Poolside

Mairin quickly sat up, self conscious, hugging her book across her chest like it would cover what her black bikini didn't cover of her bust. "What name was that?" She awkwardly asked, her face burning under the man's bemused inquisitive gaze. She hoped she didn't look like a train wreck, she wasn't wearing make-up and her hair was messily pulled into a braid. She wondered if she should've listened to her mom's advice to look her best at all times.

"Sam Heck," Sam's eyes met hers. "It's why I was so surprised to hear it from your lovely lips." He winked.

"I'm sorry, but I didn't." Mairin shook her head. "Don't mind me, I'm trying to work through a puzzle."

"My mistake then. What's that you're reading?" Sam tilted his head to get a better look at the title of the book she was reading. Mairin moved the book behind her.

"Just some light reading," Mairin stammered. "I just grabbed what I could find that looked interesting. I lost my tablet so I had to go old school."

"That's too bad." Sam raised a curious brow, pointedly looking behind her to tease her. "Was that a romance novel, something about fire?" He smiled good naturedly as he sat down on an empty chair beside her. Her gaze shifted down over his muscular chest down to the tapered v that lead to his gree"n board shorts. "I didn't catch your name."

Mairin's gaze met his as she glanced back up. Horrified, she couldn't meet his again knowing she'd been caught checking him out. She didn't think her face could felt hotter than it did right now. "Mairin," she quickly answered. "So what if it was?"

"Oh that's a question that requires something more," Sam laughed, waving over a waiter. "Mairin's an interesting name. I've never heard of it before, do you know what it means?"

"What does it require?" Mairin huffed, looking back at Sam. She set the book down in her lap and tried to calm down. She wanted to look cool but had failed so miserably on her first impression. "It's Gaelic for 'star of the sea'."

"A drink," Sam replied with a wink. "My treat to clear up our misunderstanding, what would you like?"

A tanned waiter in a crisp white polo and khaki cargo shorts came over with a tablet and a friendly smile. "Yes, what can I get you?"

Mairin lightly bit her lower lip. She wasn't old enough to drink legally in the States, Korea or Iceland. It was just her luck. "Umm. Could I have a virgin pina colada?"

Sam looked amused by this but didn't press it. "That sounds lovely, make it two. It's on me." He flashed the waiter a bright smile. The waiter keyed in the order and handed Sam the tablet to swipe his room key.

Once the tablet was back in the waiter's hands he nodded. "Very good. We'll get these right out to you." He waited for a few more moments before taking his leave, heading through the crowd towards the pool bar.

"So, romance novels?" Sam asked with a grin.

Mairin instinctively grabbed the book and moved it behind her. She remembered that this book had a risque cover of the title couple in a state of unless with a cursive script title involving fire and lust. She wished that she had brought out a different book. "Yes. I thought it might be funny to read one."

"Oh? You don't normally read romance?" Sam leaned forward, watching her and her futile attempts to inconspicuously hide the book but only succeeding in drawing more attention to it. The book was just a starting point for the conversation but he found the whole situation funny while Mairin was mortified.

"I'm more for thrillers and mystery," Mairin admitted. "I just was never interested in them. But my options were a bit limited."

"Why do you say that?"

"I can't read Icelandic," she replied with a sigh. Sam looked confused by this answer, his expression shifted as he made a connection.

"Oh! Were you one of the passengers from that crash?"

Mairin nodded. "Yes. This seemed like a better option after what happened."

"You seem well. Were you hurt?" Sam stroked his chin, drawing Mairin's attention to the strong shape of his jaw. She inwardly cursed, it was like going through puberty. She was looking for Enkidu but how would she know it was him? Shamhat didn't tell her how she'd know or what to look for. It was just an assumption that she'd just... know. How would she know if this man or any other was Enkidu? It was also unreasonable to just assume any guy that showed an interest was Enkidu as well.

"Nothing serious, just some scrapes and bruises. I was lucky." Mairin smoothed her hair behind her ear as a light breeze flung several strands out of place. Lucky was a word for it, though not an entirely honest one. She doubted that anyone would believe her story about meeting a dragon in the ice and learning that she was the dragon's reincarnation. Even less likely was claiming she was an important Babylonian figure. "A cruise seems safer right now than flying, you know?"

Sam took Mairin's hand and gently patted it. "It's a blessing you made it through that ordeal." The feel of his hand on hers felt odd, he was being reassuring. Perhaps there was a cultural context she was missing but as an American, the contact from a stranger was intrusive. She wasn't sure what to make of this man flirting with her. She liked his company, as awkward as the conversation had been. She decided that it would be better for her to take control of the conversation and ask him some questions about himself to alleviate some of the pressure from her just responding.

"You have an interesting accent. Where are you from?" Mairin asked with a friendly smile, withdrawing her hand.