Sailing at Sunset - Cindi Madsen Page 0,15
and all the cool archways? Ooh, and check out that beautiful balcony.” The glimmer of excitement Josh had seen in Danae’s eyes before they set sail reignited. “Suddenly I want to stand up there and shout, ‘Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art though, Romeo?’”
“I tried that trick at a club once,” Vanessa said. “I don’t recommend it.” She and Danae laughed, while Josh did his best to remember his high school literature class.
The sigh that came from Vanessa as she zoomed on the massive Vanderbilt mansion led him to believe that she still wasn’t getting what she wanted.
Danae glanced at him, as if she expected him to help.
Josh held up his hands. “Hey, I’m not in charge of the fog.”
“Isn’t there anything we can do?” Danae asked. “Will it burn off?”
While he’d cursed the weatherman’s inaccurate predictions before, Josh also knew better than to put himself in the guy’s shoes. “The one constant at sea is that nothing’s ever constant. But if you want my honest opinion, the sun will set before the fog clears in this area of the bay.”
“Shoot. I guess I should’ve made the mansions the first stop, but it didn’t make sense to zigzag across the bay, only to have to sail back.” Danae moved closer to Vanessa and squinted at her phone screen. “Can you use any of the footage you’ve taken? Even if it’s just a teaser?”
The woman played a few seconds of a video, swiped through the pictures she’d taken, and shook her head. “Not without it coming across as completely amateur, and I would never upload anything less than the best.” She tapped her lip and then her eyebrows shot up. “You know what we should do?”
All eyes focused on Vanessa, but she didn’t immediately rattle off the answer, leading him to believe she enjoyed people hanging on her every word.
Eventually, Franco asked, “What?”
“Did you guys see those mini videos on Trendster?”
“Trendster?” Danae asked, saving Josh the effort, although he reminded himself he was the silent partner on this ride, so to speak.
“Oh my gosh, it’s the coolest app. Franco, you’ve heard of it, haven’t you? I figured you’d be up on all the happening events.”
The guy blinked at her. “Maybe in my early twenties, but these days I’m an old married man who stays home with his husband, playing endless games of fetch with our babies.”
“They have two dogs,” Danae surprised Josh by whispering. “In case you thought…” Her nose crinkled. “I mean, you probably figured it out, but sometimes it makes me picture babies crawling after a stick, and that’d be super cute, but possibly not recommended, and…” She placed a hand over her face, which was slowly turning an adorable shade of pink. “I’m gonna stop now.”
“Don’t stop on my account,” Josh said with a smile. “Especially since that was right where my mind went. Diapered babies with sticks in their mouth.”
Her head tilted, as if she wasn’t sure whether or not he was joking. Either he’d been at the marina too long and had forgotten how to tell a joke, or Danae worked so hard she’d forgotten how to laugh at one.
“It’s the hottest of the hottest, and it’s always changing,” Vanessa said. “People check in, and post these super short, hyper-aesthetic videos that show off the location. If you’re going to check out the place because of someone’s video, you tap the go button, and that user gets trend points.”
Their brazen social media manager tapped her phone screen and then swiveled it toward her audience. “I’ve been trying to build up Barton Boating Company’s points, as well as my own. Everyone take out your phones and download it right now so you can follow me at Vibe With Vanessa. Trust me, it’s going to be huge in no time.”
One by one, the passengers pulled out their phones and added the Trendster app, although a bit begrudgingly.
“Click the link for the Castle Wines Vineyard. Isn’t it gorgeous?”
Franco leaned in and watched the video with the rows of green leafy vines and clusters of people wandering around enjoying the scenery. At the end, the camera zoomed in on a group seated around a wooden table, laughing and chatting as they shared a bottle of wine. “I recognize that logo,” Franco said. “Justin loves that brand. I’ll have to pick some up for him.”
People remarked on how beautiful the place was and how lovely the wine-tasting looked. “I bet they’ll agree to give us a tour in exchange for a boost on