Longing for the Beach Billionaire Daddy

Chapter 7 Dolphin Catamaran

*Shelby*

I woke up on the fourth day of our trip to a fantastic view. I wrapped a robe around myself and made my way to the balcony.

The yacht was no longer moving; we must have come into port sometime during the night. We were docked at a tropical island with white sand beaches lined with palm trees.

I could barely hold back a squeal of excitement; Lauren told me yesterday that we would be going on a private luxury catamaran dolphin tour. I was finally going to get my wish of seeing a dolphin in the wild.

It would even be worth being stuck on a smaller boat with Todd all day.

I had become very creative in finding ways to avoid Todd each day. I still attended every planned activity but managed to sneak away and spend some time relaxing.

On a few occasions, Reggie would save me from talking to the other members of the group.

I'd also had a few decent conversations with Alison, the woman in our group with short black hair. I liked her far better than Megan, who was caught up in impressing Hudson.

Megan was one of those people who would put others down to get a laugh. Unfortunately, I had been the subject of too many of her jokes for me to want to get to know her any better.

No conversation could match up to the one I had with Lauren's father, Michael. It was also the only conversation I kept thinking about; I had to be careful whenever he was around not to stare too much.

Michael usually joined the group for a while but would slip away as soon as he knew he wouldn't be missed.

I quickly got dressed in black shorts and a white T-shirt over the top of my bikini. On this trip, I noticed Lauren and the other girls seemed to have a new bikini for every occasion. I was sure they had noticed that I was constantly wearing the same two.

However, today was not the day to worry about their judgment because I was finally going to see a dolphin.

I practically flew to the dining room where we would be having breakfast before we boarded the catamaran. It was no surprise that I was the first one there; I should have remembered that to Lauren and her friends, on time was actually early.

I sat next to one of the windows overlooking the island and placed my breakfast order. Each meal was prepared by a private chef, who made the best food I had ever tasted.

The waiter brought over my latte while I waited for my lobster frittata.

I sipped at my drink and watched the tropical birds flying over the ocean. Michael filled the chair across from me, breaking my trance. I looked over and smiled at him.

“Good morning, Shelby," Michael said, returning my smile. My stomach did a small flip as his eyes met mine.

“Good morning," I said, glad that I had picked one of the smaller tables that only had room for two.

“This has got to be my favorite place to stop. It is a quiet little island between Florida and the Bahamas. The locals are amazing, and the restaurants are to die for."

“It is absolutely beautiful," I said wistfully.

“So, what does Lauren have planned for you today?" Michael asked.

“She has a private catamaran dolphin tour planned," I said, and my tone conveyed how badly I was looking forward to it.

“Oh, that will be an enjoyable day. You seem excited about the dolphins."

“I have loved dolphins ever since I was little. My parents even bought me a little stuffed animal dolphin that I carried everywhere with me. I named it Dolly," I said and then quickly stopped talking.

The memory of the loss of my parents still stung, and I did my best not to talk about it.

“Have you ever gotten to see one in real life?" Michael asked me with a slightly amused look on his face, probably imagining me with the little dolphin doll.

“No. There is a pod that lives year-round off the coast of Maine where my grandpa lives, but he doesn't get out much. So I never got the chance." I wasn't quite as happy now as I had been before as thoughts of how much I missed my family filled my mind.

Michael remained quiet. I hoped he wouldn't ask why my parents never took me. I didn't want to explain about them passing away. However, I was saved when our food arrived, which gave me time to change the subject before he could ask.

“You will have to help me spot the dolphins while we are on the catamaran today," I said, hoping to sound innocent.

Michael's face fell, “I am afraid I have some business that I really have to attend to. I won't be able to make it."

“Oh," I said, trying not to sound disappointed. I had been hoping to spend some more time with him. He was one of the only people here i liked to talk to.

“I'd love to hear about your first dolphin sighting when you get back, though," he said, running a hand through his hair.

“I'll make sure I get some good pictures," I responded with a small smile. I would love the opportunity to speak to him again and that would be the perfect excuse.

Our conversation continued as more members of the group finally turned up. When we finished our meal, Michael excused himself and headed to his private office on the yacht.

I was sad to see him go but fought the urge to watch him walk away. Instead, I focused my eyes on the ocean, imaging what it would be like to see a dolphin leap out of the water.

Lauren was the last to arrive at breakfast, wearing another glamorous bikini with a matching sheer coverup.

She spent a few minutes sitting near Megan chatting away while she ate. Then, she said the words I'd been waiting for. “The catamaran is waiting!" Lauren squealed, lifting her mimosa into the air.

With a smile, I hopped up, finally eager to take part in one of the activities.

***

A man dressed in a light blue polo handed me a glass of champagne as we boarded the catamaran. As the captain set sail, I quickly found a spot next to the railing.

Lauren and Todd immediately found the net forming a hammock between the two hulls and claimed it for themselves. I drained my glass of champagne and turned my eyes to the ocean, constantly scanning for any movement.

The party continued on around me, and Lauren and Todd were getting more and more handsy as the cruise continued. The crew members had turned on music, and the group was dancing, drinking, and enjoying themselves.

I kept my focus on the water and tried my best to ignore my ex with his tongue down my friend's throat. I grabbed another glass of champagne as one of the servers walked by and sampled some of the hors d'oeuvres until I accidentally ate a dip that turned out to be caviar. I was not a fan.

After a while, I noticed that we'd turned around and were on a reef not far from the yacht. My heart sank as the captain stopped the boat. Hudson and Todd jumped into the water and tried to get the girls to jump in.

“Excuse me," I said to get the attention of the man in the blue polo.

“Yes, miss? Can I get you another glass of champagne?" he answered.

“No, I'm fine, thank you. I was just wondering if you could let me know when we will start looking for the dolphin pod again?" I asked.

“I am sorry, but Miss Lauren was getting bored of looking for the dolphins and ordered the captain to stop so everyone could do some snorkeling and swimming. We can't resume our tour until Miss Lauren gives us the go-ahead. This area is great for snorkeling, though; you can see a lot of wildlife swimming in the coral," he said with a sympathetic smile.

“I see. Thank you," I said, turning away from the man, trying to keep the tears of disappointment from welling up in my eyes.

I had been so close, and the thought of leaving without seeing a single dolphin was heartbreaking.

I heard screams of excitement behind me, and I headed to the swim deck and dangled my feet in the water. Todd had convinced Lauren to jump in the water, and he was now kissing her while they were both treading water.

He'd never been that romantic when he was dating me; I guess he was too busy cheating on me to show me that kind of attention.

I knew I probably should have given up on my hope of seeing a dolphin, but I continued to scan the surrounding water. I noticed a jet ski in the distance, and it came closer and closer to the catamaran.

As the rider got closer, I realized it was Michael. He pulled his jet ski next to me.

“Hey, are you okay?"

“Yeah, we couldn't find the dolphins, though," I tried but failed to keep the disappointment out of my voice.

“Really?" Michael said, watching me closely.

“No, everyone was getting bored of looking, so Lauren had the captain stop so we could snorkel over the reef," I said while I watched my feet kick back and forth in the water.

I looked over at the group all swimming on the reef and noticed Todd watching our interaction closely.

“I bet we could find them. There's a cove not far from here that I know the dolphins have been spotted in before. We could ride over there together."

I looked up at him with a bit of hope in my eyes. “Are you sure?" I asked, shocked at his offer.

“Shelby, I don't want you to miss out on seeing the dolphins. Come with me," Michael said, holding out his hand to me.

So, I reached out and grabbed his hand with a smile on my face.