“Were you born on the island?” she asked.
“No.” He shook his head. “I’ve been here for around five years. I’m originally from Texas.”
“Texas?” She never would’ve guessed. There wasn’t much about his accent that made him seem any different from the people she was used to chatting with on a daily basis. Although, now that she thought about it, Marla did have a touch of southern in her tone.
“Why does that surprise you?” he asked behind a chuckle.
“Texas.” She shrugged. “Brings to mind cattle ranches, oil wells, and somebody who sounds just like J.R. Ewing.”
“But hopefully not as ruthless, right?”
“Hopefully not.” Genie let her gaze roll out the window. Donnie was incredibly easy to talk to, and so polite and accommodating. Maybe she’d been going after the wrong type of guy. Jerks. That’s what she’d always been attracted to—why, she didn’t know. But Donnie was living proof that nice guys could also be incredibly handsome and debonair.
At the marina, a large crowd had gathered near a vessel that looked like a smaller version of the ship Genie and Cami had taken a cruise on after graduating from high school.
“So these dinner cruises are popular here, huh?” she asked off-handedly.
“That they are.”
The driver opened the door and Donnie climbed out, then offered his hand to her. “Thanks,” she said, leveraging her way out of the car. Genie began to wonder how much of a dent tonight had put in Donnie’s wallet. This dinner cruise couldn’t be cheap.
A gentle Pacific breeze blew past, taking Genie’s worries with it. Oh well. Maybe he had a coupon or something. However he’d come by the tickets, she intended to enjoy the evening.
After they posed for the commemorative photograph, Donnie and Genie were whisked away to the top of the four-deck ship. The dining room was meant to convey opulence, but Genie knew it was not much more than a pretense. Even so, she intended to enjoy the evening. What’s not to enjoy? She was dining with an incredibly handsome man who was nothing short of the perfect gentleman. Under those circumstances, a girl could overlook the fact that the restaurant wasn’t nearly as luxurious as it pretended to be.
Genie eyed the long tables in the center of the room, hoping they wouldn’t be dining at one of those. She’d prefer something a little more intimate, like one of the private tables along the windows.
The hostess greeted them with a smile. “Name?”
Genie glanced at her name tag—Angela—vaguely hearing Donnie say, “Taylor.”
The girl perused her list. “Donnie or Richard?”
“Donnie.”
“Great.” With a nod, she added, “We got a table with a great view over here for you.” Angela pointed to the other side of the ship.
“Wonderful.” Donnie held Genie’s hand as they followed the waitress to one of the tables midway along the starboard windows.
Thankfully, the tables were intimate. Just two diners for each. Genie liked that idea. Donnie pulled her chair out, and once she’d seated herself, he did the same.
“Would you care for some wine?” he asked.
She nodded. “Sure. I’ve love a glass.”
Once the hostess heard Donnie’s request for a bottle of wine, she ambled away. He’d ended up ordering a pinot. His first requests had been Argiolas Vermentino or Turley Zinfandel, neither of which they had on board the ship. Donnie could already see tons of changes needing to be made if he bought the ship. Trouble was, he wasn’t sure where to begin.
Instead of dwelling on the dinner cruise’s inadequacies, he settled his sights on Genie. She was such a beautiful woman. He couldn’t understand how she’d come to be here in paradise all alone. Oh well, if someone had been dumb enough to let her go…Donnie’s gain. He just wished he could be sure she liked him more than his money.
Their salads came, and while they ate, they chitchatted about nothing to personal. Genie said only that she was in Hawaii to get away from it all, and was enjoying her respite.
The show was Hawaiian in every sense of the word, but Donnie had seen better. Every so often, Genie would look at him and smile. He got the feeling she was a little bored by the show, but every time her eyes met his, hers sparkled.
He leaned her way, asking, “What do you think of the show?”
It took a moment before she said, “It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen.”
“Well, if you ask me,” he said, “they could invest a few bucks and hire some quality entertainment.”
“That would be a start.” Her voice remained neutral, but from the perplexity lurking in her eyes, Donnie figured she felt the same about it as him.
Like a bolt of lightning, it hit Donnie. Who better to know how to give this place a much needed shot in the arm but a woman hoping for a fabulous evening? At least that’s what he’d like to think she was counting on. Donnie leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. “So what would you do to this ship if you owned it? How would you turn it into the best dinner cruise on the island?”
“Well…” She hesitated, clearly mulling it over. “Assuming that I’ve already taken care of the entertainment.” She gazed around the dining room. “Are we in the economy section?” she asked, then looked at him with sweet eyes that made him forget that he might’ve been insulted.
It was impossible to ignore or dismiss her admiring gaze. It wrapped him in pleasure. “No.” Donnie shook his head and laughed to himself. “We’re in the royal treatment section.”
“Well, it’s worse than I thought then.” Her eyes filled with an odd mixture of wariness and joy. “First, the dining room needs to be redesigned. It’s nice, but not nice enough to expect people to pay royal treatment prices. I’d rearrange the dining room completely. It’s too crowded in here.” She shook her head. “If people are paying for luxury, it should start with privacy.” Genie shrugged, and Donnie tended to agree. “And where is the Captain?” she asked. “People like dining at the Captain’s table on cruise ships. So why not here?” Genie gave the room another once-over while Donnie was making mental notes of everything she said. “I’d probably do something with the decks too. Make it enticing for couples to steal a romantic moment against the moonlight.”
“Anything else?”