Mom, Don't Cry! Here comes a new Daddy! novel Chapter 23

Chapter 18-1

(Ethan’s POV)

At five forty-five, I’m pacing my cabin like a caged animal.

This is ridiculous. I’ve negotiated billion-dollar deals without breaking a sweat. I’ve stared down corporate raiders and hostile takeovers. I’ve given presentations to rooms full of skeptical investors and walked away with their money and their respect.

But the thought of talking to Sabrina Moore on a cruise ship deck is making my palms sweat.

I change shirts three times before settling on a simple navy henley. Casual but put-together. I run my hands through my hair, then immediately regret it because now it looks like I tried too

hard. I smooth it down. Now it looks too neat.

“Get it together,” I mutter to my reflection. “You’re a grown man. Act like it.”

My phone buzzes. A text from Sophia: She just left her room. Heading to the main deck. You’ve got maybe three minutes if you want to “randomly” arrive after her.

I take a breath, grab my room key, and step into the hallway.

The ship is busier now, passengers streaming through the corridors with that excited vacation energy. I join the flow heading upward, taking the stairs instead of the elevator because I need to burn off this nervous energy.

The main deck is enormous, wrapping around the entire ship with different sections for different activities. There’s a pool area teeming with families, a quieter adult section with a bar, and the very front of the ship where couples and solo travelers gather to watch the

ocean.

I spot her almost immediately.

She’s at the front railing, standing slightly apart from the other passengers. The wind catches her hair, and she’s pushed it behind her ear twice in the thirty seconds I’ve been watching. She’s changed clothes-now wearing a simple blue sundress that moves with the breeze.

She looks beautiful. And sad. And like she’s trying very hard to convince herself she’s having a good time.

I make myself count to ten before walking over. Can’t seem too eager. Can’t seem like I’ve been watching her.

Even though I have been. For months.

Chapter 18-1

I stop a few feet away from her, leaning against the railing and looking out at the water

instead of at her.

“Nice view,” I say casually.

Claim

She startles, turning. Recognition flashes across her face, followed by something that might be pleasure before she tamps it down into polite surprise.

“Jason. Hi.” She tucks her hair behind her ear again. “I didn’t expect to see you up here.”

“I could say the same. Though I guess it makes sense. First-time cruisers usually want to watch the ship leave port.”

“Fair point. I’m just… taking it all in. It’s bigger than I expected. The ship, I mean. And there are so many people.”

“Overwhelming?”

“A little,” she admits. “I keep thinking I should be doing something. Planning something. But Sophia-my best friend-she told me the whole point of this trip is to not plan anything. To just… be. Relax and go with the flow.”

“That’s harder than it sounds.”

“Right?” She turns to face me fully now, and I catch the full force of those eyes I’ve only seen through a screen before. They’re even more striking in person-warm grey with flecks of gold. “Everyone makes it sound so easy. ‘Just relax! Just enjoy yourself!’ But when you’re used to being in control of everything, relaxing feels like…”

“Like you’re out of your zone?” I offer.

“Yes! Exactly!” She looks surprised that I understand. “It’s like I need a checklist for relaxation. Step one: stand on deck. Step two: appreciate view. Step three: feel relaxed. But I’m stuck on step two and I still don’t feel relaxed.”

I laugh, “Maybe you’re overthinking it.

“I overthink everything. It’s my superpower. Along with anxiety and making lists for things that don’t need lists.”

“What kind of things?”

“Last week I made a list of all the reasons I should feel bad about my di…” She stops abruptly, her face flushing. “Sorry. I don’t know why I’m telling you this. We literally just met.”

“Sometimes it’s easier to talk to strangers,” I say. “No judgment. No history. No expectations.”