Victoria Cooke - The Holiday Cruise - The feel-good heart-warming romance you need to read this year

‘God, that’s awful. But good on you for moving on.’ Her mouth twisted sympathetically and fortunately she continued chatting about herself. ‘I’d just finished my beauty course at college when my nan suggested I apply for a job on a ship, you know, to see some of the world. It’s not an opportunity I’d have probably had otherwise. I’m loving it so far. I mean, have you seen the colour of the ocean?’

Her eyes sparkled as she spoke. ‘There are so many amazing people on board. Having said that …’ she paused to check that nobody was about before lowering her voice ‘… Marion can be a bit of a … stickler for the rules and Agne keeps herself to herself. She has some other Lithuanian friends from other areas of the ship and she spends most of her time with them. But otherwise, you’ll find making friends is easy on the ship. Plus, you already have me now.’ She smiled. It was nice to chat to someone friendly.

The day was broken by a quick trip to the mess for some lunch. The mess was larger than I’d expected and painted a pale lemon colour. It wasn’t too dissimilar to the canteen at college and was just as busy. We’d obviously hit ‘rush hour’ but it gave me a chance to suss out the people on the ship a little, and see who I’d be practically living with for the course of my contract.

Kristy had been right about Agne: she was already sat down with three other young women who were all wearing different uniforms. In fact, most people seemed to have a little group formed on the basis of job or nationality and I felt glad to have found where I slotted in with Kristy. She caught me eyeing up the food. ‘It’s not quite what they serve upstairs but it isn’t bad.’ It looked fine to me and nine months of not having to cook was a bonus anyway. I didn’t care that the fancier fayre was upstairs only. There was beef stroganoff on the menu and that suited me fine.

After eight hours of cleaning, sorting, and prepping, Kristy brushed her hair out of her eyes and looked around. ‘I think we’re done. Fancy a drink?’

‘Definitely,’ I replied, and we headed to the crew bar. I tried not to feel intimidated as we picked our way through the groups of people standing around drinking, chatting, or playing foosball. The bar was a lot less opulent than the ones the guests got to drink in, but it was well-thought-out. It had a tropical theme and was decorated with quirky place-name signs like ‘Bridgetown’ and ‘Honolulu’. Kristy pointed out a vacant table and told me to sit down whilst she got the drinks.

‘What do I owe you?’ I asked as she set two glasses of wine down on the table.

‘Oh nothing.’ She batted at the air with her hand. ‘It’s practically free.’ She took a sip of her drink. ‘Guess what?’

‘What?’ I eyed her suspiciously.

‘The crew purser was at the bar. I’ve had a room to myself for the last week, but apparently they need it now, so I’m going to be sharing with you,’ she said holding her hands up as if to say ‘surprise’. I didn’t know what to think. I suppose I’d hoped they wouldn’t need to move anyone else in. Still, she was the only person I knew so far, and she seemed nice, so I guess I was glad.

‘That’s great. Here’s to being roommates.’ I raised my glass and she clunked it obligingly. ‘I suppose we should have an early night given that it’s such a big day tomorrow what with the guests arriving.’ Kristy shot me a sideward glance and giggled, shaking her head.

‘Oh, Hannah, you’ve got a lot to learn.’ Before I could ask what she meant by that, she spoke again, but this time without her light tone.

‘Oh God,’ Kristy groaned as a group of six people entered the crew bar. There were three men and three women, each one tanned and buffed to perfection.

‘What?’ I asked, baffled by her reaction. Everybody I’d met so far had seemed lovely.

‘It’s the entertainment team,’ she said, leaving me still none the wiser. I watched in awe, as discreetly as I could, as they breezed past the bar and headed straight to a table. The taller blond man at the front nodded at the bartender as he passed. A short while after, the bartender went over with a tray of six mojitos and placed it down.

‘I didn’t know you could get a mojito in here,’ I whispered to Kristy.

‘You can’t,’ she replied, glaring at the bronzed table of perfection.

‘Okay, I feel like I’m part of a conversation I don’t really understand here. What have you got against those guys?’

‘The tall girl, Britney, and the smallest of the guys, the blond one, arrived last week when I did. They just seemed a bit loud and obnoxious and I’ve gathered from other crew members that the entertainment team are just renowned tossers – excuse my language.’ She paused to sip more wine. ‘They walk around the ship like they own it. They get special privileges, more free time, and their only job is to prance around on stage for a few hours each night.’

‘I’m sure they do more than prance,’ I said, taking the diplomatic route.

Kristy shot me a glance of no amusement. ‘They just don’t seem like nice people. You’d do well to avoid them.’ She downed the rest of her wine. ‘Fancy another?’

The next morning was a blur. Kristy bounced about like she’d had an evening detox and a good eight hours’ sleep, whereas I reflected the more realistic, six glasses of wine and two a.m. fall into bed that we’d had. A quick breakfast of a pastry, strong coffee, and fruit juice in the mess helped me ease myself back onto the path of normality, and after a bit of work glamming up with make-up, I could just about manage my first job of leaflet sorting.

A flurry of staff members whizzed about the ship, ensuring everything was perfect. At nine a.m., Kristy announced that it was time to set up our promotion stand in the main atrium. ‘I feel like I haven’t stopped,’ I complained, feeling the need for a nice cup of something caffeinated since the positive effects of my breakfast were wearing off.

‘You’ve not even started today. This is your position from now until three-thirty. At least. We need to sell as many spa treatments as we can today. Once people get into their cruise, they don’t get around to booking in to the spa, and then we get a bollocking.’

I was beginning to notice that Kristy had a penchant for bad language.

By eleven a.m. we’d perfected the display and slowly, guests began to board. Here we go. I pulled in a long, slightly shaky breath. The first couple I set eyes on were elderly. ‘We’re not going to hit them with the sales patter are we?’ I asked, certain Kristy would say no.

‘Yes, we hit everyone. It’s not up to you to decide what someone may or may not want. Besides that, we work on commission! Remember your training.’ She whispered the last part as the couple got within earshot of us. Kristy plastered a large fake smile onto her lips, which were caked in the brightest red lipstick I’d ever seen and made her teeth dazzle white. ‘Good morning and welcome aboard the Requiescence . I hope you enjoy your time on board and wondered if I can interest you in any of our deluxe spa treatments or packages this cruise? We can offer a ten per cent discount on any bookings made today as a special introductory offer.’

I was in awe; she didn’t take a breath.