The Hotwife Cruise: Cassandra 4

For those of you just tuning in, this is part of my upcoming book in the Hotwife Cruise series, a collaboration with the other ACHE authors. Find all of the chapters of my story here, and definitely check out the other books in the series.

Chapter 5

Cassandra regretted her shoes after the first half hour ashore. The cork-heeled Jimmy Choo sandals, even with their more modest heel, were not ideal for walking through the streets of downtown Nassau.

Still, it was good to be on solid ground, the sun bright in a cloudless blue sky. The weather was perfect, just touching the 80s, with a salty breeze coming off of the ocean and rustling through the palm trees lining the boulevard. So much nicer than the slushy weather of the Pacific Northwest in January. 

All around them, vendors hawked their wares—vibrant bolts of fabric, intricate wood carvings, artwork made of polished sea shells and paint. Cassandra took it all in, breathing deeply and savoring the mingled scents of saltwater, spices, and suntan lotion that perfumed the air. She loved to travel, to experience new things, to immerse herself in local culture.

Marshall was less into it than she was, although he seemed surprisingly patient as they browsed the market. She realized why a moment later, as he paused and said, “Ah, now here we go.”

She followed his gaze to a small storefront of scandalously skimpy swimsuits and sarongs. Each eye-catching ensemble looks tailor-made to leave absolutely nothing to the imagination.

“I see,” she said as he flashed her a toothy grin. “And here I was, thinking you were looking for a new cutting board.”

He wandered over to the shop. “That really sound like me?”

“Good point.” 

“I’ll buy you one.” He paused, running a fingertip over the silky material of a minuscule vibrant, pink bikini.

“How generous of you.”

“It’s why you married me.” He picked the pink bikini off the rack. “For my generosity.”

Cassandra laughed. “A real philanthropist.”

“I support a number of charities.” He plucked another suit off, a metallic gold monokini that would cover almost nothing.

“I know, dear. I wrote the checks.”

“Try these on,” he said, adding a third suit to the mix. “Model them for me like a good girl.”

“Honey, I don’t know. These are pretty out there.”

“Have you seen some of the suits aboard the ship? When in Rome…”

She took the suits from him and said, “That’s true. All of my suit bottoms had backs.”

“A genuine tragedy,” Marshall said, nodding.

Cassandra rolled her eyes with a laugh, then disappeared behind the small screen that made for a changing room. Wiggling out of her sundress and bra, she put the pink thong bikini on over her actual thong. Even still, it was shockingly revealing, cut high over her hip bones, the top barely containing her large breasts.

Emerging self-consciously, she struck a pose for Marshall. A few others passing along the street grinned and nodded. One tourist woman, carrying a solo cup and already looking flushed, shouted, “You go, girl!”

Marshall frowned at her underwear. “I can’t try on the suit without it,” she said.

“Then we’ll buy it. And the other two. But wear that one out along with…” He selected a white fishnet coverup that wouldn’t do much covering up. “…this.”

He did this. He had this habit of making her feel like an erotic plaything. Truth be told, she didn’t always mind it. There was a thrill in surrendering control, allowing herself to become the living embodiment of her husband’s deepest, darkest fantasies. But she wasn’t feeling it then. She was feeling… reduced.

She changed into the bikini and “coverup” anyway as Marshall paid the shop owner, stashing her clothing in her bag. He seemed to know that he’d pushed things too far, though, stepping up to her and brushing her cheek with his thumb. “Relax, baby doll,” he said. “We don’t know anyone here. You can be whoever you want.”

“You mean I can be whoever you want.”

He threaded his fingers into hers and led her back onto the street. She fought back that exposed sensation. Plenty of women were walking around in bikinis, some just as small as hers.

“Don’t you always say that what I want, you want?” he asked.

“You’re being an ass, dear,” she said. But her anger was short-lived. He was mostly right—they didn’t know anyone here.

Well, except for Austin…

*****

Austin and Faye had lunch at a small sidewalk cafe in Nassau. “God, I can’t get over this weather,” Faye said. “No clouds!”

“So different from our honeymoon.” A server came by with a smallround cake covered in chocolate, plus a couple of spoons. “All that rain.”

“Belize in September probably wasn’t the best idea.”

“Yeah, probably should have researched that one better,” he admitted. “This is nice though.”

Faye’s eyes wandered out over the people strolling through the quaint streets. Despite it being January, a season Austin equated with gray and gloom, the atmosphere here was like Carnival.

