LOVE on The Horizon (Breaking The Rules #1) (5 page)

“Life is good?” I’d been around him long enough for some Italian words to stick in my very Americanized brain.

“That’s right. Very good, Rebecca.”

I smiled proudly and he returned his own dazzling smile. “Maybe by the end of my contract, I’ll be fluent in Italian?”

“Let me know if you’d like to learn more. I’m a great teacher.”

Thankfully, the waiter filled our water glasses. I immediately took a sip because Marco’s gorgeous face and sexy promises had me a bit overheated. Once we were left alone again, silence stretched between us.

Marco played with his silverware before saying, “We Italians feel it’s important to live life to the fullest.
Gli americani
non si fermano ad annusare
i fiori
.” At my confused expression, he added, “Americans don’t stop to smell the flowers.”

I nodded at his statement. “That’s so true. I could say that’s one of the reasons I decided to interview with Sunset. I needed to live, experience life on my terms. Not based on what my parents wanted, or even what society felt I should do with my life. My only regret is that I wasted four years at college instead of living.”

“You should have no regrets. Every experience teaches. You may not realize it now, but you definitely learned some valuable life lessons while at school.”

“Maybe. I don’t know what they are yet.”

“Well, you studied marketing? Those skills definitely helped you get this job.”

“They did?”

“Of course. You marketed yourself very well, Rebecca. Most would ignore such limited experience, but you managed to sell yourself to get the job. Since joining us, you have been perfect for Sunset Cruise Lines. I can only hope my future hires are as marketable as you.”

Our burgers appeared, pausing the conversation for a few minutes. I waited until he took his first bite before asking, “You still feel I’m pulling my weight?”

“Rebecca, you have been amazing. I told you that.”

“I know.” The one concern that had plagued me bounced around my head. It was now or never; I needed to know. “It’s just that sometimes I feel like you’re angry with me.” There, I said it.

Marco stopped chewing and placed his burger on his plate. “Angry?”

“Forget I mentioned it. It’s silly. I just want to do well, and I hope Sunset will allow me to further my career. I know I’m new at this, but I truly feel like I fit and I’ve found my dream job.”

He wiped his beautiful mouth with a napkin while watching me squirm in my seat. Why did I have to open my big mouth?

“Rebecca, I’m not angry with you. I’m sorry you confused my professionalism as anger.”

Professionalism? I’d watched as he’d laughed and joked with the rest of his staff. I’d heard stories from Ricky of Marco’s penchant for cursing in Italian. Everyone got to see a fun, happy side of Marco, except for me.

“No need to apologize,” I quickly replied, feeling like an idiot. “I hope if I’m not pulling my weight you’ll tell me so I can fix it.”

“There’s no need to be concerned about not pulling your weight, but if I feel your performance is a problem I will tell you. I promise.”

“Thank you.”

Our eyes met across the table. He quickly looked away, focusing on his burger.

The rest of our meal was awkward due to the uncomfortable aura that filled in the air around us. I felt like every step forward I made with Marco resulted in two steps back.

We shared a cab back to the ship. I felt awful that she thought I was angry with her. Her admission had me realizing I was not handling my attraction toward her well. If she thought that, then what did the rest of my staff think? I needed to act normal. She was part of my team, just like Hirrod or Leslie or even Ricky. Granted, I couldn’t treat her as I treated Ricky, but I could loosen up and stop being such a prick.

“How are things going with your staff?” I asked her as we drove along the scenic road hugging the coast.

“Good. I absolutely adore Hirrod and Warren. Those two are like a stand-up act. Everyone has been very cooperative.”

“Glad to hear it. They’re a great group.”

She nodded and opened her mouth to respond but quickly closed it.

“What?” I asked, curious as to what she was going to say.

“Nothing. I just hope that they are happy with my management tactics and would let me know if they weren’t. I do try to tell them often what a great job they’re doing.”

Remorse hit me, and I stumbled with another apology. “Rebecca, I am sorry for my behavior.”

