The Boat Ch. 03

She smiled and kissed me then disappeared downstairs with Kristi in tow. A few minutes later they both re-appeared wearing bikinis. Jared and I had gone inside, and we were sitting at the table getting to know each other a little better. I was facing aft at the table, so I saw when the girls sat up and took their tops off. Debbie was right, Kristi's breasts were every bit a set of 36Ds and then some. Damn she had a nice rack! Then I was treated to the sight of them liberally applying baby oil on each other. I really needed a drink after that show.

Kristi strolled through the door about ten minutes later, still topless, and said "Gotta pee!" I honestly think we both may have crushed her ego a tiny bit because we both just nodded and then went back to talking as though she hadn't walked by us coming and going with her bare boobs on full display. As splendid as they were, when I glanced outside I noticed Debbie had propped herself up and was staring straight at me; so, I put my best poker face on and kept it there. Debbie smiled, lifted her sunglasses up, blew me a kiss, winked and then lay back down.

Talking to Jared I discovered that he was intelligent enough to be on a full-ride academic scholarship. More surprisingly, the man had common sense. I was also immediately impressed with his maturity. He was majoring in Business Administration and planned on a minor in Project Management. I made a mental note to tell my boss that I may have located an intern for our company next summer. We were always looking for interns to use and abuse as dirt cheap labor and quite a few of them ended up taking full-times jobs with us after their internships were over.

After thirty minutes or so of small talk I finally worked up the courage to ask Jared about their relationship. I wasn't exactly sure how to prudently ask the question like I wanted to or even how to broach a subject like this. I had known this guy for all of three hours. How do you ask someone you had just met how he had kept people from finding out that he was sleeping with his cousin?

"Let me ask you something." I paused for a moment and then blurted out, "How have you guys managed to keep it hidden from your family and friends this long? Seriously, the thought of someone finding out terrifies the shit out of me."

Jared paused for a minute and then pushed his drink back. Sitting up in his seat he half smiled and then said, "Yeah, Kristi told me you guys know and she also told me about your relationship. Honestly Mike, it was touch and go for a little while. Especially the first six months or so when we couldn't seem to keep our hands off each other, then we came so close to getting caught by my mother one afternoon that it put a serious damper on things."

"How close?" I asked.

"Too damn close." He responded sincerely, "To this day I think she suspects something was or is going on, but she doesn't ask because she doesn't want to know. It makes me a little sad when I think about deceiving so many people but I'm not willing to put an end to it just because they won't approve."

"Yeah, I get that." I said softly.

"Besides, it will be easier for the two of you. Especially if you were to move out of the local area to a place where nobody knew you."

"Why is that?" I countered. "Nothing about this seems easy."

"What is the last name on your driver's license?"

"Bentley"

"What is the last name on Debbie's?"

"Bentley." I said and then the lightbulb clicked on in my head. "Oh!"

"Right, if you two moved somewhere new, where nobody knows either of you, all anybody sees is a nice young married couple who are in love with each other. Kristi and I don't have that luxury

"Do you ever worry about getting Kristi pregnant?" I asked. Mainly because the thought of Debbie ending up that way still terrified me after the scare I had in June.

"All the damn time dude, all the damn time." He answered nodding his head.

I liked this guy, I couldn't help it. He was genuine and sincere, and he was honestly answering every question I put to him about the unconventional relationship that he had with his cousin in a matter of fact manner. He wasn't the least bit ashamed of it, because here, on the boat, he felt safe discussing it. I had finally figured out why Debbie wanted to keep this thing and I was glad I had finally decided to. Here we could really be us and the only people who saw it would be the ones that we decided would know about it.

An hour or so later the sun was sinking low in the sky and the air was chilling off when the girls finally gave up on sun worshiping and came inside. When they walked past us Debbie stopped and kissed my cheek then said, "Go do the man thing and fire up the grill so your Galley Wench and Bilge Rat can start dinner."

"Bilge Rat?" Jared asked innocently.

"She means me." Kristi said flatly.

"I like it!" Jared said smiling.

"Keep that in mind tonight mister." Kristi responded smirking at him.

"Oops I did it again." Jared half sang out, surprisingly on key and set all of us off laughing.

