First Class Voyage (First Class Novels – A Contemporary Romance Series) (10 page)

“Well, call him!” Andrew replied.

Rory scrolled through the list on his phone and pushed
‘call’ when he found Jim’s name.

“No service,” he frowned. “I’ve only got one bar here.”

“What is it?” Matt had noticed the intense conversation
between his brother and his husband.

“Our attorney has been trying to call us. He finally called
the ship and the ship contacted Janie. It’s lucky for us that she stayed aboard
today. But I have no service here.”

Just at that moment Adam screamed. He had a tuna hooked on
his line. They all ran to the back of the boat and helped reel the mighty fish
in.

“Woo hoo!” screamed Adam. “I caught one!!”

“Well done,” Matt patted his back. “First try too!”

Matt turned to the guide as he unhooked the flapping fish
and smacked it on the head. The fish immediately stilled.

“We need to get back to the dock right now,” Matt
instructed.

The guide looked surprised. They still had a couple of hours
left of their tour.

“Now,” Matt reiterated.

*****

As Mark and Derek pulled the kayaks back on shore, Katy took
the life vests back to the rental shack.

“Did you have a good time?” she was asked.

“Oh yes,” she smiled. “It was wonderful. The water is so
warm and clear. We could see the fish and the coral as we paddled.

“You have a handsome son, and husband.”

“Oh,” Katy began. She was going to say that Mark wasn’t her husband
but she stopped. “Thank you,” she smiled instead.

Katy turned and walked in the direction of her men.
My
husband
, she thought.

‘Do it!’ the words of her son came to her mind.

My husband,
she thought again
. Yes, he should be.

*****

As the fishing boat docked, Rory tried his cell phone again.
He had three bars of service and dialed their attorney’s phone number. He got
his secretary and was told Jim was unavailable. Rory explained who he was and
why he was calling but the secretary was in the dark as to what Jim wanted.

“I will give him your message as soon as he is finished with
his conference call,” she said.

Rory hung up still not knowing what he could possibly want.

“He knew we were going on vacation so if he’s trying to
contact us it must be for something important,” Rory said to Andrew as they
stood on the pier.

“Well, we just have to wait to see what he wants,” frowned
Andrew, as they began the walk back to the ship.

*****

Adam couldn’t wait to tell his mom about the amazing tuna he
caught. Janie was thrilled to hear about their adventure and sat in their suite
enthralled with their news. Tyler didn’t catch anything. Neither did Matt, but
they’d had a good time anyway.

After playing with Ella for a little while, the boys headed
up to the bar to meet Tim and Ben.

“So what was phone call all about?” Janie asked Matt.

“We don’t know yet. It was their lawyer.”

“Yes! I knew I recognized the name,” she said. “Well if he’s
tracking them down on vacation it must be good news!”

“Let’s hope so,” agreed Matt.

Christopher stirred and started to fuss.

“He’s still not feeling well?” Matt asked as he went to pick
up his son.

“I think he’s doing better,” Janie smiled. “Probably just
hungry again.”

“My favorite time of the day,” Matt smiled.

*****

Andrew and Rory paced back and forth around their cabin. It
wasn’t big enough for both of them to pace at the same time so they took turns.
Andrew sat on the bed staring at the cell phone.

“Ring, dammit!” he growled.

“What if he doesn’t call before we leave port?” Rory
worried.

“He’ll call.”

A few more minutes went by before they both jumped as the
phone started vibrating on the bed. Then the musical chimes began playing.

Rory grabbed for the phone and answered.

“Yes, Jim. How are you?”

He listened for a moment.

“We’re both here,” Rory replied, sitting down next to
Andrew. “What’s up?”

Andrew was on pins and needles as he watched the expression
on Rory’s face change from uncertainty to surprise.

“Put it on speaker,” he pleaded.

“Hold on Jim. I’m going to put you on speaker phone.”

Rory pulled the phone away from his ear and pushed a button.

“Are you still there?” Rory asked.

“I’m here,” Jim replied. “Hi Andrew. How’s the vacation
going?”

“That depends on why you’re calling us,” Andrew chuckled.

“Well, I just told Rory that I have some news for you,” Jim
began.

Andrew and Rory looked at each other and held their breath.

