Chapter 32: Captain Tony

Monday morning, I discovered that breakfast was the most important meal of the day. Not because of nutrition, or advertising, but because of the information. That was the time, that if one sits and listens, they will learn what is going on in the world. The world of Cynthiana and the Foundation, anyway. And, more importantly, my world.

“I have the report on our mysterious Officer Bremerton,” Reggie said.

Bremerton had come on board the Serendipity, supposedly as a Chief of Security for the US Department of State. Turns out, he was a mid-level diplomat assigned to the Dutch Consulate in Washington DC. The DC police arrested him yesterday at his home in Maryland on an assortment of charges. He’s claiming diplomatic immunity, but the Justice Department is still hashing it out with the Dutch government. He’ll probably end up being shipped home in a couple of days. But it was who hired him for that impersonation that was even more surprising.

“I don’t have enough evidence to convict, but I am fairly certain that our Fake Bremerton was hired by one of our corporate competitors, Mars Van der Lancing, at MVDL Signal Systems,” Reggie announced. “He is a Dutch National, after all.”

“So old Vandee is looking for an advantage?” Cynthiana mused. “The only way he could have heard about Alex is through someone in the Pentagon or maybe the DoD (Department of Defense). It shouldn’t be hard to track down.”

“The holidays slowed things up a bit,” Reggie said. “But I have people on it and we’ll figure it out shortly.”

“So does that mean that I don’t really have a job offer and the Secretary of State and the President didn’t hear of my power?” I asked.

“Afraid so,” Reggie sighed. “Although I believe the president was briefed on it this morning. I’m sure that his wife also told him about her experience with you yesterday as well.”

“Now, as for you,” Cynthiana said looking straight at me. “Captain Franc will be here tomorrow to see where you’re at with your studies. Plan on spending all day with him. We will be going back to Zurich next week for you to practice sailing. Also, Itsuki gave Isabella directions on helping you with your forms, so you’ll need to set aside an hour for that, and Jeanne and her father will be here for dinner tonight.”

So I settled in to poring over my sailing, first aid, and radio books. I had gotten behind while I was practicing with Jeanne last week, so I had some catching up to do before Captain Franc arrived tomorrow.

Speaking of Jeanne, I needed to decide what I should do about her as well. Several nights last week, she had come to my room at bedtime, watched me shower, and then crawled in to bed with me, knowing I sleep in the nude.

Saturday morning, when I woke up, she was holding my cock. She then proceeded to climb on top of me and pulled off her T-shirt to show me her small breasts as she ground her bare pussy against my morning wood. I was able to give her what she wanted while still leaving her virginity intact. Barely! But it was a close call and very frustrating for me.

Thankfully, she went home Saturday night. But as Cynthiana was quick to point out, she was moving in for the short term and would be here tonight.

I was unsure what to do. While Jeanne was a very sweet girl, she was only sixteen (almost seventeen) and still a virgin. She had moved a lot when she was growing up, raised by her father after her mother abandoned them. So she was missing key pieces of feminine education that girls normally got from their mothers. She had also never had the chance to develop any long-term relationships due to the frequent moves.

Jeanne seemed well adjusted, but slightly immature. She was not afraid of hard work. And relentless in her pursuit of dance, but she had no real long-term goals. She was curious about sex, of course. But not driven to pursue any serious relationships just yet. All-in-all, a typical, confused, teenage girl.

I, on the hand, was definitely not ready to settle down with one person just yet. I would be leaving in a few weeks to sail the southern Caribbean and hopefully several more sailing opportunities this year. Also, Cynthiana had me slated for several golf tournaments in the States this summer.

In the meantime, there were at least two other women in the house who had expressed their interest in spending time with me. But having a young girl in my bed, regardless of how innocent it was, did not bode well for them spending any quality time with me.

I finally gave up and went back to studying.

Dinner was interesting and I got to know Mr. Mauresmo a little, although he and Cynthiana spent a considerable amount of the time on their project in Saudi Arabia.