She made eye contact with a Latino man strolling by, shirtless, holding the hand of a stunning redhead. He winked at her and was gone. “Definitely nice,” she said, glancing back at Austin. “This still feels surreal.”

She was clearly no longer talking about the paradise around them, but of the cruise, the lifestyle, the sex. Which was fair. It wasn’t far from his mind, either.

“So last night was fun?” He was torn between wanting to know and fearing that she’d torment him more. Or maybe he was hoping that she would.

Faye turned her attention back to him, like a cat remembering that she was in the presence of a mouse. Austin shifted, his chest preemptively tightening. “You know the answer to that, but yes. So much fun.”

Austin licked his lips nervously. “Was he…” Large? Austin squirmed, hating that it was the first question to come to mind. “…married? He’s here on this cruise. I guess I’m just not sure how this all works.”

The way Faye was smiling at him, she knew exactly what he really wanted to know. Mercifully, she didn’t taunt him with it. She shook her head. “He’s not. Apparently he’s on the ship for our pleasure.”

Austin thought of the man, his smugness, his complete dismissiveness. “Like a male prostitute?”

“Not exactly. I’m pretty sure he’s not paid, although I wouldn’t be surprised if his cabin was comped. And there are others, all with big… aspirations.”

“Interesting.”

“Not the word I’d use,” she said with a light laugh. “Exciting, maybe? But you’re also not wrong.”

“Are you… are you going to see him again?”

“What answer are you hoping for, dear?”

“I… I don’t think you should… limit yourself. Not with all your… options.”

Faye tossed her head back as she laughed. “Did he make you uncomfortable, Austin?”

“I just don’t…” Want to be humiliated? “…want to be left out.”

“Okay. Tonight then, I’ll make sure you get a front row seat.” Judging by how she was staring at him, he wasn’t sure if that was a good thing.

“What is the plan for tonight?”

“There’s a rave.”

“Right. Are we… you want to go to that? I’ve never…”

“Oh, yes, dear. It’ll be fun. Don’t you want to see your sexy wife get all dolled up and sweaty as she dances with some hot guys?”

Austin’s pants tightened. “Put like that… sounds fun.”

The bill arrived. Faye paid, and as she signed the check, she said, “I think I’m going to go lay out on the beach. Join me?”

At that moment, she passed And while the white fishnet coverup did nothing to actually merit its name, it was her, currently on the arm of an older man, who drew Austin further in. She was laughing at something her escort said, her lush, golden hair bouncing. Cassandra. Austin’s heart literally throbbed, and even he groaned at the cliche.

Mercifully, Cassandra didn’t see him. He wondered if the man was her husband, or one of the studs brought on by the cruise. Either way, he felt the burn of jealousy that was normally reserved for his wife.

Faye noticed him checking Cassandra out, but of course she had no idea of the connection.

“Plenty more of that on the beach,” she said.

He didn’t want to lay in the sand when he could explore this paradise of a town. He wished they’d gone on an excursion somewhere, seen more of the island. But he also knew that the beach would be safe. No chance of running into Cass again.

“Sure, let’s do the beach.”

Chapter 6

Cassandra could hear the party long before she saw it. She could feel the thump of the music along the deck. She could smell the ozone, the drinks, the energy.

“Excited, babydoll?” Marshall ran his thumb along Cassandra’s spine as they approached the cruise ship’s ballroom-turned-club.

She met his eyes and smiled. “Yes.” And she was. For maybe the first time since they’d come aboard, she was genuinely excited.

“Only took about a day-and-a-half?”

“Not true. It’s been fun. Nassau was beautiful.”

The white lie couldn’t fool Marshall. She never could. “Relax, Cassie. Embrace the moment. You can have anyone. You will have anyone. No strings here.”

Maybe it took walking around in public in basically a thong, but she’d dropped any lingering inhibitions from home. He was right. Here, hedonism reigned.

Nothing reinforced that point more than stepping into the club, awash in black light and the relentless beat of electropop. Cassandra’s hips fell into the driving rhythm, her shoulders starting to rock and swing. In the dark, under those lights, Cassandra’s white outfit started to glow—the bandeau top that left her midriff bare, the short, white skirt, the straps of her sandals that coiled up her calves. 

In fact, she was the outfit, the rest of her body fading into the murk. It was like that with everyone—only the glowing bits of them moved and shifted, women in luminescent bikinis, shirtless men adorned in neon paint. It was Día de los Muertos meets orgy. It was a fever dream.

A woman with green and pink face paint spun by them, running her fingers across Cassandra’s face. Her partner, a man with a shaved head and a bright, blue stripe of paint down the center, said something that Cassandra didn’t hear, but she had the feeling it was something dirty.

