The party and dance had been Saturday night and here we were getting into our Monday morning routine. Dana still worked, mostly because she enjoyed the feeling of accomplishment. But before she went to work, we were up early and headed to the gym. Our trainer met us there and put us through about an hour-long workout. We were both sweating heavily by the time we were finished and headed home. We rewarded ourselves with coffee and then took turns in the shower. Dana took her shower first while I stood in the bathroom and sipped my coffee, talking to her through the curtain. When she got out, I got in and she talked to me while she dried off and then applied skin lotion to almost her entire body.
Our conversation covered a lot of topics that included our schedule for the week, upcoming college visitation events for our daughter, the idea of hiring a nutritionist and, one of our most pressing topics, the new house we wanted to buy after our daughter had graduated high school and was off to college. Eventually, just as I was finishing my shower and getting out to dry off, we got around to discussing the invitation to the charity dinner cruise. We both agreed that we thought we'd enjoy going but Dana had some reservations; that she would be nervous going.
"Nervous about what?" I asked. I was nervous too, but I knew why; I was wondering who might bid on Dana if we went. Was there a way I could guarantee I would win her in the bidding? If someone else won, what would she do with them? Our sex life had evolved to the point where I wasn't sure she'd say no if she really wanted to play with another man. And I was also sure that, as long as she was up front about it, I'd be relatively okay with that. My focus was her pleasure and her happiness. Honesty was the requirement. She had previously confided in me about some wild experiences she'd had in college, and SHE knew how much I'd gotten turned on hearing about them. I wondered if any of her nervousness wasn't about that somehow too.
"Well," she said, thinking for a few moments, "I know I'm not UNattractive but how am I going to feel if the bidding for me is way lower than it is for other women?" I could see her point but thought it was kind of... unnecessarily insecure. She was a beautiful woman who had worked hard to get in shape and her figure showed it. I was sure she'd bring good bids; that was what had me worried. "And what do I HAVE to do with whoever wins the bid, if anyone even does?" The little voice in the back of my head wondered how genuine of a concern this was. Sure, she could be won by some fat dickhead and not want to eat or dance with him. But if she was won by a hot guy with a decent personality, I wasn't so sure she wouldn't want to do... well.. whatever she wanted.
"I don't know," I replied generically to both her questions. "First off, I don't think you need to worry about low or no bids. You're beautiful and the way men react to you at various parties and events should be evidence of that." She nodded in a kind of 'I have to accept that' way. "And second, I don't think you HAVE to do anything but spend time at dinner and through the evening dancing or whatever." She didn't look convinced and, truth be told, I didn't feel convinced. Then I had a thought. "If it would make you feel better, before we decide, I can always try to get hold of Jonathan and ask him. He said he was hosting it so there ought to be a way to find him and give him a call."
Dana was quiet and thoughtful for a few moments, still standing there naked in our bathroom, freshly squeaky clean but needing to get dressed for work. I didn't want her to go to work. I wanted to bend her over the bathroom vanity. "Okay," she said. "See if you can find a way to call him. I'd like to know what we're actually walking into before we go... although it DOES sound like a good time and for a good cause."
I nodded my agreement, said, "Okay, babe. I'll get on it today while you're at work," and then I finished my morning routine. A half hour later she was on her way to work, and I was settling in at my desk computer to see if I could find Jonathan.
- - - - - - - - - -
I started out thinking it would be relatively easy. I shortly had a different outlook. It was almost an hour later before I finally located a last name for him (Brandston) and another half hour past that before I found a phone number for what I THOUGHT was his primary business. That phone call led to five more phone calls, and I finally got connected with a woman who said she was his personal assistant. She listened to my explanation as to how I had met him and why I wanted to speak with him. At first she tried to redirect me to the website for the cruise to get all the necessary information. I had to explain that my questions were those created by what wasn't included on the website. Finally, sounding quite exasperated with how stupid I must be, she agreed to connect me with Jonathan and put me on hold.
It wasn't even a half-minute later when he picked up. "Frank? Sorry about that. The gate keeper is quite dedicated to her job and keeping me from having to deal with anything she thinks someone else can handle."
I chuckled and said, "Good morning, Jonathan. Thanks for taking my call."
"No problem," he said. His voice sounded cheery. "What can I do for you?"
"Well, first off, I assume you remember me? and my wife Dana who you danced with Saturday evening? You invited us to your charity cruise."
"Of course, I remember," he replied; the smile on his face easy to hear. "How could I forget a woman as lovely as your wife?"
"Thank you. She IS quite beautiful," I replied before continuing, "Dana and I had some questions about the charity cruise you invited us to and they're the kind of questions I'm not comfortable asking a stranger. Not that you know us well or vice versa but at least you're the person we've met so I was hoping you could help me out."
"Sure thing," he replied, still sounding happy. "What did you need to know?"
I breathed for a moment. How to word this? "The card you gave us says that the women in attendance are auctioned off before dinner and spend the evening in the company of whatever man wins them in the auction. There's a smaller note about it being an adult event and the interactions between participants being private." I paused to again think about my wording. "We were kind of curious as to the limitations or expectations if any."
"I'm not sure I'm following you," Jonathan said. Was he joking with me? I decided to be more direct.
"It has all the touches of a swinger's party or something similar. I wanted to be reassured that if someone other than me wins Dana in the auction, she's not expected to perform as their sexual consort for the evening; that this really is just FUN in the spirit of raising funds for charity."
He was quiet for a moment before replying. "Let me set your mind mostly at ease. It IS a fun event and the purpose of it IS to raise funds for charity. That said, the cruise ship I charter for the day DOES have a stateroom for every person or couple who signs on. What adults do in the privacy of their stateroom isn't my business... or anyone else's for that matter. This is the ninth year we've done this and in years past there HAVE been incidents where men have won women in the auction and... well... let's just say that they haven't spent the entire evening in the ballroom."
"I see," I said simply. "But that's the choice and agreement of those involved. It's not a requirement that the lady won in the auction perform. If she WANTS to then she and the man who won her can go do whatever in either his or her stateroom, but there's no expectation of sexual performance."
"Correct," Jonathan replied. That set my mind at ease somewhat. But new curiosities arose.
