Billionaire's Scandalous Twins

Chapter 7

“Wow.” Nick had always taken great pride in keeping his passengers happy, but this was…well, to use Mary’s word, amazing. Cruise passengers usually looked for­ward to a bill at the end of a cruise that could amount to several hundred dollars. Oh, the food and accommo­dations were taken care of when you rented your cabin. But incidentals could really pile up on a person if they weren’t paying attention.

By doing this, Nick had given Mary and her husband a cruising experience that most people would never know. Maybe there was more heart to the man than she’d once believed.

“He’s just so nice,” Mary was saying, stirring her slender straw through the icy confection of her marga­rita. “Somehow, I thought a man that rich and that

famous and that playboylike would be sort of…I don’t know, snotty. But he wasn’t at all. He was really thought­ful and kind, and I can’t believe this is all really happen­ing.”

“It’s terrific, Mary,” Isobel said sincerely. Even if she and Nick had their problems, she could respect and admire him for what he’d done for these people.

“I’m really hoping your upgrade will have you some­where near us, Isobel. Maybe you should go and see a steward about it, find out where they’re moving you.”

“Oh,” Isobel said with a shake of her head, “I don’t think I’ll be moving.” She couldn’t see Nick doing her any favors. Not with the hostility that had been spilled between them only a few hours ago. And though she was happy for Mary and her husband, Isobel wasn’t looking forward to being the only resident on the lowest deck of the ship. Now it would not only be small and dark, but small and dark and creepy.

“Of course you will,” Mary countered. “They wouldn’t move us and not you. That wouldn’t make any sense at all.”

Isobel just smiled. She wasn’t about to go into her past history with Nick at the moment. So there was nothing she could really say to her new friend, other than, “I’ll find out when I go downstairs to change. I’ve got a dinner appointment in about,” she checked her wristwatch, “an hour and a half. So let’s just have our drinks and you can tell me all about your new suite before I have to leave.”

Mary frowned briefly, then shrugged. “Okay, but if you haven’t been upgraded, I’m going to be really upset.”

“Don’t be.” Isobel smiled and, to distract her, asked, “Do you have a balcony?”

“Two!” Mary crowed a little, grinned like a kid on Christmas morning and said, “Joe and I are going to have dinner on one of them tonight. Out under the stars…mmm. Time for a little romance now that we’re out of the pit!”

Romance.

As Mary talked about the plans she and her husband had made for a night of seduction, Isobel smiled. She wished her friend well, but as for herself, she’d tried romance and had gotten bitten in the butt for her trouble. Nope, she was through with the hearts-and-flowers thing. All she wanted now was Nick’s assurance that he would do the right thing and allow her to raise her sons the way she wanted to.

Her cabin was locked.

“What the—” Isobel slid her key card into the slot, whipped it out again and…nothing. The red light on the lock still shone as if it was taunting her. She knew it wouldn’t do any good, but still, she grabbed the door handle and twisted it hard before shaking it, as if she could somehow convince the damn thing to open for her.

But nothing changed.

She glanced over her shoulder at what had been the Curran cabin, but no help would be found there. The

happy couple were comfortably ensconced in their floating palace. “Which is all fine and good for them,” Isobel muttered. “But what about me?”

Giving up, she turned around, leaned back against her closed door and looked up and down the narrow, dark corridor. This was just great. Alone in the pit. No way to call for help. She’d have to go back topside and find a ship phone.

“Perfect. Just perfect.” Her head was a little swimmy from the margaritas and her stomach was twisted in knots of expectation over the upcoming dinner with Nick, and now she couldn’t even take a shower and change clothes. “This is going so well.”

She stabbed the elevator button and when the door opened instantly, she stepped inside. The Muzak pump­ing through the speakers was a simply hideous orches­tral rendition of “Stairway to Heaven” and didn’t do a thing to calm her down.

Isobel exited onto the Promenade Deck and was in­stantly swallowed by the crowd of passengers wander­ing around the shops. The lobby area was done in glass and wood with a skylight installed in the domed ceiling overhead that displayed a blue summer sky studded with white, puffy clouds.

But she wasn’t exactly on a sightseeing mission. She plowed through the crowd to a booth where one of Nick’s employees stood ready to help passengers with answers to their questions. The man in the red shirt and white slacks wearing a name tag that read Jeff gave Isobel a welcoming smile as he asked, “How can I help you?”

She tried not to take her frustration out on him. After all, he was trying to help. “Hi, I’m Isobel Baker, and I’m in cabin 2A on the Riviera deck and—”

“Isobel Baker?” he interrupted her quickly, frowned a little, then checked a clipboard on the desk in front of him.

“Yes,” she said, attempting to draw his attention back to her. “I just came from my cabin and my key card didn’t work, so—”

“Ms. Baker,” he said, his attitude changing from flir­tatious and friendly to crisp professionalism. “There’s a notation here asking that you be escorted to the Splendor Deck.”

Where Mary’s new cabin was. So Nick had upgraded Isobel, as well? Unexpected and frankly, a relief. A suite would be much more comfortable than the closet she’d been assigned.

But… “All of my things are still in my cabin, so I really need to get in there to pack and—”

“No, ma’am,” Jeff said quickly, smiling again. “Your cabin was packed up by the staff and your luggage has already been moved. If you’ll just take that elevator—” he paused to point at a bank of elevators opposite them “—to the Splendor Deck, you’ll be met and directed to your new cabin.”

