Free Overboard by Sandra Madera Page A

although not all of them would be
on the boat once it set sail. They were running on a skeleton crew
which was composed of a captain, first mate, and cook. Orman felt a
skeleton crew would ensure them most privacy.
    They were heading out the following morning with no
parental supervision. It was just them and the crew. Everyone was
looking forward to getting away, but no one more than Orman. He
couldn’t wait to show his friends all the hot spots once they
reached Key West.
    Averting his gaze, Dylan didn’t respond.
    “I am looking forward to this trip. This is the last
chance we have to spend time together before we all go our separate
ways.”
    “I know that, but I have a feeling this trip is going
to turn out to be a disaster,” he said pensively.
    “Don’t be so melodramatic... What could possibly
happen?”
    “Never mind,” Dylan muttered, shaking his head before
plastering a phony smile on his face. “Everything is going to be
fine. It is going to be a wonderful trip.”
    Brenna knew that he didn’t mean what he said. He was
not looking forward to this trip, and she didn’t know why. At this
point, she didn’t care. She was tired of his attitude. She was
tired of trying to understand his point of view. There was no
understanding Dylan. He had changed to such a degree that he was no
longer the person she fallen in love with. All she wanted to do was
set sail, forget about her problems with Dylan and start her week
of fun.
    * * * * *
     
    The next morning was chaos. Brenna had gotten off to
a late start when her alarm didn’t ring. When she was finally
packed and ready to go, her car wouldn’t start. She tried to call
Dylan on his cell phone to ask for a ride, but he didn’t answer the
call. She had to take a cab to the marina where the yacht was
docked.
    Dragging her luggage behind her, she followed the
directions the dockhand gave her at the gate. There were so many
yachts of all sizes at the marina that Brenna couldn’t spot
Orman’s. Feeling as if she had gotten turned around, she was about
to double back when she heard her name being called.
    Brenna turned around to see Marissa, running towards
her.
    Marissa Seaton was perfect in every sense of the
word. She had a body that drove guys crazy and a personality to
match. She was tall and thin, but she still had the womanly curves
which Brenna lacked. She had beautiful blue eyes that always
garnered attention and plenty of compliments. She had one of those
toothy smiles which lit up her whole face.
    Marissa wore her dirty blond hair up in a pony tail
and wasn’t wearing a stitch of makeup, but she still managed to
look like a professional model. She wore a pink bikini with white
jean shorts, showing off her naturally slender frame.
    “Working on your tan already?” Brenna asked,
smiling.
    “Of course, why waste a second of my vacation?”
Marissa retorted once she reached her. “I saw you from the deck.
The boat’s this way.”
    Marissa helped Brenna with her bag and led her to
Orman’s yacht in the opposite direction.
    “A man at the gate gave me directions, but I must
have gotten turned around,” she told Marissa, feeling the warmth of
the sun on her tanned skin and raising her face to the sky
momentarily to meet its rays. “I guess I don’t know left from right
anymore. Has everyone else arrived?”
    “Yeah, like an hour ago,” Marissa answered with a
laugh. “I saw your room key still hanging from its hook. That was
the only clue that you hadn’t arrived. The boat is so big we could
all do our own thing and meet up after we reach the Keys.”
    “Well, I’m so sorry for being late,” she told her
apologetically. “Everyone must be so mad at me.”
    “Don’t even worry about it... We kind of expect you to be late,” Marissa teased, flashing a toothy
grin in Brenna’s direction. “You are kind of known for it.”
    “Did Chelsea arrive?”
    Contemplating, Marissa raised her eyebrow and stared
up at the sky. “Chelsea? Oh, yeah.