by Rose St. Andrews
Christina grinned at the sight before her, a veritable meat market of succulent male flesh. Everywhere she looked there was the most delectable of men. Oh yeah, she needed this vacation. After yet another failed relationship, she just needed to get away. Her friends had thought her a little bonkers for zipping off by herself. Who goes on a cruise alone? Now, if it had been a singles' cruise that they could understand, but this wasn't, which was precisely why she'd gone on it. Here she could just relax, admire the 'slabs of beef', and if she felt like taking a taste, she could. If not, there was no pressure. It was what she needed. Oscar, her now-ex-boyfriend had been like all the rest: a boy. What was it about guys her age? They seemed one step removed from high school and about as mature as a twelve-year-old. Granted, at twenty-three she was no pillar of development, but at least she was over the whole bathroom humor and binge drinking of college.
So she just stretched out on a lounge chair by the pool, got well-greased up, and chilled out with a good book. The ship headed out into the Atlantic. She didn't even care what its first destination was or when they'd get there. Right now, her goal was a simple one: dangle her 'bait' and see if she got a nibble. If not, she didn't care. If she did, well, she'd see about a nice hook-up. If the guy looked halfway decent, why not? After all, it wasn't like she'd ever see him again. Lying there, reading (well, pretending to read), her eyes darted about. Oh yeah, plenty of the gents were checking her out. At under five feet, Christina had a firm build, golden blonde hair, and a bust line that made men drool.
Today she'd gone with her conservative bikini, meaning it actually covered her curvy ass and kept the twins from escaping. She'd learned that it was best to tease the men little by little. Give them a small sample to start, and then truly torment them with her body. It was working to perfection. She could see the eyes sliding up and down her supple frame, the men shifting in their seats as the blood rushed 'south of the border', and the women frowning. One guy did surprise her though. He took one look, turned away, and buried his face in his iPad.
Must be gay.
Later, as the sun approached the horizon, Christina sauntered on back to her cabin to change for dinner. She'd done good. Read two pages of her book, gotten hit on by ten guys, and only had to blow off three. By tomorrow, she'd be well on her way to her first hook up. For now, she was famished, and she quickly slipped into her basic khaki slacks and a nice blouse. Again, no sense putting all her goods out there on the first night. As she was alone, she knew she'd be seated at a group table, and who knew what sorts of people she'd get stuck with. Knowing her luck, it'd be Mr. and Mrs. Average Tourist and their four screaming kids.
Boy, was she wrong about that!
The dining hall was huge and beautifully furnished. She'd been to top restaurants back home in Sanford that didn't look half as good, and she was seated at a large round table with nine other people. Eight were couples, all in their mid to late forties. Ah, but Mr. Nine, now he was a rare find, and he was seated at her right. One look in those hazel eyes and her bio-alarms went off. Blood pounded in her ears, her toes curled ever so slightly, and her clit clanged 'Come and get it!' Yet, she managed to hold it together. His name was Hunter MacDonald, and as far as she was concerned he could hunt her down anytime he wanted. He had a head full of thick rich red hair, an incredible build, and he was easily six-four - minimum. Gazing at his chiseled chin and jaw line, she put him at about thirty, which was just right for her.
Introductions were the first order of business, and then everyone fell into chatting. She didn't remember half the names she'd heard, and she didn't care. No, it was Hunter she wanted to get to know.
"So, you're alone too, eh?" she said.
He nodded. "Yeah, the cruise was a gift from my co-workers, their way of saying congrats on my promotion. I just made head EMT for the county."
"EM...? Oh, paramedic. Of course, I should have guessed. With a body like yours, it was clear you didn't work in an office," she quipped, a sly grin on her face.
His face took on just a hint of pink. Of course, given his milky-white complexion, any color change was easy to detect.
"I do try to stay fit. What about you, what do you do, Miss Austin?"
"Medical transcriptionist. I really love it. I get to work from home, set my own hours, and I can even work in my comfy pjs if I want. And please, lay off the Miss Austin crap. It's way too formal."
"Now, I heard that job is disappearing," Mrs. Something-or-other, seated next to Hunter, said.
Before Christina could open her mouth, Hunter turned to the lady, nodding. "Yes, that's true, voice recognition software is replacing it to some extent, but it'll be years before it's fully in place. Some medical terms are very complex and difficult for the systems to recognize. So I'm sure Christina has a good number of years of work ahead of her."
"Um, that's right," she said. "Um, wow, Hunter, you seem to know quite a bit about the field."
He shrugged. "Oh, I've read a little, nothing more. You know, as an EMT, you get to hang around hospitals a lot. So, you pick up things."
