Chapter 11 The Cruise
Friday April 15 Midday
It was after 16:00 when we finally had everyone on board and settled. Stephanie knew we were in the same cabin, with one queen sized bed, but wasn't pitching a fit about it. I had told her that there were limited rooms on the ship and that we needed to share. It was a relief to know she was beginning to seem more accepting to the fact that we would be spending time together. Her accepting this situation, for me was the biggest win of the get-a-way.
Once onboard and settled into their larger exterior rooms, I texted everyone to meet for a family meeting at 16:30 in the dining room annex on level 4. The first thing I did when arriving in my and Stephanie's small 7x10 exterior room was to set up a cell phone system on top of the five-foot long white dresser. It had six drawers but it was a short dresser with two sets of three drawers side by side. The queen bed was on the far wall, underneath three port holes, covered in a beige and sea-foam green bedspread with a white square headboard and small white nightstands with a drawer on each side. The floor was covered in a white linoleum tiles splattered with green and yellow speckles. The right wall was split, one third being a small closet with white slatted doors and the other two-thirds a small bathroom with an airplane sized sink, toilet, and a two-foot by two-foot shower with a glass door that swung outward and locked in place.
Once we got out to sea there would not be any cell towers close enough to have working internet, so for one day the family would have to do without. I knew over long distances this system could broadcast for miles but wasn't sure in the closed steel ship how many floors the system would work through. I hoped that it would work on at least the five surrounding floors up and down. I stacked our luggage carefully in the small closet and worked the doors closed.
Most of my family was housed two floors above us, as they needed the bigger rooms that could sleep four to five people. Oshanna and my grandmothers were on the same hallway with me. My men were spread out in seven different rooms, four on the floor with most of my family and three on the floor we were on, and my brother (wide grin) was in an interior room on the second to the bottom level. It was at least a fifteen-minute and four flights of stairs walk for him to get anywhere. Skylar had done it again fulfilling all of my requests and desires too. Someday she deserved to find another good man to fill her life and be a father to Danny.
Dan "The Danger Man" had always lived up to his name and until he showed back up after a long leave, with a ring and a son on the way, we never thought he would settle down. Always one to tempt fate, he was still as daredevil reckless as ever, nothing had changed in who he was. He had saved my life more than once, but it was the kind of thing that you don't keep track of, just that you do for one another without thought. He had promised to take care of Julie and Rachel if I didn't make it, so I had no qualms about returning that promise to him.
It wasn't till we were on leave at the same time, when Danny was about nine months old, that I had called and was my usual abrupt self with Skylar while Dan wasn't available one night. When he called me back to chew me a new one, he told me that she walked on water and was his princess and I was to always treat her as such. He didn't care how I treated my women, or talked to my momma, I was to always treat her with great deference and respect and be over the top appreciative that she lived on this planet and be grateful she ever let me breathe the same air or I didn't have to worry about enemy fire 'cause he would take my ass out.
So I learned how to talk to Skylar because every time I called he would see my number and have her answer the phone, and when we were on base or away on missions he took great pride in handing me his phone so I could stumble through being nice to her. It began to be a great joke between us until that fateful night he stepped in the path of an IUD in front of me and didn't come home breathing. That night she became my princess and Danny my prince and I their knight in tarnished armor. I will never be able to do enough for them to pay him back for the many times he saved me. But I do all the little things I can because a little of his love for them lives on, through me.
She had done it again, always over the top doing the best work and knowing it was top-secret travel arrangements that she made. Something no one could ever search, find, or trace back to me. She was an angel to put up with him, and all of us that tagged along as his friends. Never complaining about our crazy work that he couldn't talk about or the nightmares that came with it. It's funny, as abrupt as I still am with Stephanie on the phone, I wouldn't tolerate anyone else disrespecting her. She gives me a glimpse of what their relationship must have been like, because Skylar was the world to Danger. She made him a more complete person and healed him of the unseen wounds our line of work produced. Stephanie has that effect on me, I have just been too slow to acknowledge it and embrace her place in my life and heart as the light to my dark, dark world, as the magic that heals my wounds and makes me feel like I could be whole again.
