That afternoon the Narcisse anchored in a small cove whose mouth was partially blocked by a tiny but heavily wooded island. It was a truly snug little harbor, nice and still.
I went on a hike led by the naturalist, while Emmy and Angela opted to stay on the boat.
The trail wound its way up through the thickly forested slopes to the top of the ridge separating the little bay from the larger body of water that made up Stephens Passage. From up there the Narcisse looked like a little bathtub toy, floating serenely way down below.
The weather wasn’t pretty, but the low clouds added a certain sense of drama to the scene. I found a bare boulder to sit on to enjoy the view, letting my mind drift a bit.
I wondered briefly if Angela or Emmy were on deck, and if so, could they see us up there, high above the water?
“What’re you thinking about, that got you smiling like that?” The naturalist asked, plopping herself down on the rock next to me.
“Imagining the people on the Narcisse seeing us up here,” I said.
“Well, they certainly could, if they knew where to look,” she said. “All these bright colors,” she said, indicating the two of us as well as the three other hikers, “would stand out like a sore thumb if anybody down there was looking our way.”
Our rain jackets were red, or yellow, orange and bright blue, so I had to admit she was probably right.
After a minute or so, she asked, “Your girlfriends didn’t want to come out for a hike?”
“My wives,” I corrected. At her puzzled look, I said, “It’s a poly marriage.”
“Hey, I’m from Seattle,” she said. “I’ve seen it all. If it makes the three of you happy, go for it.”
“It does,” I said. “Very happy.”
“That’s cool,” she responded. “Just keep doing what it takes to let both of them know they’re special. That’s the key to successful marriages. My husband and I, we’ve been married for thirty-eight years this December, and I haven’t regretted a moment of that time.”
“Any kids?”
“Yeah, a son and a daughter. He leads mountaineering expeditions, and she teaches middle school math down in Seattle.”
“Grandkids?” I asked.
“No, not yet. David, that’s my son, he doesn’t seem as if he’s gonna settle down any time soon. Valentina and her husband have talked about starting a family once they get their careers stable, but that seems to be an ongoing process, so who even knows?” she said, thinking about it.
“What does Valentina’s husband do?”
“He manages a fancy wine bar restaurant downtown,” she said, somewhat dismissively, I thought. “For now.”
“Is it the place with the giant tower of wine?” I asked.
“You know it?” She asked, surprised.
“We had dinner there right before flying to Juneau,” I replied.
“Small world,” she said.
“Sometimes it seems that way, alright,” I agreed.
After a bit I asked, “Why did you say he works there ‘for now’?”
“Last time they had dinner at our house he told me the restaurant was losing money and may not be open for a whole lot longer,” she said.
“That sucks,” I commiserated. “We liked the place, but there wasn’t a whole lot of traffic there when we had dinner there. Of course, it was a very rainy midweek night.”
“The basic problem, as I understand it, is that there’s a lot of lunch business, since it’s downtown, but alcohol at business lunches isn’t really the thing anymore. Most locals don’t want to go downtown for dinner, so…” she said.
“And not enough tourists like us,” I said. After maybe a minute of contemplation, I said, “I own a company that runs high-end restaurants, nightclubs and bars. Maybe mention to your son-in-law that I might be interested in buying the wine bar if the owners are looking to sell. It would be good to add a Seattle restaurant to our portfolio.”
“You own a company that buys restaurants?” She asked, surprised.
“Yeah, I started it about six years ago, with a nightclub and restaurant in Vancouver. The hospitality division really isn’t much of a money maker, but that’s O.K. Profit isn’t really all that important,” I said. “The restaurants and nightclubs are primarily about putting people to work.”
“Division? This company of yours, it has other divisions?” She asked, looking at me.
“Our primary concerns are real estate investment, property management and development. That’s where the real money is,” I said with a shrug.
“And you started this company just a few years ago?” The naturalist asked, amazed.
