Caribbean Cruising (11 page)

He was working. I couldn't figure out if he was a student just here for the summer, or someone who'd come for vacation and decided not to leave. He probably spent a lot of time doing his own parasailing, or snorkeling, or wind surfing. Out on the ocean almost every water sport I could imagine was going on.

For someone who was into outdoor water activities, life here would be quite idyllic. Playing all the time.

After much discussion, shoving around like two-year-olds, the guys Brooke had invited finally decided that Michael would be the one to go up with her.

David shoved Ryan's shoulder. "So how come we didn't have any discussion on who gets to go up with Lindsay?"

"I called it."

"Yeah, dog, but that's not fair. None of us had a chance."

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Ryan leaned toward him. "Tell you what,
dog
. You pay for the boat rental, and you can take her up."

David gave him a cocky grin. "How much, man?"

Ryan leaned closer and, with a low voice that I couldn't hear, revealed the amount.

"Dude!" David said. "No chick is worth that." He furrowed his brow. "Do we, like, need to chip in something?"

Ryan shook his head. "Don't sweat it. I've got it covered."

Which left me to wonder who really was paying for the boat rental: Ryan or Walter? Not that it really mattered. Ryan had made the arrangements, and was being a good sport about extra people cutting into his time. And it really wasn't anyone's business if Walter, as Ryan had suggested earlier, was picking up the tab.

"All righty," Rick said with a clap of his hands. "Let's do the singles first. Dudes, put on your life jackets."

Cameron went first. It was interesting to watch them harness him in. I couldn't image how it was going to work with me and Ryan going together.

I also didn't like to admit that I thought it might be fun to go up with someone. Especially Ryan.

"So what are you doing tonight?" I asked, trying to be a little friendlier.

"Checking out the clubs. You?"

I shrugged. "Probably the same."

"Definitely the same," Brooke said leaning toward both of us. "We don't leave port until late tonight. We might as well party with the natives for a while. Ryan, you want to come with us?"

"These clowns coming?" Ryan asked.

"Hey, dude," David said. "We're not clowns."

"Sure, they'll come," Brooke said, totally ignoring David's comment.

Which I thought was wise. The last thing we needed was someone to go overboard, and I figured in a scuffle between David and Ryan David would be the one who went into the water.

"The more the merrier," Brooke continued. "Maybe we'll even meet some more people to add to the crowd."

"I'll think about it," Ryan said.

"You do that," Brooke said. "Just give me a nudge if you want to join us."

The boat started moving faster, picking up speed. Rick started reeling Cameron out.

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"Wahoo!" Cameron yelled.

I watched him going up and out, higher and higher.

"Oh, wow," I said. "What happens if he falls in the water?"

"We go back for him," Rick said.

I had a horrible thought rush through my mind. "Are there sharks out there?"

"None that'll bite," Rick said, grinning.

* * *

The rumble of the boat, the whipping of the wind, and the raucous laughter of the gang that Brooke had brought along made it difficult to really talk as we cruised along. As I watched each person go up, sail, and then come back down, guilt nagged at me. Ryan had made the arrangements for this outing, and we'd all barged in like bulls in a china shop.

I watched Brooke and Michael go up. It looked like the ultimate in fun. Brooke stood in front of Michael, and he placed his arms around her. The line was reeled out, and they traveled higher. Michael leaned around, and kissed Brooke on the cheek. Cameron and David grunted like a couple of seals.

"Lucky dude!" one of them shouted.

I glanced over at Ryan who seemed to be taking it all in stride. Still, I felt guilty, and decided to try to talk with him.

I leaned close. "Look, if you want to go alone, I completely understand. It's not like I have to go."

He tipped his head to the side so we were even closer. "Don't worry. I won't try to kiss you while we're up there."

My mouth dropped open. That idea had
so
not occurred to me.

All right. Maybe it had…a little. I mean, it would be incredible to be doing all this with someone I really cared about.

"I just thought you might want to go alone. That was your original plan, right?" I asked.

He shrugged.

What did that mean?

"You're here," he said. "No sense in not going up."

His lack of enthusiasm made me feel like an anchor around his neck, dragging him down into the deep blue waters.

Rick started reeling Brooke and Michael back in. Oh my gosh. Had a half an hour passed by already?

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I started taking deep breaths. The last thing I wanted to do was hyperventilate.

"Getting nervous?" Ryan asked me.

I forced myself to smile. "No. I've just never done this before."

He grinned at me. "You'll love it."

Brooke was beaming broadly as her feet touched down on the deck. Her face was flushed with excitement, and I figured mine was about to do the same.

"Totally awesome!" she screamed.

As soon as the harnesses were removed, Michael grabbed Brooke and kissed her. She threw her head back, and laughed like some starlet in a movie. Dramatic and fun-loving.

I wondered if Ryan would change his mind and decide to kiss me when our trip up was over. No way was he going to do that. I was Walter's new daughter, who he was supposed to watch over—not a girl he was supposed to get serious about.

The boat slowed and then idled while Rick helped Ryan and me get into the harness. My back was against Ryan's chest. He put his arms around me. I put my arms over his. It was silly, but it made me feel as though I was anchored to something. Gave me a sense of security. And I needed that because my heart was pounding like a sledgehammer.

I heard clicks and snaps as Rick hooked me and Ryan up. I felt a tug here, a tug there. And then Rick was backing away.

"Okay, just relax," Rick said.

I took a deep breath and nodded. "I'm relaxed."

"All righty, then, here we go."

The boat revved up, the wind caught the parachute, and I felt myself being lifted—pulled—up into the sky and away from the deck of the boat.

"Relax, Lindsay," Ryan said near my ear. "We're perfectly safe."

"Perfectly?"

