Shipped(50)

“What is going on with you? First you throw yourself at Graeme, and now you’re all ‘go kiss him’?”

“Look, it’s not what you think.”

“Well, what is it then?”

Walsh sucks in a deep breath, like she’s bracing herself. “I was trying to do you a favor. You want this promotion more than anything I’ve ever seen you want in your life. So I thought, maybe I could distract the competition. If Graeme’s with me, he’s not thinking about work or this proposal thing you guys have to do.”

My jaw falls open like an unhinged door.

“I was trying to give you an edge. Pay you back for taking me in when I needed a place to stay.”

“By being my jezebel?”

She shrugs. “He’s hot. I’ve done worse. We’re both adults. I figured, what’s the big deal?”

Walsh has done some pretty nutso things in her life, but this one takes the cheesecake. “The big deal is that it’s unconscionable. You’re trying to sleep my way to the top. How messed up is that?”

“I know, I know. It seemed like such a good idea… and then I ruined everything, as usual.” Her miserable expression ignites a fresh wave of guilt.

“I shouldn’t have said that, Walsh. I’m so sorry.”

Perching on the edge of her bed, she rakes her fingers through her loose hair. “It’s true though. I can’t hold down a job. I fail at every relationship I’ve ever had. And now you’re in trouble with your boss and it’s all my fault.”

I march across the room and sit next to her. “That’s not true. You’re not a failure. You’re incredibly loyal. You’ve had more adventures than I’ve ever had. And your yoga practice is on fire. I couldn’t do a handstand like you did today—I’d fall on my face. And relationships—”

“Fail.”

“No, you’re smart. You know when to get out. Like with Keith, right? I mean, you said he turned out to be an asshole. So that was a good decision.”

The skin around her mouth tightens before she blows out a blustery breath. “What about your boss? Are you going to get fired?”

“Gustavo’s not going to tell James what happened.”

“Oh, thank God. I was so worried. I know how much this job means to you, and—wait. Why didn’t he tell James?”

“Graeme talked to him.”

“He did?”

“And explained that the other passengers weren’t mad, which is really the most important thing.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

Standing, she crosses the room to lean against the closet. “So you’re telling me that your competition, your ultimate adversary, went to bat—for you?”

I twist the belt of my robe around my fist. “Well, yeah.”

“Girl, he has got it bad.”

“He does not.” The words aren’t believable even to my own ears.

“He so does.”

“Then why did he take all those pictures of you on the beach?” I’m grasping at straws and I know it.

“Ooo. About that.” She winces as she pulls out her phone. A few taps later, she offers it to me. It’s Seaquest Adventures’s Instagram feed.

Graeme’s face stares at me from the latest post. I tap on it to get a closer look. It’s the 360-selfie video he took this morning on Floreana showing the rising sun and sea lions tumbling in the surf, and it has more than a thousand views already. Goose bumps prickle my forearms. I scroll through the comments.

amitakagata Where do I sign up??

Br3nda1972 Beautiful beach, beautiful man

Martinique_OP Gorgeous

travelmumsnet My fave destination in the whole world. Magical!

Jenniferous1 U single?

Kittykatzn



I tut as I scroll. The ratio of female-to-male commenters must be at least five to one, most of whom are remarking on Graeme’s insanely good looks. The second to last comment catches my eye.

Ryan_Collins206 Nice to see you back in the world, G.



My eyebrows pop upward. This is someone who knows Graeme personally. And based on his last name, he must be family. I tap on Ryan Collins’s profile. It’s listed as private, but “206” is a Seattle area code. Interesting.

Walsh nudges my elbow. “Check out the story.” Right, I’m getting sidetracked. I go back and tap on Seaquest’s ringed logo to pull it up.

My calves tense. It’s a photo of Walsh doing her handstand on the beach. And damn it if it isn’t breathtaking. At the bottom, there’s text: Swipe up to find wellness in the wilds of the Galápagos Islands. Swiping takes me to the Galápagos booking page on our company’s website.

Is this Graeme’s plan for his proposal: use digital storytelling to sell cruises? How many swipes has the story logged? How many bookings have resulted?

And what do I have for my own proposal? Just a handful of questions and a vague idea. Closing my eyes, I drum Walsh’s phone against my forehead. “Damn it,” I grumble.

She winces. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t trying to pose for him. The naturalist said, ‘sea turtle tracks,’ and I thought, ‘Ooo, that sounds cool, maybe I can distract him from taking pictures.’ Hence, handstands. I didn’t know he’d post my picture on your company’s Instagram.”