“Yeah, in my freshman year in college,” I said.
“Jesus. In my freshman year I was mainly concerned with who could I get to buy me booze,” she said with a sigh.
“To be fair, that was what most of my classmates were concerned with, too,” I said with a chuckle.
Back at the boat, Angela and Emmy weren’t in the salon, so I checked our cabin. I found the two of them in bed, cuddling and and talking quietly. It didn’t smell like sex in the small room, so I think that was all they’d been doing.
“Hey, baby,” Angela said. “How was your hike?”
“It was good, but it’s almost dinnertime,” I replied, sitting on the edge of the bed and stroking her leg through the blanket. “You two should get dressed.”
“Is it really that late?” Emmy asked, surprised.
“It is,” I confirmed. “Almost six.”
Reaching over, I stroked Emmy’s leg. “What were you guys talking about?” I asked.
“Work, and life,” she said. “This is a conversation we need to have with you, too.”
“That doesn’t sound ominous at all!” I joked.
“It is not ominous,” Emmy said as Angela slid out of bed. We both took a moment to admire our long-haired beauty as she wiggled her way into a pair of tight jeans. When Angela put on a turtleneck and then the thick sweater she’d gotten in Sitka, Emmy turned back to me. “Actually, I believe it is a good thing. A good thing for all of us.”
“Alright, then I won’t dread the conversation,” I said. “But you really do need to get up.”
Emmy gave me a pout, so I leaned down and kissed her, getting a smile in return.
“I do love you so,” she said, reaching out to take my hand. I gave her a tug to get her up, enjoying watching the covers fall away from her slender body.
“I love it when you look at me like that,” Emmy said. “I love it very much.”
“Well, that’s fair,” I replied. “I love looking at you.” This earned me another smile, so I leaned in for another kiss. “Are you and Jack going to film tonight?” I asked.
“We will, if the conditions are correct. I hope that we can.”
“I’ll see you guys out there,” Angela said, impatient.
“Please order me some of that lovely Pinot,” Emmy said as Angela opened the door to leave.
“Pinot for me, too,” I said. “Thanks, Ange.”
Emmy took her time getting dressed, carefully picking out what she wanted to wear for the filming. She chose a heavy, pleated blue wool midi skirt over tights- almost a kilt, really, and the Haida-made sweater. She finished the ensemble off with a knit watch cap in the same color as the skirt, making for a sort of adorable rustic princess look.
We found Angela seated and waiting for us, our wine already poured. “I ordered dinner for you two,” Angela said when we sat down.
“Thanks, babe,” I said.
“Thank you, Angie,” Emmy said at the same time.
Only about half of the other passengers were seated, the rest trickling in as we ate our salads.
“I’ve been thinking about what you two said about yachts,” Angela said as she speared a cherry tomato. “I’ve always dreamed about having a yacht, ever since I was little. I always thought that when I became rich and famous, I’d buy one and sail around the world, you know? And maybe I still do want to buy one, but I have an idea. Instead of buying a yacht, why don’t we, um, rent a yacht for a few times and see how we like it, and how much we would use it?”
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
“I think when you rent a yacht it’s called chartering,” I said. “Of course, it comes with a crew already.”
“Exactly. Maybe we charter a yacht in Miami and sail down to Cartagena, see if we like it?” Angela suggested.
“I think that would be wonderful!” Emmy said.
“That is a good idea,” I agreed. “This way we can, um, test the waters, so to speak, to see if we’re the yacht type, without spending millions on a gamble.”
“You guys thinking about buying a yacht?” Hank asked from the next table. “My best advice: if it flies or floats, rent it.”
“I’ve heard the phrase before,” I said, rolling my eyes. “But you’re leaving part of it out.”
“Yeah, well…” Hank said, ruefully glancing at the twins sitting at a nearby table, making me laugh.
Both Emmy and Angela had puzzled looks on their faces, so I said, “I’ll explain later.”