Jim continued. “There is a pregnant young woman in Albany
who is due in three weeks. They don’t know if the baby is a boy or a girl. The
girl is white, the father half African American and half Latino. He has already
signed away his parental rights so there isn’t an issue there. The mother is
only fifteen so with the support of her parents, they have decided to give the
baby up for adoption. Her uncle is gay and was never able to adopt a child
because of his sexual orientation so she has specifically asked for a gay
couple, and…”

“Don’t mess with us,” Andrew whispered.

They heard Jim chuckle through the phone. “I’m not messing
with you,” he said. “Now there’s still three weeks so it’s not a done deal
until all the papers are signed after the baby is born, but, she has selected
you to adopt her baby.”

“Oh God, thank you!” cried Andrew.

“This is for real?” Rory asked.

“For real,” Jim replied. “You are going to be parents! I
will wait for you to call me when you get home. That will still give us a
couple of weeks.”

“Thank you for calling, Jim” Rory beamed. “You have made our
day.”

“You’re welcome. Talk to you soon.”

Rory put the phone down very slowly, letting the words of
their attorney sink in.

“We’re going to have a baby,” he grinned. “We’re going to
have a baby!!”

*****

That evening at dinner, champagne was ordered and everyone
cheered and toasted to Andrew and Rory.

“Just remember, it’s not a done deal until after the baby is
born. She still has a few weeks to change her mind,” Andrew said.

“Why would they do that?” asked Maureen. “There are no two
better men who deserve to raise a family.”

“Thank you Maureen,” smiled Rory. “Thank you everyone for
your support over the past couple of years. It means the world to us.” He took
Andrew’s hand in his.

“Well, fingers crossed all goes well and next month we will
be celebrating the newest addition to the Lathem family.” Matt raised his
glass.

“What is its last name going to be?” asked Tim.

All eyes moved to Andrew, and then to Rory, eyebrows raised.
This was a question they all were curious about.

“Hadn’t thought about that yet,” Andrew replied honestly.

“Jeffers-Lathem, I think,” smiled Rory.

Andrew turned to him. “Really?”

“Yes. I think it sounds perfect.”

Andrew smiled and Rory nodded.

“Wonderful!” beamed Maureen.

Everyone toasted them again and dinner was served.

DAY 10 – ANTIGUA

Patty sat on the Lido deck eating breakfast with Ella. It
was just the two of them up bright and early so a date for pancakes it was.

Ella loved pancakes. Well, actually, she loved maple syrup
and the pancakes just happened to always accompany it. She was chatting away
about something, Patty didn’t know what. She actually only understood about
every third or fourth word. Patty sat back sipping on her coffee watching her
granddaughter lick the syrup from her fork and make conversation with the salt
shaker. It had something to do with elephants and pineapples.

“She’s pretty darn cute,” came a voice from Patty’s left.

She turned her head to see a gentleman, she guessed around
her own age, sitting at a table by himself, an empty plate in front of him, a
cup in his hand.

“Thank you. I think we’ll keep her,” she smiled.

“Two?” he asked.

Patty looked back at him, not understanding the question.

“Is she two?” he asked again.

“Oh. Yes. She’s two.”

“I have a grandson that age. They are very…very…animated at
that age,” he chuckled.

Patty agreed. “And they have wonderful imaginations.” She
turned back to her cup of coffee.

A few minutes had passed and Janie arrived at their table.

“I’ve been looking for you for forever,” she sighed. “This
place is huge.”

Janie kissed her mother’s cheek. “Thanks for taking her.”

“You’re welcome,” replied Patty.

“Okay Ella. Daddy’s waiting. We are going to go for a ride
on a big horse today!”

Ella squealed with delight and tried to get off her chair.

“I guess she’s done with breakfast,” Patty grinned.

“Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?” Janie asked
her mother.

“Oh no!” she shook her head. “Horses and I don’t do well
together.”

“I’ve never even seen you anywhere near a horse let alone on
one.”

“And you never will,” Patty declared. “I’ll see you guys
back here later.”

“What are you going to do today?” Janie asked.

“I’ll find something. Don’t worry about me. You guys go have
a great time.”

Janie held Ella’s hand and led her towards the elevator.

“You’re here with your family?” asked the man to her left.

“Yes. Well, my son-in-law’s family. Long story,” she said.

