Journey to Another Life Ch. 09

He was just about to go down and drag Nikki up on deck when he heard her come up. He turned and looked at her in the fading light and couldn't help but catch himself staring at the vision before him. He turned to shout out to Charles that Nikki had arrived but noticed that Charles was already there, setting the table. Ed noticed his face lit up as she approached in her slinky impossible short white dress and white heels. He turned to her.

"Hi, was wondering where you got to." he said.

"You look beautiful."

"Thanks,"

She said, holding him close but only briefly.

"I wanted to wash my hair and I hope it's okay I'm late."

Charles proffered a drink and informed them he would serve dinner in ten minuets.

"I'll have another one too I think!"

Ed said as he joined them. He felt a new kinship with Charles, and although he couldn't possibly talk about it with him, he enjoyed the unspoken affiliation they might possibly share. He wondered if Nikki had already said anything to Charles—he wasn't acting any differently toward Ed but there was something decidedly new in the air among the three of them as they settled into the cockpit to enjoy their drinks. Maybe he was imagining it. Maybe his own newfound comfort with the situation shifted his perspective more than he realized.

Charles didn't stay with them long, however. He politely exited to bring them their dinner then promptly left them alone to enjoy it.

Conversation was light-hearted and animated. "You know, now that we're married, I think we need nicknames for each other," he told her as he took another bite of the delicious fish Charles had prepared.

"Nicknames! Oh, please. My whole childhood was filled with them. I wouldn't mind finding a good one for you, though."

"Whoa! Before we get to me, I want to hear about some of the nicknames you used to have. I have a feeling there's some interesting clues about my lady there," he took a long swallow of the chardonnay Charles had left for them, savoring its smoothness.

She blushed a little. "No, really. It's too embarrassing."

"Embarrassing? Then I've got to know. You know I won't give up until you tell me, so why don't you save us both some time and just cooperate?" It was fun to tease her—he'd missed it.

She sat back in her chair and put down her silverware. Pulling back her shoulders and puffing out her cheeks, she said, "Fine. But if you ever call me anything but Nikki, I swear I'll make your life miserable."

"Okay. Those are your terms. I respect them."

"Stretch."

"What?"

"They called me 'Stretch' because I was tall."

Ed chuckled. "Oh, that's not so bad. Did you play basketball or something?"

"No, but they wanted me to."

"I think there are others," Ed said. "That one isn't bad enough to make you blush."

She eyed him with suspicion. "You know me too well. Okay, I'm going to tell you but you have to swear never to use it, especially not in public."

"I swear."

"Bebop."

"Bee Bop?!"

She sighed. "I won the school spelling bee three years in a row when I was in grammar school. At first, they just called me Bee but then some smartass heard a fifties song where they went "doo wop" and "bee bop" all over the place and decided I should be Bebop."

"That's cute!"

"Ugh. It's stupid. I hated it then and I hate it now."

"No, I mean it's cute that you won the spelling bee."

"Doesn't really improve a resume much, though, you know?" She smiled with one side of her mouth. "Anyway, who needs a resume? I got the best position a girl could ever have." She picked up her fork again after she blew him a kiss.

"Hmmm. Resume. How do you spell that?"

She snatched up a dinner roll and threw it at him. "What did I say?" she asked as they both erupted into laughter.

"But I didn't call you Bebop!" he whined.

They were laughing so hard that they didn't hear Charles return. "You two seem to be having a good time!"

Nikki turned to him, surprised and still smiling. "Must be something you put in this food, Charles. I don't think I've ever seen my husband so silly."

Ed bent sideways to pick up the dinner roll from the floor. "I'm silly? Who threw this, then?"

They burst out laughing again, and Charles just tried to follow along. When their giggles subsided, he asked, "Was there anything else you might need from me?"

"Not just now, Charles. Maybe in fifteen minutes or so," Ed told him.

When Charles had closed the door behind him, Ed asked Nikki in a low voice, "Have you decided?"

"Yes."

"And?"

She shook her head and giggled "You'll find out."

"Funny. He's and I are both in the dark."

Nikki smiled and extended her hand to him across the table. "Yes you are."

They continued to talk and joke as they finished their dinner. About twenty minutes later, Nikki noticed Charles hovering around outside the cockpit. "Oh, isn't that sweet? He's waiting for one of us to wave him in. He thinks we're having too good a time for him to interrupt."

"Oh! I didn't even notice him out there," Ed commented, turning to look at him. "Come in, Charles!" he called out, motioning for the man to enter.

Charles entered and immediately started to clear away the dishes. "Come back and join us," Ed told him.

And Charles did. The three of them relaxed into congenial banter so pleasant, Ed briefly forgot that this was the same man whose gargantuan dick filled Nikki's fantasies for a quite some time.

"So, I'm curious," Charles said. "What were you two laughing about so hard when I came in earlier?"

Nikki shot a stern look of warning at Ed, who chuckled with the memory. "Our childhood nicknames. Hers was a doozie."

"Oh?" Charles asked, waiting for the punchline.

"And unfortunately, you'll never hear it," she said, "because I have sworn Ed to secrecy." She then turned to her husband. "And don't think I haven't noticed, Mr. Stewart, that you never divulged yours to me."

"I didn't have any."

"Oh, right. What kid never has at least one nickname?"

"You're looking at one," Ed insisted.

She sighed in mock exasperation. "How about you, Charles? Did you have one?"

