Diana Tolliver stood on the deck of the cruise ship waiting for her assistant. Vivian may love her grand entrances, but this was ridiculous. The ship was about to depart.

If only this were a pleasure trip. Diana would love nothing more than to spend a week sailing under clear blue skies, breathing in the salty sea air, and having a chance to truly relax, but that wasn’t the case here. The vessel would be their home for the next eight days, and while she wasn’t anxious to mix and mingle with middle-aged folks, at least she wasn’t stuck in the office. She prayed she’d find some way to survive.

The theme from The Phantom of the Opera rang on her cell phone. She grabbed it and pressed Answer. “Well, it’s about time. Where are you?” Diana spun in circles searching the crowd for Viv, expecting to find her surrounded by men, as usual.

“Yeah—ah, that’s why I’m calling. I—I’m not going to make it.” There was distinct tittering on the other end of the line.

“What? Why not? The ship sails in less than thirty minutes.”

There was a shriek on the other end of the line.

Diana yanked the phone away from her ear. “What happened? Where the hell are you?”

“Nick happened.” The sickly sweet way Viv enunciated his name was nauseating.

Diana wanted to throw up. “Nick who?”

“I met him Friday night at the Mezzanine when you stood me up.”

“I did not stand you up.” Several people near her turned sharply and stared. She realized how loud her voice was and dropped it a couple of notches, whispering loudly into the phone. “I was stuck on a conference call with my father until after midnight discussing this stupid trip. Remember, the one you pushed so hard for us to handle?” Diana cupped her mouth and the phone with her hand, dropping her voice even lower. “You and I are supposed to be working to get the lowdown from the crew about whether he should buy the cruise line.”

A seagull flew overhead then dive-bombed her.

She managed to step aside just in time.

The bird left a disgusting present on the rail. To stay out of the line of fire, Diana moved to sit under an umbrella at one of the open tables on the deck.

“Come on Viv, you can’t do this to me.”

“Nick and I are going to Tahoe for Valentine’s Day. You’ll have to do it yourself,” Viv said, followed by graphic kissing noises. “Will you behave? I’m talking to my boss. I can’t concentrate when you do that.”

“I thought you said she was your best friend?” The man grumbled loud enough for his agitation to be heard. “When are you coming back to bed?”

“She is. Now hush.”

“Eww, please. I don’t want to be privy to your bedroom games.”

“That’s good because I’m not sharing. And you’re just jealous. Looks like you’re on your own for this job. I’ll talk to you when you get back. Oh, and don’t forget I booked the tickets under Diana and Vivian Clay, so no one will know about your connection to Tolliver Enterprises.”

“Get your skinny ass—”

The line went dead.

Diana held her phone away from her. “I can’t believe she hung up on me.” More than a little put out, she turned her phone off and threw it into her black Louis Vuitton bag.

What she wanted to do was heave it over the side, but that wouldn’t be wise. Besides, once they left the port, it would be out of range anyway. She tried to focus on the trip and her father’s expectations about the potential purchase. With a casual glance around the deck, she took in the cleanliness, the impeccably dressed staff, and the remarkably good condition of the ship. So far, so good.

The sun’s reflection off the water was so bright, she had to turn her head. Lifting her hand to block out the blinding light, Diana fumbled around in her bag looking for sunglasses. Once her eyes were comfortably shielded, she sat back more than a little perturbed to be alone.

She wasn’t exactly ecstatic about being the one to gain the trust of the crew in an attempt to get them to open up and make sure the vessel was worth her father’s investment.

Viv had been so excited, talking non-stop about all she wanted them to do, where to go, and what to see, begging her to leave the details to her. And where was Viv now? On her way to Lake Tahoe for some Valentine’s Day frolic in the snow? The whole point of them going on this trip was for the two singles to avoid the craptastic day set aside for couples. And now, she was stuck on a ship doing the dirty work on her own.

The trip was bound to be a dud without her friend. Viv always had a way of turning the most mundane chores into fun and games. That was her best friend—the other half of the Clay Sisters. They made up the name in Jr. High when one of the popular girls tried to pick a fight with Vivian. Diana had stepped in and tried to talk some sense into the girls, but when the girl was calmly listening to Diana, Vivian walloped Miss Popular and left her in the dirt. After that, no one messed with the Clay Sisters again. Diana floated like a butterfly, while Viv stung like a bee.