I shook myself out of this line of thought, readying myself to round up my family and get them prepared for the rules of the cruise. I used the satellite phone to contact Tank and find out the status of the crew and passenger review being conducted on all people on-board the ship and the island.
"There is only one crew member that was flagged for having heavy debt and a previous record for stealing. It was over eight years ago or he wouldn't have been able to get the job on The Retreat with Blue Island Cruise Lines. There are nine passengers flagged that are all single men, three who have booked in the past 24 hours. But running them through the system they all seem stable, with long term jobs, two with houses, and good credit histories. All three that booked in the past 24 hours did so on a website that offers special deals for last minute cruises. It seems to specialize in filling up the empty rooms on a cruise at a great discount." Tank said.
"There are only five crew on the island and they all check out, three in the kitchen, one to clean the cabins and help out in the dining room and one activities coordinator. Most of them have worked for the cruise line for more than three years. They actually take them off this cruise ship for the time they are on the island and the ship works without them. The shortest time one has worked for the cruise line is a year and a half. I would say that you are safe on the ship as long as everyone stays with their bodyguard." Tank reported.
"Word is getting around that you are searching for these men and everyone and their neighbors are calling in tips. First, an unidentified Middle Eastern man was found floating in Newark Bay with his hands and feet tied. He is reported to be missing three fingers and part of an ear." I shook my head knowing that however Mukhtar got mixed up with these guys he had to know that protecting Stephanie would cost him and I owed his family for the sacrifice that saved her.
"Second, we have found the hotel room the video was shot in, a small non-chain family owned motel off 95, outside Trenton. They must have wrapped Stephanie in one blanket, the other blanket was found wrapped around the body behind a dumpster. When they checked the room out it was untouched except for missing its blankets, the beds don't appear to have been slept in. I have men going over it now to see if we can find any clues.
These guys are randomly being sighted all over and we are checking out all plausible leads but word on the street is that five foreign men with crates of hardware hired a small plane to fly them out of Newark. They had too much hardware and had to cancel that plane and shop around to find a larger plane. Rumor has them finally leaving on a King Air B200, privately owned and flown by a James Robinson, age 53, resident of Newark, who has been flying since he was in the army as a cargo pilot thirty years ago. The hanger has no names, and reports that they had a full tank of gas. No flight plan was filed and they left in the middle of the night, last night. One rumor is that they were headed out west but I have not been able to nail that down."
"Keep me updated with anything new." I told him and I disconnected. I was left wondering if they had identified us loading onto the Concorde, found the filed flight plan and followed it to Montana, and how long would it take them to realize they were tricked.
I waited in the elegant dining room that was filled with white cloth covered round tables, the soft evening lighting created by tall chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. The walls had a creamy egg-shell, wallpaper that was colored with three different colors of green swirls. The dark green carpet had streaks of different dark red and blue colors in square shaped patterns. My family congregated at 14:40, everyone arriving on time but Angelia and her kids. I sent Marc down to her room as there was no response by text from her bodyguard Woody. I started the meeting without them not wanting to hold everybody up.
"Everybody have a seat." I began knowing with all the children there I needed to keep this brief and to the point. "Dinner will be in this room at six o'clock sharp. We will all eat in here together for ease and security, because your guards have to eat at the same time you do. Breakfast is between six and eight in here as well. I expect we can be packed up and off the ship by nine. That will give us time to get settled in the cabanas-"
"Carlos! We can't get off the ship at 9:00. There are a lot of things we want to do on the ship, since we are only going to be onboard for one day." Isabella pleaded.
"Yeah, the kids were already planning out their activities, mini golf, dodgeball at 10 am, crafts at 11:30, mini cooking class at noon, laser tag at 1, scavenger hunt at 2, Battle of the Ages at 3, there are movies in the theater all day and a gaming room with Dance Fever II as well as dozens of other games." Leyla added.
My phone beeped with a text from Marc. One quick glance showed: NP Bathroom issue, 15 min.
"Seriously you can't expect us to leave the ship at 9 am. I was going to have a mani/pedi and I can't get an appointment in the salon till 1. I'm not going to be able to get one for two whole weeks, my manicure is going to be ruined by then." Oshanna whined.
