Chapter 33: Midnight on the Beach

July 27, 2000, St. Martin, Leeward Islands, Lesser Antilles

“You’re sure you wouldn’t prefer to have six girls here?” Maria Cristina asked as we walked into Samantha’s house in St. Martin.

“Ancient history,” I replied. “That’s not me anymore.”

“But isn’t that how you met Liz?”

“It was, but that very positive outcome doesn’t change my current thinking on the matter.”

“And the new girls? I’m not objecting; I’m curious.”

I smiled, “To borrow a phrase - I’m in a transitional period. And while a house full of available, nubile girls is certainly interesting, and would no doubt be exciting, I’m much more interested in true intimacy. I’ll still have dalliances from time to time, but I suspect they’ll be fewer and further between. Remember - I took what amounted to a thirty-month sabbatical where I was only with my wives, you, and Liz. And without going into details, since the beginning of the year, I fulfilled a couple of promises, established a couple of very intimate relationships, and had one ‘dalliance’ by the old definition.”

“Isn’t Liz planning to date?” she asked as we walked upstairs to the master bedroom.

“Yes, and when she does, we’ll end the physical part of our relationship. It’s the same as you and me. In both cases, the timing is up to you.”

“And that doesn’t bother you?”

“I agreed to the terms, just as you did. Liz was a bit different, in that it developed naturally, but we did make an agreement which was to last for the duration of law school. Once she graduated, I knew things could change. As I said, it’s not all that different from you and me, though you and I didn’t set a specific time limit one way or the other.”

“But isn’t it your firmest belief that nobody can commit irrevocably to sex?”

“Obviously. And I haven’t. I could, at any time, choose to stop sleeping with you or Liz. I choose not to do so. That’s an implied part of any kind of agreement for a long-term sexual relationship - either partner can end it. In our case, the only thing that would change is that our lovemaking would end. The same is true with Liz.”

“I may be overstepping my bounds, but do you plan to replace Liz?”

“I’m not sure that ‘replace’ is the right word,” I replied. “In fact, I’m quite sure it isn’t. What happens in the future is, well, in the future.”

“And me? The ‘long-term third’?”

“That’s something I’ll consider when the time comes. There are going to be a lot of changes in the next four or five years - you’ll finish medical school and start your Residency; Jesse and Matthew will turn eighteen; Birgit will be driving; Albert will be taking flying lessons; Liz will likely find someone she wants to marry. All of those things will impact me in ways I can’t even begin to imagine. So, the best answer I can give is that I’ll figure it out when the time comes. Now, we have five days to ourselves. What would you like to do?”

“How high is the wall around the pool?”

“High enough,” I grinned.

“Then I’ll work on an all-over tan,” she smirked. “And, tonight, make love on the beach under the stars.”

“Believe it or not, I find the contrast between a deep brown tan and much lighter skin totally sexy, but I won’t object to seeing you sunbathe nude!”

“And you?”

“I burn fairly easily, so I need to protect sensitive parts of my body. Blame my German, Irish, French, Dutch, and English ancestors!”

“I did buy a string bikini if you’d prefer.”

“Hmm - contrasting skin or naked Maria Cristina? Because I get to see the latter regularly, I think I’ll vote for sexy tan lines!”

“Then let’s change. What are we doing for meals?”

“The house is stocked with food and I’ll cook.”

“Who did that?”

“The woman who manages all of Samantha’s properties took care of the arrangements,” I replied. “I’ve never met her, but I guess she worked for Samantha’s dad for years before he was arrested and Samantha and her mom decided to keep her on. She’s supposed to stop in tomorrow on her usual visit to meet with the combination groundskeeper and maintenance man. They have a cleaning service, but they only come when called and I don’t think we’ll need them.”

“No wild parties?” Maria Cristina asked.

“Right, because future medical students are well-known party «animales»!”