When they did talk about the ball on Saturday night and our performance, Mr. Mauresmo had nothing but praise for his daughter and me. And surprisingly, he expressed no reservations concerning Jeanne staying in the same home as her dance partner. When the time came for him to leave, he kissed Jeanne on the forehead and left. He was flying to Saudi Arabia in the morning.

As for Jeanne, she seemed not to have any huge issues with leaving her dad and coming to live with Cynthiana. Later that night, as was becoming her custom, Jeanne watched me shower and then crawled into bed beside me.

“Jeanne, we need to talk,” I told her.

“Uh, oh. What did I do?” she asked defensively.

“I’m concerned about you being here, watching me shower and then climbing in bed with me,” I told her.

“I was just curious about boys,” she said, “At least, at first. I’ve never really been around boys at home.”

“I understand. That’s why I didn’t really mind, at first. But you never ask me how I feel about it,” I tried to explain. “And nobody likes to be taken for granted like that.”

“I’m sorry,” she said as her lip quivered.

“I’m not mad, Jeanne. In fact, I actually like having you sleep with me ... sometimes.”

“Too much?” she asked sadly. “My dad says I can be a little headstrong at times.”

“What I’m saying is that I don’t mind it sometimes, but sometimes I have other plans.”

“Other plans?” she asked, clearly puzzled.

“Yeah. Sometimes, I have other guests,” I said. “Guests that spend the night.”

“Ooooh!” she cried as she suddenly got it. Then she jumped up and ran from the room.

“That certainly DID NOT go over very well!” I thought to myself.

Tuesday morning, Isabella woke me at 6:30 to work on my forms. After stretching and some light cardio, we went to work. I was about to decide that she was worse than Sensei Itsuki when she finally let me go.

I hurried to shower and change before heading down to breakfast. Captain Franc was already there. We didn’t spend much time on pleasantries but went straight to work as he questioned me on what I had been studying. That continued most of the morning with him asking questions and me digging for answers.

Around noon, Captain Franc took me out to eat at a place called Le Clos de Chateau ... I think. At least that’s what it sounded like when I asked. We had not even ordered when a gentleman stopped at our table and introduced himself. It was obvious he was, or had been in the military, simply by his bearing. And it was equally obvious that Captain Franc knew him by the way they greeted each other.

“Alex, this is my good friend, Monsieur Lavigne. Antoine, this is the young sailor I was speaking of, Alex Masters of Georgia, USA,” Captain Franc said, introducing us. “Captain Lavigne has just retired from La Royale and is looking for some help.”

“Bonjour Alex, François tells me that you like to sail. This is true?” he asked.

“I haven’t had the opportunity to sail a lot, but when I did, I loved every minute,” I told him.

“But I was told that you had a crossing and both Mediterranean and Caribbean experience?” Captain Lavigne asked.

“I do, but I didn’t think that was considered a lot of experience,” I told him.

“But did you not rescue a family from a sinking yacht?” he asked.

“Well, yes ... but,” I started.

“And did you not rescue two downed American pilots?”

“Well, yes ... but,” I tried again to explain that I didn’t think it was that big of a deal.

“And the gentleman with the stroke, did you not save him as well?” he asked.

“Yes, sir,” I said.

“Then what is this nonsense about so little experience? It seems to me that you already have more experience than some who have been sailing for a lifetime. At least, that’s what Alfred tells me.”

“So that’s where he’s getting all this!” I thought to myself.

“Captain Alfred was very generous, both with letting me sail his yacht and with teaching me his craft,” I replied. “He and his family treated me exceedingly well and I am looking forward to sailing with them again in March.”

“And you had no problems with the ‘au naturel’?” he asked, suddenly changing topics.

“No, sir. Not at all. In fact, I enjoyed the life style so much, I would be living it here if it were allowed,” I told him.

“Good! Here is a nautical map of the Mediterranean. Can you plot a course from Antalya, Turkey, to the marina at Monte Carlo?” Captain Lavigne asked as he laid a mechanical pencil, a bow compass, and a protractor on the map.

