First Mates. Cecelia Dowdy

      “Hi, yourself. What are you doing up so early?” She glanced at her watch. “If my estimate is correct, you only had a few hours of sleep, like me.”

      Frowning, he recalled the vivid dream that had awakened him so early this morning. He pushed the disturbing thought aside as he focused on the cart of pastries, cheeses and fruits being presented to him by a passing waiter. After he had a plate of food and a cup of coffee, he said a brief prayer before answering her question. “I just woke up and couldn’t go back to sleep. I didn’t really expect to find you down here. Besides, I could ask you the same question.”

      She shrugged, taking a sip of her coffee, before responding. “I woke up just like you. I had a nice conversation with my friends before I went to bed.”

      “Oh? I’m assuming you’re talking about the ones who made you go on this cruise?”

      She nodded, smiling. “Yes, they called to check in. I miss them.”

      “Have you been friends with them for a long time?”

      “I met them in a Christian social group in college. We’re more like sisters than friends.” She continued to tell him about Sarah, who was on a constant manhunt, and about Rachel, who was always having problems paying her creditors. “They disagree and argue a lot, but I’ve gotten used to that.” She mentioned that both of her friends had been baptized while they were still in college. “I was glad I was able to see them accept Christ. One thing we do share is our deep faith in the Lord. We make sure we spend time together regularly. We even eat lunch together once a week. Do you have any close friends, Winston?”

      Frowning, he popped a piece of cantaloupe into his mouth and chewed, recalling the good friendships he had made through his Alcoholics Anonymous support group and the buddies he had in his church home. Not wanting to reveal too much to Rainy about his problem, he told her enough to satisfy her curiosity. “I’ve got a few friends through my church who are pretty close to me. I’m also pretty close to my brother, Deion. Even though he’s my brother, I still consider him to be a friend, too.” He pointed to her book. “What are you reading?”

      “Just a novel I picked up at the gift shop. I was in such a hurry packing, and I had so much on my mind, that I forgot to pack something to read for this cruise.”

      He finished his coffee, signaling the waiter to refill his cup. “Speaking of cruises—” he pulled out a sheaf of papers from the pocket of his swimming trunks “—I was wondering if you’ve made plans about what you’ll do during this weeklong cruise.”

      “Do?”

      He waited for the waiter to fill his coffee cup before he continued. “Yes, I’m talking about activities. We won’t be returning to Miami until this coming Sunday, so we’ve got six more days of fun before we get home.”

      She nodded, as her pretty eyes glanced at the glossy brochures. “When you say home, I’m assuming you mean Miami? Is that where you live? I told you yesterday that I work downtown at the Miami newspaper.”

      “I’ve lived in Miami most of my life.”

      Together, they scanned the ship’s itinerary. Today they were at sea, but tomorrow they were docking in Cozumel, Mexico. “Have you ever been there?” he asked.

      “I’ve been there a couple of times. Once our church group sponsored a trip to Mexico and we stayed in Cozumel for a few days.” She told him what she remembered about the place as he read the list of Cozumel’s attractions.

      Rainy picked up the itinerary and read the rest of it aloud teasingly. “Day four, at sea, day five, dock in Grand Cayman, day six, dock in Jamaica—day seven is the last day we’ll have at sea before returning to Miami.”

      He chuckled as she placed the papers on the cloth-covered table. “Sounds like we’re going to be having ourselves a nice trip. I’ve never been to so many places in such a short period of time.”

      “Me, either. This sounds like an adventure. I’m determined to just forget about everything and focus on having a good time.”

      Her dark brown eyes sparkled as she stirred her coffee. He wondered what in the world had happened in her soured love relationship that would cause her friends to force her to go on this cruise. He was tempted to ask, but she looked so happy, he didn’t want to spoil this joyous moment by mentioning the bad experience she’d briefly told him about.

      They sat in companionable silence as they finished their food. The waiter returned with the breakfast cart, asking if they wanted more, but they declined as they finished their coffee.

      As the breakfast food settled in Winston’s stomach, his fatigue returned. He stifled a yawn as he pushed his cup away. “You know, I was going to go on a swim at one of the pools this morning. But now I think I might go back to sleep for a few hours.”

      He watched her as she gathered her belongings and placed them into her large tote bag. “Well, I’m wide awake so I’m going to sit up on the deck and read for a bit.”

      “Okay.” He made a note to look for her later when he did take his swim. He watched her lithe body as she exited the dining room. He then stifled another yawn before he trudged back to his cabin. The sunlight was now brighter as it spilled through the small round window. After changing into his nightclothes, he fell into a deep slumber.

      Later that day, after a long nap, Winston returned to one of the pool areas, eager to take his swim. He removed his T-shirt and was about to plunge into the water when he noticed Rainy lounging on a chair, wearing a one-piece black bathing suit. Her hair was twisted into a bun, and she was sporting a pair of sunglasses. She was reading a book and when she looked up and saw him, she dropped it on the floor. Smiling widely, he hurried to her lounge chair, sitting in the empty seat beside her.

      “Hi.” He lifted her book and when she took it, their fingers touched. Her skin reminded him of warm, soft butter.

      “Hi, yourself. Did you have a nice nap?” She placed a marker in her book and set it on the table.

      He sighed and ran his hand over his face. Feeling his stubble, he realized he hadn’t shaved. “Well, about as well as can be expected. This boat is always rocking.”

      “Does that bother you? I can barely feel it.”

      “No, it doesn’t really bother me. Sometimes I have trouble sleeping in strange places. Whenever I’m on a business trip, I always wake up in the middle of the night.”

      Rainy sat up in her chair and placed her chin in her hand. He could barely see her gorgeous brown eyes behind her shades. “That reminds me, you still haven’t told me what you do for a living. You know all about me, but I barely know anything about you.”

      “Well, I work with numbers, like you do. I’m a financial analyst. I like it well enough. It’s a job.”

      An orange beach ball crashed between them, knocking her iced tea off the small table.

      A young girl approached and retrieved her ball. “Sorry about that.” She ran back to the pool, her pigtails flying in the wind. A waiter appeared with a fresh glass of tea and cleaned the mess.

      She sipped her drink. “It’s so hot out here that I’ve had to drink a lot of liquids.”

      He wiped sweat from his brow. The clear blue water in the swimming pool rippled in the light breeze.

      An Asian couple walked by, holding hands. She frowned and bit her lip.

      “Sometimes you seem happy and sometimes you seem sad, Rainy. Why?”

      Her hand shook as she sipped her iced tea. “I told you last night that I just ended a relationship.” She paused as she placed her tea back on the table. “Well, that’s not true. I didn’t end the relationship, Jordan did.”

      “Oh?” He leaned back in his chair and listened intently while children’s laughter rippled in the afternoon breeze. “If you want to talk about it,