You can pick me up anytime you want, big boy!
The rest of dinner passed very pleasantly, and Christina was amazed. Hunter always looked her in the eye (even as the other men at the table gazed at her chest), listened to what she had to say, and never took the bait when she made some sexual innuendo.
Maybe he's gay. Hey, could he be that guy from the pool today? He's the right height and hair color, but I never got a good look at him. Yeah, must be. Of course, my luck still holds. I get the jerks and the gays.
After they were done, Hunter offered her his arm, and escorted her from the hall. She had to grin. At almost every table they passed, heads turned - both male and female. She so wanted to shout 'Yeah, ladies, he's mine.' But, he wasn't. Still, they didn't know that. So she hung on him and smirked at all the women.
"This is where I leave you, Christina, I have a date tonight."
She felt a slight pang. "Oh. That didn't take long. Wow, first night. She's a lucky lady."
He grinned. "You could say that. It's Lady Luck I have a date with. I'm off to play Texas Hold 'Em in the casino."
Christina felt her lungs fill, her chest heave, and her thighs clench. "Ohhh, I see. Well, break a leg, as we say in the theater."
"Thank you, my dear, and thank you also for a delightful dinner. I look forward to breakfast," he replied, giving her a slight bow.
He then walked off. She stayed there, just about rooted to the spot. Actually, she was a little afraid to take a step; she was sure her legs would buckle. They felt like Jell-O. Seeing him at full height, those trousers and shirt - just tight enough to hint at his physique - were enough to get her blood boiling.
"I'm very good at breakfast," she finally managed to squeak out.
She was a bit surprised at his reaction to her statement; few people knew that theater expression. Did he, or was he covering his ignorance by ignoring it? She decided to get her mind off of the 'Great Hunter' with a visit to the spa. Christina figured a nice massage and a steam would (ironically) chill her out. It didn't work out quite like she hoped. First off, her masseuse Hildegard had a build to rival Hunter's. Then, lying there, wrapped in a warm towel, Christina pretty much felt as if Hunter was rubbing her down. Hildegard definitely had 'man hands', and when they slid down her back and came within a hair's breadth of her ass, her toes once more curled.
Why did that always happen? Her last boyfriend loved to grab her butt when they made love, and it never failed to make her climaxes all the better. She tried to put such thoughts out of her mind. After all, she wasn't 'getting any' tonight. Better to just relax, put Hunter and the other guys she'd gotten names of out of her mind, and try to chill. Once Hildegard had truly worked out every knot in her muscles, Christina sat in the steam room naked and let the heat wash over her. That helped her relax more than anything else.
Later, dried off and dressed, she decided to head up to the promenade deck. The breeze was gentle and cool, and most folks had retired for the evening, so she could have a touch of privacy. She moved along the deck toward the bow. Initially, her thought was to do the old 'I'm king of the world' routine, but then she remembered that the bows of modern ships were set up to keep people away from them - it was a safety issue. Still, she at least got as close as she could, and then found a table and chairs to sit at. It was nice, the breeze wafting her hair about, the hum on the engines under her feet - all that power surging - and the sounds of the waves breaking against the ship as it sliced its way through the dark waters of the Caribbean.
"Well, good evening, my dear. Fancy seeing you here," a familiar voice said.
She whipped her head about and smiled to see Hunter standing nearby. "Why, sir, are you following me? You know stalking is against the law."
He chuckled, showing his dazzling teeth. "We are on a ship, Christina. I would frankly be quite surprised if we didn't bump into each other. May I?"
She nodded, and he sat.
"So, how did you do?" she said.
"Pretty good. Not as much as I usually win, but then it was only my first night."
Her eyebrows went up. "Oh, quite the card shark, eh? The cards are always good to you?"
"Naw, I just know how to play. In poker, you play the man - or woman - you never play the cards. I'm just good at reading people."
"I see, and what do you read in me?"
He grinned. "Frisky, playful, and quite often naughty."
"Humph, lucky guess. Just for that, I insist you buy me a drink."
"Ah, are you old enough to drink?"
She almost snapped at him, but then remembered that the mistake was quite an honest one. Given her petite stature, despite her 'twins', many people thought she was anywhere from sixteen to eighteen, and thus she usually had to produce ID to get a drink. Once she explained that, he was more than willing to get her a nice fruity cocktail. After that, they set to chatting, and could he chat. Christina was amazed. His knowledge seemed to know no bounds. She very quickly learned that he knew a lot about the theater, he volunteered at his local community theater, and he regaled her with tales of some of the shows he'd worked on. While he preferred to work backstage and build sets, he did occasionally act.
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