“That’s the spirit,” Dylan replied. He turned to Abbie. “What about you? Want to check out the surf with us?”
“No way,” Abbie replied with a firm shake of her head, though she was grinning. “Kendra was always the daring one in the family. I’ll stick to the nice, tranquil infinity pool, thank you.”
Kendra gave Abbie a kiss on the cheek. “Later, sweetie.”
Dylan and she walked down to the beach toward the umbrella where Dylan had left his board, some beach towels and a small cooler. They stripped off their outer clothing and made their way to the water, Dylan dragging his board behind him.
When they were in deep enough, Kendra climbed onto the surfboard. Dylan hovered in the water nearby. “You know what to do. Go for it,” he said encouragingly. No matter how many times she’d wiped out, he was endlessly optimistic that the next time would be the charm.
Looking over her shoulder, she saw the wave coming. She paddled hard, blood pumping. She felt the wave take control with a powerful surge. She did everything she could to stand in a controlled manner, Dylan’s constant drills unspooling in her head.
“Hands on the deck, thumbs facing in toward the bottom of your ribs. Push hard. Swing your left leg to drag your foot up through your arms so the right foot follows and…stand!”
She’d tried this dozens of times before, usually hitting the water shortly after hands on the deck. But that day, she finally managed to get it right. She found that one glassy spot in the unbroken wave.
The rolling wave broke to her left. Crouched low and angling the board along the wave, she tucked in front of the crest and cruised. Then, she popped up, wobbling and laughing aloud with glee. Her stomach leapt, her brain fizzed, and everything else in the world fell away. Though she was only upright for about ten seconds, and the wave wasn’t much more than two feet high, the rush she experienced was like nothing else.
“That was awesome,” she cried triumphantly as she fell from the board with a splash. “Fucking awesome! Almost as good as flying.”
“You did it!” Dylan cried jubilantly, making his way toward her.
Laughing and sputtering, she threw herself into his arms, feeling like she’d just won a marathon.
“Your first real taste of surfer’s stoke,” Dylan said, stroking the wet hair from her face. “That’s what keeps you coming back.”
As they headed back to shore, she heard the sounds of cheering and applause. Startled, she turned toward the sound. Josh, who sat up high on the lifeguard’s stand, had his fist raised in a triumphant salute, and many of the guests scattered beneath the umbrellas and clustered around the tiki bar were clapping and hooting.
“What the…?” Kendra said, not quite understanding what was happening.
“It’s for you, Kendra,” Dylan said with a laugh. “They’re applauding your first ride. They’ve probably watched you wipe out every day for the past month. They’re your cheering section.”
Startled but pleased, Kendra waved toward her apparent admirers on the shore. When she turned to grin at Dylan, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her on the mouth, causing the hoots and cheers to grow louder. “I knew you could do it, Kendra.”
“That was awesome,” Kendra laughed, her entire body tingling from the brief but intense thrill. “Let’s do it again!”
Kendra stayed late that night in the kitchens, working with the new pastry chef they’d recently hired. Jacques was a French Canadian with a real talent for making the most flaky, buttery croissants Kendra had ever tasted. It was a skill Kendra had never quite mastered, and she was eager to learn. When they finally wrapped it up, it was already after ten.
Kendra hurried up to the suite to change. After a quick shower, she selected a sheer, lacy bodysuit cut high on the hips and low over the breasts from her growing collection of fetish wear. Ella had access to an online wholesale website for all things BDSM, and she shared the link with everyone on staff.
“Soon, you’ll have as many dungeon outfits as I do,” Abbie had teased her when yet another package was delivered.
“That’s impossible,” Kendra had retorted with a grin. “Because you never stop buying.”
“Can’t have too many diamonds or leather outfits,” Abbie had teased back. Then she frowned, though her eyes were dancing. “Not that I have any diamonds, mind you. But I’ll take leather over precious jewels any day of the week.”
The main dungeon was hopping when Kendra arrived. The crack of whips, the smack of paddles against flesh and the breathy cries of erotic pain and ecstasy greeted her as she entered the dimly lit space. The scent of leather, sweat, perfume and lust permeated the air.
Dylan was at his station. He had a female guest bound in beautiful Shibari knots that wrapped around her exposed breasts and body, twisting up between her legs and binding her upraised wrists to the hook that hung from the ceiling. Her head was thrown back, a look of sublime surrender on her face.