Decked with Holly by Marni Bates Read Free Book Online

eleven!” one of the sleazoids informed me, as if that should make a difference to my churning stomach and the tightness that ached in my chest.
    â€œAnd I’m sorry.” I apologized even though hello, it wasn’t my fault that I was seasick! “But I’m trying not to puke and I really just . . . I need to sleep it off.”
    â€œOh, we understand,” Claire said as she collapsed onto the bed in a giggling drunken heap. “You don’t want to party because you’re a loser.” She snorted then dissolved into laughter. “Even the girl getting us free drinks was cooler than you!”
    Allison giggled. “God, she was trying so hard. There’s no way she’s actually dating someone famous. Desperation was written all over her.”
    Claire tossed back her long blond hair. “So pathetic. What was I saying again? Oh, yeah, we’re going to have fun. You can do whatever you want.”
    The smell was unbearable and the longer eau de tequila wafted over me the harder I had to work to suppress my gag reflex. I couldn’t stay in that room. Especially not with one of the guys leering at me. Mustering up the effort to change into pajamas had been beyond me when I had first entered the cabin, and now I found myself incredibly grateful to be fully dressed. Just lurching to my feet felt like a Herculean task. Apparently, I was just not built for long periods of time on water.
    Or any time on water.
    I just wish that I had known that before I had boarded the ship.
    â€œFine,” I said, even as my body tried to mutiny against my every movement. “Enjoy your private party. I’ll figure out something else.”
    Scooping up my backpack and my iPod, I paused for a moment before snatching up my blanket for good measure. I might end up sleeping out on deck but I still required a modicum of comfort.
    â€œEnjoy your night, girls, because eventually karma is going to catch up with you. Oh, and try not to get too many STDs.”
    And with a cheery wave I made my exit.
    Okay, maybe not the best of parting lines. It lacked, well, class for one thing. But no matter how many times my imaginary parents tell me to “rise above” my cousins there are times when I can’t resist stooping to their level.
    And this time I felt sick enough that I didn’t even care.
    Wrapping the blanket tighter around my arms, I meandered blindly down the hall and into an elevator.
    â€œNowhere to go but up.” I pressed a button at random, leaning heavily against the cool metal control panel as it began to rise. All I needed to find was an unoccupied couch in a corner somewhere. That should also be significantly closer and warmer than any deck chair, which would be good because not only was I sweating like I’d just bitten into a hunk of jalapeño, I also couldn’t stop my body from quaking. Every last ounce of my spunkiness was officially drained.
    But it had to be better than staying with Allison, Claire, and Sleazoids #1 and #2.
    And to remind myself of that fact I kept repeating, “This is better, way better, it gets better,” with each step. My body didn’t believe that any more than my mountain fantasy. Something in my chest squeezed tightly and I had to fight back a rising tide of bile.
    I was going to throw up.
    It wasn’t a question of Oh, maybe the sensation will pass anymore. It was Holy shit! I’m going to spew like Mount St. Helens! I need a restroom! NOW!
    But all I could see in either direction was a long expanse of white hall. It was going to be off-white if I didn’t find a trash can or a toilet in a hurry. But I didn’t have time to run around, searching for public facilities. My body felt so utterly drained I wasn’t sure I was capable of moving at a pace faster than a crawl.
    I really hoped that whoever had booked room 327 wouldn’t come out to inspect what was going on outside their door, because I wasn’t