*𝐖𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐏𝐀𝐃 𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄𝐃*
After a short-lived marriage with the cold and arrogant billionaire Ronin Logan, Carmen Price is eager for a break. Her attempt to unwind leads her to another wealthy billionaire, Simon Walsh. Little does she know...
Ronin's gaze was fixated on the distant horizon as he leaned on the cruise ship's rail, soaking in the dazzling moon hanging from the black sky, so close to diving into the ocean, but not quite there yet. It was as if the moon was too terrified to take a chance at the last minute, as if realizing that if it let it go this once, it may never recover from what it would lose in that one moment of recklessness.
The thought felt too heavy for him to keep looking at the moon or the vast sky that seemed to stretch endlessly, so he lowered his gaze and looked at the sea instead. But even though the cruise was yet to set off, and the port was satisfactorily illuminated, all he could see at the end of his visions were streaks of red, yellow and pink, reflected by the water, with the occasional sound of water beating on the metal. The cruise ship stood enormously tall, decked up like a newlywed bride, ready to load the guests and set out on an adventure for days.
A hand on his shoulder reminded him that he wasn't alone, but instead of turning around to give the person his attention, he simply sighed and accepted the glass of wine that had been held out to him. He took a small, slow sip.
"Are you serious about spending the night cramped up in a corner?" Jasper Hendricks droned, laying his back against the rails and taking a sip of his own wine. The night air danced with his dark locks, blowing them over to the other side as he wistfully gazed at all the beauties around them, none of whom he could approach because his best friend had chosen the perfect day to pull a long face. "Fucking let me know if that's the plan, dude, so the captain can evacuate before the ship sinks."
"The captain goes down with the ship, Jass," Ronin rolled his eyes, not in the mood for his friend's twisted sense of humour. "Lastly, why are you hanging out with me in the first place? Have fun. I'm fine here. Go! I just have a lot on my mind."
"Yeah, but you always have a lot on your mind. In fact, you are so obsessed with thinking these days, I'm surprised you even remember to do any other shit at all. What the fuck even happened to you? I thought you were happy now that Jenna is back. Wait—where is she anyway? Is she here? Did you bring her? I want to know if that's the case. I need to come up with the finest jokes to piss her off."
Ronin felt so confused. "What's with you trying to piss her off?"
"Hey, that's our thing," he took the offence, taking another sip. "Just stay the hell out of it, okay? With nothing to do over the last nine months, my snarky hormones had grown fucking fat. Now that she's back, they are overjoyed to finally have a target."
God, Jasper and his eccentricities. Ronin had no intention of getting into the middle of that. He shook his head, taking one large gulp of the drink until the glass was empty. He did, however, have one piece of advice. "Just don't make her cry."
Jasper burst out laughing, finally having something to look forward to, his blue eyes shimmering wickedly. "Sweet Lord, this is going to be so much fun. By the end of this cruise, she wouldn't know what's better, throwing herself into shark-infected water or coping with my charms."
Ronin shook his head.
However, Jasper's laughter faltered when he spotted a certain face among the crowd, a face that didn't belong there. "Ronin?"
"Yeah?"
"Didn't you say Carmen moved back to her hometown?"
"She did," no, she didn't. How could he forget? He grumbled and turned the glass over, holding it between his two fingers. "Actually, no. I thought she did. But apparently, after the divorce, she had grown a spine." Not that it was any of Jasper's business. "Why do you ask?"
Jasper scoffed, chuckling awkwardly. "Seems like the next three days are about to be equally torturous for you if not less."
Ronin frowned, unable to grasp what this man was on. He turned to face him, only to find his friend's gaze drawn elsewhere. Ronin's frown hardened even more, curious about what caught his attention that badly. He followed the line of Jasper's gaze, scouring the deck full of an elegant crowd for anything that had rendered his chatty friend speechless. Only to zip back to a woman in a satin gown with a look of awe on her face.
It was as if Ronin had been struck by a bolt of lightning, and it wasn't until the glass in his hands shattered that he realized how tightly he had been clutching the delicate thing.
"What the hell is she doing here?" He snarled under his breath, anger shooting through his brain, turning his shoulders as hard as a rock. But her being on the same cruise as him and Jenna wasn't even the worst part. It was the man next to her, with whom she seemed unreasonably at ease, who bothered him to the bones.
Ronin saw red. "What the fuck is she doing with him?"
"Dammit, Ronin! What the hell?" Jasper gasped at the bloodied hand of Ronin, his own glass almost slipping through his grasp. He called out to the attendants, hoping to get some quick help. One of them even ran up to them.
But instead of letting the attendant take a look at the damage he had done to himself, Ronin yanked his wounded hand away and clenched his fingers in a fist, pressing the shattered bits of glass farther into his skin and letting the pain sink deep into his muscle.
"Ronin, wait!" His friend called out, a tad panicked.
How could she be so stupid? Ronin ignored all the calls, storming towards the elevator and hoping to not have to witness the ongoing absurdity, for if he did, he would fucking lose his mind.
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A/N: Whoops! What got into Ronin this time? :P Any guesses? Comment how you feel about this! I love seeing your reactions, they always put me in the best mood. :)