“School doesn’t start for another three weeks! I’m still free! And once I start medical school, I get a whopping week off in the summer and a week off between Christmas and New Years for the next three years. And then Residency! This next year is my last real chance to party!”

“And you’re stuck with me! But you know you’re welcome to have your friends over to the house for a blowout party if you want. You know, a chance to blow off some steam before cracking the books next month.”

She smirked, “And you’ll provide ‘live entertainment’?”

“You’ve been hanging around Kara WAY too much!” I chuckled.

“She really gets off on watching, doesn’t she?”

“She does.”

“Shall we put on our suits and go out by the pool?” she asked.

“Absolutely!”

Ten minutes later we were on the deck. I spread tanning oil on Maria Cristina’s gorgeous body and she spread sun screen on mine, and then we each stretched out on a chaise to get some sun.

I stayed in the sun as long as I dared, then moved to a deck chair protected by an umbrella and read as Maria Cristina continued to get sun, turning regularly from back to front. I was sure that by Monday she’d have an excellent tan and I’d have a bit of color to my usual pale skin.

About 4:30pm we went inside and went to the kitchen to decide what to make for dinner. I selected a pair of steaks, fresh broccoli, and the fixings for salad and began working on dinner. I sent Maria Cristina to the wine cellar in the basement to select a bottle, and she returned with a Spanish red.

“What are we doing after we eat?” I asked when we sat down at the table about thirty minutes later.

“Let’s go dancing! I figure we need to wait until around 1:00am for the beach from what you said.”

“OK, then dancing it is.”

We ate, showered, dressed, and then I called for a cab which took us to a club on the Dutch side of the island where we danced and drank for a few hours before taking a cab back to the house. We put on bathing suits, shorts, t-shirts, and walking shoes, and I got a pair of strong flashlights from the closet, as we’d be walking through a bit of rough ground to get to the secluded cove where I’d fooled around with Ellie and Samantha each in turn, just over seven years previously. Maria Cristina got an oversized beach blanket, and we left the house together.

As we walked hand-in-hand, I thought about just how lucky I’d been to meet Samantha, despite the circumstances, and how my life had taken something of a dramatic turn at that point. Things had been pretty crazy at first, but once they calmed down, Samantha had become an excellent business partner and Liz my favorite lover besides my wives, bar none. It wasn’t that there was anything wrong or lacking with Maria Cristina, it was that there was something more with Liz.

That got me to thinking about what I’d said to Maria Cristina earlier about what I was looking for at this point. Suzanne was, for want of a better way to put it, the epitome of what I wanted - smart, sexy, thoughtful, and like-minded. If I could find a few more like her, even without the sex, I’d have a solid core of young people to help on my crusade against an increasingly insane society. I was sure she’d fit right in with Elizabeth, Ben, Patricia, Henry, and Gabby. Leigh seemed to be cut from the same cloth, and I hoped she and Suzanne would get along.

“What are you thinking about?” Maria Cristina asked about ten minutes into our walk.

“What we were talking about when we first got to the house. Just thinking about a way forward.”

“Your ‘transitional phase’?”

“Yes. But I don’t know the timing or the destination, so it’s more broad strokes than anything at the moment.”

“You mean figuring out what you want once Liz and I need to change our relationship status?”

“Yes.”

“Does that make you sad?”

“Life is about change, and how we handle it, and I’ve learned how to handle it reasonably well. That said, even with a change, the most important part of the relationships will continue.”

“True intimacy?”

“Yes. If you learn only one thing from our relationship, it’s the meaning of true intimacy and how important it is.”

She was quiet as we traversed the slightly rocky ground, and when we arrived in the cove, it was deserted as I’d expected.

“When does the moon come up?” Maria Cristina asked, turning off her flashlight.

“Around 2:00am,” I replied. “And it’s the waning crescent, so it won’t give much light. But there’s almost no artificial light here, so we’ll have plenty of starlight, just as you requested.”

“Frolic a bit first?” she asked.

“‘Frolic’?” I asked, chuckling.

