CRUISE TO ROMANCE (8 page)

“I don’t care.  Now keep your
voice down.”  Jennifer picked up several bottles of the
Sint Maarten
Guavaberry
and walked up to the cash register, unaware that Sheila left the
store the minute she turned away.  After paying for her purchase, Jennifer
looked around for Sheila, then went outside.  Sheila was there all right.  With
two men.  This was not when she wanted to meet up with Ryan and Mike.  From the
looks on their faces as they turned to watch her walk toward them, they knew
what had just transpired.

Ryan smiled as he watched
Jennifer take a deep breath and straighten her shoulders, preparing herself for
the confrontation she expected to come.  Obviously, Mike had noticed the motion
too, because both he and Mike were admiring Jennifer instead of listening to
Sheila’s complaints.  The little navy get-up she was wearing brought out those
unbelievable blue eyes and her naturally dark lashes.  Just looking at her with
her innocent sexuality, he felt his body respond.  Now that he was with her,
there was no way he would let her go off by herself.  She was going to spend
the day with him while he enjoyed her refreshing enthusiasm.

“Sheila wants to explore the
island with Mike.  Would you care to join me?” Ryan asked.

Jennifer couldn’t believe her
eyes.  Both men were watching her with frank admiration written over their
faces.  This was a first for her.  In spite of her irritation at Sheila, how
could she refuse Mr. Gorgeous, when he had asked so sweetly?  “Only if you are
willing to go with me to gather some guavaberry recipes.”

Ryan laughed.  “You don’t need
guavaberries to put a spell on me.  But I’ll go with you, just the same.  It
could be fun.”

“You’re both nuts,” Sheila
groused.  “Come on Mike, let’s head for the
Last Mango in Paradise
.  I
want to get my picture taken with the surfer shark and get a new Jimmy Buffett
CD.”

“We’re off.” Mike smiled and
waved at Jennifer and Ryan as they turned and headed down the street in the
opposite direction.

“So, where are we headed?” Ryan
circled Jennifer’s shoulder and pulled her close.

Suddenly, Jennifer couldn’t
breathe or think.  All that registered in her mind was that strong, muscular
body pressed against her side.  What in the world was she going to do?  She
loved the way he made her feel when she was close to him.  Admired. 
Protected.  What would it feel like to be loved by him?  She could feel her
body quivering at the thought.  Calm down, she told herself.  This could be a
good chance to know him a little better.

“Ah, um . . . I thought I’d hail
a cab.”  Jennifer handed him the folded note.  The address was written on the
outside.

“Okay.  Let’s give it a try.”

Ryan hailed a cab and talked with
the driver.  Jennifer watched as the driver’s eyes widened noticeably when he
read the address.   No longer able to keep out of the animated conversation,
Jennifer walked up.  “What’s going on?”

“No tourists go here,” the driver
explained.  “She put spell on me if I take you.”

“Easy buddy,” Ryan soothed.  “You
can let us out a block away.  She’ll never know how we found the place.”

The driver shook his head and
paused, looking at Jennifer’s enticing red laces.  Slowly, a smile crept across
his face as he eyed her excited face.  “Okay mon.  Get in.”

*    
*     *

“
Fillet of a fenny snake, In
the cauldron boil and bake; Eye of newt and toe of frog, Woll of bat and tongue
of . . .
”

“Ryan!  Behave yourself!” 
Jennifer laughed as they walked away from the old frame house.  The elderly
woman who lived there had given her a number of unique recipes along with a few
voodoo rituals.  With a little tweaking, the recipes would result in fabulous
dishes.  Just this visit alone would fill one whole chapter in her new book.  
Jennifer was thrilled.  Her eyes sparkled with excitement and mischief. 
“Otherwise, I know a few spells to try on you.”

Ryan smiled and lowered his head
to kiss her cheek.  “I think you already have.  Do you deny it?”

“Absolutely,” she answered with
resolve.  “Wait ‘til I turn on the full force of my irresistible charm.”

“Have mercy!” Ryan took her hand
and turned down a side street that led to the beach.  “On the way back to town,
we can walk along the water’s edge and look for sea shells.”

“Sounds like a plan.”  Jennifer
pushed her sunglasses further back on her nose and broke into a run.  “Catch me
if you can,” she yelled and headed for the water.  She didn’t dare glance back
to see Ryan; it might slow her down.  She raced across the beach and skidded to
a stop at the water’s edge where she leaned over panting.  Ryan stopped
directly behind her, not even winded.  It was just too disgusting.  Didn’t the
man even sweat?

“Would you like a soda?” he
asked.

“Oh, yeah,” she breathed. 
“Preferably a Coke or Pepsi.”

“Come on.  There’s a concession
stand up ahead.”  Ryan smiled and pulled her close, holding her around the
waist while they walked in companionable silence.  “Are you ready for lunch?”

“Not yet.”  She looked up at Ryan
as they reached the concession stand.  “Are you hungry?”

“Getting there, but I can wait.” 
Ryan turned to the teenager behind the counter.  “Two Cokes, please.  With
plenty of ice.”  He dug into his pockets, pulled out several bills, and tossed
them on the counter.  When the girl returned with the sodas, she grinned her
pleasure.  Ryan winked at her and picked up the drinks.  Handing one to
Jennifer, he teased, “I am under your spell, madam.  Your wish is my command.”

“I wish,” Jennifer murmured.

“Did I detect a note of
sarcasm?”  Ryan asked as they headed down the beach toward town.

Jennifer swallowed the cold
liquid, filled with fizz and flavor, savoring the moment.  It tasted good and
refreshing, sparing her a little time to gather her wandering thoughts.  “No. 
Not really.”  She took a deep breath and ventured on.  “I would just like to
get to know you better.”

“That’s easy,” he responded. 
“Just ask me anything you want to know.  Truthfully, there’s not much to tell.”

“Well, tell me about growing up. 
I heard that you have lots of brothers.”

“Five.  Our mom died when I was
five.  I don’t remember much about those days.  Mike was just a baby and my Dad
had just graduated from law school.  We didn’t have much money then, but we had
each other.  Dad got married again, but it didn’t last very long.  The way my
older brothers tell it, the lady liked being married to a lawyer, but she
didn’t realize how little money he made as a beginning attorney.  So she
walked.  For some reason, I thought it was my fault that our new mommy left,
but Dad sat me down and told me not to worry, that it wasn’t anything that I
had done.”

“Oh, how sad.”  Jennifer wondered
at the confusion of a little boy who had been deserted twice by the women in
his family.

“I got over it quick enough. 
After all, I had four older brothers to keep me busy and to take care of me.”  Ryan
smiled.  “They couldn’t cook worth a damn, though.  I promised myself that when
I grew up, I would own a restaurant and eat my meals there every day.”

“That was a worthy goal.  What
happened?”  Jennifer sipped at her drink, thinking that she would love to own
her own restaurant.  A gourmet restaurant where the menu changed from day to
day depending upon her whim.

“I learned to cook.  Better than
they could.  After that, food didn’t seem so important anymore.  Besides, I got
into body building and, after college, decided to make a business of it.  I had
some ideas and it looks like they are paying off.”

“Your Dad must be very proud of
you.”

“I think so.”   Ryan took a final
drink from his cup and tossed it into a nearby trash can.  “So now you know all
about me.”

“Actually, I know more than
that,” she teased.

Ryan looked into her sparkling
eyes.  “Okay, I’ll bite.”

“I just bet you do,” she crooned.

Ryan laughed and pulled her to
him.  His hands caressed her shoulders before he gently pushed tendrils of hair
from her face.  “Just what was that supposed to mean?”

“You’re an accomplished lover.”

“Well, there is that,” he
answered with complete masculine confidence.  “What else?”

“Mike told me that you were
engaged once.”  She watched his face, but his expression didn’t change.  “He
also told me that Exercisetech is your only mistress.  I find that incongruous
with your obvious interest in women.”

“Really, what else did he tell
you?”