It wasn’t a difficult exercise, but I wanted to get it right, so I took my time. Both Captain Franc and Captain Lavigne just sat there watching me without a word. Finally, I set down the pencil and turned the map to face the two captains.

After studying it for just a minute, Captain Lavigne turned to Captain Franc and smiled.

“Excellent!” Captain Lavigne said. “He will do. When will he have his CC? “ (Competent Crew Certification.)

“He should have that and his ‘First Aid’ by Friday. The ‘Short Range’ will take a while longer.”

I looked at Captain Franc, the puzzlement clearly showed on my face. But then he excused himself to go make a call. “Talk to Tony,” he instructed me as he left.

Captain Tony smiled at the confusion on my face before he calmly began to explain.

“Franc and I served together for many years. When his wife was alive, my family often sailed with his family. We have also sailed with the Fourreau’s. As I mentioned, I am officially retiring as of next Wednesday. Last September, I bought the sister yacht to Alfred’s catamaran. It is the same year and model, a twenty-four meter sailing catamaran, but with a slightly different interior configuration.”

“Wow!” I exclaimed. “That’s cool!”

“It is currently at the shipyard in Antalya, Turkey, being refitted with more up-to-date electronics and having her mechanicals overhauled. Her refit is now complete and she’s ready to sail. If you accept my offer, we are going to pick her up on Friday afternoon.”

“Your offer?” I asked. “Does Captain Franc know of this?”

“He and Alfred were the ones who suggested you,” he said.

“And what is this offer?” I asked cautiously.

“Franc said you were working on getting your master’s ticket. I need someone to help me bring the yacht to the marina at Monte Carlo. If you agree, I’ll hire you as ‘skipper’ and make sure you get the minimum eight hours a day at the helm. You’ll have full authority while at the helm and you’ll also be responsible for passenger and crew safety, crew training, and all provisioning for the duration. My family will be the passengers, and I have already hired a steward who will also be assisting with the cooking.”

“Are you sure you want to hire me? I’m only eighteen,” I replied.

“If you’re only half as good as Alfred says you are, I’ll consider myself very lucky to have found you.”

“Thanks ... I guess. I don’t know what to say.”

“Well, there are a couple of conditions,” he started. “One, we must leave this Friday, the twenty-second. We’ll provision and set sail on Saturday the twenty-third. As you saw, the trip is approximately eighteen hundred nautical miles and we should make it in about ten days, putting us back in France on February second or so. It’s a lot of sailing for just one person, that’s why I need you.”

“Not a problem. I’ll need to check with Cynthiana and clear my calendar,” I explained.

“Second, I need someone who is comfortable with our lifestyle. It is the same as Alfred and Archara’s,” he said. “Archara told us that you were open to going without clothing. Are you sure?”

“Yes sir. That’s not a problem at all!” I said. I found myself actually looking forward to it.

“Third, you do it for what I can afford to pay you,” he said. “You will also receive full credit towards your master’s ticket.”

“Captain Tony, I’ll do it for free!” I told him. “I just want to sail!”

Captain Tony smiled at my enthusiasm. “The law says I have to pay you or it won’t count towards your certificate. But we’ll work out something.”

“Well, don’t sweat it. I’ll work for whatever the minimum is,” I told him.

“And last, you have to tell me all about your little brush-up with the US Navy,” he added with a chuckle. “Alfred told me a little, but said he was bound by the Official Secrets Act. I’d really like to hear the whole story sometime.”

“No doubt we’ll have time on the passage to discuss it,” I replied as Captain Franc returned.

“Cynthiana wasn’t thrilled, but she admitted that this was an opportunity you shouldn’t pass up,” Captain Franc said as he rejoined the table. “So if Tony explained everything, and you agree, then I think you and I need to get back to work! There is much to be done before Friday.”

We exchanged contact info and shook hands before we parted. Captain Tony was surprised that I didn’t carry a smartphone. I wondered when I was going to have to explain THAT to him.

And just like that, another new odyssey began!

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 to apologize. 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.