Sam

I watch as Captain Swaid buries his face into his hands. "You have got to be kidding me."

While the Captain takes a moment to gather himself, I take this opportunity to look at Cindy. I can see the concern on her face for Captain Swaid. She realizes that there's a possibility that Captain Swaid could lose his commission in the wake of this unfortunate situation, especially if one of his staff members is responsible for Lucy and Kelly missing.

Cindy catches me looking at her. I smile like an idiot and know that it's an inappropriate time to be smiling, but I can't help it with this girl. I've finally admitted to myself that I'm falling hard for her. I definitely could see myself falling in love, but I know that it's way too early to be throwing the love word around. She gives me a sad smile, bringing me back to the situation at hand.

Captain Swaid takes in a deep breath to calm himself. "Can you please give me the information on who the missing female passengers are and their companions?"

Cindy looks to me to proceed.

"The missing women are Lucy and Kelly from stateroom 8742. Their companions, who reported them missing, are Ruth and Debbie from stateroom 8740. We didn't ask for their last names to respect their privacy. I know you're responsible for contacting the FBI, but if you want, Cindy and I would like to help immediately."

The Captain raises his eyebrows. "I appreciate your offer, but that's highly unconventional."

I nod in understanding. "Yes, it is, but we believe that the safety of your passengers depends on getting on top of this right away."

While Captain Swaid takes a minute to digest what I just said, I continue. "Listen, I've dealt closely with the FBI for years. They can hit the investigation running if Cindy and I get the dirty work done first. Trust me, Captain, we do this for a living."

Captain Swaid runs his fingers through his hair and looks at Cindy. "I thought you worked as Benson's assistant."

She places her hand over his. Damn, this girl!

"I do work as Benson's assistant. A huge part of my job is investigating. You know Benson, he would never do a business deal without knowing who he was dealing with?"

Her comment got a chuckle from the Captain. "No. He wouldn't. You must be good at what you do if Benson trusts you with that job. So what do you need from me?"

I informed Captain Swaid, "To begin this investigation, we need to know the names of the staff members who are permitted to be around passengers when they're not on the job, and we would like to speak to your security team as well."

Captain Swaid looks surprised. "Is that all?"

Cindy smirked at me before answering the Captain. "Yep, that's all we need."

The Captain rubs his chin. "I can do that, but full disclosure is necessary. I must meet with my staff and let them know what's happening. I also need to speak to Will Grant immediately to reprimand him for not following protocol when the ladies wanted to report their friends missing. First and foremost, I must contact the FBI."

He stands, knowing that he needs to get started on his responsibilities. "Thank you for bringing this to my attention. As soon as I meet with the staff, I'll have the list for you. If they have nothing to hide, they should have no issues permitting me to give you their name."

He shakes our hands. "To save time, can you give me your stateroom number so I can notify you when I have the information?"

I respond, "We're in staterooms 8712 and 8714."

Before he leaves, he turns towards us. "You know that this is no longer your concern. You could return to your vacation and let me handle this." He pauses, then continues. "But I'm pleased that you care enough to get this investigation started. I promise to have everything ready for you by tomorrow morning. Please, enjoy the rest of your evening."

As he walks away, I grab Cindy's hand and help her out of her chair. "Ready to dance?"

She hugs me tightly around my waist. "Hell, yeah!"

I kiss the top of her head. It's becoming kind of my thing with this girl. Her floral scent fills the air that I breathe in. I twirl her and lead her to The Cavern Club.

We enter, and the place is hopping as usual. "What do you want to drink?" I yell to Cindy over the loud music.

She leans in close, and my heart beats faster. "Whatever you're having."

I nod as I watch her move her perfect body to the rhythm of the music. She gives me a wink before I leave to get our drinks. I'm surprised to see Pete at the bar.

I nudge his shoulder. "Hey."

He looks over his shoulder at me. When he realizes I bumped into him, a huge grin spreads across his face. "Hey. How'd it go?"

The bartender brings over Pete's drinks and then looks at me. "Two Pinot Noirs, please." He nods and leaves us.

I answered Pete's question, "It went well. The Captain knows Benson Easton, Cindy's boss. She and the Captain are like family," I joke.

"Nice! We have a table if you want to join us. It's over there in the corner." Pete points toward his table, and I see Millie waiting patiently for her drink.

"I'll grab Cindy, and we'll be right over."

He nods and heads towards his table as I return to where I left Cindy.

I see her dancing all by herself, not caring who's watching. I catch two gentlemen walking over to her. I can't blame them; she looks incredible. I slow my steps to see how they handle my girl.

They walk right up to her, and the taller one leans in to speak into her ear. I about lost it when I saw her pull back, look in the fucker's face, and, if I read her lips correctly, she tells the dick to fuck off. I quickly came to her side as Mr. Tall Man held up his hands in defense.

"Hey, Babe. Everything okay here?" I asked, even though I knew she could handle herself.

"All is good." She took her glass, kissed me softly on my lips, and looked back at the men. "Sorry guys, you never stood a chance. I mean, seriously, you can't even compete with this." She moves her hand from my head to my feet. The guys roll their eyes and walk away to the sound of Cindy and me laughing hysterically.

"You're bad messing with those two poor guys," I said as I pulled her close. "What exactly did that guy say to you that warranted a 'fuck off'?"

"I don't think you want to know. You sure as hell won't be feeling sorry for their poor asses." She eyed me, daring me to ask her again what he said to her.

Of course, I HAD to know now. "Tell me."

"Okay, but remember that you asked for it." She smirked and lowered her voice, and it took everything in me not to laugh as she attempted to sound like a man. "He said, Hey Baby, what would it take for me to get a peek at that hot little body under that gorgeous dress."

She was correct; I now want to find those two assholes and kick both of their asses. She laughs at me as I scan the room, looking for them.

"Stop. The asses were drunk off of their asses and won't remember it in the morning. They're not worth your time and energy, Babe."

I'm unsure when we started calling each other Babe, but I like hearing it from her lips.

"Pete and Millie have a table for us." I grab her hand. "Come on."

She chuckles at our newfound word of endearment for each other and follows me through the crowd. We enjoy a carefree, fun night together with our friends before we have to get to work tomorrow on the case of the missing woman.

*****