Faking It(25)

As soon as the yacht was in dock I heard Ada and Bella disembark, ordering poor Brett, the third deckhand, around and not wanting to wait for the official farewell from the crew. I gathered my things, let the deckhands take my cases off, and went up. I hung around the entrance to the galley and the crew quarters until the others started complaining, just hoping I might catch her, or catch a glimpse of her.

Eventually, though, I was back on the aft deck. The crew was lined up in their whites once again to see us off. The last to leave, I shook hands with each crew member. Sarah and Tanya, the other two stewards, both gave me a quick kiss goodbye. Azure wasn’t present. She was probably a little uncomfortable, to say the least, so I said nothing.

“Well, what can I say?” said Captain Harper, as he shook my hand heartily. “Thank you for giving us a very… interesting charter.”

“I hope it wasn’t too terrible, Captain,” I smiled, pressing the thick envelope into his hand, “I know I caused some problems. Hopefully, this will help you weather the storm.”

“That’s very generous, thank you. Please come back and see us again.”

“I would love to. Please, though, is there any way I could talk to Misty, or get a message to her?” I implored. This felt like the last chance.

“I’m sorry, sir, Misty left the boat as soon as we docked, even before your lady, I mean, ex-lady friend,” shrugged the captain.

Man, I thought, she wasn’t kidding about having to find her. I nodded gratefully to him and trudged off. I followed the others down the jetty to the waiting stretched Hummer and ducked inside. Before closing the door, I allowed myself one last look at the magnificent Aphrodite, gleaming white against the clear blue sky, gently rocking on the sparkling Caribbean waters. My God, I said to myself, what this boat has managed to do.





Misty

Tanya was banging on my cabin door. “Come on, bitch, shake a leg!” she yelled. “Crew meeting and the captain insists you attend.”

I wiped the tears from my eyes. “Be right there.”

I had to go through with it. I quickly touched up my makeup and fixed my hair. When I finally felt I looked half presentable, I took a deep breath and headed for the crew lounge.

There were a couple of knowing glances and shy smiles as I entered. Azure avoided my eyes, as did Adam, reminding me of our recent flirtation. Tarquin and Brett waved hello. I squeezed in next to Tanya, who dropped her hand below the table so I could hold onto it.

“You all know my rules,” began Harper, “everyone who works on the charter gets an equal share of the tip. Now, this was a somewhat extraordinary charter, what with lifesaving, masts hit by lightning, crew members losing their heads…” he didn’t look over at me. “So, I’m happy to say, we have a somewhat extraordinary tip.” The captain pulled out a wad of cash from an envelope. “One hundred thousand dollars,” he announced, slowly and deliberately, and to the accompaniment of a large collective sigh. Tanya involuntarily squeezed my hand in hers. I couldn’t believe it. “That’s right. That’s about five times what we would normally expect from a two-night charter, but there it is. Around ten thousand each.”

Harper counted out one collection of bills and handed them out, then another. He threw a pile of notes in front of Azure.

“Please, Captain,” she said softly, without touching the money, “can I donate my share to Misty?”

Everybody froze. I stared wide-eyed at the small, tanned girl who finally turned her big eyes toward me.

“You can do what you like, Azure, it’s your money,” said Harper.

“It’s okay, Azure, you don’t have to do that,” I told her.

“I feel so bad. I didn’t know what to do when I found you. I didn’t think. I’m so sorry.” Azure’s eyes shone with tears.

“You did the right thing by not taking the chance that you might get yourself into trouble,” I assured her. There were murmurings of agreement around the table.

“It’s the only thing I can think of to say how sorry I am; I didn’t stop to think that you might actually have feelings for him.” Azure pushed the money across to me. I nodded and added it to my pile.

“But, as I was saying about rules,” began the captain, “Misty broke them and I have to let her go.”

The table erupted with complaints and arguments, with Tarquin, Brett, and Tanya shouting the loudest. Adam said nothing, I noticed. Harper appealed for silence. “I’m sorry, Misty. I need you to pack your things and disembark. I’m afraid there’s no reversing this decision.”

I nodded sadly and stood to leave.

“Hey, bitch?” called Tarquin. “You’d better make sure you say goodbye properly before you go.” I turned to see him make a grotesque mime of sucking a big cock, and I couldn’t help laughing.



Out on the dock, the whole deck crew had gathered, except Harper who, having said his goodbye, was needed elsewhere. I hugged and kissed Keith, the bosun, and Mike, the first deckhand. Brett, who’d been carrying my bags off the yacht, went for a sneaky butt grab as I hugged him, but I decided to go with it, breathing in his huge warmth and masculine smell. Azure came next.

“I’m so sorry, Misty,” she said. “I didn’t think you would actually get fired, and it looks like you actually like this guy. I feel terrible.” I waved away her apologies again and pulled her close. I felt Azure sob as I held her, and took the opportunity to slip her ten thousand back into her outside pocket, hoping she wouldn’t notice until later. I turned to Adam and put my hand on his shoulder.