A Sailing Honeymoon

Chapter 11.

Complicit

Roy

(I'm stuck on this ship full of perverts and psychos, and I'm not sure if I will make it back to Miami as Overlord's words echo in my head, "Watch your six and keep your fuckin' head down. Dip-shit!")

The sun was going down, and I was actually hungry. I'd been sitting on that hard bin for about three hours, and my ass had gone numb. I chuckled at the irony as I climbed off, lifted the lid, and hid my journal in the bin full of life preservers that half the ship had fucked my slut-wife on. I figured it would be safe there. Well, unless we sank. Then it wouldn't matter much anyway!

Luckily, I didn't run into Anna, or any of my new psychotic best friends, on my way up to Sammy's. There were only two other couples in the restaurant, and they paid me no mind beyond a glance as I choked down a half-decent cheeseburger and fries; while I pondered my situation.

I wasn't sure how the next three days would go, and I didn't relish the idea of spending my nights with Anna in our room. But then, for all I knew, she would be spending her nights with Todd or Terra. Or, like in her cruise ship story, my slut wife would be "the life of the party" at some swinger's orgy.

After I finished my dinner, I wandered up to the sundeck. It was deserted, and with the constant gentle breeze and balmy Gulf air, it seemed like as good a place as any to sleep. I kicked back on a lounger and thought about everything and nothing as I stared up at the hazy stars through the thin high clouds cast off by the storm.

Then Maddy came into my thoughts, and a smile crept across my face. I hadn't thought about her in a long time, and it was like sitting down with a big bowl of popcorn to watch an old movie you've watched a dozen times and can't wait to see again.

I met Maddy at a nightclub right after I finished boot camp. She was a lot of fun and upfront about her sexual appetite. Which included ladies if the situation and mood were right. We hooked up and went out a lot, but I never felt the need to put a label on our relationship. Then a couple months after we met, I got called-up for my first tour in Afghanistan.

I told Maddy I didn't expect her to sit on her hands and twiddle her thumbs while I was away for a year. She just kissed me deeply and then, with her broad love the whole world smile, said it was a good thing because she had no intention of sitting on her hands while I was away. Then she kissed me again and joked that she did enjoy sitting on and twiddling her thumbs; from time to time.

Maddy was there to see me off the day I left. We stayed in touch through emails, and there was an unspoken, don't ask, don't tell arrangement, but I never had a problem with it.

When I was in-country, I heard countless stories of wives and girlfriends who cheated while their men were deployed. Some guys would lose it and get sent home on medical separation. While others just blew it off with a "somebody has to fuck the slut" attitude. Hell, once I heard a guy on a sat-link going off on his wife because they were so far behind on the bills, and she was just giving it away. All I knew was that whenever I got back to the States, Maddy and I would fuck each other half-to-death, and our love and passion were as strong as ever.

During my second tour, our emails became more hit-and-miss. Then, about nine months in, I got a letter from Maddy. I knew it must be serious because she had never sent me a handwritten letter before.

It was a "Dear John" letter of sorts. Maddy told me she had been helping her best friend, Kyle, through a rough time with his wife, Lori. One thing led to another, and she ended up in a polyamorous relationship with them. Then Maddy explained that she and Lori were both pregnant and told me she had never been happier.

Her letter went on to say that she still held a deep passion for me, and I would be welcomed into their circle; if I was comfortable with it. But if not, they would always see me as a good friend, and I was more than welcome to visit, as Uncle Roy when I was in town.

Kyle and Maddy had been best friends since kindergarten, and it was no secret that Kyle held a special place in Maddy's heart. I felt pain and joy as I read her letter because Maddy would always hold a special place in my heart. Yet, I knew we were never destined to get married or be life partners, and I was glad she had found such love and happiness.

When I came home from my last tour in Afghanistan, Kyle made it clear that it was all good if the girls said it was. But as appealing as the thought of being the meat in a Maddy and Lori sandwich was, I'd made peace with being Uncle Roy and just a good friend. I made it a point to keep in touch, and I enjoyed seeing my God niece and nephew, Sally and Johnathan, grow from adorable babies to precocious toddlers. But then, I took the RV dealership job, moved to Florida, and life got busy. So, except for the obligatory holiday and birthday emails, I hadn't actually seen them in years.