“I’m not telling you that to make you feel bad.” She placed a hand on my arm before pulling it away and leaving the skin she touched feeling warm. “Marco, your staff loves you. They say such positive things about you. Ricky tells me all about your successes and your accomplishments. I admire you as my boss and hope to learn from you.”

“Let’s start again.” I put my hand out and said, “I’m Marco Puglia.”

She smiled her stunning smile and accepted my hand. “Nice to meet you, Marco. I’m Rebecca Stanton.”

“The pleasure is mine.”

My suggestion seemed to break the ice, and after the taxi dropped us at the pier we spent the walk back to the ship laughing and sharing stories about ourselves. Her face lit up with her beautiful smile. She giggled when I told her about the day I hired Ricky. She confessed what truly happened to get her fired from Hooters. I knew of Hooters, having been dragged there by my coworkers years ago. The visual of her in a tight Hooters’ T-shirt almost caused my iron curtain to come crashing down. Instead, I changed the subject back to Ricky.

“Speaking of the devil,” Rebecca said when we exited the elevator en route to our cabins.

“Well…well…well. What do we have here?” Ricky waggled a finger at us with a jackass smile plastered on his face.

“I ran into Rebecca at Orient Bay.”

“I didn’t know you were going to Orient Bay.” Ricky turned his evil eye to Rebecca.

“No? I thought I mentioned it.”

“No,” he said while slowly shaking his head. “Because if you had, I would have told you Marco was on his way there.”

Did she know I was there? Is that why she picked Orient Bay?

Rebecca shrugged. “I was originally going to go shopping with the gang but decided on Orient Bay. Complete coincidence.” She turned to me and said, “Thank you for lunch, Marco.”

“You’re welcome,” I said with a smile.

Ricky and I watched her walk down the hall and enter her stateroom.

“
Silenzio
, Burrows.” Ricky followed behind me like a puppy dog until I got to my room. “Go away.”

“I need to talk to you.”

“If it’s about work, I’m still off until six,” I said with one foot in my room.

“It’s not about work—kind of. Let me in.”

Saying no to Ricky was like saying no to a puppy. Either he would ignore you completely, or piss on your rug before chewing on your shoe. Opening the door wider, I allowed him access, deciding I didn’t want a pissy Ricky ruining my good mood.

My room was bigger than the normal stateroom. I had a sitting area with a couch and two small club chairs. Ricky plopped down in one of the chairs as I began emptying my backpack.

“So, it must have shocked you to see her there.”

“
Yes,
I was surprised.”

“You were nice to her?”

I released a sigh and nodded petulantly. “
Yes
, I was nice to her.”

“Not Marco-nice…normal-people nice.”

“
Vaffanculo
.”

“I keep telling you, you’re not my type. I prefer blonds.”

“Is there an actual point to this visit?”

“Yes, two reasons.” He inspected his nails as I stood waiting for him to speak.

My bag was unpacked, and I needed to shower. He had two more minutes before I kicked him out. Opening my closet, I rummaged through it to pull out slacks and a shirt. “Ricky, can you please get to the point?” I asked once I’d placed my clothes on my bed.

“Well, I think our friend Dina is giving Rebecca a hard time.”

I stopped what I was doing and looked at Ricky. “How do you know?”

“Rebecca asked me what her deal was. She said that Dina has been aloof. I told her she has a bad attitude and to ignore her.” I cursed under my breath and regretted not listening to Ricky. “I’ll handle Dina,” he said.

“No. Please don’t do anything stupid. Just ignore her.”

“Which brings me to point number two. Listen, I love you, Marco. I’ve been with you for seven years, four of them as your assistant. I don’t want you to wake up one day and wish you’d done things differently.”

“Done what differently? Hiring a different assistant?” I knew what he meant, but I needed to bust his balls anyway.

“You avoid emotions.” This little speech came every so often, and it always ended the same way. I always told him I didn’t have time for “emotions.” Ignoring my huffing and puffing, he said, “Just hear me out. I see the way you look at Rebecca.”

“I’m her boss.”

“So?”

