The Lust Boat Chronicles
Sex at Sea
Kira Kendrix
Copyright 2012 Kira Kendrix
Smashwords Edition
All rights reserved.
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part
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This is a work of fiction.
Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either
the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. The
author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of
various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been
used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is
not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark
owners.
Heather is stressed out by life, so at the urging of her friend, decides to take a cruise. On her first day there, she runs into her sexy neighbor, and the two of them have a lot more first time experiences than just the cruise. This story is adults only, and meant for those who are 18 or over.
Visit the author’s website at: http://kirakendrix.com
Heather sat at her desk at the front of the bookstore, with her face in her hands. The numbers just weren’t adding up. How was she going to stay afloat when she was losing a large portion of her regular customers to e-readers?
She’d been running her used bookstore for thirteen years now. She’d opened it as soon as she graduated from college with a trust fund set up for her at birth by her grandmother. It had been her lifelong dream and it was slowly sinking. She looked at her friend and employee, Melanie. “I don’t know how we’re going to make this work.”
Melanie smiled. “You say that every month, and every month we pull through. We’re going to be fine.”
Heather sighed heavily. “You’re right. I just need a vacation.” She raked her fingers through her long brown hair, mussing it terribly.
“So, take one! I can woman the store for a week or so.” Melanie was kneeling on the floor in front of a shelf shelving books. She looked back over her shoulder at Heather. “I know! Take a cruise. My mom just got back from one and said it was fabulous.”
Heather thought about it. “That’s not a bad idea. Aren’t there cruise ships that leave from Galveston? I could drive there in an hour.” The bookstore, and Heather’s home, were in Houston. It would be no problem to drive the short distance for a cruise.
“Do it! I swear, my mom came back with a tan and the biggest smile I’ve ever seen. I think it would do you a world of good.”
Heather pulled up her browser on the store’s laptop. “Hey. I could go for a week for less than $700. I’m going on a cruise!” She pulled out her credit card and clicked the purchase button. “Mexico, here I come!”
*****
Three weeks later, Heather saw her neighbor, Erik, as she was leaving her apartment. Erik was all her sexual fantasies walking around on two sexy legs. He was well over six feet, had blond hair and gorgeous blue eyes. He was built like a linebacker and moved with a lithe grace that thrilled Heather to her toes. “Hey, Erik.”
He turned and looked at her absently. “Oh, hi Heather. What’s up?” He was thrilled to see Heather, and wished he could get up the guts to ask her out.
“I was wondering if you’d pick up my mail for me for the next week. I’m going to be on vacation.” She had already arranged for Melanie to pick up her mail, but she could cancel that. If Erik picked it up for her, she’d have a reason to invite him into her apartment and maybe they could get past the “hi” when they saw each other stage.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I’m going to be gone for the next week, too. Catch me next time.” He truly was sorry. It would have given him an excuse to see her again.
“Okay. I’m sure I can get a friend to do it. Have a good vacation.”
“You too!”
She walked down to her car and started the drive toward Galveston. The ship didn’t leave until four, but she’d been told to be there by noon when they started boarding. Apparently, the party started at noon, and she was going to suck up every second of this vacation. She was sick of the post-Christmas blues.
The drive went faster than she expected. She parked her car, and took a shuttle to the dock. Her eyes were wide as she watched the things people were pulling through the fast-moving line to get on the ship. There were people with huge cases of bottled water. Others with twelve-packs of soft drinks.
She got into line and went through the metal detector. She’d left all electronics at home. She’d even locked her cell phone in her car. She refused to think about the real world while she was on vacation. This was her time, and she was going to enjoy every second of it.
She’d chosen a tiny little room on the inside so she could get a cheaper price. Since she wasn’t sharing her cabin, it would work just fine. She was happy with how clean it was. The size wouldn’t bother her one little bit. She met the steward, and went up onto the Lido deck.
There were already people swimming and eating. She found a line, and got herself some lunch, flagging down a bar waiter to get a drink with an umbrella in it. At this point, she really didn’t care what kind of drink it was, as long as it gave her a bit of a buzz and had an umbrella. She really wanted that umbrella.
As the waiter handed her the drink, she looked up and saw the last person she’d expected to spend five nights on a cruise ship with. Erik. Her sexy neighbor. She took a long sip through the straw.
“Hey, Heather! I didn’t know you were going on a cruise,” he said. He looked around. “You here alone?”
She nodded. “I needed to get away really badly, and didn’t take the time to find someone to come with me. I just came.” And she was so glad she was alone now that she saw him standing there.
“Do you mind if I join you?” He nodded toward the empty seat next to her.
“Not at all. I’d love the company.” She eyed his food. “Did you go to the grill?”
“Yeah, I’ve heard awesome things about the hotdogs.”
She laughed. “You go on a cruise to eat hotdogs?”
