Chapter 2

Robin Barry felt out of place amidst the couples mingling and canoodling on the cruise ship"s deck. She tugged at the hem of her dress, wishing she"d opted for something more comfortable. This trip, gifted by a well-meaning colleague, was supposed to be about finding love, but Robin wasn"t sure she was up for it.

Instead, she wanted to use her time in the Galapagos for professional development. The islands offered a treasure trove of unique species to study, and on a veterinary professor's salary, when else would Robin get the chance to do something like this?

Robin had come to the deck for the cruise director"s send-off and the Scarlet Begonias" performance, intending to sneak away to her room after the first few songs.

Instead, the lead singer"s haunting voice drew her in and fixed her to her spot by the bar. For an hour and a half, Robin was mesmerized, unable to look away from the charismatic – not to mention drop-dead gorgeous –frontwoman. From her flowing, lavender hair to the way her lips moved against the mic as she sang, Robin was in love by the end of the first song.

The singer kept sweeping her eyes over Robin, too, and she had to tell herself it only seemed that way from her limited vantage point in the crowd. Scarlet Day probably hadn"t noticed her at all, looking at the audience and not really seeing any of them as she sang.

As the final notes of the set faded away at last, Robin realized she hadn"t moved an inch the whole time. She couldn"t remember the last time she"d been so captivated by another person.

Coming out of her daze to look around, she noticed the crowd dispersing. Couples wandered off, arm in arm, and the band began packing up their equipment. Robin stood alone at the end of the bar, getting nudged aside by pairs of women fully content in each other"s company, looking for one more drink before they went back to their cabins.

Together.

A sharp twinge of discomfort twisted Robin"s belly. She was used to this feeling, and she expected it here on a couples' cruise. Even more so than back home, where she had her classes and her research to distract her. Animals were easier to understand than people, and easier to interact with, too.

She sighed, smoothing down her dress once more. The breezy fabric made her feel naked, a stark contrast to the structured blazers and thick cotton lab coats she usually wore.

She was here now, alone as usual, and she had always been her own best company. That was just fine. She made herself snap out of the momentary loneliness and decided to wander the deck, take in the view. The sun had set during the concert, but the lights from the distant shore were still visible, twinkling over the water, and it was beautiful.

Robin wandered along the left side of the deck –the port side, she"d learned before she came. She watched the waves cresting over the side of the railing, and breathed deep the fresh, salty air.

And a moment later, she smacked hard into a warm, firm body in front of her.

"Oh my god, I"m sorry," she said, locking eyes with a tall blonde who was staring at her in amusement. "I was distracted."

"No kidding," the woman smiled. "It"s okay, I"m still kinda absorbed in that concert myself."

Robin nodded, a small smile tugging at her lips. "They were incredible, weren"t they? The lead singer, Scarlet... Her voice is just..."

"Raw talent," the woman finished, her own smile widening. "I"m Christy, by the way."

"Robin," she replied, taking Christy"s outstretched hand. She had an athletic build and friendly-looking eyes. Was she here alone too? "Do you know the band?"

Christy chuckled. "You could say that. My wife, Nat, is their producer. She"s around here somewhere, probably trying to help the band sell merch or something."

Robin"s heart sank slightly at the mention of Christy"s wife. They"d known each other all of ten seconds, but she"d gotten her hopes up that she was talking to someone who felt just as awkward here as she did. "You must get to see them perform all the time."

"I do, I"m lucky," Christy agreed. "I"ve been watching them since their garage band phase."

Robin imagined it, the purple-haired vixen in a dingy little garage with bad acoustics. No doubt breaking hearts even in that setting.

"They started as a Grateful Dead cover band, you know," Christy said.

The two of them fell into an easy conversation, talking about tonight"s show and the cruise ahead of them. For a moment, Robin forgot to feel awkward with so many coupled up people around her. Then a raven-haired woman came over and slid her arm around Christy"s waist.

"There you are, gorgeous," she said. "I"ve been looking for you."

Christy leaned into the embrace. "Sorry, babe. I got caught up talking to Robin here about the Begonias. She"s a fan. Robin, this is my wife, Nat."

Robin tried not to let her jaw drop. Christy's wife was legendary rockstar Nat Butler, standing right in front of her and holding out her hand like it was nothing.

She probably didn't want to be fawned over. She was here to enjoy a romantic cruise with her wife. Robin acted casual as she took her hand. "It's nice to meet you. Are you performing on the ship too?"

Nat shook her head. "Nah, I own the Begonias' record label, and I've been acting as their unofficial manager. That's all."

"Well, I have to confess, I hadn"t heard the Begonias before tonight, but they"re wonderful."

Nat grinned. "That"s the idea. We"re hoping this cruise is the start of a much bigger audience. They deserve it, they"ve been working their asses off ever since they signed with me." She turned to Christy. "You ready to go back to the cabin?"

Christy nodded. "It was nice meeting you, Robin. See you around."

"Night."

She watched the two of them wander off, Nat"s arm never straying from Christy"s waist. They were sweet, and it sent a pang of longing into her chest. Okay, she thought as she headed in the direction of her own cabin, maybe I do want that.

Maybe her coworker Kiran was right. There was more to life than Robin"s work, and she"d been using it to hide from the possibility of being disappointed. Rejected. Embarrassed.

But who was she going to find here on this ship full of couples?

As she went into her cabin and flopped down on the bed, Scarlet Day"s haunting vocals played on a loop in her mind, electrifying her scalp and sending tingles down into her toes.

What were the odds that a woman like that was single?

Probably less than zero.