Chapter 23: Getting Ready to Sail

For me, the next three days were chaos. It turns out that I would have to fly to Antalya late Thursday night, get up early and go to the sailing school (fortunately at the same marina where Captain Tony’s yacht was moored) to take my tests. Then meet Captain Tony and his family and crew in the afternoon.

The other drama came at supper Tuesday night. First, Isabella was not prepared to drop everything and accompany me for ten days or more on, and I quote, “ ... another teenaged fantasy cruise!”

Then Jeanne became upset because I was not going to be around to practice with her for the upcoming ballroom dance competition.

“We have twenty-four days until the competition and you’re taking off for fifteen of them. That only leaves us with nine days of practice!” she cried.

“Well, if it’s that important, why don’t I ask Captain Tony if you can come along? That way, we can practice every day,” I suggested.

Due to the hectic schedule, I’m almost positive I would not have been convicted for letting it slip my mind that no one would be wearing any clothes on this cruise.

“Really?” she asked, her eyes wide open.

“Noooo!” Isabella cried. “Now I’ll have to go for certain!”

It took a few phone calls, but Cynthiana finally got it worked out. She and Isabella must have had a heart-to-heart talk after dinner, because I was just getting in bed when there was a knock on my open door frame and Isabella came in.

“If you want this to be private, you need to close the door. I wouldn’t be surprised if Jeanne were to show up anytime,” I told her.

Isabella arched her eyebrows as she closed the door.

“It’s nothing like that, you dirty-minded little girl,” I chided. “She just likes to sleep with me sometimes. Nothing else. Just sleep!”

“I’m sorry for the way I acted at supper,” Isabella started. “I uh...”

“No need. I wasn’t offended. I knew exactly what you meant,” I told her. “You were not thinking about bodyguard duty at this stage of the game.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to, it’s just that I had gotten use to you being here and others being around to help me sometimes,” she explained.

“Believe me, I understand. It’s hard for me to get used to having the Foundation looking out for me at times.”

“So you’re not angry with me?” she asked.

“Would you like me to show you?” I asked as I lifted the covers for her to slide in.

“I’d like that very much,” she said.

I was reaching up to turn out the bedside lamp when I saw someone pull the door closed silently from the hall.

All day Wednesday I was studying my sailing books in preparation for my exams. Cynthiana helped Jeanne get packed and Isabella came in my room in the afternoon and threw some things in a Swiss hiking pack for me. She had bought it for me for my birthday, but decided I needed it early.

“You can pack your own toiletries,” she said as she left.

Other than that, I studied.

That night, I had just gotten into the shower when I heard her knock.

“Come on in, Jeanne. I’ll be out shortly.”

“How’d you know it was me?” she asked. She was leaning against the bathroom sink in an old t-shirt that barely covered her ass cheeks. It looked like one of mine that Isabella or Sofía claimed to have thrown out.

“Easy. I missed you, so I wished for you to show up. And you did!” I told her.

“Ohhh! Why do you make it so hard to stay mad at you?” she asked, rhetorically. “First you don’t want me in your bed. Then you try to get out of dance rehearsal, and then you drag me off on some sailboat for ten days.

“I never said I didn’t want you in my bed!” I said as I toweled off my body while she watched.

“Is it because my titties are so much smaller than hers?” she asked. The ‘hers’ she was referring to was obviously Isabella’s.

“Don’t do that!” I scolded. “It’s so immature. You know that I’ve never lied to you and you know how I feel about your breasts. So stop picking and get to the point. What did you come in here for?”

She was quiet as I finished toweling off and then she followed me into the bedroom where I slipped on my boxers.

“Aw, shucks!” escaped her mouth before she caught it. Then she went on as if I hadn’t heard.

“Do you really want me to come with you?” she asked.

“Do you really want to win that competition?” I asked.

“Of course!” she replied.

“And would an extra ten days of practice help us do that?” I asked.

“Of course.”

“Do you have any better ideas?” I asked.

“You could stay here,” she tried.

“Would you give up your dream of dancing?” I asked.

“Of course not!” she said adamantly.

“Then how can you expect me to give up on my dream? Earning my Captain’s ticket is one of the most important things in my life.”

“So you’re just dancing to placate me?” she asked.