Damn, I had every intention of getting them off this tug boat and secured on the island as soon as possible. "Ok," I regrouped, "Dinner is at six on the island. If everyone is packed up in the morning we can plan to leave the ship at 5pm. You will have to handle your own luggage for the most part as the men will be handling their own. That will give us time to assign cabanas, dump your luggage, and make it to the dining room by six. Meals on the island are at more specific times with snacks put out in between, so if you want a meal you have to make it to the kitchen on time."
"Ship rules: everyone stays with your bodyguards, they must be in your sight at all times. You can use your phones onboard but there is no working internet till we are on the island. Bodyguards report positions every hour. There is safety in groups so stay together and have fun. Dismissed." I ordered, even as I realized I was treating my family like they were in the military. My family, however, didn't seem to notice I was abrupt in my dismissal and all started talking and heading for the door.
I turned to Stephanie. "Did you see the list of activities for tonight and tomorrow? Is there anything specific you want to do while you are on board?"
She smiled at me. "I want to see the comedy show tonight, and tomorrow I haven't even looked but Oshanna made a good point. If we are going to be on an island for the next two weeks I need a manicure and pedicure. Well at least a pedicure. I hate looking at my toes in sandals if the polish is all messed up."
"Come on." I took her hand and led her back to our room. I dug out the flyer that had the ships amenities on it and called the salon. They had open appointments in the afternoon and I reserved all open times at 1, 1:30, 2 and 3.
"Babe, they only have afternoon appointments in the salon, what time do you want to go?"
"When is everyone else going? I would like to go with your sisters so I have someone to talk to."
Then I texted my mother, grandmothers, Rachel and all my sisters. I explained that I understood they wouldn't have nail opportunities for the next two weeks and that I had reserved the salon for the afternoon. I gave them the reservation times and told them to call the salon, schedule an appointment and text me their times.
Then I texted Angelia. 'I know you were having difficulties, we missed you at the meeting. In short: Stick with your bodyguard, keep him in sight at all times. Pack in the morning, have fun all day. We leave the ship at 5pm. Dinner on the island at 6. My men will be handling their own luggage but if yours are ready early I will find you help with all of yours. I don't expect you to carry 8 bags by yourself.'
A moment later my phone started to beep incessantly.
'Oshanna 1pm.' 'Isabella 2pm.' 'Leyla 2pm.' 'Your father, grandmothers and I will take turns watching your kids while you get your nails done.' 'Sanja, Rosa, Maria 3pm.' 'Rachel and Julie 1:30.' I hadn't even thought about Julie wanting to get her nails done. Did they start doing that in a salon at 12? It was just one more thing about her life I didn't know.
Stephanie called the Salon and scheduled for 1. A few minutes later my phone binged with: 'Angelia 1:30. Thank you Carlos' I guess they ran out of 1 o'clock appointments because I know if Angelia could she would have her nails done with Oshanna.
I didn't know what else was on the agenda, I just took Stephanie in my arms and pulled her close breathing in the scent of her strawberry shampoo and slightly citrusy skin. I could lose myself in her if I let go and with everything going on I couldn't afford to but just for a moment I held her close and let the world wash away.
She looked up at me, the question plain on her face. "Babe." It was all I could say and with it said, 'I love you, I need you, for a moment I just had to hold you.' I released her and said, "Everyone is running around the ship packing it in. What do you want to do? Dinner is in an hour and fifteen."
"I was looking at the ships schedule. There are two different bars having shows starting at 5: 'Find your favorite Martini' where they make up dozens of different types of Martini's and you get to try different ones, for a fee, and 'What's that Drink?' If you guess what the bartender mixes up you get to drink it for free."
"Drinking before dinner is what you want to go do?"
"It's been a stressful couple of days. I think a drink to relax a little, now that we are safe, is a good idea for both of us." She poked me in the chest as she made her point and then put her hand on my shoulder and ran it down my arm to my hand and squeezed. She released it suddenly, pulled out her phone, and began typing furiously away. A few moments later her phone was pinging and she summarized the messages for me.
"Oshanna can join us, I don't know about Julio but Angelia is taking her kids to the PlayHouse, a room for kids ages three to seven. Let's go down the hall and get Oshanna."
