Her use of‘us’doesn’t go unnoticed. And a little tinge of excitement pushes back the disappointment I’ve felt since my team told me they don’t want me to be part of their pack.Perhaps this is fate. “Yes, I can get you and Emily back to America.”
In the background, a male voice says something I can’t make out. There’s a shuffling sound.
“Lucas?” Emily says. She sounds like a summer breeze, making even that one word come out bright and airy.
“Yes,docinho. I am here. Will you let me help you?”
“Well, that’s the thing. It’s not just me and Ava. My… well, um… it’s also an officer I know.” There’s a rumbling noise in the background that almost cuts off her last word. Did someone growl? “And a man he has in his custody. They’re friends of mine.” This time I’m certain someone growls. “And they need to get back to the U.S. as soon as possible. Can you help us?”
“Yes, I think I can.” My smile is wide and goofy at the possibilities. “How quickly can you get to the port of Le Havre?”
“A port? Do you have a boat? You’re planning to sail to America?”
I chuckle at the high-pitched squeak in her voice. “I have a cabin booked on a cruise ship.”
“You expect us all to cram into one cabin?” Emily asks with a note of panic. Again, I can hear talking in the background like they’re all conferring together.
“It is a pack suite.” The bonding suite, to be exact. “It will be plenty large. Though we will probably have to pretend to be a pack. At least for a bit. They do not let individuals book this package.”
The suite pictures looked like pack heaven with a jacuzzi tub big enough for a pile of soapy limbs and a massive bed frame with concealed hooks for kinkier groups. It’s an adults-only cruise and this room is top-of-the-line romantic.
“What would happen if they found out?”
I shrug, then realize she can’t see it. “I imagine they will not let us board if they think we are not a pack, but once we are out at sea, it might not matter.”
With so many travel plans ruined from the airline shutdown, and so many people rushing to get out of Paris, I imagine the cruise line could get a good deal of money for re-selling our ticket if they discover us breaking their rules. But once we’re in the Atlantic, there won’t be much they can do about it.
“I guess they could ban us all from future cruises if they found out,” I muse. Not that I plan to go on many cruises in the future. Not now that my pack dreams have been crushed. Going on a cruise by myself doesn’t have the same appeal. I was only planning on doing it this time because there’s a no refund policy, and I didn’t want the already paid room to go to waste. Booking this cruise cost a small fortune. Not that I couldn’t handle the loss. My bank account is healthy and wouldn’t suffer the expense. But I’m not in the habit of wasting money. And I deserve lazy pool days and endless drinks after this week.
“It would please me if you come,” I confess to Emily.
When she doesn’t answer right away, I imagine her blushing. The soft glow of pink her cheeks get when I flirt with her has been one of my favorite sights from this trip to Paris.
“We really don’t want to impose, but?—”
“It would not be an imposition. It would bring me joy to help you.”
“Alright,” Emily says after a beat, sounding resigned but optimistic. “What do we need to do?”
13
KNOX
The rest of our hodgepodge group might be pissed our flights were canceled, but personally I feel like I won the lottery. The cruise ship’s a giant, glittering playground bobbing on the ocean—equal parts resort, mall, and chaos factory of the seven deadly sins. There are waterslides on the top deck, ladies in bikinis sunning by the pool, and someone in a pineapple shirt announcing poolside bingo over the loudspeakers. And that's just what I can see from the check-in desk!
This boat’s my smooth-sailing miracle. A floating monument to overindulgence, set against the glittering Atlantic ocean waves and soft breeze. It’s beautiful. In an over-the-top, drunk-on-daiquiris kind of way. Music drifts from open-air decks, laughter rising like bubbles from the bars, and everything smelling faintly of salt and sunscreen.
I’ve always wanted to go on a cruise, but this is better than I could have dreamed. A week of all expenses paid luxury? Yes, please! If I’m going down because my little Glenn plan doesn’t work, I want to live it up first.
Emily being here is the icing on the cake. Spending what could be my last days of freedom with my first love. Yeah, I’ll take that deal.
If only I didn’t have to spend the week with tightass Mr. DEA, too.
The rest of Emily’s friends seem cool enough, and Gunner and I are basically besties now. Probably because I kept sneaking him food in the hotel.
Lucas is the kind of sweet pretty boy I’d love to play dress up with, maybe we can steal Declan’s handcuffs and play cops and robbers. Nah, he’s too adorable to play either of those, but I wouldn’t mind having him on his knees in his rugby uniform.
I can already tell Ava’s a bit of a hot mess, clingy as lint, and as much of a control freak as the nun who taught my catechism class in junior high. But I kind of dig it. Sometimes the ones with attitudes are the most fun to break. Or let break me.