I wasn't sure why Maddy came into my mind after so long. Maybe it was because, like Anna, she was such a free spirit. But Maddy was also fiercely loyal, and I wondered what she would have to say about all this.

The great memories of wild nights in dance clubs and lazy Sundays watching movies with Maddy replayed in my head as I drifted off to sleep. Then I was rudely awakened when someone grabbed my ankles, and I thumped onto the deck as they dragged me off the lounger.

I quickly realized who it was, and I flailed my arms and kicked as Todd and Tom dragged me to the railing, snatched me up, and twisted my arms behind my back.

"I thought we had an understanding. Dumb-ass!" Todd barked as they leaned me over the side.

Then in a blink of an eye, I was over the railing.

"I told you he was gonna be a pain in the ass!" Tom snorted as they dangled me by my ankles.

"I thought you understood the rules? So why are you making your Hotwife so unhappy... Sergeant Benson!" Todd groused.

"Sorry if I'm not being a good cuck. But that wasn't the tour package I signed up for!" I shot back.

Suddenly I fell! But only a few inches.

"You know... The little slut could be having the time of her life. But NO! She is all upset because her hubby is running around acting all butt-hurt," Todd mused as they let my ankles slip in their hands. "You're just fuckin' lucky Terra likes the little slut so much. If it was up to me, I'da dumped both your asses over the rail last night," he growled with disdain.

"Yeah, well, at least now I know who's calling the shots," I spat.

It probably wasn't the smartest thing I'd ever done. But then, Todd had confirmed my suspicion, and I figured as long as Terra wanted to keep her "pet" happy, she wouldn't let her goon-squad hurt me; too much.

They hoisted me back over the railing and unceremoniously dropped me on the deck. Then Todd firmly placed his foot on my neck.

"If I were you, I would make it a priority to keep your Hotwife happy. Because if you keep pissing Terra off, you're gonna find out what it really means to be butt-hurt. Get my drift. Dumb-ass!" Todd scolded as he pressed his foot down harder.

Even in the low light, I was sure they could see the defiant grin on my face as they grabbed me under the arms and stood me up against the railing. Then Tom gave me the obligatory solar plexus gut punch. It was a damned sight harder than the love tap Todd gave me in the sickbay, and I fell to my knees, gasping for air as they walked away laughing.

Once I caught my breath and the urge to puke had passed, I crawled back onto a lounger. I saw it was after midnight and decided I would get right on "making my slut-wife happy" first thing in the morning. I figured if Anna could fake it for all these years, I could fake it for a couple of days.

It was twilight when I was rudely awakened by a kick in the leg. Terra stood there with her hands on her hips as she stared down at me with a disgusted scowl. She was wearing a hot pink sports bra with matching skimpy nylon joggers, and after a beat, she walked away without a word. I had to admit, now that I had seen most of it, her tribal tattoo was impressive.

Terra went behind the refreshment stand as I sat up and shook out the cobwebs. A moment later, she returned with an arm-load of rolled-up yoga mats and placed them on a table by the refreshment bar. That's when I realized she was the Sunrise Aerobics Class instructor, and an entirely new set of questions swirled in my head.

When we laid over in Cozumel, most of the swingers and freaks opted to stay on the ship, and I was curious to see who all showed up for Mistress Terra's class besides Anna. But then I heard a cup of coffee calling my name at Sammy's. I decided that was a much better idea, and when I got up to leave, Terra cleared her throat.

"She should be done with her workout by, say... eight-thirty-ish. Then I think you two should have breakfast at Sammy's and talk. Don't you?"

I got her, not so veiled innuendo, and nodded. Then I looked at the railing that Todd and Tom had dangled me over and was half tempted to save them the trouble as I walked away.

I ignored the titters and sniggers as I got my coffee and went out on the deck to watch the sunrise. I knew the winds wouldn't be favorable, and Captain McSorley would be burning diesel, with the sails furled, all the way back to Miami. I also knew the ship averaged between eight and ten knots, depending on the headwinds, and I figured we were somewhere off the western tip of Cuba.

The sun had just broken the horizon when Anna sat next to me, coffee in hand. I didn't acknowledge her, and she didn't try to hug me or say a word as we sat there and watched the sunrise together. Then, after a few minutes, she tentatively took my hand, and when I didn't yank it away, she gave me a little squeeze.