Kristi slapped his arm and then kissed him quickly and the women disappeared below deck together.

Jared sat there for a moment and then said, "Please don't take this wrong, but your sister packs an awful lot of sexy into such a tiny little body."

I sat there for a second and said "That she does and the same can be said about Kristi. We are definitely two very lucky men."

"To boobs." He said raising his glass in a mock toast.

"To boobs." I countered. "May they be big, warm, firm and always in view."

"Amen!" he responded laughing.

Then I stood up and walked to the grill to fire it up. Jared followed me outside and I couldn't help but ask him one last question about the two of them.

"So, without the graphic details, how did it start between you two?"

"She wrecked my truck."

"Huh?" I responded. "She wrecked your truck and?"

"Actually, I wrecked the truck. We had gone for a ride and she kissed my neck. It distracted me, and I smashed into a bridge. Things just sort of spiraled after that."

"How's the truck?" I asked him.

"Sitting in your driveway." he answered laughing at the question.

Dinner was awesome. Between the wine and the bourbon, we sat around after for hours just talking and getting to know Jared a little better. He talked about school and his roommate Derrick, who was from Mobile. Derrick was nearby in Gatlinburg having apparently met some local lovely who had taken him to a cabin for the week. I learned that we had a lot in common, his first car had been a 1968 Oldsmobile and mine a 1966 Oldsmobile. He had a love for all things SEC football, as did I. (Even though I was a Vanderbilt grad and he went to "that damned school in Alabama". But the kicker came when he said that he hoped the Falcons could turn their season around this year.

Debbie was nestled against my shoulder and Kristi was leaning against Jared's. Had another boat come by all they would have seen were two young couples setting on the back of a boat, talking and having a good time. For the briefest of moments our hidden lives seemed perfectly normal and serene. It felt nice.

Kristi stood up, stretched and said, "Well, as much as I hate to break up this budding bromance, I am going to bed. Care to join me?" she added looking down at Jared and holding out her hand.

"Your wish is my desire m' Lady." he said as he climbed to his feet and kissing the knuckles of her hand.

Debbie elbowed me in the ribs. "Take some notes Sweetheart. You might learn something here." she said giggling.

"Yes dear." I replied standing up and holding my hand out to her and then in a pirate's lilt I added, "Be Ye ready for the hammock, Galley Wench?"

"Oh God!" she said laughing as she stood up.

I turned off the cabin lights and as I got into bed Debbie said, "See, I told you, they are very much in love with one another."

"Yeah, I noticed that." I said propping my head on the pillows as she snuggled into my shoulder.

"You like Jared, don't you?" she asked, looking at me to gauge my reaction.

"Yeah, I really do. He is honest and sincere, and he doesn't hold back."

"He really is a nice guy. I got to know him really well last summer. Dad loved him."

"He never stayed on the boat?" I questioned.

"No, I think he felt self-conscience about it because his parents don't have a lot of money and he didn't want to seem like he was mooching."

"So why the change of heart?"

"Us. This. Does that make sense?"

I paused for a moment before I answered, "Yeah, yeah it does. He feels safe here now."

"Exactly." she responded and then she asked me, "Did you enjoy the baby oil show you got?"

"Well, it was kinda hot."

"Kinda?" she replied running a fingertip across my chest.

"Okay. Alright. It was smoking hot. Two college chicks rubbing baby oil on each other's bodies. Who wouldn't get turned on by that? Two girls fighting or two girls; well you get the idea. Seriously, you would have, and you know it."

"I did, and it was my idea. I wanted to give you a special treat for inviting them out, and Kristi was more than happy to go along with it. I know you said that you didn't like sharing your toy, but I want you to know something."

"What?" I asked feeling my dick getting hard.

"I loved it when I felt her hands on my body because they were so warm and so very soft."

"Really?"

"Yes, and her nipples were rock hard because she was turned on so much. She is probably going to fuck Jared's brains out tonight."

"Really?" I asked rolling on to my side and pinching her right nipple between my thumb and forefinger.

"Yes." Debbie said, sliding her hand down and cupping my balls, "And when she pinched my nipples like you are now, I thought I was going to cum on the spot."

