The Tycoon's Proposition

“Phone me if you need me. I’ll come running.”

“I’ll remember that.” His voice grated.

Terri felt his hesitation before he stepped back inside the elevator. She held her breath until the door closed, separating her from the husband she loved more than she ever thought it possible to love a man. If he’d remained one more second, he would have been in no doubt how she felt about him.

Thankful there was so much work to do so she couldn’t go to bed and sob her heart out a second time, she hurried into the dining room and got busy writing thank-you notes.

There were so many! Not only for the gifts from family and friends, but for the people like the captain of the ship, the organist, the chef and the stewards, the photographer, the dance band, all the staff who’d made their wedding day so exquisite.

When there was so much to do to get ready for the launching, it couldn’t have been easy to plan a wedding at the last minute. In Terri’s mind it revealed their profound respect and regard for her husband.

She still couldn’t believe that of all the women he could have married, he’d chosen her. In her heart she prayed he would never regret it.

After working hard for the next couple of hours, she finished the last note, then separated them into piles to be mailed out or distributed to the staff. With that accomplished, she downed a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, grabbed her map of the Atlantis and took off for the post office in her sneakers.

In order to be of any help tomorrow, she decided to go exploring today so she’d know where to direct the new condo owners who might get lost on anything this gargantuan. One real plus to living on a ship this size—you could eat all you wanted because you ended up walking off the calories just to get from point A to point B.

Ben’s private office, along with the other directors’ offices, were all located on the twenty-third floor surrounding the board of directors’ conference room. After she’d left the post office, she began her tour of discovery from the top floor, anxious to acquaint herself with Ben’s inner sanctum.

It looked lived in. He’d obviously been working out of here for many months, but it needed plants and pictures. Perhaps the decorating firm hired for the project already had plans which hadn’t been implemented yet. She’d find out from her husband.

The twenty-second floor to the fifth of the superstructure housed the condos. Floors one through four contained the shops, restaurants and businesses. She jogged around to get herself oriented.

So many thousands of details had to have been worked out on the drawing board first. Just estimating the number of lifeboats, preservers and provisions needed in case of an emergency boggled her mind. One day

she’d like to shake the hand of the architects and engineers who’d brought Ben’s dream to life.

The rest of the ship from the promenade deck down to the hull housed the crew and everything else necessary to the running of the massive vessel. On the flight to the city Ben had told her there was still space on A deck she could make into an office for the chamber of commerce. She headed there next, anxious to start planning her work space.

When she found it, she discovered a medium-size room with nothing in it, but it was ready for occupancy. That was perfect. Her belongings would be arriving before they set sail tomorrow. She would recreate the office she’d had at her apartment in South Dakota down to the pictures and momentos. It would make her feel right at home and wouldn’t cost a dime!

Pleased beyond words, she kept touring the ship until she found the personnel office for the staff. There was a sign in front of the thirtyish looking blond man seated at the desk. John Reagan, Manager.

“Mr. Reagan?”

He looked up from the computer. After an admiring male glance he got to his feet. “Hello.”

“Hi. I’m Terri Herrick.”

The revelation seemed to take him back for a moment, but he recovered just as quickly. “How do you do, Mrs. Herrick. We all heard he got married yesterday. Lucky man,” he said under his breath but she heard him.

“I’m the lucky one.” They shook hands.

He grinned. “Are you lost by any chance?”

“Not yet, but the day isn’t over yet. I came to talk to you.”

“Sure. Please. Sit down.”

“Thank you.” She perched on one of the chairs. “You and I will be neighbors. I’m the new head of the chamber of commerce a few doors down.”

“You’re kidding. I didn’t even know there was one on the ship.”

“It’s just been announced. Anyway, I’ll explain the reason for my visit. There might be a young pregnant woman coming aboard who’s hit hard times and needs a job. I’m not sure how much English she speaks. Until I know more about her, I have no idea what her qualifications are.

“She’s going to have her baby within the week, so in any event she wouldn’t be able to work until she’s back on her feet. I already know the rule about no babies, but that might change in the future.

“My question is this—are there any rooms still vacant for a potential staff member?”