I turned to see Anna was wearing a bright rainbow-colored sports bra with matching shorts for her aerobics class with Mistress Terra! She must have bought them on Cozumel, and I had to stifle a laugh. With her newfound fondness for pussy, I couldn't help but wonder if Anna even got the significance of the rainbow colors. But then her thin, strained smile couldn't hide that she had been crying, and it seemed like neither of us knew what to say or where to go from here.

At a loss for words, I glanced at my watch and saw that it was almost time for Anna to do Mistress Terra's bidding on the sundeck.

"How about I grab a shower and meet you back here for breakfast after your workout? Say... eight-thirty-ish," I said as I squeezed her hand.

She lowered her eyes. "Um, you'll have to take the clothes out of the shower," she quietly uttered. "But they should be almost dry by now," Anna added as she looked up with a hopeful smile.

"Sure. No problem," I replied, then gestured toward the sundeck with an open palm. "Well... you better get going. You don't wanna keep Mistress Terra waiting," I declared.

Anna just sat there with a wide-eyed, stricken look as some fickle patrons laughed at my statement. I think she was embarrassed and surprised I knew what a Mistress was. Then I took a page from Terra's playbook and appealed to the crowd.

"Or... do you want to be late... So Mistress Terra will spank you!" I facetiously asked.

Then, even more of the fickle patrons began to snigger and chuckle at Anna. She stood, blew out a flustered breath, and rolled her eyes at me as she threw up her hands and headed for the door with nothing to say.

~

I couldn't help but smile because Anna had no idea how much I knew about things like that. Partly because the world of BDSM never really came up during our sexual play. But mostly because I didn't like to talk about my time in Afghanistan. During my tours of duty, I was either busting my hump out on patrol or bored to death and would read anything I could get my hands on. Plenty of trashy adult magazines got passed around camp. Penthouse: Letters, Forum, and Variations magazines were popular with those of us who actually knew how to read. But I shied away from the hardcore porn mags because most of the pages were stuck together anyway!

By the time I finished my second tour, I had read countless porn stories and fan letters that covered every kind of kink you could imagine, and some I didn't care to! But I never felt compelled to live any of them out; beyond some fun monogamous husband-and-wife role-play.

Hell! We hadn't been married six months, the first time I came home from work and rang the front doorbell. Before that day, I had always come in through the kitchen from the garage. So when Anna answered the front door, she looked rather surprised to see me. Then I broke into a boilerplate vacuum cleaner salesman spiel, and she quickly caught on!

I had always tried to keep our "salesman" role-play random. I liked to catch her off guard, and Anna liked to play the coy, hesitant housewife and make me work hard to get into her pants. But no matter what I was selling, she always bought the same thing, and we always had a lot of fun with it.

I'll never forget the first time I cleaned the pool after I built the privacy fence. Anna was taking advantage of the new fence to sunbathe in the nude, and I was enjoying the view while I skimmed and vacuumed. Then just as I finished putting away the tools, she called out. "Oh, pool boy! Would you put some suntan oil on my back, please!"

At first, I felt pretty silly about it. But then, I never liked the idea of a pool boy sniffing around, and I began looking forward to cleaning the pool. In fact, I was more determined than ever not to hire a; pool boy!

~

I finished my coffee and went to grab a shower. When I walked into the room and saw the clean, neatly made bed, a smile crept across my face as the image of Anna peeling herself off the bedspread played in my head.

Then I stepped into the bathroom and noticed the wastebasket was empty. I wasn't sure why Anna didn't put everything in the complimentary laundry service bag, and I couldn't imagine why she would be embarrassed about a stranger hand-washing her cum soaked panties, all things considered.

Anna must have hand-washed the clothes shortly after I walked out last night. Because everything was reasonably dry when I hung them on the back of the bathroom door and took my shower.

It was seven-thirty-ish by the time I got dressed and headed for my quiet place. On my way down to the marina deck, I ran into Dave near the conference room. He scanned both directions to make sure no one was around. Then conspiratorially twitched his head and rolled his eyes toward the conference room. I followed him inside, and he locked the door behind us.

"Hey, I'm so sorry they picked you two. Unfortunately, since McSorley took over as Captain and brought Terra and her goons with him about a year ago, they have been pulling shit like this. And to be honest, most of the crew has had it with them, giving the rest of us a bad name!" Dave stated in a low straightforward manner.