"Did you?" I whispered.

"No." she responded gasping, "I was so close, but I didn't, and I've been aching ever since."

"I can fix that." I said.

Spreading her legs apart, she grabbed my hand and pushed it down towards her pussy.

"What are you waiting for Mike? An invitation?"

Breakfast was over by nine and by ten we were headed back to the dock. I had a deep feeling of remorse as I backed Deborah Jo into the slip for the last time of the season. I would be calling the marina on Monday to have them winterize her and it would be March or April at the earliest before we took her back out again. As I shut the engines off I really couldn't believe how my life had changed because of a boat.

"Through with Engines", I mumbled to myself as I shut them off.

"Huh?" Debbie asked, sitting beside me at the helm.

"It's a Navy Term Baby. It means he engines won't be needed for a while and you can shut the boilers that power them down completely."

"That's sad." She said mournfully.

I leaned over and kissed her cheek. "I said a while. We will be back in a few months and we will have to come back periodically to check on her through the winter."

"Yeah."

"Do you see that switch on the AC unit that says 'Reverse'?"

"Yes?"

"That turns the heater on and nobody will be around to hear anything."

"Oh." she said and then she smiled a wicked little smile. "Oh!"

"Exactly."

"Dude, you would think they could make a list before hand." Jared protested as we got into the car for the first trip.

"Jared, if you want to get laid again between now and the Apocalypse, keep that to yourself."

"But,"

"No."

"I mean,"

"No. Trust me Dude. Just, no, and for the love of all things Holy, remember to say thank you when they start making dinner tomorrow."

"That won't be a problem! Kristi can cook like Paula Dean on steroids, but Nutmeg? What the fuck is Nutmeg and why do we need it?"

"No idea but we can ask when we get there."

"Cool!"

Jared and I had bonded like brothers over the past few hours. First there was the trip to the store to get Nutmeg for the Pumpkin Pie, then came the trip back to the store to get chicken broth and sage sausage for the stuffing, then came the other trip back to the store to get the dinner rolls and 'if they have it a decent red wine for dinner tonight and a white for tomorrow". By the time we were done going to the store to get the things we needed for dinner, we were literally frustrated brothers from a different mother.

I love Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving rocks! I woke up to the smell of roasting turkey and other smells that I couldn't quiet identify. Stumbling into the kitchen to get coffee, I found Debbie and Kristi in there wearing a button-down shirt and a silk robe with little to nothing else, respectively. Raising both hands in the air and bowing my head, I said, "Lord! I'd like to thank You for giving me a glimpse of the Promised Land."

"Can I get an Amen?" said Jared as he stumbled into the kitchen behind me.

They both turned to stare at us and we slowly and silently slinked our way to the coffee maker, poured two cups of Starbucks Holiday Blend and as quietly as church mice made our way to the den to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. I have stared Death Himself in the face on far flung beaches putting Marines ashore to go do their thing but the look my sister gave me that morning put the fear of God in me. Honestly, to be so damned little, she can be kind of scary sometimes.

Jared and I had agreed that they purposely intended to ply us with food, drink and the hint of sex for the entire day because they didn't change out of their morning attire until noon or so. When she did shower and change, Debbie showed up wearing a dark blue wool skirt, a white silk blouse, knee high black boots, with her long blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail. Yeah, Kristi was wearing something else too, but I wasn't paying attention to her; ask Jared sometime, he can probably tell you what it was.

"How do I look?" she asked coyly when she saw me staring at her.

"Beautiful." I replied reverently, watching her eyes light up as I said it.

"Thank you." she rose up on her toes and gave me a brief kiss. "Dinner should be ready by five; six at the latest."

"Okay."

"Mike?"

"Yes."

"Thank you for having Kristi and Jared over for the week. It means a lot to me seeing her this happy and relaxed."

"You're welcome Deborah." watching her smile again when I said it, then I added, "Are you girls going shopping tomorrow?"

"Well." she paused, "Now that you mention it." she added smiling, "We had discussed it this morning."

"Uh huh." I said with a knowing grin on my face.

I reached for my wallet and pulled out a VISA card with her name on it.