After dinner, the crew cleared one side of the dining area and rolled up the canvas side so Jack and Emmy could film with the water and the woods behind her. It was gently raining, giving the forested hills surrounding the cove a soft look.
Jack figured they had less than an hour of natural light to work with, but the twilight descending to night in the background would make for a dramatic backdrop.
The guys in the crew turned up the heaters to keep us all warm and arranged chairs so every single person on the Narcisse could watch Emmy play.
Jack and Emmy had decided to skip the interview part and simply have Emmy talk a little about each song she played, to make it more of an intimate performance.
Emmy tuned her guitar while Jack only needed a few minutes to get set up, since they’d dialed in all the settings and positions already.
When Jack was ready he hit the record button on his camera and Emmy started to talk. As soon as he was satisfied the camera was recording, he stepped out of the way so we could all see better.
“I have been asked many times why The Downfall does so many covers,” Emmy said, looking into the camera lens. “Some critics have called us the world’s greatest cover band, as if that were an insult. The implication is that if we do not stick to our original songs we are somehow lesser musicians. Performing songs that others have written is unsuited for great artists, they suggest.” With that, she gave a shrug and a wry look, then started playing.
“In the twilight’s glow I see blue eyes crying in the rain,” she sang, sweet and tender. Emmy’s voice was clear and smooth, with only the most subtle of vibrato for emphasis.
Her voice soared as she sang the line, “Someday soon we’ll meet up yonder, and walk hand in hand again.”
A little noise from Angela made me look over at her, to see tears flowing freely down her cheeks. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and pulled her in to my side, letting her know that I understood.
“In a land that knows no parting, blue eyes crying in the rain,” Emmy sang, letting her voice fall away as she finished.
After the applause died down she looked at the camera and said, “That song was written by a man named Fred Rose and first performed by Roy Acuff, thirty years before Willie Nelson recorded it and made it a hit. Was Willie wrong for recording a song written by another?”
With that, she looked down at her guitar and strummed a chord. “I do not think so.”
Emmy sang a couple of Downfall songs after that, ‘I Can Only Dream’ from their first album and ‘Shards Of Sunlight’ from their most recent. ‘Dream’ was always a wistful song, but solo acoustic made it seem that much more personal. When she sang the lines, “When he says ‘Come on, we have to go’, I ache more than you can ever know,” I could feel the longing, the desire, in her voice. Her guitar playing was soft and subdued, somehow fitting the gentle rain on the water in the background.
‘Shards’ was a bit uptempo in comparison, her voice strong when she sang the line about overwhelming the dark with a thousand shards of sunlight. Her playing had gotten faster and louder as well, finishing in a triumphant coda.
Smiling at the small audience, Emma nodded acceptance of their applause.
“Thank you for that,” she said, looking around at the two dozen or so people packed in the small area at the aft end of the ship. “I hope you are enjoying this little show. I certainly am having fun singing for you.”
“My next song is another cover,” Emmy said. “Just because,” she said with a saucy grin at the camera.
“Don’t be angry if I’m so blue, each time we meet,” she sang, slow, but with strength in her voice. By the time she got to the last line of the first verse, “I can’t help myself the way I feel sometimes, I’m the jealous kind,” her voice was loud and clear, matched by the slinky slide guitar riff.
Emmy positively belted out, “Oh, baby, oh, baby, I’m the jealous kind,” nothing held back. Whenever Emmy sang like that it amazed me that such a powerful voice could come from such a slender body, but there it was. The power in her voice was tightly controlled, so even though it was strong and dynamic, it really wasn’t super loud, even though it felt that way.
The small audience absolutely ate it up, and gave her the longest applause so far when she finished.
Beaming wide, Emmy waited until the clapping died down before announcing that she only had one more song to play. It was almost full night behind her by this point, the green of the forest fading into the darkness.
“I see trees of green,” she sang, her voice clear and pretty again. “Red roses, too. I see them bloom for me and you. I think to myself, what a wonderful world.”
