“Ah. This is the life.”
I drew near. “It is.”
“She’s so bummed out.”
“Yeah. It sucks that she had to hurt herself.”
“We can entertain her.”
“Hey, she’s getting a tan. It’s not all bad.”
He laughed, “Right.”
“Aren’t you a little old for a baby ring?”
His wet eyebrows lifted. “Who you calling old?”
“Gimme that thing.”
“No.”
I grabbed the wet plastic and pulled. “I wanna sit in it.”
We fought over the inflatable tube, pulling and splashing wildly. I giggled, as I wrestled the item from his hands, leaving him without his plaything. He glared at me, but it was teasing, not angry. I sat on it and dared him to steal it from me. He dove under the water and reappeared some distance away holding a shell he had found. An hour later, we were seated near mom.
“Oh, how beautiful. It’s so pretty here.” She sounded tired. “I love this island.” The straw in her tropical drink was near her mouth.
I ate crackers with cheese and swatted at a fly. “We should come back next year.”
Several young women walked by topless. I stared at them and envied their nonchalance. Their breasts were of various shapes and tanned without bikini lines. Stephen’s attention was focused on them as well.
“You should take your top off, honey,” said mom. “They’re doing it.”
“They’re French.”
“So?”
“I’m not going topless. That’s…embarrassing.”
“It’s a vacation. Nobody cares. We’re the only ones with clothes on. I might as well be wearing a burka I’m so overdressed.” She laughed at that.
“Um, that’s alright.”
“I’m going for a walk. Anybody want to join me?” asked Stephen.
“No.”
“Have shun, honey.”
“Mom, you’re wasted.”
She giggled, “I feel good.” Her head bounced off the back of the beach chair.
“That’s the last cocktail for you,” I murmured.
“I’ll be back in a bit.”
As Stephen walked away, inspiration struck me. I untied my bikini top and let it fall, exposing my pale breasts for the entire world to see. A rush went through me, because it was so naughty. I’d never gone topless before in public. I lay on the towel and enjoyed the feel of the sun on my chest. By the time my stepfather returned, I didn’t want to put my top back on. I turned and lay on my stomach, to hide myself from him.
“Ah, we’ve gone native.” He smiled.
This caused little tingles to erupt in my tummy. “So?”
“Nothin’ wrong with a little nudity.” He tossed an assortment of shells on my towel. “Check those out.”
They were of various shapes and sizes with pretty colors. “Nice.”
Mom had crashed and burned. She slept and snored softly, while the umbrella over her head protected her from the sun.
“I’m gonna swim.” He trotted out towards the surf.
I watched him, admiring the way his butt looked under his shorts. I’d seen him naked once, and the view had been wonderful. The flatness of his stomach and the lean muscles that ran the length of his arms and legs were the product of frequent workouts. My girlfriends were jealous of me for having such a hot father. I felt a ping of shame thinking about my mother’s husband in that way. It seemed the more time I spent with Stephen, the more I lusted after him. There was something in his eyes that made me tingle horribly and think about doing dirty things. The more I thought about those things, the more I wanted something naughty to happen. It was almost like a self-fulfilling prophesy of sorts, or was it?
I got up, not caring about being topless anymore, and headed for the ocean.
Chapter Two
Stephen watched my approach, partially submerged, like a predatory alligator. My breasts weren’t as big as some of my girlfriends, but they were high and firm, with little pink nipples on each tip. I could work a lot of cleavage in a push up bra. Sucking in my stomach, I waded into the warm water, all under the watchful, interested eye of my stepdad.
“You’re topless now.”
Embarrassed, I submerged quickly. “Yeah.” The feel of the water against my bare skin was wonderful.
“Your mom still asleep?”
I nodded. My hands floated before me, buoyed by the ocean, as the waves made the waterline rise and fall. “It’s getting late.”
“This will probably be the last dip.”
“There weren’t that many tropical fish.”
“You need a reef for that.”
“Oh.”