Page 13 of Cruising for Christmas
He laughed, and they took their seats. Everyone sat in the same spots as before, so he was next to Norah once again.
“How did everyone’s first night and day go on the ship?” James asked.
“Good,” Ian said. “Just explored and spent some time by the pool.”
“Norah?” Linda asked.
Norah’s cheeks pinked before she said, “I just explored the ship.”
“Is this your first time on a cruise?”
“It is. It’s crazy to see how much they can fit on one ship and still keep it floating.”
Linda nodded. “That it is.” Then she turned to Shay. “Shay? Ryan? How was yours?”
“It was good. We went swimming for a bit and went to the gym. Overall productive,” Ryan said.
Shay rolled her eyes. “Except we’re exhausted because some little shits banged on our door after we had gone to sleep and woke us up.”
Norah choked on the water she was drinking, and Ian picked his glass up to hide his smile behind it as he took a small sip.
Shay’s eyes shot to Norah. “Did you hear it, too?”
Without wanting Norah to spoil their fun, Ian piped in. “Are you kidding? We don’t go to bed early like little old men.”
“There’s nothing wrong with going to sleep early, so we can start our day with a vigorous workout.”
“That’s not the kind of vigorous workout your brother probably enjoys doing,” Linda said.
Norah violently coughed. Ian looked at her in amusement as he patted her on the back.
“You okay there, Norah?”
She nodded as she continued to cough.
“Gross, Mom,” Shay said. “I don’t need to think about my brother having sex.”
“It’s only natural, Shay,” their mom said.
“Can we change the subject?” Shay asked.
“Your dad and I spent the morning in bed before we checked out the ship and played bingo. We didn’t win, but it was fun.”
“Oh. My. God. Mom!”
Linda rolled her eyes before turning her smile to Norah. “Ryan is used to our dynamic, but how are you holding up Norah?”
Norah stared wide-eyed at her. Ian bit back a laugh.
“Um. Good. This is all totally normal,” Norah said.
Shay sighed. “God, Mom. This isn’t normal. Norah’s family doesn’t talk like this. Neither does Ryan’s.”
“But I think it’s awesome, if I’m being honest,” Ryan said.
Shay slapped him in the chest with the back of her hand. “Don’t encourage her.”
Norah’s face was bright pink as she chugged the glass of wine the server poured for her. The server gave her a concerned look and refilled her glass with her nod.
