AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I roll my eyes and giggle at the thought as the ship rolls beneath my feet. I stumble, grabbing on to a nearby wall for balance.
Funny, the water was smoother earlier.
Maybe other boats are whizzing by, causing bigger wakes. Then another giggle breaks free. I almost pinwheel from the bathroom to my bed before I collapse down on the mattress.
Something’s wrong.
Damn, the room’s spinning, maybe if I just close my eyes?—
I shoot up in the bed with a gasp, now wide awake, heart hammering, my mouth dry. I grip the comforter. Panic rises when I look around the room. Where the hell am I?
Looking down, my pulse rockets. I smooth a hand over the slinky dark-purple dress. On the floor next to the bed are a pair of high-heeled shoes. I look over at the nightstand and find a fresh drink, full carafe, and a note.
Tried to wake you. Meet me at the room upstairs. Poker. XO -A
Amelia said sixty-nine, right?
The intense heat combined with the booze must have knocked me out. For how long, I have no idea. I’m not much of a drinker, especially since I’m still technically under the legal drinking age. I guess it all hit me hard and at once.
My brain is still a little scattered, scrambled, and fuzzy. That horrible feeling of waking from a nap and missing something big weighs on me. I’m positive I missed the first boat. A quick look at the clock on the wall says it’s almost eight.
I let out a groan. Might as well mingle until people leave later on the last boat back to shore.
After taking a few swallows of the full drink, I refill it and head into the bathroom. A little lipstick and mascara are definitely necessary with a dress like this. I sweep my hair to one side and secure it with a silver comb Harley gave me a couple of years ago on my eighteenth birthday.
“Not bad,” I say, grinning at my reflection.
I pad over to the shoes and slide them on. They’re a perfect fit, although the heels are super high. I teeter a bit, the drink sloshing over the side of my glass as I walk to the door.
Maybe he’s out there.
I can still feel the strength of him. The power. The heat.
Cringing, I think of my pathetic attempt to flirt with him.
“Shake it off. Maybe Mr. Hot Stranger’s gone.”
Maybe I don’t want him to be.
My toes and fingers tingle as a latent excitement twists through me.
I down the rest of the drink and head out.
The first thing I notice down here is the lights or actually, the lack thereof. They’re turned down low. Music and laughter wafts from above as I approach the stairs.
It gets louder and darker as I move, like I’m entering the beating heart of a club, a kind I’ve never been to.
This is the deck with the poker game, though, and after checking numbers on doors, I realize that I’m on the wrong side. I go up to the next deck with the large rooms and lounges to find a place where I can cross over and head back to the poker deck. They’re packed with wall-to-wall people and I can barely breathe because it’s stifling hot.
The boat rocks, the motion rippling through me. I press one hand to a nearby wall to steady myself in the heels, and it feels soft like satin to the touch.
“Hey, pretty thing,” a man says, skimming his hand up my outer thigh to my hip.
I jump back, tumbling into a room where another man catches me. His hand brushes my breast.
“Not ready yet,” this other one says. “Get her a special drink.”
“I don’t want a drink.” My voice is thick to my own ears.