I internally rolled my eyes. Oshanna was my baby sister and yes, I loved her, but she is very selfish, self-absorbed, and totally fashion conscious. She never finished her degree in fashion design because she interned at a designer's and got a job. That led to her current job in a fashion house that she was doing so well at but she would always be limited as an underling unable to get out on top until she finished her degree.
"You need to step out in the hall. I have been sweating in this outfit all day and I need to change." She pushed me towards the door as she spoke. I let her, knowing I could be an immovable rock if I wanted but didn't want to upset her and have her pitch a fit about sharing a room with me. Seven minutes later she came out, her hair pulled back on both sides but loose down the back, wearing jeans and a pink t-shirt with the same sandals.
"Ok, I'm ready now." She announced.
"Ok," I told her, "let me get one thing." I walked quickly to my bag and got two condoms from the box buried in my bag. I slipped one into my pocket and one under my watch. I knew I was being overly hopeful, but a few drinks might lower her resistance. Regardless I was going to be prepared for all eventualities.
After Rachel, I always made sure I was prepared for the possibility of sex ahead of time even while out on missions. I learned to not only have protection but to always have it ready and with-in arms reach. In the Rangers, Jerry showed me how he always carried three on him. One in his pocket, one in his boot, and one under his watch.
When you get the girl, and are getting naked the one in your pocket goes on the nightstand as your clothes come off. After round one, if things got going again you roll over and get the second one out of the boot that you always place by the side of the bed. Then he usually fell asleep. But when he woke up later for round number three he didn't have to get out of bed. He has the last 'magic' condom under his watch ready to go. Three rounds for me can be a warm up, so I usually just start out with a whole box of six on the night stand to announce my intentions. But I couldn't be so blatant with Stephanie. Nothing would have her running faster than seeing me with a condom. One in my pocket and one under my watch would get the night started if it happened to turn romantic.
I locked up our room and followed Stephanie down the narrow hall to where Lester stood guarding Oshanna's room. She knocked on the door and Oshanna came out wearing a tight black miniskirt and a low-cut black and white shirt that crisscrossed over her chest, giving anyone who looked an ample view of her C+ endowments. "Julio is going to meet us there. He said he has to change before coming." She announced.
What he had to do was dress to impress the chicks he was hoping to find onboard. Oshanna led the way with Lester two steps behind her. "Come on Babe." I put my hand on the small of her back and led her down the hallway so narrow we could barely walk side by side.
The Blue Lagoon Lounge was aptly named as the walls were all blue, starting with a barely there sky blue at the ceiling and slowly darkening as it traveled to the floor. At waist height it was a deep royal blue, almost turning black by the time you got to the bottom. All the way around the room sea life were painted on the walls. Fish of every size and color, turtles, dolphins, sharks, the whole right wall was a complicated reef that looked like a scene out of Finding Nemo. The floor was some black sparkly flooring, that covered the entire thirty-foot long by sixty-foot wide room. The right one-third of the room was covered in black square tables with four elegantly scrolled chairs at each one, with the bar all the way at the far end. The next part of the room was an empty dance floor with a disco ball turning in the middle, shining dazzling lights all around the floor and walls. On the left side of the room were a few more rows of staggered tables and chairs.
When we entered the lounge, the seating around the bar was half filled as they were just getting started. I steered Stephanie toward one table in the back of the room and she took my hand and dragged me up towards the front. "We can't sit all the way back here, we will never see or hear anything." She told me. I nodded at Lester to stay in the back and followed her up to the front of the room.
I led her to the table closest to the bar on the right, next to the wall and pulled out an elegant black welded chair from our little table that had a lit votive in the middle for Stephanie to sit in. She was now sitting with her back to the wall facing the bar. I took the chair to the right of her. I angled it so my back was to the corner that was ten feet behind me, the bar was on my right, the wall was on my left. I could watch the door, the bar, and all the patrons. Oshanna sat next to Stephanie, across from me.
Julio hung back in his pressed slacks and tight-fitting button up light brown silk shirt, choosing to sit by himself at a table in the middle of the room close to a table of four women who appeared to be together and in their twenties. He was my brother and though he hadn't developed his body as much as I had, he was almost as handsome as me, with a body that was quite muscular. He wasn't bulked up but had good definition in his chest and arms that showed through the thin shirt. I wasn't here to impress anyone but began feeling underdressed in my RangeMan t-shirt and black army boots.
