Total pages in book: 135
Estimated words: 128211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 641(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 427(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 641(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 427(@300wpm)
The corner of Finn’s lips tilted up, his eyes beaming as they flicked between mine. “Fecking right, you are.”
“I deserve to be on this boat. I deserve this career. I deserve this dream. And I’m not walking away, even if they wish I would. Especially because they wish I would.”
The fire that had dimmed in me since the moment I surfaced with Maria in my arms sparked again, small but sure. Those embers were hot and alive and just waiting to catch.
Finn watched me for a long moment, then he wrapped me up tighter, his lips on my temple.
“That’s my girl,” he murmured, the words carrying on the wind.
Warmth found me for the first time since I dove into the water, and I burrowed into Finn, into the comfort he provided. I was almost shocked by the fact that I meant what I said.
I really didn’t care what my father thought anymore — or anyone else.
Maybe all it took for me to drop the weight of their expectations was to realize this was my life, to live the way I wanted to.
I didn’t have the power to make everyone in the world understand me, but I did have the power to give myself the approval I’d been wishing for.
I pulled in a deep breath, the sea air sharp and clean in my lungs, and let it anchor me.
Let them edit me into a villain. Let the crew whisper behind my back. Let my father never see the value in what I’ve built.
I know what I’m worth.
“Finn.”
“Mm?”
I lifted my chin, eyes finding his in the dark. “Take me somewhere?”
Our shift wasn’t over. We had so much we still needed to do — clean the galley, prep food for tomorrow, clean up dinner service, make sure the guests were okay.
But for the moment, the rest of the crew had it handled. I didn’t know how long they’d give us this pass so I could regain composure, but I knew I didn’t want to waste what time we had just sitting here.
I needed him.
Finn swallowed, the motion thick in his throat before he helped me stand. I thought I saw a hint of a smile. “Trying to get us in trouble, Firefly?”
“Won’t be any trouble if we’re not caught.”
That had his eyes lighting, his fingers dragging the length of my arm until he took my hand in his.
“I know a place.”
CHARTER CONFESSIONAL
CLOSE QUARTERS
SEASON 4, EPISODE 13
CHARTER 8
GISELLA DÍAZ: DECKHAND/STEWARDESS
PRODUCER
Are you okay after all the craziness last night?
GISELLA
It wasn’t that crazy. Deck team had a pretty great day, I think. It was the interior going off the rails.
PRODUCER
You aren’t shaken up by the fight between the guests or Maria going overboard?
GISELLA
I’m not shaken by much these days.
PRODUCER
What did you think of Ember jumping in to save—
GISELLA
Oh, por favor. Are we really going to make this a thing? She saw someone go overboard so she jumped in. Any one of us would have done the same, it’s really not the big heroic act she’s trying to make it out to be.
PRODUCER
So, you didn’t see Maria go overboard?
Gisella pauses.
GISELLA
Of course not. Why, did someone say I did? I was helping Palmer with the drifting vessel situation. He can vouch for me.
PRODUCER
No one said anything.
GISELLA
Oh. Okay, good. Because I didn’t see.
PRODUCER
But you don’t think what Ember did was brave?
GISELLA
¿Crees que la voy a aplaudir? I’m not giving any kind of praise to the girl who pretended to be my friend while she was hooking up with my boyfriend.
PRODUCER
Finn claims you two broke up before he and Ember reconnected.
Gisella crosses legs, uncrosses them, stands.
GISELLA
Well, we didn’t.
PRODUCER
He also said you—
GISELLA
Haven’t you learned by now that everything out of that man’s mouth is a lie? I have to get to work.
Gisella exits.
Finn didn’t waste a second.
The blanket abandoned on deck, he grabbed my hand and tugged me toward the aft companionway, ducking low to avoid the mounted camera fixed to the overhead beam. I barely stifled a laugh as I followed, breath catching when we passed the bar — where Bernard’s voice floated out in a lazy hum, just a few steps away from spotting us.
Finn pressed his finger to his lips, then grinned like a kid up to no good as we crept past, shoulders brushing, our footsteps featherlight on the teak flooring.
We slipped through the service corridor, navigating narrow passageways that twisted around guest cabins and crew storage closets. When we crept down a second set of stairs that was steeper and narrower, a shortcut used mostly by engineers, my stomach cartwheeled.
Every step we took felt like peeling away another layer of logic.
The air grew warmer the deeper we went, thicker — charged with the scent of grease and diesel, mechanical heat and metal.
When we reached the heavy, steel door marked ENGINE ROOM – AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY, I was panting.