“What if she hates me? What if she wants me to be shot by firing squad and my limbs dragged to the four corners of the earth by wild horses?”

I wince. “She might.” His face falls. On an impulse, I grip his shoulder. “But you love her. That’s obvious. And if you love her, you need to tell her. You don’t want to spend the rest of your life wondering ‘what if.’ If you’re honest with her about your feelings, even if she says it’s over for good, at least you’ll know you tried.”

A spark of hope lights behind his brown eyes.

“Here,” I say, twisting around to open the drawer to my nightstand. “Take my staff Wi-Fi card—I get them for free. Use it to call her.”

He takes the card from my outstretched hand like I’m offering him the keys to redemption. Bringing the card to his lips, he kisses it. “Thank you, Miss Evans. I will never forget your kindness.”

I cast a glance at the bathroom where Graeme is still hiding—waiting. Impatience wells in my gut and I steer Nikolai across the cabin with a friendly, but firm, pat on the back. “Don’t mention it.” I pause, looking him in the eye. “Really, please don’t tell anyone you were here. Let’s keep this between us.”

Nikolai places a hand over his heart. “I promise.”

Just as my fingers close around the door handle, a knock reverberates through the thick metal.

I jump, and bump into Nikolai, who stumbles.

The knock sounds again. “Miss Evans?”

It’s Gustavo.

24

Shit,” I whisper, backing deeper into my cabin.

“Is there a problem?” Nikolai asks.

My heartbeat quickens and I can’t seem to catch a breath through the boatload of mayday, mayday barreling through my system.

Gustavo can’t find Nikolai in here, he just can’t. Staff isn’t allowed to have guests in their cabins, and he already has the wrong idea about Nikolai and me. Maybe if we stay very quiet, he’ll go away…

Fanning my fingers, I hold perfectly still and stare at Nikolai, who stares back with wide, confused eyes.

Silence.

I begin to exhale, when…

Knock, knock, knock.

“Miss Evans? Are you there?”

“Are you going to answer?” Nikolai asks in a low voice.

I shake my head so rapidly I swear I can feel my brain bouncing around my skull. I swallow. “No,” I whisper. “See, I’m up for a promotion, and if my boss finds out I had a guest in my cabin, that’s it for me. Game over.”

“But it is innocent. We are not doing anything untoward,” he says.

“It doesn’t matter. The appearance of impropriety is enough, believe me.”

Based on the insistent pace of knocking, Gustavo’s not going away. I pace the cabin. What to do, what to do…