‘But then you would be left wondering for the rest of your life – about both of them.’

‘Ah, yes.’ I nodded. ‘Therein lies the rub.’

‘You know what I think?’ said Marie. I looked at her, my eyes encouraging her to go on. ‘I think Josh will figure out soon that what he really wants is you. And when he does, it will all work out.’

Maybe she was right.

Chapter Twelve

Four women drunk on cocktails cannot sneak onto a boat quietly. Fortunately, the menfolk were waiting up for us. I wondered if they were as drunk as we were.

‘Hello, ladies,’ slurred Duncan. Well, Duncan definitely was.

‘Did you have fun?’ asked Gary, as he stood and wrapped his arms around his wife. It looked like Gary was a little more in control of his faculties than Duncan.

‘We had soooo much fun!’ Marie giggled from the confines of her husband’s tall frame. I’d never heard such a girly giggle from her.

‘Let’s get you to bed, beautiful. Lots of water first, I think,’ Gary said, taking her hand and leading her below deck.

She tossed a joyful ‘Goodnight’ over her shoulder.

Gerry had snuggled up with Duncan under a chunky rug and seemed to have lost consciousness in a matter of moments. ‘What about you two?’ Duncan asked Hannah and me. ‘You have a good night too?’

‘We had a great night,’ I replied. ‘I haven’t had a girls’ night out for a long time, and it was exactly what I needed.’ Hannah went on to describe the bar where we’d spent the evening, and I watched Josh. He looked glum. I may have decided to keep my distance, but it didn’t mean I had to be rude.

‘How about you guys?’ I asked him.

He smiled feebly. ‘Sure, yes. It was fun. We grabbed a bite at one of the gyros places and then came back here – hung out. Duncan made some cocktails.’

‘Sounds fun.’ He nodded and then stared at me. I couldn’t think of anything else to say. ‘Well, goodnight.’ Without waiting for a reply – from Josh, or the others – I went below deck. I grabbed a bottle of water from the galley and closed the cabin door behind me. Well, that was awkward. Maybe I would need to keep my distance from Josh by actually keeping my distance.

*

The next morning, I woke to discover I had escaped another hangover. I was grateful I’d had the foresight to down a vitamin B capsule, some aspirin, and the whole bottle of water before I’d drifted off to sleep. I lay still and listened for any signs of life from the others. Nothing but the gentle, rhythmic lap of water slapping the hull. I wondered what time it was, but I knew it didn’t matter. I was awake and ravenously hungry, so it was time to get up.