He grinned. “Well, I’m on the cruise to write a review of the cruise line. I don’t usually do the travel articles, but the girl who does is on maternity leave. So they asked me. I figured I could do some travel if it meant that I get to take a free vacation.” He took a huge bite of his hotdog. “This is good!”
“I’d have agreed to that, too. Where do you work? I thought you were in the sports industry for some reason.” She wrinkled her brow.
“I’m a sports writer.” He named the Houston newspaper he worked for. “I guess you were mostly right.”
“You’re here alone too, I guess?”
He nodded. “Yeah. I don’t mind too much. It would be more fun with a friend, though.” Maybe she’d be his cruise ship buddy.
“What time do you have dinner?” she asked.
“I did the anytime dining. You?”
“I did, too. Maybe we could eat together.” She tried not to sound too enthusiastic about the idea. Who’d have thought that she could spend time with her gorgeous neighbor by going on a cruise?
“That’d be great. I don’t mind lying in the sun alone, but eating alone in a crowded dining room is kind of weird,” he said. “What deck is your cabin on?”
“Seven forward. Where are you?”
“I’m on nine forward.”
She dug in her bag for a pen and paper. Quickly she scribbled her room number down. “Here’s my room number. Why don’t you come get me at six?”
“That sounds good. Are you planning on joining any of the activities today?” He nodded toward the cruise schedule she had lying beside her plate.
“I haven’t even read over everything yet, so I don’t know. What are you planning?”
“I have no plans. I do want to be on deck when we sail away so I can wave to phantom people on the shore.”
She laughed. “I could get behind that activity.”
She shared her schedule with him, and they talked about the day’s offerings. “I really want to spend a little time in the casino this evening. I’m supposed to concentrate on writing about the casino and some of the lounges. And the dining room, of course. I’ve heard awesome things about the dining room.”
“I have, too! I’m not a foodie, but I can’t wait to try some of the different things. My friend told me her dad got three entrées every night in the dining room. That sounds like it’s just wrong. I may go for two desserts, though.” She finished her last bite of cheesecake. “Especially if they have chocolate.”
“It’s almost four now. From what I read, we need to get ready for a safety drill, and then we can go up on deck as we leave the dock.”
She nodded. “That sounds like fun. Where do we go for the drill?”
He shrugged. “It’ll be based on our cabin, but I say we just go to the same place. There’s supposed to be an announcement. I don’t want to get separated yet.”
She couldn’t believe her luck. “I’d love that.”
Forty minutes later, they were on deck as the ship set sail. They were both waving at the dock workers and anyone else they saw on the beach. They stayed on deck until they were too far from the ocean to see. “It’s already starting to get dark out,” he said in surprise.
“Yeah, the schedule says the sun sets at 5:43 tonight. That’s early.” She glanced at her watch. “It’s already five. I want to run down to my cabin and dress for dinner. Tonight’s not a formal night, but I think I’m going to do the dressy thing every night. I never have a reason to dress nice.”
“I brought a suit for formal night, but I’m just doing nice jeans and a golf shirt every other night,” he admitted.
“That’s okay. We’ll have fun anyway.” She started walking off the deck toward the bank of elevators at the front of the boat. They were up on ten, so they both got into one going down. As they descended, she said, “I guess I’ll see you in a little bit for dinner.”
“I can’t wait,” he told her.
Heather quickly showered and dressed for dinner. She had brought more than enough outfits for three women, not sure what she’d want to wear each evening. She dug through her hanging clothes and found a skirt and blouse. The skirt hit her just above mid-thigh. She had a new agenda for this cruise, and this was the skirt to help her achieve it. She was going to get Erik interested in her as a lot more than a friend.
She brushed out her long brown hair and applied just a bit of make-up to her light brown eyes. She loved her eyes. They were an unusual color that made men look twice.
She’d just slipped her feet into her flats when she heard the knock on the door. She opened it wide. “I just need to grab my purse.”
He stepped into the cabin and looked around. “This is tiny!” he said.
She shrugged. “It’s big enough for me. Why? Did you get a balcony suite?” She’d gone for the cheapest room possible. She didn’t see a need to pay a lot extra when she wouldn’t be in her room enough for it to matter.
“Yeah. My room was free, though. This is where I’d be if I wasn’t on the paper’s tab.”
She grimaced. “I’m sorry this is a working vacation for you. I even left my cell phone in the car. I absolutely refuse to think about work while I’m here.”
“My work is going to take me a few minutes a day. I just have to enjoy the ship’s amenities and have fun. I can do that!”
She laughed. “I can help you do that.”
They walked toward the elevator as they talked. She stumbled a few times as the ship swayed back and forth. It wasn’t a bumpy ride, but it was harder to walk without canvas shoes on.
“The swaying getting to you?” he asked.