No sooner had I sat down than my phone began dinging with texts so I turned the alerts to vibrate only and watched the texts come in. Both grandmas were at a show together with my parents; Isabella, Leyla and Angelia were all in the kid's play rooms for the different ages. Rachel and Julie were on the deck playing miniature golf.
A young black woman with a weave, looking starched in her tightly pressed blue uniform came in front of the bar and started the show, microphone in hand.
"Good Evening, my name is Shandra and I will be your host for 'What's That Drink?'. For the next fifty minutes we are going to make drinks and if you can guess the name of the drink you get to drink it for free. If you want to try a drink that we make, show me your room key and we will start you a tab. My colleague Todd is going to be mixing up the drinks and I will announce their ingredients as he does. We will not be specific with the amount of each ingredient, there are some drinks that are called one thing if 1 ounces of an alcohol is used and called something different if 2 ounces of that same alcohol is used. Either name will win you the drink. You just need to name a drink that has all of the ingredients used in it.
"Now the first drink may have been one of your old favorite reruns, 'cause no one here looks old enough to have seen it when it was first run. The ingredients are vodka, peach schnapps, orange juice and cranberry juice."
To my shock, Stephanie's hand went up along with three other people and Shandra called on her.
"It's a Gilligan's Island." Stephanie answered.
"That's right, have you ever had one before?" Shandra asked her and the theme to Gilligan's Island played over the loud speakers.
"Yes, a couple of times." Stephanie answered.
Shandra picked up the drink and brought it over to our table and set it in front of Stephanie.
"Does anyone else want to try one?" Shandra asked and several hands went up. Todd made the drinks and Shandra passed them out reminding everyone to tip their bartenders.
"This next drink is a man's drink," Shandra continued. She turned around to watch Todd, a brown haired, very tan, mid thirty-year-old start mixing up the drink.
"It is Bacardi 151 rum, Everclear, topped off with coke and the juice of half a lime. Its name causes things to rumble." Once again Stephanie's hand shot up in the air. To say I was surprised was an understatement. I have rarely seen her drink anything stronger than a beer or wine. I know that sometimes she went out and assumed that she might have a mixed drink now and then, but I never expected her to know the names of many different mixed drinks.
Shandra picked on a blond headed gentleman sitting at a table with a woman.
"A purple pirate." He answered.
"No, it's not a purple pirate." Then she picked on another man who had his hand up.
"Is it the Booty Juice?"
"No, It's not the Booty Juice."
She finally picked on Stephanie again.
"It's the Bacardi Rum Volcano." Stephanie answered.
"Close enough. It's really just the Bacardi Volcano." Shandra answered and brought the drink over to our table and set it in front of Stephanie, where her other drink was sitting only a few sips taken out of it. She took the drink and slid it over to me.
"Babe, I'm working." I told her and slid the drink over to Oshanna.
"That's too strong for me. I like mixed drinks that are fruity," She pushed the drink back over to me and I texted Julio to come get it and pushed it to the middle of the table on the other side of the votive. Julio was leaning over talking to the four girls at the table by him. I watched him look at his text and then over to our table and I pointed to the drink.
"This next one is a favorite for men to receive but women like to drink. It's made with one-part whiskey and one-part Everclear, then chocolate milk topped with whipped cream." She turned around to see how far Todd was on making the drink. Suddenly he lit it on fire and Stephanie's hand shot up in the air. Julio showed up next to our table and I pushed the drink over to him. Without a word, he snatched it up and wandered back to his table.
A few more hands went up around the room.
"A flaming blow job." One woman answered and Shandra said yes and took the drink over to her.
"I know all the men want one, but how many of you want to try this drink?" Several hands went up and one lady loudly asked not to have hers set on fire because she liked the cream on top.
Shandra distributed the drinks, writing down names and room numbers.
"Now this next one is another man's drink. In fact, it may take three men to drink it. Over ice we pour equal parts: Johnny Walker, Jim Bean, and Jack Daniels. They are famous around Christmas."
Several hands went up and Stephanie just sat there a puzzled look on her face. There were several guesses and suddenly Stephanie's hand shot up again.