“That’s the saying, right? ‘Frolic in the surf’?”

“It is, and I think the last time I used it was when I was here with Samantha and her friends to describe us playing in the surf.”

“‘Playing’?” Maria Cristina asked with a soft laugh.

“Yes! Samantha and I and Ellie and I did the other thing in the surf, too!”

“Hmm ... second time?”

“Your wish is my command!”

We spread the beach blanket and quickly stripped off our t-shirts, shorts, and shoes, then removed our bathing suits and went down into the water. We didn’t go more than thigh deep as there was nobody else around to help if we got into trouble, but we could sit on the slightly shifting sand as the waves flowed gently around us. After about ten minutes in the water, Maria Cristina took my hand and led me to the blanket.

“I hope you like your meal with salt!” she teased as we kissed.

“I prefer Cuban spices!” I declared, then kissed my way down her lovely body, knelt between her legs, and pressed my tongue deep into her, coating it with those spices, while sucking gently on her clit.

“I love it when you do that,” she sighed, gently bucking her hips.

I pleasured her to two orgasms with my lips and tongue, then moved on top of her, positioned myself against her labia, and slowly pushed all the way into her hot, slick folds.

“Yes,” she sighed, wrapping her legs around me. “Just go slow.”

We kissed softly as we moved together, enjoying our gentle lovemaking session under the stars. Our mutual orgasms at the end were equally gentle, but very satisfying. Maria Cristina’s preferences all depended on her mood, and she was in what I termed her ‘loving’ mood. Other times, she was in what I called her ‘feisty Cuban’ mood, and our sex was as athletic as any I’d ever had. We moved into a cuddle position and enjoyed the quiet sounds of the light surf and the clear, starry sky.

After about twenty minutes, we went down into the water. I sat down and she sat in my lap, facing me, her legs around my back. We kissed and she ground against me, then stroked me until I was hard. She raised herself up, aligned herself, then slowly sank down on my rock-hard shaft, fully engulfing me in her warm folds. We kissed as she ground against me, moved up and down, and moved her hips forward and back, bringing herself to two orgasms before we shared another wonderful mutual orgasm.

“That was awesome,” she sighed as we cuddled on the blanket afterwards.

We finished our night with Maria Cristina giving me a slow, sensual blowjob, then dressed for the walk back to the house.

“That was the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen,” a soft voice with a French accent called out of the darkness as we walked to the trail.

I turned the flashlight, being careful to keep it pointed to the ground so as not to blind our voyeur. The dim light showed a female about 5’2” with darkish hair, but I couldn’t really make out any features or tell how old she was.

“How long were you watching?” I asked.

“I was here when you came onto the beach. I hope you’re not too upset.”

Maria Cristina laughed softly, “It’s not the first time we’ve been watched. I’m Maria Cristina and this is Steve.”

“I’m Annette,” she said. “I take it you’re Americans?”

“Yes,” I replied. “From Chicago. You?”

“I live here. I come to this cove at night to be alone.”

“Sorry we intruded,” I said.

“It’s OK. Are you two married?”

“No,” Maria Cristina said. “He’s my lover and mentor.”

“Ah,” the girl said. “A modern relationship.”

“We’ll leave you alone,” I said. “We’re sorry to bother you.”

“You didn’t! It was very sexy!”

“Would you like to come have a drink with us?” Maria Cristina asked, surprising me.

“Where are you staying?”

“At my friend’s house near Etang de la Barrière,” I said. “We walked.”

“Me as well,” Annette replied.

“Come along,” Maria Cristina said. “You won’t be interrupting anything!”

All three of us laughed and Annette followed us on the walk back to the house. When we were inside with the lights on, I got my first look at a very pretty girl who I guessed was about eighteen, with dark hair and green eyes, wearing a tight yellow t-shirt which clung to her firm breasts which clearly were not encased in a bra, and tight white short-shorts which left nothing to the imagination with regard to her body contours.