“This is insane,” she said to Marshall. Her husband shook his head, leaning close and shouting back, “What?”

“Nevermind. Let’s dance!”

He shook his head, pointing to the bar and miming that he was getting a drink. She nodded, following him over to the bar, where a sexy bartender with her face painted to look like she was wearing a mask fixed them up a couple of cocktails that glowed blue under the lights.

“Want a little something extra?” she asked as she handed them their drinks.

“Extra?” Cassandra asked, confused.

The bartender flashed a clear vial of something she was holding in her hand, there and gone so fast that Cassandra wasn’t sure she’d imagined it. “Molly.”

“Oh, no thank you,” she said quickly, flustered by such an overt offer.

“That could be fun,” Marshall said.

She glanced at him, her heart skipping. “Nope, not a good idea.” He looked ready to challenge her, to push her. He was forever pushing her. She stepped close, fingering his white shirt, which, like all the white in the place, was alight. “We don’t need that to have a good time, and trust me, honey, I want to remember tonight.”

It worked. He nodded, running his hands along her body. “I bet you do.”

The music dropped to a lull as the DJ came on. “The body paint booth is now open, ladies and gentlemen. Get over there and show off your creativity! We have artists to help. There will be prizes for the best design!”

“I’m going to leave you here,” he said. “But I’ll be watching. Find someone who’ll make tonight… memorable.”

He kissed her passionately, spanked her ass, and disappeared into the crowd. Cassandra took a deep breath, lifted her glowy drink, and drank half of it.

“Okay,” she said, looking around. “Let’s do this.”

*****

Austin watched Faye bump and grind on a young, fit guy wearing a tank top that glowed yellow. He had bands of alternating paint, orange and yellow, lacing his muscular arms, and wore a pair of ridiculous sunglasses that were also designed to light up.

There’d been a time when watching Faye lose herself in another man had felt like such a rush. The first time that she’d fucked someone else in front of him was still one of the most intense things he’d ever seen.

But as with any form of drug, Austin eventually developed a tolerance to it. So each time she did it, that tolerance only grew stronger. Lately, it seemed like she was doing it all the time.

Austin went to take a sip of his drink, only to realize that nothing but ice remained in his clear plastic cup. He gave Faye and her new man one last look before pushing into the crowd, heading for the bar.

This place was going nuts. They’d been here an hour already, and during that time, what had started as a charged rave had started to trend closer to an orgy. Faye and her dance partner were tame compared to what he was seeing. Half of the women seemed to be topless. People were making out all over the place. 

As he passed by a set of couches in the chillout space, he watched as a guy with a shaved head went down on a brunette with flames painted all over her naked body, while a busty blonde sucked on her nipples.

“Jesus,” he groaned at the spectacle. A semi-circle of guys had gathered around the sofa, watching as the brunette arched her back and came hard. It wasn’t sex, but that would come next.

He started back toward the bar when the sight of Cassandra brought him up short again. Fate kept putting her in his path, and every time it did, his nerves thrummed and he felt light-headed. Guilt wasn’t far behind. He was married, and Cassandra was his past. It shouldn’t feel this good.

Now more than ever, because she wasn’t alone. She was leaning against the bar as a large man who looked like Thor hit on her.

God, she looked good. Unlike so many of the women here, trying so hard to fit into this party scene and failing, Cassandra seemed effortless. She wasn’t wearing any body paint. She didn’t have silly glasses or glow necklaces or any of it. She was just Cassandra, wearing a sexy white top and skirt, which counted as borderline vanilla here.

Thor leaned down, running his hand through his thick, golden locks, and said something to her that made her giggle and blush. Biting her lip, she nodded. He slid his hand into hers and pulled her along as she searched the crowd—searched for her husband.

Instead of finding him, her eyes landed on Austin’s. It felt like someone had stepped on his chest. Like that, the air was out of his lungs. This is what it used to feel like with Faye, he thought. Or so he was pretty sure.

Her eyes went as wide as his. Her lips parted, and when she glanced at her large companion, she looked embarrassed. Austin tried to force his expression into something like a reassuring smile, but it probably came out like a man ready to be sick. That’s how he felt, anyway.

Yet at the same exact time, he was so fucking turned on. So much so that he almost forgot what the hell he was doing there until he found himself at the bar again, ordering another drink. He did that on autopilot, anxious to get back to the dance floor.

He did not remember the bartender asking about extras—which she had. He didn’t remember watching her stir something clear into his drink—which he also had. And he certainly didn’t remember finishing most of it before he even made it back to the sea of dancing humanity.