In fact, one Friday night while they were still in college, they solidified the brand when they got shit-faced and ended up at a tattoo parlor in SoHo. Diana chose a colorful blue butterfly. Naturally, Viv picked a bumble bee with a big fat stinger. No one but a few boyfriends had seen the locations of those tats.

Diana rose and made her way to the other side of the ship, sulking as boredom quickly set in. She’d have to pull up her big girl thong and make the best of the eight lonely days ahead. Daddy was counting on her.

She stroked her hand across the highly polished railing then looked over the side.

On the dock below, forklifts moved huge containers of food onboard. Turning around, Diana took in all the twenty- and thirty-somethings meandering on deck. A much younger age group than Viv originally led her to believe.

She was about to go find her room when she spotted a woman not too far from her, very clearly holding back tears.

The beautiful redhead leaned heavily on the rail. She exhaled completely through her mouth, making a whooshing sound. Eyes closed, the woman inhaled quietly through her nose as her fingers came out one at a time to the count of four. Then she held her breath for a finger count of seven before exhaling completely through her mouth again to a count of eight. As her face lost the flush, the woman repeated the cycle three more times for a total of four breaths.

Diana recognized the breathing technique. It was the reason she was on this trip, not her father. Daddy had a fear of flying and stayed in New York sending Diana to handle all his concerns.

Searching the deck, she spied a man in uniform—sharply pressed black trousers, long sleeve shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and a vest. He was confident, observant, and looked like he was in charge. “Could I please get a bottle of water?” she asked.

His facial hair and the length of his hair surprised her a bit, but the scruff on his face was sexy as hell. She thought the ship had rules about dress codes, but maybe she was mistaken.

She could just imagine arguing with her father demanding all the waiters have facial hair and the look of an exotic pirate. The cruise line would always be fully booked if the waiters and stewards looked like him.

The tall, tan, very handsome man returned moments later and handed her a bottle along with a very endearing wink. “Here you go. Anything else I can do for you?”

“A—ah, no thank you, that’s all.” Her stomach did a somersault. Diana gave herself a direct order to turn around and step toward the woman. “Are you okay? Here. Have some water. Drink it slowly. It’ll help.”

The woman jumped, turning toward her. “Th—thank you.”

A glance over her shoulder told her the waiter continued to stand where he was watching her. Didn’t he have anything better to do? “Is there anything I can do for you?” she said trying her best to ignore him.

The woman had puffy red eyes, a splotchy complexion, and was doing her level best not to cry. “There’s nothing anyone can do.” She dug a tissue from her purse. “This trip already sucks. My boyfriend and I just split, and my cousin, who was supposed to be here with me, bailed at the last minute.” She gasped for air then hiccupped.

“You too? My best friend just called and canceled. We had all sorts of plans, but now I’m a solo act.” She didn’t dare tell the woman her real reason for the trip. Better to sound like any other cruise ship passenger.

It was then she noticed the uniform of the crew and realized she’d made a huge mistake. The man she assumed was a crew member was just another passenger. She turned to apologize, but he’d disappeared.

Miss Lonely Hearts blew her nose, then scrunched up the tissue and threw it in a nearby trash receptacle. “It’s bad enough to be alone on a cruise, but then to find out it’s a singles cruise.”

“A what?” Diana shrieked. “Noooo. Viv wouldn’t do that to me.” She grabbed her cell phone, turned it on waiting for it to cycle then sent Vivian a message.”

Diana’s phone pinged. She clicked the message button.

She was seething as she tapped out an angry reply.

Diana turned the phone off and threw it in her purse.

“Everything okay?”

She closed her eyes to count to ten but only made it to three. “No, but it will be. I’ve got an idea. My trip is for work—all expenses paid. How about you and I make this a cruise to remember?” She extended her hand. “I’m Diana—” She almost forgot and gave her real name. “—Clay.”

The redhead shook her hand. “Amanda Reilly, but my friends call me Manda.”

“Well, Manda? Let’s get to our rooms and get ourselves dolled up. We might as well rock this place, no?” She was going to make Vivian Strasburg rue the day she missed this trip. “Dress to kill. We’re having dinner at the captain’s table tonight.”

Diana’s new friend was about to be the beneficiary of the best cruise ever.