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eyes at Pete and he shook his big head.
    Muriel had longish fuzzy red hair with bangs . Her bulging pale green eyes seemed to be having a hard time focusing. Jay sa id those eyes looked like green grapes.
    Muriel wore a purple knit blouse two sizes too small with a deep v-neck . Her tight orange skirt had wide green horizontal stripes, an unfortunate choice. Mother Nature had not been kind to Muriel , and her fashion decisions only made it worse.
    In d oing my duty as shepherd and host, I had turned down an invitation to dine at the c aptain’s table. Jay said I was out of my mind. We had been introduced to Captain Stephanos Vargos for the first time on deck at the lifeboat drill.
    “You’ve got to admit it, Sidney, that captain is absolutely gorgeous.”
    “I can see that, Jay. But I am not interested in the Captain. He comes on a little strong for me, and you know Zoe, that tall , blond agent with Poseidon Tours? She told me this afternoon that she made a play for him a couple of trips back and he told her he is married.”
    “If Zoe made a play for me, I’d tell her I was married, too. Zoe gets around, you know. I wouldn’t take her word for it. But I have to tell you , Sidney, any guy that hot is going to be totally self- absorbed He’s no kid. He’s at least ten years older than you, and he’s been around. So maybe it’s better for you to leave him alone. Y ou’ve attracted way too many of th ose smooth dudes already . And you can bet your last drachma that this big Greek is macho to the core. ”
    Jay had a point. Captain Vargos was hot in his dress whites as he presid ed over his table , but I was pretty sure that he was also well-aware of his good looks. He is just over six feet tall a nd tan ned , with broad shoulders and a lean waist. His hair is thick, dark and wavy and beginning to silver at the temples. T here is nothing boyish about him. His smile is a man’s smile—arrogant and knowing . He leaned down to whisper something in the ear of the woman on his right, and she looked up at him and laughed. Her deep blue silk dress was almost the exact color of his eyes.
    “Somebody told me that it’s okay to order two of everything if you want to, Miss Marsh. Is that true?” Gladys Murphy brought my attention back to the table.
    “Well, yes, you can, Gladys , you certainly can ... and then there is also the Heart He lper diet and the Chef’s Suggested Menu, both of which are always excellent.”
    “W ell, I’m just gonna have two of them prime ribs and just a little tiny taste of every one of them desserts. You can keep the veggies. Don’t that sound good to you?”
    “You bet , Gladys . That certainly sounds wonderful. J ust remember to save some room for the Midnight Buffet!”
    “Don’t you worry none about that , Miss Marsh ! We wouldn’t miss it for the world ! It’s ca lled Sweet Dreams Buffet and it’s all desserts. Pete and I will t ry everything they got. Muriel might not, though. Muriel has to watch her figure. Did I tell you already that she wants a career in show business? She’s looking for those bright lights , aren’t you, Muriel? Muriel wants to be a star, don’t you, honey?”
    Muriel ignored her. She was ordering another drink from the cocktail waiter.
    A s Gladys launched into a long monologue of Muriel’ s performance history, beginning with tap dancing recitals at age four, I made a mental note to speak privately to the maitre d’ after dinner about a change in table assignments. T o hell with duty. The Murphys were pleasant enough people , but a week can be a n awfully long time.
* * *
    I have a favorite spot just above the Lido deck of the Rapture of the Deep that very few people seem to frequent . T hat is where I escaped with my wine glass after the last of the dessert plates was cleared away.
    Before heading for the Lido deck stairs I had made a swing around the ship, checking to be sure that everyone was fairly well settled-in and happy.
    All the High Steppers