Strange. She didn’t know how she felt about some­one else rooting through her things, but if it meant she could get into a shower, change clothes and get ready for her meeting with Nick, then she’d go with it. “Okay then, and, um, thanks.”  

“It’s a pleasure, Ms. Baker. I hope you enjoy your stay with Falcon Cruises.”

“Uh-huh.” She waved distractedly and headed for the elevators. Not much chance of her enjoying her cruise when she was here to do battle with the King of Cruise Lines. Nope, the most she could hope for was getting out of the pit and into a nicer cabin courtesy of one Mr. Nick Falco.

When the elevator stopped on the Splendor Deck, Isobel stepped out into a wide, lushly carpeted hallway. The ceiling was tinted glass, open to the skies but dark enough to keep people from frying in direct sunlight. The walls were the color of rich cream and dotted with paintings of tropical islands, ships at sea and even simple ocean scenes with whitecaps that looked real enough to wet your fingers if you reached out to touch them.

The one thing she didn’t see was someone to tell her where to go now that she was here. But almost before that thought formed in her mind, Isobel heard the sound of footsteps hurrying toward her. She turned and buried her surprise when she recognized Rhonda Hogan, Nick’s assistant.

“Isobel. It’s good to see you,” the older woman said, striding to her with long, determined steps. Her smile looked real, her sharp green eyes were warm and when she reached out a hand in welcome, Isobel was happy to take it.

“Nice to see you, too, Rhonda.” They’d met during that magical week with Nick more than a year ago.

Ordinarily, as just an assistant to the cruise director, Isobel never would have come into contact with the big boss’s righthand woman. But as the woman having an affair with Nick, Isobel’d met Rhonda almost right away.

Rhonda had been friendly enough, until the truth about Isobel being one of Nick’s employees had come out. Then the coolly efficient Rhonda had drawn a line in the sand, metaphorically speaking. She chose to defend Nick and make sure Isobel never had the chance to get near him again.

At the time, it had made Isobel furious, now she could understand that loyalty. And even appreciate it in a way.

“How’ve you been?” Isobel smiled as she asked, determined to keep the friendly tone that Rhonda had begun.

“Busy.” The older woman shrugged. “You know the boss. He keeps us hopping.”

“Yes,” Isobel mused. “He always did.”

A long, uncomfortable moment passed before Rhonda said, “So, you know about the cabins on the Riviera Deck being sealed.”

“That’s why I’m here,” Isobel said, shooting a glance up and down the long, empty hallway. “I saw Mary Curran earlier, she told me she and her husband had been upgraded. And then I went to my cabin and couldn’t get in. Jeff at information sent me here.”

“Good.” Rhonda nodded and her short, dark hair didn’t so much as dip with the movement. She pointed behind Isobel to the end of the wide, plush hall. “The Currans’

suite is right along there. And now if you’ll come with me, I’ll take you to your new cabin. We can talk as we go.”

They headed off in the opposite direction of the Currans’. Walking toward the bow of the great ship, Isobel casually glanced at the artwork as she passed it and tried to figure out what was going on. Being escorted by the owner’s assistant seemed unusual. Shouldn’t a steward have been put in charge of seeing her to her new accommodations? But did it really mat­ter? Isobel followed along in Rhonda’s wake, hurrying to keep up with the woman who seemed always to be in high gear.

“You can imagine,” Rhonda said over her shoulder, “that Nick was appalled to find out the cabins on the lowest deck had been rented.”

“Appalled, huh?” Isobel rolled her eyes. Clearly Rhonda was still faithful to the boss. “Then why rent them at all?”

Rhonda’s steps hitched a little as she acknowledged, “It was a mistake. The cabins below were supposed to have been sealed before leaving port for this maiden voyage. The person responsible for going against the boss’s orders was reprimanded.”

“Shot at dawn? Or just fired without references?” Isobel asked in a low-pitched voice.

Rhonda stopped dead and Isobel almost ran right into her.

“Nick doesn’t fire indiscriminately and you know it.” Rhonda lifted her chin pointedly as she moved to protect her boss. “You lied to him. That’s why you were fired, Isobel.”

A flush stole through her. Yes, she’d lied. She hadn’t meant to, but that’s what had happened. And she hadn’t been able to find a way out of the lie once it had begun. Still, he might have listened to her once the bag was open and the cat was out.

“He could have let me explain,” Isobel argued and met that cool green stare steadily.

Just for an instant the harsh planes of Rhonda’s ex­pression softened a bit. She shook her head and blew out a breath. “Look, Nick’s not perfect—”

“Quite the admission coming from you.”

Rhonda smiled tightly. “True. I do defend him. I do what I can to help him. He’s a good boss. And he’s been good to me. I’m not saying that how he handled the… situation with you was right—”

Isobel stopped her, holding up both hands. “You know what? Never mind. It was more than a year ago. It’s over and done. And whatever Nick and I had has ended, too.”

Rhonda c****d her head to one side and looked at her thoughtfully. “You really think so, hmm?”

“Trust me on this,” Isobel said as they started walking again. “Nick is so over me.”

“If you say so.” Rhonda stopped in front of a set of double doors. Waving one hand at them as if she were a game show hostess displaying a brand-new refrigera­tor, she said, “Here we are. Your new quarters. I hope you like them.”