3. Chapter 3

Ollie

Well, didn't that just figure? The most interesting man I'd seen in…well, ever, and he was here with a woman. An absolutely stunning woman, because what other kind of woman would a man like him be with? If I were guessing, I would say he was in his mid to late thirties, with just that touch of gray starting on the sides of his dark hair that looked distinguished, not old, or at least that's the way it looked on him.

I'd noticed him sitting there drinking his drink when the party first started, but I hadn't even noticed the gorgeous Latinx woman with him until he broke our connected gazes to lean in close to her to hear what she was saying to him. Until that point, I'd been sure he was watching me pretty intently.

I didn't know if he was bi-curious, or if they had an open marriage, or if he was just trying to learn a few new dance moves to impress his lady, but if there was one thing I didn't need in my life, it was to get involved in any of that.

"I want another drink," I said as an excuse, grabbing Carey's arm and pulling him towards the other side of the deck.

"Sounds good. I need a break anyways."

We found the girl with drinks just as I heard the loudspeaker again. "Here we go, ladies and gentlemen… We're almost ready to blow the ship's horn. Are you ready?"

Then she began a countdown starting with nine. "Come on, Carey," I yelled, grabbing his arms and tugging him with me as I headed for the stairs that led to the open deck on the side. "We have to get to the side of the ship."

"What? Why?" he asked, but he didn't resist, which was good because we'd be lucky to make it.

"Because you have to wave at the people on the shore as you leave," I called back over my shoulder.

"Ollie, you're ridiculous. We don't have people here seeing us off. There's no one we know there to wave at."

"Carey, I'm gonna need you to get in the spirit with me here. I've always wanted to wave at the people as I set out to sea. Now, move it."

We made it to the top of the stairs just as she said one, and we rushed to the rail as the ship's horn blew announcing our departure, and sure enough, there were people there, some even with towels or scarves or something waving at us as the ship began to move. "Here we go, everyone," the voice announced. "We're now sailing!"

I waved at the people watching us leave like some of them were actually there to see me off. It may have been stupid, but it was fun.

"So what now?" Carey asked when we were both all waved out.

"We could go back down to the party, or we could check and see if our rooms are ready. I bet they are. I'm really curious what it's going to look like. I know we got the cheaper rooms, and they'll be small, but I still want to see it. Plus, we have the meet and greet tonight."

"Right, and I want to be fresh for that. I don't know about you, but grabbing a few hours of sleep in the car doesn't have me at my best right now."

"Same, dude, totally the same. I say we go up to our rooms, catch a quick nap, and then we can head down for food."

"And to meet the Daddies," he added, and I laughed.

"Yeah, Carey, and to meet the Daddies."

Adam

By the time we'd finished dinner, I was feeling more relaxed. Maybe Harper was right, and I did need a vacation. I wasn't sure when the last time was that I'd had one. I'd taken time off from work, sure, but I hadn't gone anywhere or done anything fun in longer than I could remember. That said, I still wasn't sold on the idea that this was a way to meet the perfect boy for me.

Mostly for the same reasons that I wasn't a big fan of meeting people online. It felt too calculated. But there was nothing saying that just because I didn't believe I would meet the boy who was supposed to be mine forever on this cruise that I couldn't have a little fun. Odds were whoever I hooked up with wouldn't live anywhere near me, so it couldn't be anything more than a week-long fling, anyway. And while what I really wanted was a boy to come home to after I worked all day, a boy to take care of, a boy who would be mine, it wouldn't be the end of the world if, for just this week, I could find a boy to have some fun with.

I made my way down to the meeting room that had been set up for the group's meet and greet and was met at the door by a representative from the service that had set up the cruise.

"Are you here for tonight's Daddy/boy meet and greet?" he asked.

"I am."

"Wonderful. My name's Cameron, but you can call me Cam. We're going to have so much fun this week! Now, let me just get a little info from you. I need your name, and I need to know if you're a Daddy or a boy, and if you're a boy, are you a little? We have different colored name tags."

I paused for a second because no one had ever asked me if I was a boy or not. One look at me, and everyone just assumed I was a Daddy. I liked that Cameron didn't just assume.

"I'm a Daddy, Cam, but thanks for asking, and my name's Adam."

"Well, you know what they say. Never judge a book by the cover," he said with a wink. "Now, would you prefer Adam or Daddy Adam on your name tag?"

"Just Adam will be fine for now."

He nodded and pulled out a sheet of name tags and used a black marker to write my name on the tag, then he handed it to me. "Red is for Daddies, blue is for boys, and the ones with the rainbow stars are for littles."

"Got it," I said, putting the sticker on my shirt.

"Tonight's just to give everyone a chance to be in the same room so you can get a feel for who all's here. You read the rules for the group, yes?"

"I did," I confirmed.

"Good. We take our members' safety very seriously, so be aware that if you violate the rules, not only will you not be allowed to attend any other activities on this cruise, but you'll be banned from the site, and all future events as well."

Honestly, I'd actually been very impressed when I'd read over the rules. They were all about honoring everyone's boundaries and treating each other with respect, something that should go without saying, but sadly didn't.

"I understand."

"Okay, then. Drinks are on us for tonight, so go on in and enjoy yourself."

I left him standing at the door to greet others who were here for the event and went on inside. There were more people here than I expected this early in the evening, and there was already a crowd at the free bar. I wandered over there and ordered a beer. I didn't want to start off with anything harder just in case I met someone who piqued my interest.

I wandered around for about an hour and had conversations with a few of the other Daddies. We talked about what they were looking for in a boy and what they did for a living, but none of the boys had caught my attention. If I was going to call it a night, I figured I might as well have a drink with a little more kick to it, so I made my way back over to the bar and ordered an Old Fashioned. I was waiting for the drink when I noticed a boy in line at the far end of the bar. I stood there for a second and just stared, trying to decide if I was really seeing what I thought I was seeing. It was the boy from earlier. The one who was dancing at the Sail Away party. What were the odds the first boy to catch my eye in forever was also here for the Daddy/boy event?

He wore different clothing, but I was pretty sure he was the same boy. Any doubts I had were removed when he looked over and saw me watching him. Our eyes met, and just like on the deck earlier, the pull I'd felt between us was palpable. His eyes widened in recognition, and a small smile pulled at the corners of his lips.

I'd hoped I'd see him again, but I didn't really expect to on a ship with over two thousand passengers, and yet here he was. And even better, I thought, glancing at his blue name tag, he was a boy. Too perfect. One thing was for sure—I wasn't letting him get away without talking to him this time.