“Cruise Director?” A deep male voice brought her gaze up, and a pair of very real green eyes looked down at her.
Keep it together, girl. She nodded coolly at Mr. Green Eyes.
“The others are still in wardrobe, but my costumes are a bit small. Your seamstress didn’t believe how tall I was. They’re letting out the seams.”
You look the perfect height to me.
Michaela’s whole body tingled as she gazed up into his strong-featured face. He stood just in front of the setting sun, and the light haloed his hair, but the angelic effect was out of place with the hard jaw, the firm shoulders, and the very male way he looked at her. He pushed his hand through his dark hair, and she had to fight the urge to brush a fallen tendril off his temple.
Unlike his costumes, his uniform fit perfectly, the tunic emphasizing the broadness of his shoulders, the navy pants accentuating his long legs and smoothing out neat and tight over his obviously very firm butt. The white and navy suited his coloring, too, and after a few weeks onboard the light olive of his face and hands would turn an even warmer tone.
Damn. Hot.
His eyes glittered as he waited for her response. If she’d met him in a bar, she would have sworn he was interested. But as he turned his head to watch a male crew member walk by, Michaela reminded herself he was a dancer. She’d met dozens of male dancers in her six years on cruise ships, and she could count the number of straight ones on one hand. With fingers left over.
He’s almost certain to be gay.
The shiver of disappointment that ran through her surprised her.
“You getting on okay with all the boys on board?” Felicity asked innocently.
“Sure, they seem like a good bunch,” he said, apparently missing Felicity’s barely veiled innuendo.
Yet there was something in the way he carried himself that defied the stereotype. He had a self-assuredness and something more, a hunger. The way he looked at her…
No, that’s just your ego looking for a compliment, Ms. Western.
“I was told to come and find you,” he said. “Anything I can do while they sort out my costumes?”
“I know what he could do for me,” Felicity muttered under her breath, and Michaela felt the blush rise in her again.
“Not right now…” She looked at his gold name badge as if he’d never introduced himself. “…Dylan. Just be at the staff meeting seven thirty sharp tomorrow morning.” Michaela turned her back on him and took a long pull on her cocktail straw.
After a moment, she heard him turn and leave.
“So that’s Dylan,” Felicity said. Michaela turned to her, confused. “Don’t you remember? You showed me your personnel list. He’s the one who’s thirty-two, isn’t he? Certainly makes a nice change to have a man on your team rather than just boys and girls. Not that it makes any difference to you, of course,” she purred. “As you are a woman of virtue and high morals. Oh, and his boss.”
Michaela held the shock down in her stomach. Surely her face wasn’t giving her away? But hearing Dylan’s name spoken so lasciviously by Felicity made him sound anything but unattainable. And him in his thirties, the same age as her…
Oh, stop it.
She was his boss. Dylan Johns was out of bounds.
Chapter Two
Dylan left the pool deck and made his way toward his stateroom at the bottom of the ship. The cruise director certainly had a reputation of being chilly for a reason. The lecture she’d given earlier, and then her abrupt dismissal. What was her problem?
And what was his? He hadn’t been able to keep his eyes off her in the theater. When she’d stood, her authority had been obvious. The firm set of her luscious mouth announced she was used to people doing her bidding, yet when she’d smiled he’d wanted to sit with her a while and share a joke. Striding forward and speaking into the microphone, she had relaxed her shoulders, thrusting out her small bust, and he’d found himself thinking of how she would feel beneath his hands. Taut and warm.
Calm down. She was the one who gave the “don’t get involved at sea” speech, remember?
This was a woman who knew how to project confidence and lead a team. Moreover, it looked like she knew what she wanted and was quite capable of getting it. So why had she been so cold to him? All that control seemed at odds with the wall she’d put up when they’d spoken by the pool.
Something similar had happened with the captain in the theater. His arrival had thrown her for a moment. Interesting.
There was definitely more going on there. Captain Atkinson had seemed to relish rubbing the cruise director’s nose in it.
Why do you care?
Maybe the captain reminded him of Brian.
Or maybe you’re hoping the cruise director will reward your valiant efforts to defend her.
Good one. Look how well that had turned out with Lily. He’d gotten his sister-in-law all confused and his brother furious.
“Shows what good comes from doing the right thing,” he muttered.
Well, he was here now, giving everyone some space. Including himself. His thoughts flicked back to the hour before. The ship’s auditorium had sparkled under its stage lights, its gold pillars towering above them on each side of the proscenium arch. The new crew standing on stage had seemed tiny in comparison to their setting, and a number of them talked in whispers, awed and excited by the size and grandeur of the five-hundred-seat auditorium.
Dylan lacked their sense of awe, and his excitement mixed with a hesitation that still scratched at his thoughts. Is this a good idea? For the twentieth time, he wondered if he was doing the right thing taking these three months off and leaving Brian at the helm of the business.
He’s not at the helm. Mom is there. It’s her company.
He stopped walking and leaned against a railing, looking out over the harbor. The sun warmed and relaxed him. Yes, he was definitely doing the right thing.
“You been dancing for a while, then?” asked a new voice from behind him. Dylan turned and recognized another dancer he’d met earlier.
“No, first contract,” Dylan said, and then added, “on this boat” when he saw confusion play over the remarkably pretty face of the other man. Straightening, Dylan put his business face on, making sure he projected an aura of experience. No one would believe this was the first time he’d done this at his age. Heck, judging by his face, the other dancer couldn’t be much older than eighteen.
“Oh, cool. I’m so excited. Aren’t you? These routines are so sharp, and we’re going to be working around the Pacific Islands!”