"Try not to melt it and keep it under a thousand or so."

She looked down at the card and seeing her name on it looked back up at me with a confused look on her face.

"I added you to my account, the card came yesterday."

"Best big bother ever!" she said grinning hugely and walking toward the bedroom to put the card in her wallet.

"I try." I whispered as I watched her walk away.

After dinner was over I sat on the back porch for a while watching the last of that magnificent sun setting over the hills behind the house and thought back on everything that had happened to me since June. I loved Tennessee, but I knew that sooner or later I was going to have to either leave it behind or run the risk of mine and Debbie's relationship being exposed. This was a small southern town and eventually, people would be able to put two and two together and come up with four. Neither of us could afford that and my main priority was and always would be, protecting my sister.

I glanced at the window and saw Debbie and Kristi looking at their iPads and excitedly talking about where they would be going tomorrow. Debbie glanced up at me and winked, then her attention went right back to the iPad. I knew she was excited to have her friend here and I really was glad that Kristi and Jared had shown up but a small part of me was becoming slightly unsettled at the thought of more and more people learning about us.

The air was really starting to get cold without the sun there to heat it so with darkness falling I stepped back inside and went to the fireplace to start a fire. Once it was going I sat down on the couch and started mindlessly flipping through the channels until I came to the evening football game. Leaving it there more to have some noise in the background than having an interest in the game itself, I resumed thinking.

Jared walked in, looked at the TV, then looked at me and sat down in the recliner and began watching the game. After a few minutes he said quietly, "I know that look man. I've had it on my face a thousand times over the past two years."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. That's the 'What the Hell am I doing sleeping with her?' look."

I snorted and then said "Yeah."

"Want me to let you in on a secret?"

"Anything would help at this point Jared."

"It isn't your call to make. Debbie was and is the one who gets to decide whether this situation ends or not."

"Huh?" I said looking at him like he owed me money or something.

"It's not your call, so don't even try to make it. If she had wanted out, she would have been gone a long time ago. Yes, she's your sister but she decided that you were going to be more than just her brother. I don't know how it started but I have two hundred dollars in my back pocket that says she was the one that made the first move. Do you want to take the bet?"

"Nope!" I said laughing way more loudly than I should have discussing this subject with anyone.

"Damn! I could have really used that money too!" Jared said with a grin on his face and returning his attention to the game.

"So?" I asked him.

"Yeah?"

"How did you come to grips with it?"

"Honestly, it took the better part of a year and me almost pissing it away. I told her we needed to quit and start seeing other people before we got caught and ruined our lives."

Knowing the answer, I asked the question anyway, "How did she take it?"

"Pretty well all things considered. She called me a world class asshole and a dickhead and a couple of other names that I had to Google to find out what they meant, she broke the frame of the camper door because she slammed it so hard and she didn't speak to me for almost three months. Other than that, she was okay with it." He said with a sly grin on his face.

"Yeah, I don't think I would get off that easy. I taught Debbie how to field dress a deer when she was eleven. In retrospect, that may have been a bad idea." I responded.

"Ouch!"

"Yeah."

"So, there I was, keeping the door to the camper shut with a bungee cord and one night I got drunk and started feeling sorry for myself and I called her and apologized."

"Did it work?"

"Aww Hell no! She called me another name that I had to Google then told me to never drunk dial her again and hung up on me."

"Camper?"

"Yeah, a bad storm blew through my hometown one night the summer before last. It was really bad, two tornados touched down and one of them took part of the roof off of my parent's home. Dad didn't have insurance on it and it took a while to get things fixed. The biggest missing chunk was right over my bedroom. So, I stayed in an old camper they own for three months, before I went to school. It was that or the couch and the camper had AC and a real bed, so I took it."

"Oh."

"Hey, it wasn't that rough. It was kind of nice having a place to go where Kristi and I could be alone for more than five minutes. It's kind of like your boat, I felt safe there with Kristi, we could lock the door, and nobody could get in unless we let them."

"Yep." I said.

"So, as I was saying, don't sweat it. This isn't your call and never will be. Just play it cool in public and when you get home, or when you are out on the boat, the two of you can be you. It really is pretty simple."

"Thanks man."