Filed to story: Young Girls Forbidden Love Series: My Best Friend’s Daddy
I was positive that the conversation I had with Shelby had been genuine. I got the feeling that there was nothing about her that wasn’t one hundred percent genuine.
Lost in thought, I didn’t hear the footsteps behind me.
“Oh, hello, sir.”
I turned to see Reggie standing behind the two lounge chairs, looking confused.
“Reggie, I need to thank you for looking after Lauren’s guests. You really have gone above and beyond what is expected. You are doing a remarkable job.”
“No problem, sir,” he said with a sheepish grin.
“That reminds me to show you those sales reports from last quarter. If you could email Pam, she will get those sent over. Oh, sorry, is there something you need from me?” I asked.
“No, sir, I was just looking for… never mind. I will go get those reports ready. Please excuse me.” Reggie said and turned to go.
I was confused by the interaction until I looked down at the pitcher of lemonade and…the two glasses.
Shelby did say that Reggie sent up the lemonade for her, but he sent her two glasses. I realized I had probably intruded on a moment Reggie set up.
The thought that Reggie wanted Shelby’s attention shouldn’t have bothered me, but it did. It bothered me more than I cared to admit.
I remained on the lounge chair, replaying my conversation with Shelby over again in my head.
Finally, after an hour, I decided it was probably time I rejoined the guests. Lauren was planning a cocktail party for that evening, and I needed to check with the staff that everything was running smoothly.
Lauren had ordered an ice sculpture to be made in her image, and she told me she would ‘die of embarrassment’ if it didn’t turn out.
I planned to go check it before she could. That way, if there was a problem, I would be the one to deal with it, and Lauren wouldn’t get a chance to terrorize my staff.
As I exited the dining room on my way to the kitchens, I heard my name being called from the other end of the hall.
“Mr. Astor! I’ve been looking for you,” Todd said.
I turned towards him, wondering what Shelby wasn’t telling me about Todd.
“I was hoping I could have a word with you, sir. Alone.”
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Shelby POV
I woke up on the fourth day of our trip to a fantastic view. I wrapped a robe around myself and made my way to the balcony.
The yacht was no longer moving; we must have come into port sometime during the night. We were docked at a tropical island with white sand beaches lined with palm trees.
I could barely hold back a squeal of excitement; Lauren told me yesterday that we would be going on a private luxury catamaran dolphin tour. I was finally going to get my wish of seeing a dolphin in the wild.
It would even be worth being stuck on a smaller boat with Todd all day.
I had become very creative in finding ways to avoid Todd each day. I still attended every planned activity but managed to sneak away and spend some time relaxing.
On a few occasions, Reggie would save me from talking to the other members of the group.
I’d also had a few decent conversations with Alison, the woman in our group with short black hair. I liked her far better than Megan, who was caught up in impressing Hudson.
Megan was one of those people who would put others down to get a laugh. Unfortunately, I had been the subject of too many of her jokes for me to want to get to know her any better.
No conversation could match up to the one I had with Lauren’s father, Michael. It was also the only conversation I kept thinking about; I had to be careful whenever he was around not to stare too much.
Michael usually joined the group for a while but would slip away as soon as he knew he wouldn’t be missed.
I quickly got dressed in black shorts and a white T-shirt over the top of my bikini. On this trip, I noticed Lauren and the other girls seemed to have a new bikini for every occasion. I was sure they had noticed that I was constantly wearing the same two.
However, today was not the day to worry about their judgment because I was finally going to see a dolphin.
I practically flew to the dining room where we would be having breakfast before we boarded the catamaran. It was no surprise that I was the first one there; I should have remembered that to Lauren and her friends, on time was actually early.
I sat next to one of the windows overlooking the island and placed my breakfast order. Each meal was prepared by a private chef, who made the best food I had ever tasted.
The waiter brought over my latte while I waited for my lobster frittata.
I sipped at my drink and watched the tropical birds flying over the ocean. Michael filled the chair across from me, breaking my trance. I looked over and smiled at him.
“Good morning, Shelby,” Michael said, returning my smile. My stomach did a small flip as his eyes met mine.
“Good morning,” I said, glad that I had picked one of the smaller tables that only had room for two.
“This has got to be my favorite place to stop. It is a quiet little island between Florida and the Bahamas. The locals are amazing, and the restaurants are to die for.”
“It is absolutely beautiful,” I said wistfully.
“So, what does Lauren have planned for you today?” Michael asked.
“She has a private catamaran dolphin tour planned,” I said, and my tone conveyed how badly I was looking forward to it.
“Oh, that will be an enjoyable day. You seem excited about the dolphins.”
“I have loved dolphins ever since I was little. My parents even bought me a little stuffed animal dolphin that I carried everywhere with me. I named it Dolly,” I said and then quickly stopped talking.
The memory of the loss of my parents still stung, and I did my best not to talk about it.
“Have you ever gotten to see one in real life?” Michael asked me with a slightly amused look on his face, probably imagining me with the little dolphin doll.
“No. There is a pod that lives year-round off the coast of Maine where my grandpa lives, but he doesn’t get out much. So I never got the chance.” I wasn’t quite as happy now as I had been before as thoughts of how much I missed my family filled my mind.
Michael remained quiet. I hoped he wouldn’t ask why my parents never took me. I didn’t want to explain about them passing away. However, I was saved when our food arrived, which gave me time to change the subject before he could ask.
“You will have to help me spot the dolphins while we are on the catamaran today,” I said, hoping to sound innocent.
Michael’s face fell, “I am afraid I have some business that I really have to attend to. I won’t be able to make it.”
“Oh,” I said, trying not to sound disappointed. I had been hoping to spend some more time with him. He was one of the only people here i liked to talk to.
“I’d love to hear about your first dolphin sighting when you get back, though,” he said, running a hand through his hair.