"Oh, I had plenty! When you're as big as I am, kids can't wait to pin some crazy name on you."

"Such as?" Ed asked.

"Well, let's see. 'Mack' for Mack Truck."

Nikki groaned, Ed nodded.

"Pipe Cleaner."

"So original," Nikki commented.

"And 'Stretch,' of course."

Ed and Nikki looked at each other and let laughter take hold once again.

"Did I say something funny?"

Nikki reached over to Charles and touched his knee. The movement showed off her cleavage, which Charles's eyes immediately traveled to. "It's only funny because that was one of my nicknames, too. I was taller than the other kids in school."

"Seems you two have more in common all the time," Ed said, smiling. He was pleased that he could make a remark like that now and not have it sound sarcastic.

Nikki stroked Charles's knee just a few seconds longer than necessary, then excused herself to visit the bathroom. While she was gone, the men helped themselves to more alcohol.

"You really never had any nicknames at all?" Charles asked him.

"Oh, sure. And I'll tell her eventually," Ed laughed.

"What was your favorite?"

"Oh, I didn't have a favorite. I hated all of them. But Spock was my least favorite."

"Spock?"

"Like Mr. Spock on Star Trek. I wish I could say it was because of my logical mind but really, it was due to my prominent ears!"

Charles laughed heartily. "Your secret is safe with me!"

Nikki returned to find the men in excellent spirits. She took a seat next to Charles rather than the one she'd occupied earlier. Instantly, Ed's loins stirred.

"That was another delicious dinner you prepared for us tonight. Everything you do tastes good," she purred, tracing her fingertips around his knee and then slowly walking up his thigh.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," Charles said.

"Isn't it so romantic here?" Nikki exclaimed to no one in particular . " I mean sitting out here under the stars always gets me feeling all romantic." she looked across at Ed.

"You know darling I must admit I'm feeling a little romantic towards Charles too, that's ok isn't it?" her look bored into Ed. So she had made her decision. Her fingers continued to trace around Charles leg.

Charles went into a brief period of shock at Nikki's and was torn between gazing into Nikki's eyes and gauging Ed's reaction.

But he needn't have worried. Ed settled into his chair, erection in full force, and watched the black man and white woman exchange meaningful looks. He took a swig of whiskey and nodded at Charles, as if to imply his consent. He was touched by the man's concern, especially after he'd learned that Nikki had expressly told Charles that nothing would happen if Ed hadn't given a thumbs up to their undertaking.

"Would you mind if Charles kissed me, darling?" Nikki asked, not taking her eyes from Charles's face.

Charles shot another worried look at Ed but it dissipated when Ed heard himself say, "No."

The couple lost themselves in a long but passionate kiss. With their eyes closed, they slowly allowed their hands to express what their instincts wanted. Ed watched as Charles's big, black hand followed the slope of Nikki's thigh and eventually inched pink fingertips under the hem of her dress to feel her nearly naked cheek. (She'd worn a tiny white lace thong instead of panties, Ed quickly realized.)

The old Ed would have questioned just who the newlyweds were on this boat. The new Ed, however, thrilled at the sight of his luscious wife in the arms of a man she desired, a man who did not take for granted how lucky he was. Charles understood the privilege of having Nikki, and that helped Ed accept what was happening. He'd initially rejected Nikki's idea of a lover being someone she cared about, but now he understood how such an arrangement could actually enhance things. Charles wouldn't hurt Nikki, would respect Ed, but most of all would provide a level of erotic excitement for all three of them that Ed could barely wait to experience.

Periodically, they stopped kissing and resumed the conversation. "So what kind of fish was that tonight?" Nikki asked as her hand played near the black man's crotch. Charles's enormous hard-on distracted Ed as much as it did Nikki, but nobody said anything about it.

"It was sea bass," Charles said, his voice a little quavery, which Ed found endearing.

More kissing ensued. Charles got bolder. Nikki got hornier.

Charles's entire palm covered Nikki's ass cheek as she leaned toward him. The contrast between their skin colors served to highlight the eroticism more. She shifted in her seat to allow him to touch more of her, even graze the outside of her labia, which the thong didn't cover as thoroughly as panties might have.

Nikki's groping hands helped themselves to Charles's strong chest and tantalized his exposed neck. After several minutes, the bulge between his legs could no longer be ignored—she ran her palm along it very slowly, as if uncertain where it might end.

Ed used the opportunity to emulate her strokes. When she went upward on Charles, Ed did the same to his own aching cock.

Their tongues did a wild dance in their hungry mouths. Ed watched Nikki, fascinated. So this was what she looked like when she kissed. He'd never seen it—only felt it.

"Ed, sweetie, I think I'd like this beautiful man here to take me to bed now and make love to me. Is that okay?" She finally turned to him, her lipstick-smeared mouth making her look a little cheap but no less beautiful.

"Yes, that's okay," Ed said, again in a voice that sounded somewhat disembodied to him. He could honestly say he had no reservations about his response.

"Would you mind sleeping in the spare cabin tonight? I took some of your things in there earlier?"

This was new to Ed, she'd known all along what her decision was and now she wanted to take Charles into their bed for the whole night? He wanted to protest but somehow he couldn't. He eventually nodded unable to make a sound.

When the new couple rose to their feet, he thought it was sweet when Nikki took the big man's hand to lead him out. With another swig of whiskey to punctuate his decision, Ed watched them walk along the deck to what was at least for tonight their cabin.