In Search of the Final Freedom

In Search of the Final Freedom:

An Erotic Socio-Political Novel

Authors Note: My spouse and I have been had an open marriage for well over a decade and much of this novel is based on our experiences or those of our swinger friends.

This chapter was inspired by several trips to Miami Beach.

Our kids who were in early grade school at the time didn't even notice that Mom went topless on the beach in front of the hotel as she often had sunned like that at their backyard pool or on secluded spots on the Outer Banks. It was only years though later they recalled the trip and understood the difference between their home pool or and a public beach.

The amazing thrill of that first trip will never be forgotten and this chapter is in memory of that first day on South Beach.

At the same time I hope the reader picks up on the tension between Cooper's role as protective father and his newly opened view of morality. This also played out over a period of years in our home, and like in the novel, never fully resolves itself. Hypocrisy is hard to avoid in parenting, either the parent must impose rules they know are not realistic, or they must accept that sick feeling that they are not protecting their children as they should.

Chapter THREE

A few weeks after the wild day with Adam, Cooper called home very excited.

"Do you have any plans for the fourth of July week?"

Puzzled, Bonnie answered no.

"What about the kids?"

Bonnie, still confused answered "Not that I know of, Lamar doesn't start soccer camp till the week after and Misty's art class doesn't meet that week. Why?"

Speaking so rapidly that his wife could hardly follow Cooper explained how the owner of the company, Mr. LeMarco, had a time share on South Miami Beach. Though he had planned to use it the week of the 4th of July, something had come up so he offered it for free to any of the executives. Cooper very excitedly went through how he had won a game of straws, but Bonnie didn't follow. What she did understand when she put down the phone was that in a couple of weeks they would be going on a week's vacation to Miami Beach.

As it turned out, to fly was prohibitively expensive on such short notice, but Cooper figured it would only take about 12 hours to driver from their central Georgia hometown of Sparta. So early on Monday the 2nd of July the family piled into their Dodge Grand-Caravan, aka the mommy mobile, and headed south for four nights in the newest condo on South Beach.

Bonnie had called Tina, at Cooper's office, and asked for more information about the trip. Tina said she had not been to the place they would be going, it was way out of her price range, but she did say that there was no need to buy beach wear in advance, because Miami is such a fashion Mecca, beach and club wear was actually cheaper in Miami than in Atlanta. She also added with a laugh that on Miami beach you could buy just the bikini bottoms because she might decide there was no need to buy the tops since on South Beach is tops are not necessary for men or women. Bonnie didn't share this information with Cooper; that would be her secret.

At exactly 5:00 PM the, by then, trashed van pulled up the ramp to gated entrance to The Setai, one of the finest condos on South Beach. Cooper felt like a real VIP when he gave his name to the attendant and the large wrought iron gate swung in and allowed them into the valet parking area.

As much as Cooper wanted to act like this was a world in which he felt comfortable, he knew full well this place catered to people well beyond his pay grade. The marble floors and fine lobby art stood in stark contrast to the Holiday Inn's which were his family's usual lodgings. Though he was somewhat of a tightwad, he could not admit to the bellman that he wanted to carry his luggage, so he had to part with a ten dollar bill once they arrived in at the room

If the public area's were intimidating, the condo itself was beyond belief.

Lamar ran through the rooms shouting "It's as big as our house." Though Lamar was exaggerating, it was enormous. It had two large bedrooms, and the living room, far bigger than theirs at home had two walls made entirely of glass, one looking directly out to the ocean, and the other looking north up the beach. At the 32nd floor, they had a huge and panoramic view of South Beach.

All Bonnie could say was "WOW" as she stood looking out the glass walls.

Though Bonnie and Cooper would have been content to just look out the windows, the kids wanted to see the pool and beach (from closer than the 32nd floor). Cooper who had been driving since before 5:00 AM was in no mood do anything but rest grumbled as he pulled himself out of the deep and very comfortable couch. He did insist his eager family must wait until he could put on a clean shirt. He wasn't about to walk about this place with jelly doughnut stains on his stomach.

From the lobby it was still one floor down to the ground level were there were shops and two restaurants, at the end of the ground floor atrium was a revolving door leading to the pools. Three pools, two large rectangular pools surrounded by coconut palms and one small children's pool.

Though Bonnie thought it was her secret, Cooper knew some toplessness was permitted on South Beach. What neither of them knew was that it was also permitted at some of the hotels and condos. In this case it was permitted at the pool nearest the beach, screened from the other two pools by a row of coconut palms. Thus it was not immediately apparent to the visiting family. Lamar being the most eager to explore was far ahead of the family and when he passed the row of palms he stopped short, and just stared.

It has been just in the past year the Lamar had passed the phase of girls being a sort of dangerous animal to be avoided to that stage were girls were lusted at from afar, but never really approached. It had been just last month ago when Bonnie found an old Playboy from Cooper's collection under Lamar's bed. Now, Lamar was entranced, because as if out from the magazine, emerged two women wearing nothing but a tiny thongs sunning and chatting in German not 15 feet from him. His sister's hand slamming on the back of his head brought him back to the real world. Though Misty was as shocked as her brother, she was far more concerned about not making a scene than her younger hormonal brother.

To Bonnie, the most amazing thing was not that their breasts were on display, but rather that these were grown women, not teenyboppers. She guessed they were at least her age and though in good shape were not model types. The women hadn't noticed Lamar's staring because they were watching their own kids playing in the shallow end of the pool. To Bonnie, nudity had always meant sex, but here it seemed as relaxed and normal as, well, as a day at the beach with the kids.

Around the pool were a couple of dozen people, the majority of the women wore tops, but not all. Bonnie's attention was drawn to the far end of the pool where a girl, perhaps Misty's age, it was hard to tell at that distance, as she climbed the ladder and go to talk to what appeared to be her parents. She, like the two women at their end of the pool, wore just a thong bikini bottom, as did her mother. Bonnie instinctively looked over to her daughter, who was watching the mother and daughter speak.

Seeing this, Cooper now was uncomfortable, and he quickly suggested they continue on to see the beach just beyond the fence. It was one thing to say it was cool to go topless, even for his wife to go topless, but just the thought of men looking at his daughter the way he found himself looking at this girl made him just want to move on.

Bonnie, could feel Cooper's discomfort and suggested to the kids they go on to the beach, but if one teenage girl made him uncomfortable, the beach gave him no respite. On the beech the women were much younger and almost universally pretty. From what she could see, a little less than half of the women were topless, and from what she could see as they walked down the beach, of the girls who looked to be in their teens or twenty's a solid majority the were bare breasted.

She took Cooper's hand as they walked "So why did you get uncomfortable at the pool?" she asked

"I don't know" he replied "It's hard to explain, but I guess seeing that girl and her mom brought home the fact Misty is getting older and as you know I'm not doing too well with that."

"Yea, I know" she said as she gave his hand a squeeze.

They walked a bit down the beach but being fully clothed they soon got hot and turned back. Cooper though about suggesting Bonnie take off her shirt, but he didn't want to seem pushy and let it go.

The long shadow of their condo covered the beach all the way to the water by the time they had arrived back in their room and looked out that amazing view. On the way up it was agreed that the guys would take the evening easy and the girls would go out shopping. Cooper planned that to mean he would crash in the king sized bed in the master bedroom, Lamar; on the other hand wanted to go swim in the big pool. He had always been able to find friends anywhere they went and was anxious to get downstairs.

Cooper wondered how much of his insistence was because he wanted to see more tits. To be honest with himself, he wouldn't mind going back down with out Misty there. So he grabbed the Tom Clancy book he'd bought for the trip and headed down with Lamar. It was no surprise that Lamar walked right by the first pool, and past the line of palms to the far pool. Cooper was mildly disappointed to see no topless women, but then upon further reflection he realized that it was now dusk and all the tanners had gone in. There was a gentle breeze off the ocean that broke up the heat that still hung in the air.

Before Cooper drifted off to sleep on the chase lounge, Lamar had made several friends in the pool, one he recognized as the girl he had seen earlier, but this time she sported a one piece swim suit which oddly was full coverage in the front but thong cut in the back. She was he guessed, about the same age as his son, but at this age when the girls looked so much older than the boys it was hard to tell. There were several other kids in the pool all playing a game with a Frisbee. He heard several languages being spoken, one was clearly Spanish, another seemed to be Germanic, and at least one voice seemed to be another romance language but since Cooper only spoke Spanish it was hard to tell what the other language or languages were.

Bonnie was having a great time with Misty in what appeared to be the ultimate beach shopping district. Most beach resorts had a dozens of small shops all essentially selling the same cheesy merchandise. Here on Miami Beach it was a totally different experience. The condo concierge had told her that they were only one block from the center of the shopping district and so they had simply walked up Collins Ave and turned right one block to find shops large and small as far as they could see in either direction. Some shops were typical beach fare, but most were unique, including many boutiques owned by famous designers. Though they were specifically looking for beach wear, it didn't keep them from excitedly browsing the couture isles.

After visiting a half a mile of shops, Bonnie noticed that the swimwear she brought, thinking it was sexy, was, for Miami Beach, only worn by women who wore a size 20 or larger. She noticed that for a good number of the thong bottoms the shops sold, they didn't even sell a matching top. She was sure Cooper would not want her to feel out of place so after a couple of hours browsing, Bonnie and Misty went back to a shop that they had visited earlier. They decided it had the best selection of swimsuits they had seen.

They had browsed and picked they tried on more than a dozen suites when Bonnie found one she loved.

"Mom, you look hot, Dad will love that one" Misty said looking at the bikini in her hand.

A few minutes later she opened the curtain to the changing stall and stepped out. She stood before a three way mirror looking at a leopard print Brazil cut bikini with a Miracle Bra type top that gave her great cleavage. The bottom was far smaller than anything she had worn to a beach before, at perhaps five inches wide at the rear waist band, it was smaller than most of her string panties. It was so small that more than a little pubic hair showed over the top edge "Well if we are going to wear these I guess we'll have to shave it all off down there" Bonnie said with a laugh through the curtain to where Misty was still changing..

As she spoke Misty emerged wearing a suit that if anything was smaller than the one she wore.

"Yep, we will" Misty agreed as she vainly tried to push a tuft of hair into the suit.

She looked good Bonnie thought. Real good; too good for her own good. It was bright yellow with orange stripes on the tiny bit of fabric. The top was not fitted like the one Bonnie wore, it was just a regular slide string triangle top, but the triangles wee much smaller than any she had seen on a swimsuit before. In this even Misty's young boobs showed round curves on ether side of the fabric.

"Well we will look like yokels on vacation with our white butts showing." Misty vocalized what her mother had already noticed, the tan lines of their regular swimsuits, left a good bit of white untanned skin showing.

"Yea" Bonnie replied," but would you rather look like a prudish yokel on vacation by wearing what we brought.

"This one is a keeper, I think yours is too." Misty said a moment later.

They went back to trying on suits. The next time Bonnie stood before the mirror she was in a royal blue thong with a triangle top. She had to pull the front of the bottoms up because even more of her pubs weren't covered with this one. She would defiantly have to shave tonight. Like Misty's earlier top, it was smaller than any she owned and she noticed it was thin, unlined fabric. Her erect nipples were fully visible as the fabric curved around their shape. The shop was large and only had a handful of people at the time so she wasn't too conscientious of the fact she was almost naked a good fifteen feet from her changing stall.

Misty who by now was having a great time clapped approval and asked where Mom had found that suit; promptly she took on a green one with white spots into the changing stall.

Bonnie stood in front a wall display of thongs bottoms. She looked around for the tops. She was sure this is where Misty had found the suit she was trying on now. She walked back up the isle to ask Misty were she found the tops when her daughter ripped open the curtain and stood at the stall door way hand on hips saying "I think this is perfect. What do you think?"

Bonnie stood wide eyed. Right in the shop her sixteen year old daughter stood in beside the curtain, bold as brass, wearing only the thong. Only a thong! She was exposing her bare breasts to the whole shop, and she wanted to know what mom thought. It took mom more than a few moments to think anything.