"Well, I appreciate that. But I'm afraid my wife brought this on herself," I replied.

I felt Dave was honestly concerned, but I wasn't sure how he fit into everything, and I was reluctant to say much.

"I know it may seem that way," he offered, "But after watching them manipulate more couples than I can count and having more than one suspicious death since they took over like they own the ship. Don't be too quick to judge," he cautioned me.

"Oh, I'm well aware of how they operate," I stated flatly.

"Yeah, I was afraid of that. You two didn't strike me as players in their world, and frankly, you don't strike me as the cooperative type either," Dave replied with a hint of a grin.

"No. That's not my strong suit," I admitted.

"Well, like I said, most everyone is fed-up with their shit, and some of us would be more than willing to testify if someone was to... press charges," Dave almost whispered.

"That's the rub. Isn't it? How many of those suspicious deaths have been uncooperative types?" I whispered back.

"Hey, I understand where you're coming from. Just know: I can vouch for at least four crew members that would back up anybody who takes that step," Dave assured me as he handed me a business card and grabbed my shoulder to show his sincerity.

"Tell you what. If I walk off this ship in Miami, and my lawyer feels I have a solid case, I'll get in touch. Beyond that, I can't promise anything," I replied and held out my hand.

Dave gave me an affirmative handshake with an understanding grimace. Then he opened the door, stepped into the hall, looked both ways and nodded that the coast was clear.

"Have a nice day, Mr. Benson," He said with a happy-to-be-at-your-service tone once I started down the hall.

"You too, Dave," I replied with a friendly wave.

I sat on the infamous bin and watched the seagulls ghost the ship as I pondered what Dave said. Then I wondered how my life had gone from planning to start a family to a complete disaster in less than a day. Oh, I was sure it happened to good people all the time for any number of reasons. Like a car accident. Hit by a bus. A meteorite falls on your fucking head! All I knew was that I sure-as-hell didn't see this coming. Then I looked at my watch, oops! It was a little past eight-thirty-ish.

Oh, well, there was no telling if Terra and my out-of-the-closet slut-wife were done working out yet, and I didn't want to seem too eager, I thought as I jumped off the bin and headed for Sammy's.

The place was fuller than I expected since about a third of the passengers had flown out of Cozumel. Then I spotted Anna by the aft railing. She didn't hear the titters and mumbled slights that followed me to her table as she stared out at the ocean, lost in her own-little-world.

"So, how was your workout," I asked without any attitude or bias as I sat.

"Oh, hi, honey," Anna spit out as she spun around, startled out of her thoughts.

She had exchanged her pride-parade sports top and shorts for a casual off-white sundress. Yet, she was still very flushed, and her nipples were hard. Begging the question, did Mistress Terra use her like a selfish bitch for the equivalent of a girl blow job and leave Anna hanging; again? I tried not to smile at my own morbid thoughts and focus on the task at hand. Keep my slut-Hotwife happy until we get off this fucking ship!

"Well..." I sarcastically asked, sure she would rather not talk about her workout.

"Um... Fine," Anna replied and diverted her eyes as her flush deepened.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm starving," I said.

"Yeah, I guess I could eat something," she replied with that same strained smile she had earlier, then... "I'm sorry," Anna blubbered as her arms fell limp and her forehead floated down to the table.

Someone tittered and scoffed at the table next to us, and I set them cold with a stare. I couldn't help but feel sorry for Anna because I was as guilty of deceiving her as the rest of them, and I was about to tell her everything was okay; and do it again.

"It's alright, baby," I reassured Anna as I gently stroked her hair.

I had always loved the feel of her long silky hair sliding through my fingers, and I hated myself because I still did.

I raised my arm and caught a waitress's attention.

"Hey, the waitress is coming. What do you want to eat, dear?" I asked softly.

Suddenly she sat bolt-upright with fire in her bloodshot watery eyes.

"I want my husband back! And don't you ever call me that again, HUBBY!" Anna angrily spat as she white-knuckle gripped the table.

Then her face contorted with pain, and she began to bawl again. Her outburst raised an unwelcome chorus of comments and sniggers, and I scanned the room with a glare that could melt steel, and the place went quiet.