“You are actually encouraging me to seduce one of my employees? Even after what happened with Dina? How hypocritical is that?” This chat was the last thing I needed when I was already battling my own conflicts.

“The difference is I’ve never seen you act this way with a woman before. Usually, you screw them and run. Yeah, yeah, you want to be professional in your new position. Nowhere in the rule books does it forbid falling in love.”

“Falling in love?” I asked incredulously. Was he serious?

“Yep. I can tell. You need to open your heart. This may be your only chance. You know how I feel about fate and soul mates.”

“Says the man who’s been through seven in seven years.” I grabbed my towel and walked to the bathroom.

“That’s not true. It’s only been four. Marco, get your head out of the sand. You and Rebecca could be great together.”

“And if word got out? You know that could affect her career.”

“Why would word get out?”

“Sei matto.
Di tutte le cose folli si potrebbe suggerire
.”

“Slow down, Romeo. You lost me at crazy.”

“Ricky, there are a million reasons why it’s a very bad idea.”

“And one reason why it’s a great idea.” My eyes met his and he waited before saying, “Love.”

One of my favorite times of the day was the middle of the night. Except for the occasional couple smooching in the shadows, the decks were empty and quiet. All the passengers were in their staterooms. The ocean was dark and smooth. The humid air felt sticky and salty. I loved standing aft to watch the ship effortlessly churn and roll the mighty ocean waters.

It was during those early morning hours that I did my best thinking. Away from the customers I served tirelessly, away from the employees I supervised, I could successfully clear my mind of everything else but the goals I wanted to accomplish and how I’d accomplish them. My secret slice of solitude never failed me, until tonight.

Tonight she was all I could think about…specifically, her wearing that pink bikini. I thought about Ricky’s advice. I thought about the women I’d lusted over in the past and how I’d never felt anything more than lust. I even thought about my time here on
The Horizon
, and how, for the first time in my career, I saw my contract stretching ominously before me. It wasn’t because I didn’t love my job. It was because, for the first time in my life, I felt alone.

I’d been blissfully unaware of my loneliness. Ricky’s constant nagging was just nonsense until now. What changed to make his words suddenly hit home, and for them to replay in my head over and over?

In six weeks, she changed the pattern of my thoughts without so much as a touch between us.

If she were a peer, I wouldn’t be feeling this
agita
. I could not jeopardize her career. I would probably walk away unscathed, maybe with just a slap on the wrist. She’d lose the respect of her team, coworkers, and management.

Just a few weeks in, and I was already a wreck and in a constant state of arousal. I could always transfer. Maybe go back home? Being home grounded me. The new ship sailing the Mediterranean would be a great fit. Maybe that cruise director would do a swap? Of course, he’d do a swap. I was running the most coveted ship in the industry.

Fanculo
! I really had some serious thinking to do.

Once I got back to my stateroom, I tossed and turned, getting no sleep. A dull, throbbing ache had settled into my cock, and not even masturbating had lessened it in any way. Giving up, I decided to start my day early and hopefully come up with a game plan.

The moment I got into my office, I loaded up the corporate website on my computer in search of a solution. The only cruise director position available was on a ship out of Brazil, which didn’t sound appealing at all. It was an older ship and a huge step backward in my career. I’d have to work on a proposition to swap ships with another CD and come up with a believable reason why I was giving up
The Horizon
.

“Why the long face?” Ricky asked from the doorway.

“Rough night.” He carried in my double espresso and placed it on my desk. “
Grazie
.”

“You’re welcome.” He sat with his clipboard, waiting for me to start our morning routine. I listened as he recapped today’s agenda, asked my normal questions, and made notes when needed.

“Okay, boss. All set. Anything you need me to get done?”

“
Sì
.”

“Okay, shoot.”

“I want you to help me work up a proposal.”

His expression instantly hardened. “What for?”

“A transfer.”

“Nope. Not happening.” He shook his head, fury all over his face.
Yes, it will
, I thought to myself. “Knock this shit off, Marco. You aren’t going to throw away all you’ve worked for because you’re scared of some feelings.”

It looked like I needed to handle this on my own.