"Yeah. The worst that will happen is that we'll get caught in a crosswind, and the chute will collapse."

"And then?"

"We just go into the water. You swim, right?"

I glanced over my shoulder at him as much as possible. "Of course."

We floated upward, the tether, which kept us secured to the craft, was being released bit by bit as the mhtml:file://C:\Program Files\eMule\Incoming\+ Hawthorne, Rachel - Caribbean Cruising....

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boat gained speed. I felt carefree, weightless, high.

"Cool!" I called out.

I had a bird's-eye view of the island and the ocean. It was incredible.

"Look down," Ryan ordered.

I obeyed, and my stomach did a little somersault. I hadn't realized how high we'd ascended in such a short time. I was even more amazed by all that was below me. The Caribbean waters were so clear that I could see the outline of coral reefs.

Gorgeous. It was so gorgeous. I was totally in awe.

I looked back at Ryan. "Oh my gosh! It's amazing!"

"It's completely different looking down on it from here," he said.

"No kidding." I couldn't wait until we got to the Cayman Islands, where I planned to do some snorkeling. "Thank you for inviting me."

Then he did the most remarkable, unexpected thing. He cupped the side of my head, kept my face turned toward him, leaned forward, and kissed me.

CHAPTER 13

R
yan kissed me.

Dangling high above the water had been a total rush, but add to that his hot, slow kiss…I'd felt as though I could actually touch the clouds.

I hadn't wanted the kiss or the parasailing to end. But both had to eventually. Sitting in the boat across from him, I wondered why he'd kissed me. Had he simply gotten caught up in the wonder of being near the clouds—or was there more to it?

Was he interested in me? Or was I still only someone he was supposed to look after? Surely he didn't think Walter expected him to kiss me.

So why had he?

He certainly hadn't given any impression that it was a big deal. As a matter of fact he was acting a little as though he was embarrassed by what he'd done. He simply sat there in silence as the boat headed back into shore. How interesting.

And wild Lindsay was too shy to ask him why he kissed her. Maybe because a part of me feared he'd done it out of some sort of misguided obligation or some sort of male one-upmanship. Michael had kissed Brooke, so Ryan had felt a need to kiss me.

I should ask him. I really should.
Yeah, right. Like that was going to happen.

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The boat pulled up to the dock. Everyone scrambled out, except for Ryan, who was talking with Rick. I thought maybe he was discussing the payment arrangements.

"Thanks, Ryan," I called out.

He nodded and waved. "I'll catch up with you later."

I wondered if he really would. Brooke hooked her arm through mine, and started marching us away from the dock.

"Come on. We need to get back to the ship so we can get ready to hit the bars," she said.

"What about Ryan?" I asked.

"He said he'd catch up."

But once we'd moved beyond the dock and down the shoreline a ways, she pulled me aside, moved her sunglasses down the bridge of her nose, and glared at me over the top of them. "What aren't you telling me about you and Ryan?"

I stared at her. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"That kiss. What was up with that kiss?"

"You saw it, huh?"

"It was a little hard to miss. And it went on forever."

I'd felt that way at the time—that it was going on forever—but I'd also thought that maybe my senses were skewed because we were up high where the oxygen was thin.

"I didn't think you were interested in him," Brooke said, impatiently as though she'd given up on my answering her question.

"I'm not."
Much.

If only he weren't Walter's godson….

"Well, you sure could have fooled me," Brooke said.

I was beginning to think that maybe I was fooling myself as well.

* * *

"I can't believe Mr. Stick-In-the-Mud kissed you," Brooke said.

Brooke and I were strolling through the gaily lit streets of St. Thomas. We'd returned to the ship, and changed into tank tops, loosely flowing skirts, and sandals for our night on the town. And she was still talking about Ryan's kiss. Not that I could blame her. I was still thinking about it myself.

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"Ryan isn't a stick-in-the-mud," I retorted.

"Well, he wasn't exactly Mr. Party Guy on the boat this afternoon," Brooke asked.

"We crashed his party," I reminded her. "He invited me, I invited you, and you invited the guys we met last night. So maybe he was a little bummed. Maybe he had a right to be."

She shrugged. "Whatever."

I was a little ticked off at her for not appreciating everything Ryan had given us this afternoon. There was a part of me that liked Brooke, and a part of me that thought Brooke was all about Brooke. That maybe she thought the world revolved around her.

Not that we don't all have moments like that, but Brooke seemed to think everything centered on her all the time.

She hooked her arm through mine. "The afternoon is over, and it's time to find some guys to warm us through the night."

Warm us through the night. Yes, I was so down with that. And just like that I decided to overlook some of Brooke's more irritating aspects, and to just appreciate the party girl in her. And hope that some of the party girl would rub off on me, because I thought only a major distraction was going to cause me to stop thinking about Ryan's kiss.

Music filtered out into the night as Brooke and I checked out the nightlife. She was totally into it, snapping her fingers, singing a few lines of a tune whenever we heard a song that we knew.

I was completely loose and relaxed when Brooke grabbed my hand and led me into a thatched-roofed building. From the look at the people inside, no one dressed up for island night life apparently.

"This way," Brooke called back to me as she marched forward, unafraid.

We wended our way among the crowds until we reached the veranda and courtyard. The islands were known for their steel-pan bands, and here the music from a live band resonated around us.

"Over here," Brooke said, pointing to a small table.

We'd barely sat down when a waitress came over to take our orders. Brooke ordered two beers before I could say anything.

Brooke was bobbing her shoulders up and down, rolling them around, in rhythm with the music.

"Is this not cool?" she asked.

"Absolutely."

The waitress returned with our drinks. Brooke picked a bottle up, then turned back to give her attention to the band. I smiled at the waitress, dug into my pocket, and retrieved some money to place on her tray.