The cameras had already seen everything, but the crew was none the wiser. I didn’t have time to thank Finn for giving us the chance to keep it that way — at least for now. I hustled toward the light, running into the crew just as they rounded the corner, all of them cheerful and boisterous and completely oblivious to what had just transpired.
My heart was a snare drum in my ears as Leah wrapped an arm around me and started on about some dance off I’d missed as we ambled toward the waiting cabs. Finn must have gone around the back, because two minutes later, he was jogging out of the club and flying into the cab behind mine.
I touched my swollen lips with shaky fingers as the van started to move, the driver steering us back toward the boat. I was shaking all over. My stomach was in knots. I was dizzy and burning and aching for relief. Everyone in the cab was loud, Cameron singing while Bernard and Leah laughed and egged him on, but it was all muted for me — as if my kiss with Finn had sunk the ship and I was watching them from my new underwater grave.
But there was one thought loud enough to clear the haze.
I already have.
What the hell did that mean?
CHARTER CONFESSIONAL
CLOSE QUARTERS
SEASON 4, EPISODE 11
IN-BETWEEN CHARTERS 7 AND 8
GARY PARKS: CAPTAIN
Captain Gary groans, runs hand over face, shakes head, drinks coffee.
PRODUCER
We know you have a lot on your plate this morning, so we’ll try to keep this brief.
Captain Gary nods.
PRODUCER
So… in your own words, can you tell us what’s happened?
CAPTAIN GARY
Let’s just say I woke up thinking today would be about fuel levels and guest preferences. Didn’t expect I’d be managing a full-blown scandal before breakfast. And if I don’t handle this right, it’s not just reputations on the line — it’s my boat.
I was still in a daze when we made it back to theSinking Sun. It felt like I was watching someone else take off their shoes and pad along the teak deck into the main salon, down the stairs, and into the crew quarters. Everyone was shouting about going to the hot tub or making snacks. I was focusing on breathing.
When I walked into my cabin, the lights were off and white noise was blaring from Gisella’s speaker. It sounded like a rushing river. One glance at her bunk confirmed she was already there, a large lump of a body under her comforter and pillows stacked all around her.
I frowned, trying to fight through the haze in my brain to remember if she’d left at the same time the rest of us had. The other cab did get here before ours did, but it wasn’t long enough for her to already be passed out. Was it?
I considered asking if she was okay, but thought better of it. I was fairly certain that if shewasupset, it wouldn’t be from her knowing what happened between me and Finn. But guilt still slithered down my spine like a cottonmouth snake, and I was too cowardly to face the possibility.
Using the light from my phone screen, I debated my next move. I needed to change, but would I change into my swimsuit and join the crew in the hot tub?
Was Finn joining them?
Or should I just change into my pajamas and get some sleep?
Would I beableto sleep after what just happened?
I stood immobile for a full three minutes just staring at the chaos of clothes and shoes in my shared room with Gisella before my phone vibrated in my hand.
I turned it toward me, squinting against the screen now that my eyes had adjusted to the dark, and then my stomach hit the deck.
Text from Do Not Call Him Ever No Matter How Drunk You Are STOP DON’T DO IT: