(This story is a lesbian continuation of the 45 chapter saga: Love & Prostitution. Emily & Sansa continue to be the protagonists. As a brief reminder, Emily takes the lead in business matters and Sansa takes the lead in everything else. This is a fairly long & detailed opening chapter, setting the scene and introducing the main characters.)
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Sansa and I have contracted to purchase Maharani, a new build luxury superyacht, at a cost of £189 million. We sit down with Nilesh & Sudesh, our trusted Personal Security Officers (PSOs), to inform them of our new venture. Maharani will be a 'ladies only' environment so we assure them of our continuing need for their excellent services because nothing will change with our existing ventures. They understand and ask if they may find suitable female PSOs for us. Sansa and I know that they will only present the best for us to interview, so we readily agree.
Maharani is to be delivered to Kolkata, where we will take possession at the end of next month. She is 110 metres long with a beam of 20 metres, her maximum speed is 21 knots, her cruising speed is 17 knots and her range is about 8,000 miles. In addition to the owners' suite, she can accommodate 36 guests in double staterooms and 46 crew.
Maharani features a large number of onboard spaces, each with their own use and personality, including several living spaces, formal and informal dining areas, gyms and a lavish cinema room. Guest staterooms and accommodation areas have fold out balconies allowing guests to experience being over the water. Large opening superstructure doors also let the light in, ensuring that the yacht is filled with natural light and so guests can feel at one with their beautiful surroundings.
As the first owners, Sansa and I are particularly delighted with our: huge owners suite, owners spa and gym and a secret staircase that leads directly to the vessel's bridge via a large private study (with its own satellite internet & phone).
Maharani is designed to pamper its guests with: a luxury spa complete with steam room, water fountains, saunas, deep relaxation areas, massage rooms, beauty and hair saloons and several different indoor and outdoor work-out spaces. The large infinity pool is on the main aft deck together with jacuzzis and sunbathing hubs over several decks. At sea level there is a huge garage with all the pleasure craft one might desire.
In modern patriarchal India life can be difficult for women, even more so for lesbians. The plan is that Maharani will be, from the very start, a safe space for ladies, including the crew and the security staff. I've been in contact with the Captain of Bangkok Girl and requested his assistance in recruiting female officers and specialists able to provide training for the more inexperienced. He is more than happy to help, Prajna his executive first officer on Bangkok Girl is: experienced, thoroughly competent and has long since achieved her Masters' Certificate, but not yet achieved command of her own vessel. I tell him that we would like to meet her and he agrees to talk to her.
The plan is to model Maharani on our group of Best Erotic Marigold Hotels. Karima, the CEO suggests advertising a 'ladies only' cruise in every hotel, a suggestion we readily agree. The newly independent ladies of the former secret club mansion may turn out to be prospective clients, particularly now that Bangkok Girl's brothel has a happy & loyal staff. Sansa & I plan to use our Learjet to visit each of the 36 cities to meet with the ladies there. As members of the India Flying Club, there may also be lady members, like us, who would appreciate a ladies-only environment.
As in our hotels, we plan to hold lectures and seminars during each cruise and Karima offers to help. Telling me in confidence that she has divorced her cheating husband, in the process totally giving up on men! The inference is that she is of our persuasion. I invite her to visit us in the penthouse when she has time to talk.
The price of the Presidential Suite on the Maharajahs' Railway Express for 7 nights, is just over US$23,700 per person per week. Allowing for the vast spaces inside and out on board Maharani, plus an open bar, we agree to work on a figure of £50,000 per double stateroom per week. The 18 staterooms could provide up to £46,800,000 gross income per annum. Not counting running costs and assuming full occupancy, Maharani could pay for herself in four years.
Karima's visit to the penthouse is most illuminating, she has been thinking about the new venture and would like to help. I tell her that we plan to visit all 36 of the major Best Erotic Marigold Hotels. Karima confesses her interest and asks if she may accompany us on the trip. While we are visiting the ladies of each mansion, she can hold meetings with the management team at each hotel. It seems a capital idea, and we agree. She likes the idea of short notice meetings, hoping she will be able to observe the current situation without the 'polish' allowed by advance notice.