Shandra got around to Stephanie and she answered, "The Three Wise Men."
"That is correct, of course after drinking this the three men are not going to be very wise." Shandra answered and got some giggles from around the room. Then she asked who else would like to try one but no one else raised their hand. I was hoping she wasn't going to pass this one to me because I swore off whiskey years ago after waking up one too many times with bloody knuckles or my room torn apart unable to remember what I had done or who I had gotten in a fight with.
Stephanie just picked up the glass and held it out to Julio who came back over greedily and took it from her. He gave her a big smile, "We've got to go out drinking one of these days. I get tired of drinking the same thing over and over and it's nice to know someone who likes variations to their drinks." I had to laugh, Stephanie's variation ran along the lines of buying Corona instead of Bud.
Two more drinks were guessed at, with Stephanie raising her hand for both of them. "This next one is what you will hope to find on the islands when we come into port. It has Bacardi 151, Malibu coconut rum, pineapple juice, and cranberry juice." Stephanie leaned over to Oshanna and whispered, "It's called a Bahama Breeze." And Oshanna's hand shot up.
Shandra started calling on the table of four girls that all had their hands up. After they guessed wrong three times Shandra called on Oshanna. "A Bahama Breeze." Oshanna answered and was delighted when Shandra brought the drink over.
"I thought you would like that one." Stephanie told her. "It's very fruity and with the 151 it has a kick." Stephanie took a big swig and was almost done with the first drink she had won.
Several people wanted to try this drink and Shandra was busy serving everyone. "Babe, how do you know so many mixed drinks? I can count on one hand the number of mixed drinks I've seen you drink."
She started talking while Shanda kept announcing drinks.
"Um, one semester in college I had some morning classes and twice a week but the only time I could fit in Psych 101 was at eight o'clock at night. My morning classes got over at one in the afternoon. At the time I was living off campus and it was a pain to catch a bus home every afternoon and then back again in the evening. Plus, by one in the afternoon I was starving. So, I would go to a local bar that was right off the campus and had great food. Hamburgers, chili cheese fries, nachos, onion rings. I would get a booth to hang out in, study and eat until it was time to go to my evening class. The waitress wouldn't care during the slow afternoon but would get aggravated with me sitting there during the busy dinner hours when they had a line of customers. So one night she kicked me out, said they needed the booth but I could go sit at the bar. Well, Chester was the guy behind the bar and we got to talking and he kept wanting to make me a drink." She stopped talking for a minute so she could listen to Shandra.
"This next one is what you will see early in the morning if you take a walk along the ships bow. It has spiced rum, triple sec, orange juice, pineapple juice and grenadine on top."
Once again Stephanie's hand went up. The only other person to raise their hand got it wrong so she was chosen again. "Tropical Sunrise" she answered. Shandra responded in the affirmative and brought the drink over. Stephanie drank down the rest of her drink, placing the empty in the middle of the table and took a big sip.
"Careful Babe, there is a lot of alcohol in that and they don't have a McDonald's here on the ship."
She just looked at me. "It's ok, I still have to eat dinner and then I will be alright." She glanced over at Oshanna. "You're going to need another drink soon. Next time they make one you think you will like, let me know and we will try to get it for you." Then she continued with her story. "So, every evening he kept trying to make me a drink, offering me drinks that were ordered by other people to temp me. I explained that I had to go to class and couldn't be drunk. Finally, he made me a mini drink in a two-shot glass and handed me a bartending book. He told me what was in the drink and if I could find it I could have it. So that's how it started. He continued to make me many kinds of drinks in this little glass that barely had any alcohol in them and I kept looking them up.
"Then sometimes people would order a drink he didn't know and I would look it up and read it to him. Occassionally when I needed a break from my school work I would order some food and sit there reading the Book of Mixology. He had several bartending books but that one was my favorite and if I found a drink I wanted to try he would make it for me in the mini glass. Honestly, he wanted to ask me out but he worked afternoons and evenings and I had classes in the morning so our schedules never worked out. Constantly making me these little drinks was his way of keeping me talking to him and giving him a way to flirt without being obtuse and a bother.