“Nothing.”  Jennifer noticed that
he didn’t deny any of it.  But his face closed up and his voice sounded a bit strained. 
She knew she was treading on dangerous ground and was probably aggravating him
by probing.

Ryan shrugged and started down
the beach.  “That about covers it.”

*    
*     *

To Jennifer’s way of thinking the
Eagle
and its companions didn’t look like much.  It was hard to believe
they were multimillion dollar racing yachts that had actually won the famous
Regatta.  But savvy tourists gladly plunked down their money on a daily basis
for a chance to be in the
12 metre America’s Cup Regatta
and a member of
the working crew on one of the three sailing yachts.  Jennifer still wasn’t
sure this was her idea of fun.  It’s just that the boats seemed so small and so
. . . so slippery, even though there were braces on the floor for her feet. 
The grip of the winch she was working wasn’t tacky, as it, in her opinion,
should be.  So her hands kept slipping off the handle when she and her partners
were grinding fast.  (Or was it winching fast?)  Everything was wet, including
her clothes from the froth of the waves and salt spray.  It seemed to her that
every time they rounded a mark, the yacht’s masts almost touched the water. 
The keel was the only reason they didn’t all end up in the brink.  And the
tacking . . . good grief, you could lose a hand or an arm, if you weren’t
careful.  On top of that, there was a mean angry cloud coming their way, so
they would be racing in a downpour.

Just as soon as the Captain
relieved her, she was going to resign as crew member.  There were others waiting
to be crew members and she wanted someone else to have a chance too.  The male
tourists, however, didn’t appreciate women working.  Oh no.  They wanted to win 
and they were quite vocal about it!  Her only comment, “Come on guys, this is
supposed to be a fun vacation,” had been met with groans and boos.  But she
figured her money was just as good as theirs, so she ignored them.  Of course
it helped to have Mr. Gorgeous standing beside her daring anyone to cross him.

Luckily for her, the Captain
yelled out a command and her shift at the winch was over, but she knew Ryan
would not be relieved.  He was too valuable with his finely honed body and
superior strength.  Speaking of Mr. Gorgeous, there he was, shirtless, working
one of the grinders.  God, he looked magnificent with his biceps and triceps
flexing away.  Jennifer settled back to admire and photograph the scenery.

A light rain started, but she
could hear the rush of the downpour coming across the water.  The heavy rain
would soon be here.  As she clicked frame after frame of Ryan, she realized how
truly magnificent he was.  All that strength and power was visible to the naked
eye—an exciting commentary of a man at peace with the elements.  She found
herself longing to press her body against the hard planes and angles of his. 
He would be warm and welcoming.  Somehow she knew.  She also knew after
experiencing him her life would never be the same.  At that moment, he seemed
to sense her scrutiny.  He looked up from his concentration and smiled at her. 
A cocky raucous smile that melted her defenses and took her breath away.  All
she could do was smile back, yet she felt he had just captured her soul.  From
the change of expression on his face, he must have felt it to.  He looked
slightly shocked and Jennifer could tell he was trying to regain control.  Amid
screams and laughter, cold rain covered them, pounding the yacht and its
occupants.  Ryan turned back to his work while the Captain called out orders.

Excitement filled the
atmosphere.  The end of the race was nearing and the
Eagle
was coming up
from second place to take the lead.  Everyone around her yelled words of
encouragement to the men at the grinders and winches.  She took a few more
pictures as their craft slid into first place and won the race.  Cheers went
up.  Jennifer looked toward Ryan.  He straightened his tall frame and opened
his arms to her, waiting for her to fill them.  She rushed over to him and
pressed her body against his.  The rain pelted down as they held each other,
but she was hardly aware of its sting.  She had never felt safer and more
secure.  Ryan’s heart was pounding along with hers, and the thrill of victory
filled her.

At the touch of his hand beneath
her chin, Jennifer tilted her head up and looked into the dark passionate eyes
of the man she loved.  His mouth came down to capture hers in a gentle kiss
before he hugged her one last time.  “We’re heading back to the marina.  It’s
time for a victory celebration.”