Arranged Mafia Daddy

Chapter 2Stella

My hand is shaking as I stop in the middle of the hallway to answer the phone. “Hello?” I ask, trying to sound annoyed. In reality, I’m just confused.

“Hey, Stella, care to tell me what the fuck is going on?” His voice is deep and harsh, and I almost feel like apologizing until I remember I haven’t done anything wrong. He’s trying to make me feel bad about leaving him, but he’s the one who deserves to feel bad.

And I bet he does. That’s why he’s taking it out on me like this.

“I don’t have the slightest clue what you’re talking about,” I reply, feigning ignorance to see how much he knows.

“First of all, I haven’t heard from you in days, and then I find out you’re taking a cruise? Is this for real?”

How the hell did he find out I was on a cruise? Is he stalking me?

“Tyler…” I begin, but I don’t know what to say. I’m freaked out by how much he knows.

He chuckles, and his voice turns cold. “You’ve been caught, Stella. Give it up. You dumped me so that you could go on your little cruise alone and get fucked by guys you barely know. And then, at the end of it, you’re going to come home acting like nothing happened.”

I scoff at his ridiculous suggestion, not only because it’s completely false, but also because even if I had done all that, it’s not a crime. I’m a free woman, and I’m under no obligation to involve anyone else in my life.

We aren’t married, he’s an asshole, and we’re no longer together.

I should hang up the phone right now, but I feel like arguing. I wasn’t able to express my anger when I found the text messages on his phone. I couldn’t tell him how disgusted I was with him because I was scared how he would react.

But he isn’t here right now. He can’t hurt me, and once I’m miles away in the ocean, he won’t even be able to get to me even if he wanted to come find me.

My phone almost slips from my hand as I grip it tighter. I was already sweaty before the call, but now I’m drenched. “You have no right to make those kinds of accusations, Tyler. You’re the one who was caught cheating, and you blew up our relationship like it meant nothing to you.”

“You didn’t even give me a chance to explain!”

I hesitate, but only for a moment. “There’s nothing to explain. I saw the pictures.”

“Those were old, from before we started dating. You’re blowing this way out of proportion,” he whines, and I know he’s trying to manipulate me again. He’s so good at it that it makes me sick.

“Just shut up,” I snarl. “It’s embarrassing to hear you whining like a bitch.” My entire body is electrified with adrenaline the moment my harsh words leave my mouth, but I know in my heart he deserves them.

Several seconds of dead silence follow before Tyler can muster up a response. “Wow… Just wow.”

“Wow is right,” I reply with a swell of excitement at my victory over him. “And now maybe I will fuck some other guys. Sounds like fun.”

“You’ve really lost it.”

I laugh. “Sure, believe what you want, but you’re the one stalking me to find out what I’m doing. It’s fucking creepy.”

“You’re not hard to find,” he grumbles. “Your email is still logged in on my phone.”

I’m struck by a hard bolt of realization. Tyler knows everything about my trip, and even if I managed to log myself out on all devices, that’s not going to change what he’s discovered.

Every stop, every port, even the day and time of my final destination – he knows. I’m tempted to run off the ship and book a hotel for a month instead.

Can you cancel tickets this late?

I hang up on Tyler immediately, thumbing through my apps until I find my email. It only takes me a few seconds to figure out how to log myself out everywhere, which will prevent him from discovering any of my next moves.

But what now? Should I really stay on this ship when he knows everything about me?

My only saving grace is the fact that Tyler doesn’t make enough money to jump onto a plane and fly to the nearest island to wait for me. He works at a bar and his tips barely get him through the month because he goes out to eat every single day.

It bothered me then, but now I realize it was a blessing in disguise.

Saved by my ex’s brokeness. It’d be funny if it wasn’t so damn sad.

I turn my phone off and put it back in my purse. Even if Tyler wanted to call me back, he wouldn’t be able to. I heard enough from him to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that leaving him was the right thing to do.

It’s time to find my room and wash off all the ick that’s clinging to my body from that relationship. I’m going to turn the water up so hot that I burn away every memory of his fingers on my skin.

Torch it down and start anew. That’s the best way to do it.

But first I have to find my room.

With a new sense of purpose, I roll my suitcase into the main shopping area, not allowing myself to get distracted by the flashing lights and glittering souvenir trinkets for sale. I have enough keychains already. My mom teases me that I won’t be able to lift my car keys if I get any more.

She’s probably right. Fewer keychains and more booze this time around. That’s the only way I’m going to get through this with my sanity intact.

A flash of red draws my attention upward, and I see an electric sign directing new passengers to their rooms hanging in the center of the lobby.

The pixelated words roll across the screen like an advertisement.

ABC, left.

DEF, right.

I was on the wrong side of the boat, which is easy to correct. I wait for more instructions from the sign, but it just repeats itself, so I grab my suitcase and roll my way to another red carpeted hallway. It’s identical to the last one, but the rooms have different letters.

I keep going until I get to the B’s, and then I take the nearest elevator up to the sixth floor. That’s where my room will be.

I smell coconut and spices as the bronze-colored doors to the elevator roll shut. Could be a coincidence. There are probably thousands of people on this boat, but how many of them would smell just like Mr. Handsome from the boarding line?

I inhale deeply, closing my eyes and taking in the wonderful smell. It must be something expensive. I’ve never smelled anything like it before. It’s strong but not obnoxious, sweet but not in your face about it. The spices are exotic and unrecognizable, like they were invented just for this cologne.

If nothing else, I have to ask him what he’s wearing. It would be a good icebreaker if I ran into him again.

The elevator arrives on my floor with a loud chime, and the doors roll open. The hallway is the same again, which feels like a horrible idea because people are guaranteed to get lost here after happy hour.

The smell of Mr. Handsome’s cologne grows stronger with every step, like he’s walking right beside me.

I slow down, nervous that I’m going to run into him. My heart is working double-time, but I’m walking at a snail’s pace. The sweat is back, too. I thought I was going to take a shower just to relax and unwind, but now I’m in desperate need of one to feel clean again.

I freeze when I get to my door.

B675. This is the one, but something isn’t right. Is this really my room? It almost looks like the light is on under the door, but the carpet makes it difficult to tell.

I crouch down, jumping back up a moment later when I hear a sound from down the hallway. Nobody comes around the corner, and the sound fades away after a moment.

I sigh, pulling out my keycard and holding it against the handle. If it doesn’t unlock, then I’ll know I’m in the wrong place. Is it possible that there are two different rooms labeled B675?

The handle shows a green light, and I hear a click. This is the right room.

I laugh at myself a little. I’m so on-edge since the breakup that I’m imagining all kinds of nightmare scenarios. My subconscious craves drama so badly that it’s conjuring up anything and everything to prevent me from relaxing and forgetting about what happened between Tyler and me.

I pull the door handle, and the smell of cologne becomes even stronger. If I didn’t know better, I’d think I was walking right into Mr. Handsome’s room.

How odd…

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