too tight. And though the skirt was a few inches above her knee, it was no more leg exposed than there would be in a swimsuit or a pair of short shorts.
After one more unsuccessful attempt to reach the room steward by phone, she grabbed the tiny black handbag she’d packed specifically to use at dinner, and then she headed up to meet Ben at a bar near the dining room.
Just as she had in the airport, she spotted him first, and she knew the moment he saw her. His eyes widened ever so slightly, and his lips parted, and all she could think about was the kiss they’d shared earlier.
“Hi,” she said, tugging at the hemline of the skirt.
“You look incredible,” Ben replied. “Wow. How on earth did I get so lucky? I have the most beautiful pretend girlfriend in the world.”
Katie grinned as she playfully tapped his arm with the handbag. “Well, you set the bar pretty high, so I had to rise to your level. Unfortunately, I think this skirt rose with me. Do you think it’s too short?”
She tugged at the hemline again as she looked down at the skirt, and then she looked back up at Ben.
“You’re asking me, a guy, if I think your little black dress is too short? C’mon. How do you expect me to answer that? It’s like asking me to run through a minefield.”
“I expect you to tell me the truth.”
“The truth? Okay. I’m sure you realize that you have great legs, Kate. I mean, I know you have mirrors in your home, so you must. And that dress with those legs?” He whistled soft and low. “Perfection. I wouldn’t change a thing.”
“Thanks, now how about giving me an honest answer from your mother’s point of view instead of a guy’s? Is it too short to be appropriate for dinner?”
“Is that what this is about?” He rolled his eyes and swore. “Please don’t let her rent space in your head. If you’re comfortable wearing it, wear it. What she thinks should have no bearing on the decision. It doesn’t matter.”
“But it does matter. She’s your mother. I want to make a good impression. I mean, you know, for the, uh, the pretending thing.”
“The only opinion that should matter is your own. Do you like the dress?”
“Yeah,” she said, looking down at it again. “It’s Maya’s, and I loved it when I put it on at home, but it didn’t seem so short then.”
“I don’t know what you want me to say. The dress is fine, and you look great in it. You look like a million bucks, and I bet you’ll turn every head on this ship. But if you’re uncomfortable and you’re gonna be pulling at the skirt all night, then go change. I’ll wait here. But do it for you, not because of my mother.”
Katie bit down on her lip, smoothing her hands over the dress. She did know she had great legs. She’d always considered them her best physical feature. And she liked the way the dress fit. It had made her feel good the first time she tried it on, and she hated that she’d allowed Lydia to change that. Screw Lydia! Ben was right. His mother’s opinion should have no bearing on what Katie wore.
She lifted her chin, squaring her shoulders as she smiled. “All right. Well, if I look like a million bucks, why on earth would I change?”
“My thoughts exactly.” Ben motioned toward the menu card on the bar in front of him. “Would you like a drink before we head down to dinner?”
“Don’t we need to get going? Your mom said to meet them at ten after.”
“They don’t open the dining room until six-thirty, so if we get down there at six-ten, we’ll stand around and wait for twenty minutes with my family. I’d rather wait here at the bar. With you. So, I texted my dad that we’d be there when the dining room opens.”
“Sounds good to me.” She hoisted herself onto the barstool next to him, praying she didn’t flash him in the process as the skirt rode up her thighs.
“What would you like?” Ben asked. “A glass of wine? A cocktail? A soda?”
“What are you having? It looks refreshing.”
“Cranberry and seltzer, with a twist of lime. Would you like one?”
“Oh, I forgot. You did say you don’t drink. Something else you have in common with my sister. Was that from her influence as well?”
“No. I had stopped drinking long before I met Maya.”
“I remember now that she said you helped her when she and Louise broke up. Was it you that convinced her to stop drinking?”
He took a sip from his glass before answering. “I don’t know that anyone can really convince another person to stop drinking. It’s a decision they must make for themselves. But I tried to be there for Maya in whatever way I could when she was ready to make that choice.”
“Thank you. I’m glad you were there for my sister and that she had someone like you to lean on.”
“She’s my friend,” Ben said, shrugging one shoulder. “We lean on each other.”