If Connor could be called anything, it was earnest. He returned the mysterious woman's look with a nod, approaching the bar and welcoming himself inside. He took a quick inventory--not just liquor, but fruit. He looked back to the lounging guest--her golden skin was clearly warm in the late summer sun. Then, he recalled a brief encounter with a magazine that had fallen in the lobby with a cover decorated with cocktail recipes (which he'd sooner call on for for guidance than the memories of the Lieutenant's whiskey rags.)

Rolling up his sleeves, Connor combined precise quantities of simple syrup and a watermelon purée in the fridge, dousing the mixture with white rum and lime juice like an old hand. He clipped a sprig off the fresh mint plant at the edge of the counter and garnished the rim with lime. Then, he appraised it. Calories: 291 ... Sugar: 35g. ... Vitamin A: 885IU ...

"Be gentle with me," he said as he knelt at the poolside where Aphrodite lounged, presenting the blushing drink on a small tray.