I call the India Flying Cub and a female, by the sound of her voice, answers. I give my name and tell her that I'm a new member and wish to enquire if there is a ladies section. She tells me that there is, the Section Leader is Priyanka Ghosh and she gives me her telephone number. I thank her for the information and make the call. Unexpectedly, she picks up and says: "Hello, this is Priyanka Ghosh. Who is calling please?"
I give her my name and she responds: "A delayed welcome to the India Flying Club Ms Berkshire, I have very much been looking forward to making your acquaintance. How may I assist you?"
Taking a deep breath, I tell her that I am conducting some market research with regard to ladies-only cruising on a luxury superyacht. Her reply takes my breath away: "I wondered when you would give Bangkok Girl a sister vessel! Will it operate on a similar basis but only for ladies? If so, I think, most of the Ladies Section would be interested. The club has over a hundred thousand members throughout India, about a quarter of which are ladies."
I tell her that the final format depends on the results of market research, at the moment we simply have a safe, discreet and luxury 'ladies-only' experience in mind. She asks if Sansa and I would like to meet socially with the Ladies Section of the India Flying Club to discuss the project. I reply that indeed we would. Giggling, she suggests that we should have no difficulty in finding a 5-star hotel and we laugh at her joke. She says that she now has my number and if agreeable, will call me when she has consulted with her members. I agree and tell her I look forward to receiving her call.
A couple of hours later, Priyanka calls to tell me that she sent a group e-mail to all branch leaders of the ladies' section of the India Flying Club describing the project. There are 36 branches of the Ladies Section, i.e. there is a branch in every major city. She also leads the Delhi branch, so she e-mailed the branch members directly. She has already received a positive response from nearly all 504 requesting an early meeting. We agree to try for the following evening. I call Karima and ask if she has a conference room to accommodate 504 available for the evening of the next day. She checks her computer and tells me that she can just about accommodate the numbers. Putting her on hold, I relay the information to Priyanka who asks me to book the room for her. Switching back to Karima's call, I ask her to make the booking.
I call Sushila, our lawyer to tell her about the project. She says that the ladies of each mansion/branch are making a lot of money under the new arrangements and are likely to be very interested. She adds that a large percentage, prefer the social company of women and the cruises might be exactly what they need. I ask if Sansa and I may spend the next 6 weeks visiting each of the mansions to discuss the project with the ladies. She agrees asking if she might sow the seeds for us by leaking a little unattributable information. I think it a capital idea and we agree to visit the Delhi ladies the following afternoon.
We plan our trip to every major city in India, where there is both a Best Erotic Marigold Hotel and a mansion/branch of the former secret club. Sansa suggests we only give fairly short notice of our visit so that when Priyanka Ghosh invites us to meet the members of the Ladies Section of the India Flying Club, we are able to respond quickly. We agree to leave on Monday, giving us time to meet with the Flying Club's Delhi branch ladies before we leave. Karima having already received her briefing.
I call Nila, the Captain of our Learjet and tell her our plans. She is very interested and asks if she & Lalita, the cabin attendant, may attend the meetings with us. I say that they will be very welcome, the first is tomorrow evening. I can't help wondering if Nila & Lalita are a couple. No doubt we'll find out soon enough!
The meeting with the Flying Club's Delhi branch ladies is in the Best Erotic Marigold Hotel of Delhi, our main residence. So at the appointed time, Karima escorts Sansa and me to the bar on the Conference & Seminars floor. There are certainly a great number of ladies present, among them I notice Nila & Lalita, but being recognised by the staff, we are looked after by our own waitress. The waitress looking after Priyanka sees us and escorts her over to make the introductions. The welcomes and greetings completed, the four of us go into the conference rooms, the space seems huge compared with both Bangkok Girl and Maharani. Nine photographs of Maharani are being projected on a continuous loop onto a large screen behind the playroom.