"My third time sitting at the bar doing this he made me some drinks that were too strong. I put my head down and passed out right there on the bar, sleeping through my class. After that he was always careful to make them really weak and watch me to make sure I didn't look drunk. I can tell you I went to class buzzed more than once and it made the class a whole lot more interesting." She smiled at me.
Several more drinks had passed us by, and Stephanie didn't raise her hand but looked like she wanted to.
"Why don't you drink mixed drinks now?" I asked her.
"Well they tend to sneak up on me. I don't feel them while I am drinking them, then blam I'm throwing up and passing out on the floor."
Next Shandra said, "This next one is something everyone likes to eat. It has been a movie and a very popular song. It contains grenadine, vodka, sweet and sour mix, 7-Up, topped by Blue Curacao liqueur."
Stephanie leaned over toward Oshanna, "American Pie," and Oshanna's hand went up. The drink was placed in front of her as 'American Pie' blared over the sound system. She had a big smile and Julio came back over.
"I need another drink, I finished both of mine a while ago." He slurred at Stephanie as he sunk down across from her and next to me.
"Ok, tell me which one you want and I will see what I can do." He turned his chair around as his back was to Shandra and the bar and he wanted to see what was going on.
Shandra started again, "If you drink this next one you may have to salute it first for service to our country. It has Bacardi 151 and Jägermeister, mixed with a can of red bull." I knew this one, it was practically required to pass cold weather training. It had actually been invented by an Army Ranger and had been named just that. Most anyone in the Army knew this drink so I was surprised a bunch of hands weren't up. No one raised their hand at first, then one guy answered wrong, and a woman answered wrong. Stephanie's face lit up and her hand went up in the air.
"Army Ranger." She blurted out before Shandra could call on her. Shandra turned our way. "That is correct. Do you know someone in the armed services you can toast to while drinking this drink?"
"No," Stephanie slurred. "But I know an Army Ranger who is going to drink it." She turned to me and smiled a sloppy drunken smile and I looked at my watch. Forty minutes had passed. She had to make it twenty more minutes till dinner and I was afraid she was going to pass out right here at the table. Shandra brought the drink over and Stephanie pushed it in front of me. "Drink" she ordered and I obliged her by taking a sip. I wasn't too worried about drinking this because the red bull would amp me up to make up for any edge the alcohol took off me.
"This is almost the last drink of the night, only three left, but it is the strongest," Shandra started. "It is named after a very popular band that started in the sixties and is still popular today. They were known for their bumper stickers on the back of your parent's car. It has tequila, light rum, vodka, gin and raspberry liqueur."
"Pink Floyd" came one answer, "The Rolling Stones" came another. There were several more guesses and Stephanie leaned forward to Julio, "The Grateful Dead."
"They weren't around in the sixties." He said back to her.
"Trust me." She whispered back and he reluctantly raised his hand. "The Grateful Dead" he responded and Shandra smiled. "That is correct. You win the strongest drink of the night and you are lucky to be at the winningest table for the evening." She brought the drink over, asking if anyone else wanted to try the drink and several men and one woman raised their hands. Shandra continued passing out drinks as Julio turned around.
"Now everyone has a drink, we need to make a toast." Oshanna said lifting up her glass. "To our grand tropical adventure, may we stay safe and have lots of fun." She raised her glass to the middle of the table and Stephanie and Julio raised their glasses and clinked then they all looked at me. I raised my glass and clinked even as I was doing a mental eye roll that would have made Stephanie proud. This is not how I wanted to spend my evening with Stephanie, but she seems to like my siblings and I was accepting that to spend time with her would mean spending time with them.
We were all working on our drinks ten minutes later as Shandra stood in front of the room again. "I want to thank everyone for coming and playing 'Guess That Drink' with us tonight. Don't forget to tip us - your bartenders, cause we work hard up here and everyone that ran a tab can settle up before you go off to dinner. Welcome to Blue Island Cruises, we hope you continue to enjoy your evening and this cruise. Come back after dinner for drinks and dancing till three am right here in the Blue Lagoon Lounge."
I sipped at my drink, not wanting to drink too much of it because the red bull would keep me up all night and Stephanie didn't look like she was going to be in any shape to make that worth my while. I reached into my wallet and pulled out a fifty, placing it on the center of the table knowing Stephanie wouldn't have much cash on her and that my cheapskate siblings wouldn't tip for free drinks.