True, Bonnie had fully intended to go topless tomorrow, but had not considered the possibility that Misty would as well. Now it was Bonnie's turn to be uncomfortable with their daughter's growing up. It's not that Bonnie and Misty had ever been modest around each other, but to see her like this in the shop. She stifled the urge to yell at her to shut the curtain and just said "If you like it, I like it." She paused what seemed for an hour before saying as calmly as she could "OK, you can shut the curtain now"

Misty didn't move. "But will the guys notice me with all those big boobed girls around"

For the first time Bonnie realized she had developed full round woman's breasts. "Yes, oh yes they will notice you" then she added "You are rapidly becoming one of those big boobed girls yourself." her mother replied.

It wasn't until after she said this and Misty didn't shut the curtain but rather asked another inane question, that she realized that Misty knew this was making her more than a little uncomfortable. She also came to the conclusion that her daughter, who was generally modest in public, was certainly not doing this to show off, but rather to pick at dear old mom.

So keeping cool front, mom told daughter "You know, I think you have defiantly moved into a full B cup range, possibly a C, we'll have to go bra shopping when we get home." Turning back to the rack of thong bottoms, she grabbed the nearest one and headed for her stall "Great idea, wait a minute and we can match". Before she could get three steps from the rack, Misty's curtain had closed. Count one for Mom, Bonnie gloated.

Before they headed to the check-out they had no less than then swimsuits in their hands, knowing full well they wore the same size. Of the suits, all but three were thongs and those were Brazil cut, and three of the thongs didn't have a top at all. Just before they began to check out, Bonnie saw a display behind the clerk. They were red bikini bottoms, smaller than Rio's but more than a thong. What was unusual was the diamond shaped cut outs that while apparently covering the very bottom, the peek-a-boo's would leave much of the rest, including most the mound visible. Misty had also noticed them, and so the clerk added two more suits to the sack. They also had a couple of "cover up's", if you could call them that as one was a semi-sheer print and the other was fishnet.

Before they reached the counter, Misty looked up at the display of beach towels that ran along the ceiling. Pointing to one with the picture of a hunky man in a bulging Speedo, Misty said "Mom, I think we need some beach towels too.

"OK, but I want that one" and she pointed to one with a equally gorgeous man displaying his naked buns.

After picking out one for Cooper, with a buxom topless woman, she asked Misty what to get for Lamar.

Misty said "That little pervert, he'll want that one" and motioned to the only towel showing a completely nude woman.

"Don't call him that" Bonnie retorted "And no we wont' get him that"

"Do you know what I heard him telling his buddy James on the phone last week?" Misty shot back suddenly agitated. Then without waiting for an answer "He told him he had been spying on me in the shower and told him what I look like naked, right down to the mole on my right thigh."

Bonnie, was a little taken aback that he had spied on his sister, but not surprised, "OK, your right that was very inappropriate" she said in a very motherly way "I'll have Dad talk to him." Then thinking through what Lamar could tell his friends added "And we will make it clear that he is not to invade your privacy by telling his friends what you wear here in Miami." Misty gratefully replied "Oh yea, all I need is all his friends yakking about me if I go topless while we are here."

"But no more calling him a pervert. He's just a typical teenage boy." Bonnie told her daughter as they left, though she had bought 'the pervert' a towel with a girl in a thong bikini on it. Sexy, but not too much, Bonnie thought.

"You do know he looks at your pictures and I wouldn't be surprised if he has shown them to his friends" Misty said matter-of-factly. Bonnie's blood suddenly ran cold. Which pictures? She thought. It would be no problem if she were just speaking of the topless and nude pictures of her that Cooper had shot over the years. Family nudity was a non-issue in their home, she had walked through the house naked hundreds of times after a shower or getting underwear from the drier. She was not ashamed of that, but he shouldn't be showing them to his friends. But what about the photos Terrence had taken?

Bonnie looked straight ahead down the brightly lit nighttime street and as calmly as she could said "What pictures?"