Free Love At Last (Lily's Story, Book 3) by Christine Kersey Page A

switch the moment he’d found out I had a baby. Oh well , I thought. It’s probably for the best . Then I turned to Alyssa. She frowned at me, like she understood what had happened, then we talked about her wedding plans.  
    As we talked, my gaze wandered to Cameron several times, and twice I noticed him looking at me. Inside I smiled, wondering if maybe there was hope there after all.
    “It’s time for the ship to leave,” someone said.
    “Let’s go to the upper deck,” Alyssa said to the group.
    Everyone got up, including me, and I took Natalie from Barbara. “Thanks for holding her. Sometimes it’s nice to eat without a baby on my lap.”
    She laughed. “They like to grab, don’t they?”
    “Yes, they do.”
    “I’m happy to help you out with her this week, if you’d like.”
    “Thank you. I really appreciate it.”
    She smiled warmly. “I’ve been on this cruise before, so if you want to do any of the excursions, I’d be happy to babysit.”
    I considered her offer. “Are there any excursions you recommend?”
    “My favorite is the whale watching.”
    “That sounds like fun.”
    “It really is. You should consider it.”
    “I will. Thanks.”
    I put Natalie in her stroller and followed the group to the elevator, then went up one level to the sun deck. We walked to the railing and I took Natalie out of her stroller, then gazed at the view. The weather was perfect and I pressed my cheek to Natalie’s as the ship slowly moved away from Seattle. Alyssa stood next to me, with Ty at her side.
    “Are you going on any excursions?” I asked her.
    “Well, the wedding is in our first port, but in Juneau I want to do the whale watching trip.”
    “Your mom was talking about that. She said it was her favorite excursion.”
    “Yeah, she’s the one who suggested it.” She smiled. “Are you going to go on it?”
    “It sounds like fun. And your mom offered to watch Natalie if I went.”
    Alyssa’s grin widened. “Do it. Come with us.”
    I smiled. “Okay. I will.” After a while, Natalie started getting restless and I turned to Alyssa. “I’m going to take her back to my room.”
    “Okay.”
    “I’ll probably just see you at dinner.”
    “Sounds good.” She gave me a hug. “I’m so glad you came, Lily.”
    “Me, too.” When I got back to my room, I played with Natalie until she started rubbing her eyes, which meant she was getting sleepy. I put her down, then lay on my bed, and we both napped. When we woke, we still had a while before dinner—Alyssa’s party had all signed up for the later dinner time. I put Natalie in her stroller and took a walk around the ship, getting myself familiar with the layout.
    When it was time for dinner, I went to the dining room and the steward showed me where my table was. I would be sitting there every night with Alyssa and Ty’s group, and when I arrived, most of the group was already there. Alyssa had saved me a seat next to her—which I really appreciated since I didn’t really know anyone else in the group yet.
    Our waiter brought a high chair for Natalie, which I placed between Alyssa and me, and she seemed content to watch everyone. I’d fed her just before coming, so she wasn’t hungry. The seat on the other side of me was empty and I wondered who would sit there, and hoped it would be someone I would enjoy talking to. It was noisy in the dining room, so talking to someone on the other side of the ten-person table would be difficult.
    “Mom says the food here is really good,” Alyssa said.
    “Well, I’m starving, so I’m sure whatever I eat will taste good.”
    A moment later Cameron arrived. The only empty seat was the one next to me and he smiled at me as he sat. I wondered what, if anything, he knew about me. Surely Alyssa had filled Ty in on what had happened to me with Trevor, but I wondered if anyone else knew.
    The waiters handed out the menus and I read over the choices. There were several appetizers to choose from, as well as