"The drinks are free bro." Julio told me.
"That's for their tip." I explained.
"You can't tip them fifty dollars for free drinks!" Julio responded and reached in his wallet, pulled out a twenty and laid it next to the fifty, then put his hand on the fifty and started dragging it back. My hand shot out lightning fast pinning his to the table.
"If you want to add your tip to mine that's great but hands off my money," I growled as I began to squeeze his hand painfully. "Or I will make it impossible for you to participate in your personal, private, bedroom activities for a few days." I squeezed his hand harder letting him know I was serious and wasn't going to let go. He dropped the money.
"Chill bro," He shook his hand and looked at the angry fingerprints left on his skin. "I was just joking, don't take everything so seriously." I reached over and took Stephanie's drink from in front of her. Half of it still remained but she was done, her eyes half closed already. I began drinking the rest of it and signaled Shandra.
"Hey bro, that was Stephanie's drink. Now you have to order another one for her."
"Stephanie's a light weight. If you can't tell she is about to pass out and I would like to get her back to the room before that happens." Shandra came over and I thanked her, giving her the fifty and the twenty much to Julio's dismay, and pulled Stephanie to her feet. I nodded at Lester as we passed and led her out of the room.
I half walked, half dragged her back to our room and never felt more like a rat in a maze as we walked down different lean corridors, winding our way through several floors before getting to our hall. I got Stephanie in our room and she flopped on the bottom of the bed laying face up, knees bent, feet still firmly on the floor.
"Babe? Are you going to be sick?" I asked her and she shook her head back and forth. I knelt down and took her sandals off. Then pulled her up to a seated position and began to undress her. I knew it would be easier to leave her dressed and just put her under the covers, but I wanted her naked. I was dying to curl up to her naked body and hold her. Well that wasn't exactly true. I wanted to do a lot more than hold her, but tonight it would be a start.
I finally got her undressed and under the covers, folding her clothes and putting them on top of the gym bag. I hesitated. I could get Marc to come stand guard while I went and had dinner with my family and then we could switch, or after the two partial drinks I had I could climb in bed next to her and call it a night.
Honestly, I'd had enough of interacting and making polite conversation with my family today and I wasn't all that hungry for food. I have been short on sleep for several nights now and the alcohol I drank was overcoming the Red Bull. I texted Marc to eat and then come guard the door and to let my parents know Stephanie had too much to drink so we were going to bed. I took a quick shower and when I got out checked my phone for all the hourly check-in's that everyone was at dinner. I texted all my men to report to Marc for the rest of the evening and that I would see everyone in the gym in the morning.
I climbed under the covers and pulled Stephanie over to me. I turned her on her side facing away from me and tucked her against my body. My body responded instantly to her soft warmth and I kissed the side of her neck. I desired her physically more than ever before but now that I had decided to have her forever I could be patient and satisfied with just holding her. This was where I wanted her, in my life, in my arms every night starting today. Now I just had to convince her of this.
To be continued…
A/N: Thank you! Thank you! Thank you all for your reviews! They are all loved and appreciated. I have one more bonus chapter tomorrow then it is going to go to weekly updates.
As always big THANK YOU to my beta Sassysaint who makes my story's more readable. You are AWESOME! THANK YOU! Wouldn't be here without you!
Second Big THANK YOU to my sister, Jonelle. Who is giving my stories a thorough technical analysis (ie deep proof reading) giving me some great suggestions and fixing all my commas, apostrophes and all my many other little mistakes. THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
Did you ever imagine what else Steph learned in college other than liberal arts? I've always wanted to hear her boyfriend exploits during her younger years between Morelli and Dickie. Big thanks to the website .com for all the drink information. I knew a few of these but never could have done this chapter without the help. Please read and review.
Trenton Merry Men Assignments (20 Men)
Abuela Sanja – Vince
Abuela Rosa – Manuel
Maria – Erik
Leyla – Hal
Angelia – Woody
Isabella – Cal
Oshanna – Lester
Rachel – Eddie
Julie – Junior
Stephanie – Ranger, Marc
Extras – Bobby, Ram, Zero, Zip
Night's – Chester, Chet, Gino, Mario, Ramon, Ryan