Dinner

You get back onto the boat and check the time. About an hour and a half until dinner. You and Mark escort the girls to their room before heading off to your own. You give Cara a quick kiss before leaving. As you reach your room, both you and Mark head off to your own bathrooms to shower and get ready for the night.

It feels good to wash everything off from the day at the beach. You scrub yourself clean, unsure if this will come into question later tonight. You were kind of hoping you and Cara did something last night, but maybe now is the better time anyways. You wear some nice chino khaki pants with a black polo shirt with white trimming around the collar and sleeves. You do your hair, put on some cologne, and and slip on your boat shoes. You walk out into the connected living room just as Mark does. He's wearing black pants with a white dress shirt. With about 15 minutes until dinner, the two of you head down to the girls' room to pick them up.

You knock on the door, anticipating what the girls will be dressed in. The door swings open, and Cara is standing there in a bath towel, aggressively brushing her hair. "Hey guys, give us a few more minutes."

"No problem," you say, as the door swings shut in your face.

You and Mark sit there, watching groups of people pass by on their way to dinner. Not too long after, the door opens back up and Cara and Zoey come out. Cara looks stunning, wearing a red tropical one piece outfit with sandals, her hair cascading down her face. Zoey is wearing a nice short solid blue dress, also with sandals.

The four of you use the stairs, heading down to the restaurant levels. Tonight it's a different place with a more tropical menu. You see friends at other tables and say hello. A few of them compliment you on how different you look. With your confidence soaring, you get Cara's chair and sit down next to her. The two of you order a platter to share.

As dinner goes on, you suddenly realize how happy you are. Everything feels at peace right now. Your thoughts on what might happen later tonight are gone, all you care about is living in this moment with Cara, as you watch her radiant smile.

Eventually, dinner ends, and the four of you walk out of the restaurant towards the stairs again. "Well, I'm completely exhausted. Come on Mark," Zoey says, grabbing Mark by the shirt and pulling him away.

"Those two are a strange pairing," Cara says thoughtfully. She turns to you and throws her arms around your neck.