“I am here with my daughter and son-in-law and my three
grandchildren. Maggie didn’t want me sitting at home,” he smirked.

“That sounds lovely,” Patty smiled.

“They are all going to play with manta rays or sharks or
something today,” he chuckled. “Not really my idea of a good time.”

Patty smiled and took a sip of her coffee.

“I’m Lester,” he said.

“Patty,” she replied.

“Nice to meet you Patty. Would you care to share a taxi with
me and go see the island?”

Patty’s jaw dropped open. She turned her head to look at
Lester’s face. He looked sincere and he looked like a nice man. She took a
couple of seconds to consider his offer. She could spend the day with Maureen
she supposed. Assuming Maureen didn’t already have plans. Or she could be
spontaneous and live a little.

“Okay,” she smiled. “I’d love to Lester. I’m ready when you
are.”

*****

Peter took his son golfing. It was one of the many things
Peter had missed having Paul gone so much. As a teenager, it had been the
activity that had kept the father and son close all through high school. And
now, after many years, they again had the opportunity to play a round together.

By the third hole, Peter was already winning.

“I get a lot more practice than you,” he chuckled to his
son.

Paul didn’t mind losing. It wasn’t really the golf he was
looking forward to. It was spending some time with his dad.

“I think you’ll be a lot farther ahead by the time we’re
done,” Paul replied grinning at his dad.

“Do you know what your next assignment will be?” Peter asked
on hole number six as Paul was lining up to putt the ball in the cup.

“That’s the million dollar question,” Paul muttered as he
struck the ball. It rolled in, much to Paul’s surprise and Peter walked to his
son.

“Cryptic answer,” he mused.

“Dad, when I was younger, what did I want to be when I grew
up?”

“Before you wanted to join the army?”

“I remember that. That was in high school. I mean when I was
much younger.”

Peter thought for a moment and then a smile appeared across
his face.

“You wanted to be a daddy.”

Paul looked at his father. “Anything else?” he asked.

“That’s all I remember. You used to sit in my lap and tell
me you wanted to be a daddy just like me. I’m not sure that anything has ever
made me prouder.” Paul could actually see the smile in his father’s eyes as he
spoke.

*****

Mark and Katy were taking off their snorkeling gear after
several hours exploring the ocean.

“That was a lot of fun,” Katy grinned. “We should do that again.”

“We could come back here on our honeymoon,” Mark suggested.

“Yes, we could.”

“Really?” Mark was stunned. “You’re actually talking about a
honeymoon? Does that mean we might actually get married at some point?”

Katy slapped him on the arm. “I’m not
that
bad.”

“Sometimes you are,” he chuckled. “The mere mention of the
word ‘wedding’ and you freak out.”

Katy looked offended. “I do not freak out!”

Mark looked at her. “Really?”

“I’m sorry,” Katy sighed. “I know I’ve been a bit…a bit
hesitant.”

Mark threw his head back and laughed loudly. Katy slapped
his arm again.

“Stop it!” she frowned.

“I love you, you know?” Mark grabbed her around her waist
and kissed her quickly. “But you can be quite infuriating.” He let her go and
slapped her ass. “The second you say you’re ready, I am going to drag you to
the nearest priest and make you say ‘I do’!”

“Well, you may just get your wish one day.”

*****

After finishing his round of golf with his dad, Paul and
David had gone kayaking with a group from the ship. The description of the
excursion made it sound a little more exciting than they had actually
experienced. Paul was more than a little disappointed as the tour bus let them
back off at the pier.

“Kayaking in three feet of water is not really
adventurous
,”
he declared to David as they walked in to the pier.

David chuckled. “Well it is for some of us. I thought it was
pretty death-defying. I’m quite proud of myself.”

Paul grinned at his brother. “Wanna grab a beer before we
head back?”

They entered an open-air bar and sat on a couple of empty
barstools and David ordered two drinks. Then he headed off to the bathroom.
Paul sat and watched the small waves hit the sandy beach. The waiter put two
tall frothy glasses in front of him and he picked up one and took a long drink.
As he replaced his glass on the bar, he saw Nic sitting on the other side of
the bar, slightly hidden by a pole. She was playing with an umbrella in her
drink, her elbow propped on the bar, her cheek in her hand.