Sailing In Style. Dana Mentink

been busy.”

      “Oh, yeah. We’ve managed to book most of the outings the ladies were anticipating, in spite of the last-minute date change.” He smiled. “I’ve told Tita all about the decorating work, and she’s stoked, too.”

      “Is Tita your girlfriend?”

      He laughed. “Nah, Bonnie’s my girlfriend. She’s in dental hygienist school. Tita’s my grandmother. She’ll be ninety in two months.”

      “Has she seen the place?”

      A shadow crossed his face. “She’s blind, but I’ve told her all about the River King. She remembers sailing on a paddleboat as a kid.” His smile dimmed. “She’s in a home now. I couldn’t take care of her, go to school and work, too. I tell her everything about working here. Only...” He looked down.

      “Only what?”

      “I...kinda make it better when I tell her about it. In my stories, the River King is a jewel. That’s lying, but I just want her to be happy.”

      “She’s important to you. I get that.”

      “She’s the reason I’m still alive. I was a screw-up when I was a kid—an addict—and after my folks kicked me out, she took me in. Spent her life and her savings helping me get clean.”

      “I’m sure she’s proud of you.”

      “It’s hard to keep it all together, so I guess the stories I tell her about the River King make us both feel better. I mean, it’s cooler to work on a historic paddle wheel boat than a run-down, half-empty floating hotel. But the River King’s got such history. I’m going to write a book about her after I get my degree.” He sighed. “If I ever get it.”

      He looked so sad. “Hollister, I’m going to make the King into a jewel again. You can bring your Tita to visit.”

      The smile returned. “Man, that would be some magic trick.”

      “This boat means a lot to both of you and plenty of other people.”

      Hollister looked at Cy. “The King is like our dream, Tita’s and mine. Sometimes it was the only good thing I could tell her. Getting clean and staying clean isn’t pretty, you know? I had to fight it every single day, and I wasn’t a barrel of laughs, you know?”

      Cy saw the shimmer of emotion in Hollister’s eyes, the shame. The young man straightened his cap.

      “Anyway, I gotta add more ice to the punch. See you later, Mr. Franco.”

      “Just call me Cy.”

      He felt a tap on his arm.

      “Left your dog at home?” Flo wore a yellow floaty top and matching pants that accentuated her plumpness.

      “Yes, ma’am. Baggy’s not much of a sailor.”

      “Ms. Hershey told me you’re redecorating the boat.”

      “Just this room.” Conversation lulled as they took in the backdrop to the chattering women. “It’s got quite a history.”

      “I know. I try to read up. I’m new to this group, just signed up at the last minute, but they seem pretty excited, especially about the ghost.”

      Cy tried to keep the skepticism from his face. “They think there’s a ghost?”

      “The ghost of the starlet Joann Knightley. The rumor was that she was doing some personal research because she was cast in John Ford’s movie Steamboat Round the Bend. The movie was filmed on the Sacramento River, though it was supposed to be the Mississippi in the movie.”

      Cy was impressed. “You know your movie trivia, don’t you?”

      Flo shrugged. “I’m a good researcher, and it was a juicy story. Joann boarded the River King in October 1933 and the passengers were all atwitter to have a movie star aboard.” Flo leaned closer. “She even recited a monologue for the passengers before she disappeared. It’s presumed she leapt overboard, and her body was never recovered. Over the years, passengers have said they’ve seen her walking the deck at midnight. It’s all bupkis, of course, but it makes for an interesting read.”

      Cy thought the only disgruntled spirit stalking the River King was Irene Hershey herself. It would certainly give him the shivers to encounter her at midnight on deck. “Right. Well, I just stopped in to take some photos.”

      “So,” Flo said, a pink cast to her full cheeks. “Are there any men on the boat?”

      Cy squashed a smile. “Some of the employees would answer to that description.”

      “I was thinking about guests, actually.”

      “Ah, not sure. You’d have to ask Irene Hershey.”

      “Don’t worry. If there’s a man aboard, I’ll sniff him out,” Flo continued with a little giggle, waving a paper flyer at him. “Oh, hey. There’s our acting teacher right there. The pretty one.”

      Cy couldn’t help but glance at Piper. She was more than pretty as she floated among the ladies, distributing flyers. Her hair was loose, swinging in a strawberry-blond fringe around her shoulders. Did she know that the deep green of her shirt made her eyes shine like polished gems? Or that her denim jeans outlined her slender hips?