“Not really. I’m just not as steady on my feet as I’d like.” She didn’t add that she never was. Her mother had always joked that she hadn’t named her Grace for a reason.
He slipped an arm around her waist. “Maybe this will make you a bit steadier.”
Whether it made her steadier or not, she sure wanted his arm to stay where it was. “I’m sure it will.”
They took the elevator down, and walked to the dining room together. After they each gave their room number, they were guided to a private table. Heather felt weird as the maître d held out her chair for her and placed her napkin onto her lap. She’d never been to a restaurant that did that before.
She picked up her menu and looked over it. “There’s no dessert on here,” she said disappointedly.
“My sources tell me the dessert menu is separate and comes after you finish your meal.”
“Okay, then I won’t be too upset about it.” She chose her appetizer and entrée and closed the menu placing it on the plate in front of her. “How long have we been neighbors?” she asked.
He’d already placed his menu on his plate and contemplated her question. “I think you lived there before me. I moved in three years ago? I think.”
She nodded. “That sounds about right. Why did we have to end up on a cruise ship together before we took the time to get to know each other?”
He looked down. “That’s probably my fault. I wanted to ask you out, but I never could find the words.”
“I’ve wanted you to ask me out. I’m glad we ended up on the same cruise.”
He took her hand in his. “Me too.”
Their waiter stopped over to introduce himself, and they each ordered. She was fascinated at how efficiently the serving of the meals went. Each waiter had others working with him, and each portion of the meal was there almost as quickly as they ordered it.
When they’d finished the main course, the dessert menu was brought to them. She glanced through the offerings. “Chocolate melting cake? I don’t think I could resist if I tried.”
He placed an order for fresh fruit and they waited again. “What do you do?” he asked.
“I own a used bookstore. The invention of e-readers has got me running scared. The really heavy readers are my bread and butter, but they’re also the ones who are buying the e-readers. Hopefully they’ll realize that for some things they can still get a better deal from my little shop.”
“I’ll have to check it out when we get home. I love bookstores. I could get lost in one for hours.” Especially if he could lure her into a corner with him.
She smiled. “Mine caters more to women than men. I have more romance novels than anything else.”
“Please tell me you have some sci-fi? Or murder mysteries? I can’t get lost in romance.”
She laughed. “We have a decent sci-fi section, and a few mysteries. But if you want to switch to reading romances, I can hook you up!”
He shook his head. “That’s okay. I’ll stick to sci-fi.”
Their desserts were served and she looked down at the little cake in front of her. Taking her spoon, she dipped it through the upper crust and into the molten chocolate middle. The first bite had her closing her eyes in almost orgasmic pleasure. “I want to eat this every day for the rest of my life,” she whispered happily.
He laughed at the look on her face. “I hope you’ll give me a chance to make your face look like that without chocolate.”
It took her a moment to get his meaning, but then she blushed. “You never can tell.”
After dinner, they spent a few minutes in the casino. She’d brought a small budget for gambling, but found that she was able to double her money on the penny slots that first night. She didn’t want to lose it all again, so she went over to watch him play poker.
A few minutes later, he led her from the casino to a bar on the same deck. They sat back and watched people do crazy things in the name of drunkenness. The bar had a piano player and the music was upbeat and fun to listen to. They each had a drink, and he took her hand to lead her out onto the deck to watch the ocean.
She looked out over the ocean as she leaned against the railing. “It’s amazing how dark it is out there. You can’t tell where the ocean ends and the sky begins. It’s eerie!”
He moved behind her, putting both arms around her and pulling her back against him. “You look amazing tonight. I love how that skirt looks on you,” he whispered against her ear.
She turned in his arms to face him. She could barely make out his features in the dark. Knowing he’d never make the first move, she wound her fingers through his hair and pulled his head down to hers. Her lips found his in the darkness.
He took over the kiss immediately. His tongue traced the seam of her lips and demanded entrance. Her mouth opened for him and they kissed passionately. His hands moved down to her bottom and pulled her against his growing arousal. Her hands went up under his shirt, stroking the hard defined muscles she’d noticed time and again.
His lips traveled from her lips down the side of her face to her throat. He bit lightly at the vein on the side of her neck, causing her to moan.
Off in the distance, she could hear children running along the deck. Forcing herself out of his arms, she stood facing him taking huge gulping breaths. She wasn’t into public displays of affection especially when children were involved. She watched him to see how he’d react.
He stood still for a moment with his eyes closed as the children ran past. Then he held out his hand to her. “Would you like to see what the balcony cabins look like?”
She grinned. “I’d love to.” She’d had the foresight to pack her toothbrush and a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, hoping they’d end the night this way. She took the hand he offered and walked with him to the elevator.
There were two other couples in the elevator with them, so he just pushed the button for nine, and waited as the elevator ascended. The other two couples got out before them. He pulled her along to his room, opening the door with his keycard.