"This is going to be great," Frank Hardy said enthusiastically as he looked back at the pier. "We’re long overdue for vacation."

"Yeah, great," Joe mumbled grumpily as he stood beside his brother.

"What’s wrong, Joe?" Callie asked. Callie Shaw had been Frank’s girlfriend for the past three years. She was practically a member of the family so she was naturally invited along. "Are you upset because Vanessa couldn’t come?"

"She had to work," Joe grumbled. "I should have stayed home."

"Oh, Joe," Laura said. "I’m sure you’ll find something to do. Don’t forget all the activities we read about in the brochure."

"Terrific," Joe mumbled.

"Lighten up," Frank muttered elbowing Joe. "Mom and Dad worked hard to plan this. Don’t ruin it for them."

"All right."

Fenton stepped up to the railing beside his sons. He looked back toward the parking lot and asked, "Any sign of the Drew’s?"

"Not yet," Frank said. "But they may already be on board."

"They aren’t," Fenton said. "I already checked with the purser."

"Then I’m sure they’ll be along soon," Frank said. "I guess we might as well get settled in our rooms."

"Good idea," Fenton said. He grabbed a suitcase. "We need to go this way. Our rooms are on the third deck."

* * * * *

About half an hour later, Joe was stretched out on his bed dozing while Frank finished unpacking. Their stateroom had two beds, a small closet, a four drawer dresser, a desk with an antique lamp, a private bath and a closed circuit television.

There was a soft knock on the door. Joe sleepily opened his eyes at Frank moved toward the door. Frank opened the door and grinned. "Hi, Nancy, Ned."

"Hi, Frank," Nancy said coming into the room with Ned. "Hi, Joe."

"Hi guys," Joe said sitting up on his bed. "Any trouble finding the ship?"

"It was real easy to spot," Nancy said. "I just can’t believe your dad invited all of us along."

"We’ll have a blast after the summer we’ve had," Frank said. "It’s just a shame Bess and George were unable to come."

"Their parents wanted to spend some time alone with them," Nancy said.

"I wish I was home," Joe grumbled.

"What’s your problem?" Nancy asked. "We’re on an amazing cruise ship with no cases or anything and listen to you."

"Leave him be," Frank said. "He’s just upset because his girlfriend Vanessa was unable to join us. She had to work so he’s feeling abandoned."

"Shut up, Frank," Joe said, glaring at his older brother.

"Come on, Joe, we‘ll have fun anyway," Nancy said, cheerfully.

"Have you guys had a chance to explore the ship yet?" Ned asked changing the subject.

"No," Joe said. "We were waiting to see if you were going to show up."

"Why don’t we go now?" Nancy asked.

"Sounds good to me," Frank said. "But let’s pick up Callie before we go."

"All right," Nancy said and the four of them left the Hardy’s room.

* * * * *

That evening at dinner, they sat in the dining room. The room was large, the size of six staterooms put together. They had selected a table near the entrance to the dining room. It was decorated with blue linens on the tables and curtains covering the windows to the walkways. Flowers of every kind adorned the center of each table. Nancy and Ned were sitting on one side of Carson with Fenton and Laura on the other side. Frank was seated next to Laura with Callie on his other side and Joe next to her.

As they ate dinner, which included several types of seafood and chicken, Frank and Nancy told the others about all the things they found to do on the ship. Callie and Ned joined in whenever they could. The activities included the gym, several nights clubs for different interests, pool volleyball tournaments, a game room, a rock climbing wall, a spa and nightly entertainment.

Joe sat quietly and poked at his dinner. He felt really out of place. I feel like a fifth wheel, he thought. Frank has Callie and Nancy has Ned. But where does that leave me? High and dry and all alone. I probably should have just stayed home.

After dinner, Nancy and Ned decided to go for a walk around the upper deck. Frank and Callie also left the table. Joe was stuck sitting with his parents. He looked at his parents and said, "If anyone is looking for me, I’ll be in my room."

"Are you feeling all right?" Laura asked. "You hardly ate anything."

"I’m fine," Joe said getting to his feet. "I’ll see you at breakfast in the morning."

"All right," Laura said. "Good night."

Joe left the dining room and headed out on deck. He reached the railing and gazed out into the water. He stared at the wake the ship was leaving behind as it sailed along. Tired of listening to the cheerful laughter coming from one of the lounges down below, Joe decided to head back to his room. He knew he was going to have a terrible time and decided to spend it in his room.

He was about to cut back through the dining room when be bumped right into someone. "I’m sorry."

"It’s all right. It’s my fault. I wasn’t looking where I was going."

Joe looked up at the sound of the female voice. The girl was very pretty with long brown hair and hazel eyes. She looked to be about 17, the same age as Joe. She seemed to be out of breath.

"Don’t worry about it," he said. "By the way, I’m Joe Hardy."

"I’m Victoria Armans." She had an English accent.

"It’s a pleasure to meet you." Joe smiled.

"Same here and maybe you can help me," she said. "There’s supposed to be a main ballroom on the ship, but I haven’t been able to find it."

"I know where it is," Joe said. "Follow me."

Joe led Victoria down several levels to the main ballroom and they went inside. They found an empty table on the edge of the dance floor and sat down. They watched the other couples dance for a few minutes. Victoria broke the silence. "Thanks for helping me find this place."

"It was really no problem," Joe said getting to his feet. "I’ll see you around."

"Joe, you don’t have to go," Victoria said softly.

"I assumed you were meeting someone."

"Maybe I have." Joe sat back down at the table. "Are you here alone?"

"No, I’m here with my parents and older brother. Also some friends came along."

"Is this a family vacation?"

"Sort of," Joe said. "My dad thought this was a good idea. Some kind of family bonding."

"And you don’t think it’s a good idea?"

"I’d much rather be hanging out with my friends at the beach than being stuck on this cruise ship having a terrible time."

"Maybe we could have a good time together," Victoria suggested with a smile.

"I think that’s a possibility," Joe said as he got to his feet. He took Victoria’s left hand and led her out onto the dance floor. As they danced, Joe thought, this may turn out to be a fun vacation after all.