LITMIR.BIZ

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days to do whatever you want, querida.”

      Selena, Serena’s twin, had been a hopeless romantic and would have jumped all over the idea. Maybe Serena would dedicate the book to her twin sister’s memory.

      Still toying with that thought, she opened the brochure, found the insert, and quickly reread the legend. It was a charming story and had lots of possibilities. Serena headed up the young adult division of her parents’ publishing house, so it would be easy to get a book published.

      “I wouldn’t mind the perks that come with finding the pendant,” Serena said dreamily. “Massages, beauty treatments, invitations to the ship’s bridge. It all sounds wonderful to me.”

      “Don’t forget the romance bit,” Pia reminded her. “We could both use a good man in our lives.”

      Carlos had been Pia’s great love. They’d dated for several years, and were engaged. Then with no explanation he had changed his mind and called things off. Later Pia had found out he’d taken up with a young woman almost half his age, and had no problem marrying her.

      Serena thought about her own romantic woes. Six months ago she’d had a two week fling, but nothing had come of that either. He’d chosen the coward’s way out, disappearing without so much as an explanation. As a result she was starting to develop serious trust issues with men.

      Pia clapped her hands.

      “Bastante! I’m starving. There must be something to eat in that gift basket?”

      The huge basket wrapped in cellophane and topped with a jaunty yellow bow sat on the coffee table. Serena poked a hole in the wrapping with a manicured nail. She removed oranges, a pineapple, and mangos and laid them on the dresser along with peanuts, wedges of cheese and crackers. At the very bottom of the basket she spotted a velvet pouch.

      “What’s this?” she said, swishing her wavy black hair off her face and balancing the pouch in the palm of one hand.

      “Open it,” Pia urged.

      Alexandra’s Dream listed slightly as Serena removed a silver teardrop pendant from the pouch and tossed it to Pia, who deftly caught it with one hand.

      “Caramba! I think this is the treasure,” Pia cried.

      Simultaneously a male voice boomed over the intercom.

      “Our mandatory lifeboat drill will commence in exactly ten minutes. All passengers are requested to make their way to their assigned muster stations.”

      Both women quickly found their life jackets and headed out.

      “Take the pendant with you,” Pia urged, giving Serena a little nudge and folding it into her hand. “We’ll stop at the Guest Relations Desk after the drill and tell them the treasure has been found.”

      On the way downstairs, the women put on their life jackets and were directed to their muster stations. Forty five minutes later, after each passenger had been accounted for, and several tedious announcements made, the boat drill ended.

      Braving a good-sized crowd on the stairwell, they made their way to the Guest Relations Desk and stood in line awaiting their turn. Finally, an attractive Indonesian purser with a name badge that read Kali looked up from her computer monitor.

      “Can I help you?”

      “You have a winner,” Serena said, handing the velvet pouch to the woman.

      “May I have your name and cabin number please?”

      “Serena d’Andrea. I’m in a penthouse on Zeus.” She patiently waited for further instructions.

      Kali dangled the tear-shaped pendant from her index finger and called to some unseen person in a back room. “The treasure’s been found.” She handed Serena back the piece. “You’re a winner, all right, but I don’t think finding love on board will be a problem for you. There are quite a few hotties that are part of our Rhythm Dancers theme cruise.”

      “I guess we’ll find that out at the Bon Voyage party,” Pia interjected, “It should be starting any minute. Can you confirm where it is?”

      A piece of paper that looked like a newspaper was slid across the counter at them. It listed all of the onboard events.

      “Do you have the time now to be interviewed?” Kali asked. “I can get a photographer and video crew here if you do.”

      Serena shook her head and glanced at the clock on the back wall. “No way.”

      “Okay. We’ll find you at the party. Whatever works best for you.”

      Back in the penthouse, after a quick shower, Serena slipped into a turquoise halter dress and began trying on different pieces of jewelry.

      “What do you think of this necklace?” she asked Pia, holding up a string of irregularly shaped beads.

      “I think you should wear the pendant,” Pia urged. “Let’s see if it lives up to its name.” She handed Serena a polishing cloth. “Give it a good rub and it should brighten up.”

      Serena took the cloth from her and made a wry face. “Okay. It’s bound to encourage conversation at least.”

      After polishing the piece, Serena removed the chain and threaded a satin ribbon through the loop and tied it around her neck. The silver pendant contrasted nicely with her tanned skin.

      “Perfect,” Pia announced. “You look like a moon goddess yourself.”

      “You’re good for my ego. What would I ever do without you?”

      “Live a full, happy life. Making people feel good about themselves is what I do for a living. If I can do it for patients, I most certainly can do it for my best friend.”

      Pia wiggled into a form-fitting sleeveless dress that only someone who weighed one hundred and eight pounds would dare to wear.

      “How do I look?” she asked, placing one hand on her hip and posing.

      “Stunning, you always do.”

      “Thank you. Now let’s go to the party and see if we can find ourselves dance partners.”

      Linking arms, the two women headed out.

      TRACY DOWNED another glass of Alka Seltzer and hoped her stomach would settle. In half an hour she had a dance rehearsal and she expected the phone to ring any moment. When it did, she wasted no time picking up.

      “Hello,” she said, breathlessly.

      “It’s Kali. I’m calling as promised. An Argentine woman found the pendant. Her name is Serena d’Andrea and she’s in a penthouse suite. She’s a babe, tall, stunning and has the most beautiful eyes. The men on this cruise will be tripping over their feet to dance with her.”

      “Has the video crew interviewed her yet?”

      “No, she was in a hurry, so they’ll do it at the Bon Voyage party in La Belle Epoque. Why are you so interested in this pendant anyway?”

      “Call me a hopeless romantic.”

      “Aren’t we all? Listen, I have to run. This Rhythm Dancers group is driving me crazy. They’ve taken over the ship and there’s a very long line at the front desk.”

      After Kali hung up, Tracy paced the small cabin. Time was running out. She needed to get her hand on that pendant and soon. Sal had grown impatient and his threats that she would never see her baby boy again had increased. He’d managed to get hired on board as an escort. That sent a clear message that he thought she was a screw up.

      With some trepidation Tracy punched in Sal’s number and waited for him to pick up. What a con artist he was. He’d certainly sold her a bill of goods. When they were dating he’d told her what she’d wanted to hear, and she’d married him convinced that he would take care of her. But once the ring was on her finger, he’d turned into a woman’s worst nightmare.

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