By the time she finished with the last line, “Yes, I think to myself, what a wonderful world,” the two dozen people watching were completely mesmerized, many mouthing the words as Emmy sang.
Emmy waited for the applause to end, then said, “I had a lovely time singing for you this evening. Thank you all for making this so much fun.”
When Emmy stood up and set her guitar in its case, one of the crew members said, “I’m gonna remember this for the rest of my life.”
In our cabin later, Angela said, “Em, I wish I had half the talent you have. You’re so amazing.”
“Ange is right, Em. I’ve seen you play and sing hundreds of times and it never gets old. I’m blown away every single time,” I said.
“I love to play for you two,” Em replied. “If I could only ever make two people happy with my music, I want it to be the two of you. Now take off your clothes and get into bed. I want to play some more, but just for you, nobody else.”
Angela and I did as she commanded and soon were snuggled together under the covers, while Emmy settled down on the one armchair in the snug little cabin, settling her guitar down on her lap.
“Angela, this is the very first song I ever played for Leah, and it made her cry. I was so mortified- I did not know what it meant to her, and how it would make her feel. Now, of course, I do, and every time I play it, I play it in memory of her father,” Emmy said, picking out those very familiar notes.
“So, so you think you can tell,” she sang, her voice soft.
Of course I knew before she even played her first note that I was going to cry, but that was O.K. It wasn’t a feeling I dreaded. In fact, I welcomed the sorrow, the feeling of loss. Dealing with these emotions in that place, with the two women I loved showing they loved me, was a welcome catharsis. Yes, I was in tears, but they were good tears.
Emmy played some instrumental music until I was done crying, then said, “And this is the first song I played for Angela.”
“Angie, oh, Angie, when will these clouds all disappear?” she sang, again keeping it soft and quiet.
By the time she finished with, “They can’t say we never tried,” Angela’s eyes were moist.
“Em, I love you so much,” Angela said when Emmy stopped singing. “You make me feel so… special, so…”
“You are special, babe,” I said, pulling her in a little closer.
“Very special,” Emmy agreed.
Angela’s smile of happiness lit up her innocent face. “I’m so in love with you two,” she said. “So in love it makes me feel like- like one of those blankets that you plug in? The kind that are electric?” She said, searching for the right words.
“They’re called ‘electric blankets’,” I said gently teasing.
“In Spanish they’re called ‘mantas electricas’, so same thing,” Angela said with a wry smile. “I mean the way you both love me, it makes me feel warm and… safe, comforted, like wrapped in an electric blanket. I can feel it pour into me from all sides. It makes me sleepy, knowing I will have only good dreams.”
“Angie, ma chere, I want to wrap you up in our love and make you feel safe and warm and cozy. I want you to only have beautiful dreams,” Emmy said, setting her guitar aside and joining us, but on top of the covers, since she was still dressed.
Emmy and I held Angela between us and kissed her.
“Em, come to bed,” I urged. We needed a real three-way snuggle.
Emmy quickly shed her clothes and washed her face and brushed her teeth, sliding under the covers in no time at all. The feeling of three of us, skin to skin, warm and cozy under the bed’s thick blankets, was perfect, and exactly what Angela needed. She was sandwiched in the middle between Emmy and me, a set of three spoons. It was perfect for me, too, since I could run my left hand from Angela’s muscular thigh to Emmy’s slender one and back again with no interruption. We didn’t talk at first, just reveling in the feel of bodies in close contact. Eventually I felt Angela’s breathing even out and realized that both she and Emmy had fallen asleep.
I lay there, contemplating my life and the two women that now shared it. One I’d loved for years, the other for only a little over a year. One who was only going to be with me ten more years or so, the other (hopefully) the rest of our lives.
I woke early, as always, but decided to stay in bed. I could hear it raining outside, so working out wasn’t going to be in the cards. Besides, bed was warm and comfy, and had gorgeous naked women in it, right?