“I’ll get a bottle of wine,” Maria Cristina said, heading downstairs.

“Do you work or are you a student?” I asked.

“Both, actually. I work in my mom’s flower shop and I go to Lycée des Îles du Nord. I’ll start what is the equivalent of your eleventh grade next month because in two years I’ll complete what you would call ‘High School’.”

“Sixteen?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“And being French, wine is like water, right?” I asked.

She laughed softly, “We drink wine with our meals, yes.”

“Your English is very good,” I said.

“Thanks. I speak Dutch as well, though not as well as I speak English.”

“I speak a bit of Dutch, along with fluent Swedish and conversational Spanish.”

“And I speak Spanish and English,” Maria Cristina said coming into the room with another bottle of Spanish red and three glasses.

She handed me the bottle and after I opened it, I poured the wine into the three glasses, with Maria Cristina handing one to Annette and the other to me.

“«Skål!»” I said.

“«Santé!»” Annette responded.

“«¡Salud!»” Maria Cristina added.

We all drank and then went to sit on the patio.

“What do you do?” Annette asked.

“I’m pre-med,” Maria Cristina replied. “I start my final undergraduate year in about three weeks.”

“What kind of doctor do you want to be?”

“An oncologist. A friend of mine died of cancer when I was younger and I hope to be able to help people like her.”

“Oh, that’s so sad! And you, Steve?”

“I have my own business,” I said. “It’s computers - programming and support. Mostly we work with lawyers and doctors.”

“How did you meet?” Annette asked.

“My chemistry professor introduced us,” Maria Cristina replied, making me wonder what she was up to.

“How long have you been together?”

“Just over three years. I became his lover right before I started college. You’re in the equivalent of High School?”

“Yes, and I work in a flower shop.”

“Do you go to that beach often?” Maria Cristina asked.

“When I want some time alone. I sit and enjoy the stars and the sound of the water.”

“Would you like to have dinner with us tomorrow?”

“That would be nice, if it’s not imposing.”

“It’s not,” I replied, following Maria Cristina’s lead. “7:00pm?”

“That’s perfect! I finish work at 6:00pm.”

“What time do you have to be at work?” I asked.

“11:00am. I don’t have to be up too early.”

We finished our wine and Annette bade us good night. I offered to walk her home, but she said the area was very safe, and she only lived about ten minutes away. When she left, Maria Cristina and I showered, dried off, then got into bed.

“So?” I asked.

“Sleep,” Marina Cristina said. “We’ll talk in the morning.”

Given it was after 3:00am, she had a point.

July 28, 2000, St. Martin, Leeward Islands, Lesser Antilles

“Lunch?” I asked when Maria Cristina finally came downstairs.

“Sure. What time did you get up?”

“About two hours ago,” I replied. “I ran, practiced my kata, and took a dip in the pool. Chicken burritos OK?”

“Samantha’s staff stocked your low-carb burrito-sized tortillas?”

“Yep,” I grinned, and began taking items from the fridge and pantry.

“So you really do like to be watched?” I asked.

Maria Cristina laughed softly, “Perhaps.”

“The same response Kara gives when I point out something obvious!”

“You’re wondering why I invited her for drink last night and to dinner?”

“Yes.”

“Joining us for a drink was about seeing what she looked like. Dinner was because I detected positive chemistry. And I think she needs a friend.”

“Because she was on the beach alone?”

“Didn’t you detect a feeling of neediness?”

“No, Counselor, I didn’t,” I grinned.

Maria Cristina laughed, “Troi, right?”

“Yes, of course. I suppose her comment about wanting to be alone could indicate a neediness or loneliness, but I like to be alone at times.”

“I think the fact she agreed readily shows I’m correct.”

“I think you might be right,” I replied.

“You’re not upset, are you?”

“Not at all. She seems like a nice girl, and I don’t mind at all. So why did you call Kara ‘my chemistry professor’?”