I lifted myself up on one elbow so I could look at Emmy and Angela, sleeping peacefully. Emmy had turned around at some point, so the two were facing each other, sharing the same pillow. I marveled at the contrast- both were achingly beautiful, but yet totally different. I loved them both, but again, my relationship with Angela was very different than my relationship with Emmy.
Unable to help myself, I leaned over and gave Emmy a kiss. She didn’t wake up with the touch, but her lips did twitch into a little smile for a moment before relaxing again. I kissed Angela, making her eyes flutter open.
“Lee- what a great way to wake up,” Angela said as she focused on me. She glanced over and saw that Emmy was still snoozing, so she dropped her voice to a whisper. “I was having a very nice dream,” she said, smiling. She slowly eased away from Emmy a bit to let her sleep, then turned to face me. “You and Em were in it, and we were someplace tropical.”
I loved the way she pronounced it ‘tro pee CAHL’, letting her accent slip out a bit. “There was a beach, and the ocean was a pretty blue, and we were naked, enjoying the sun.”
“You know Em-” I started to say, but she continued, not letting me interrupt.
“We were sunbathing on beach chairs, drinking some orange drinks that had little umbrellas. And yes, I know Emmy can’t really sunbathe for very long, but it was a dream, O.K.?”
“O.K.,” I said, leaning down to plant a kiss on her forehead. “It does sound like a lovely dream.”
“It does,” Emmy agreed, her voice sleepy. “I want that, too. I want to go someplace tropical and drink delicious drinks in the sun, on the beach, naked with you two.”
“When you put it like like that,” I said, “It does sounds pretty damned good. You two stay here in bed- I’ll be back in a minute,” I said, climbing out from under the covers.
I threw on a pair of jeans and a fleece jacket, not bothering with anything underneath. Quickly making my way to the aft end of the ship where they were setting up for breakfast, I found the steward, who was also the bartender.
“Quick- I need three tropical drinks. Orange-colored, with tiny umbrellas, if you have them,” I told him.
Amused, he ducked behind the bar. “Alcoholic or non?”
“Alcoholic, for sure,” I said. “It’s gotta be after five o’clock somewhere, right?”
“You can’t drink all day unless you get started early,” he agreed with a laugh.
“Three Rum Punches to go,” the steward said, setting the three drinks on the bar. “You going to be able to get those back to your cabin alright?”
It was a valid question, since they were full to the rim and I only had just two hands.
“Would it be too much to ask for some help?” I pleaded.
“After last night, anybody on this old tub would happily do just about anything for you guys,” he said with a sincere smile. He handed me one of the stemmed glasses, taking the other two. “Lead the way.”
I knocked on the door and announced I had somebody with me, so when we entered Emmy and Angela had the covers pulled up. The steward and I set the drinks down on the little table, then he excused himself and left, reminding us that breakfast would be starting in half an hour.
“Yes! These were the drinks in my dream!” Angela said, her eyes wide.
I handed one to her, then the other to Emmy, before raising mine in a toast.
“Wait!” Angela said. “Take off your clothes first! We have to be naked!”
Amused, I set the glass down and did as she said, then raised the glass. Angela quickly threw the covers off herself and Emmy, then raised her own glass.
“To a life of nothing but lovely dreams,” I said.
“Lovely naked dreams,” Emmy added, and we all took sips, doing our best to avoid the umbrellas and pineapple chunks festooning our glasses.
“That’s good,” Angela said, enjoying the rum punch.
“As good as in your dream?” Emmy asked.
“Better- because it’s real,” Angela replied, making Emmy smile.
“You two are so beautiful,” I said. “I’m seriously considering pouring some of my drink on you two and then licking it off your naked bodies.”
“Like in my dream!” Angela said, her eyes wide.
Emmy’s sparkling laugh filled the small cabin. “I think that will be real, too, if Leah has her way.”