At some point, though, as he searched for Faye… or Cassandra… the whole world began to bounce. For a second, he thought that the ship had hit some large waves, and yet he couldn’t stop smiling. Someone moved past him, a topless Asian woman holding glow sticks. Her lips were coated in something that made them catch the light, and when she smiled, he smiled.

“You’re cute,” she said as she passed.

“So are you!” he found himself saying. She was cute, and she deserved to hear that from him.

The room continued to bounce and roll, like the ocean was in the room, surging and swelling along the floor. Hands were in the air. Lights streaked across his vision—lights that felt fucking good.

“What the fuck is happening?” he said aloud as he stared at his hands and laughed. He had nice hands, and they felt good on his face.

People swirled around him as he lost himself in the chaos of the dance floor. And he danced, moving his body without the inhibitions that he’d built up over the years. He didn’t care who stared. He didn’t care if he looked ridiculous. Not anymore. He just did what felt good.

And what felt good was the smoking hot brunette with South Asian features and a tight body who pressed herself against him.

“You look like you’re having fun!” she shouted into his ear. Her breath smelled like mint and vodka, and her lips looked amazing, like perfectly sculpted bows.

“You have nice lips,” he said, the words tumbling out.

“I do like them,” she said with a delighted laugh. “Want to kiss them?”

“Can I?”

She just laughed again and pulled him in for a deep, surprisingly soft kiss. Her tongue was warm and wet, playful, alluring. When he felt her hand run up between his legs, he shivered.

“I should go. I’m married.”

“So am I,” she yelled back. “That’s kind of the point of this cruise.”

Austin just laughed, moving on, dancing with random people as he floated about, searching for…

“Cass.” He mouthed the words like he was sharing a secret with the yawning cosmos. She didn’t hear him, of course. She didn’t even see him, but he saw her, and the love and affection he had for her was profound.

“See that blonde?” he said to the guy who happened to be dancing next to him. “I love her.”

“Right on, man. She’s fucking hot!”

“I know, right?”

She wasn’t alone. She was now dancing with the Thor guy, her back to the faux thunder god, her ass pressed against his pelvis as he ran his hands up over her tits. Maybe it was the lighting, or maybe it was whatever chemical high that he finally realized that he was on, but she glowed. And it was more than just the black lights and the white clothing and the platinum hair. She was his angel.

And she was having fun, so he was having fun.

“There you are, Austin!”

“Faye!” Austin crowed. “I’ve missed you sooo much, honey!” And with that, he threw his arms around his wife and squeezed her tight.

Faye pulled back, eyeing him, immediately suspicious. “You on something?”

He shrugged, then started to smile. “Pretty sure I am, but I have no idea. Aw, why do you look like that, babe. I’m doing great.”

She snorted a laugh. “I bet you are.” 

A man draped his arm around Faye’s shoulders. He was bare-chested, had painted his nipples hot pink, and had scrawled “Stunt Cock” on his abs. “This the husband?” he asked.

Before Faye could respond, Austin gave the man a broad smile and held out his hand. “Oh, hello there. You look like my wife’s type!”

“Yes, this is Austin, who appears to have been roofied.”

“Not roofied. But I think the bartender gave me something stronger than alcohol.” He couldn’t stop smiling, and he felt good everywhere.

The man just looked amused at the whole thing. Faye, on the other hand, continued to look put out, and that made Austin sad for her. “Oh, don’t let this ruin your night, honey. Go on, take ‘stunt cock’ here back to our room.”

“I like this man,” Stunt Cock said.

Faye sighed. “I can’t leave him like this.”

“Oh, he’ll be fine,” the guy said. “Plenty of people around here are rolling like crazy.”

“I’m sure, but only this one is my husband, and I can’t trust him after just a few drinks. No telling what this’ll do.”

Austin looked perplexed, their conversion sinking slowly through the fog of Molly and vodka. “Don’t worry about me, babe! I’ll be fine, and everyone’s having such a good time…”

“See?” the guy said. “He’s all good. Now come on, let’s make the time even better.”

Austin was so happy for Faye as he watched the guy guide her off the dance floor. He kept dancing, lost in the music and the bodies all around him. Every brush against another person felt like magic. Every smile he shared was like meeting his soulmate for the first time.

“Hi.” “Hello.” “You’re so beautiful.” “You’re such a good dancer.”

Everyone was friendly. Everyone was there with him, living their best life, living this moment.

Cassandra materialized out of the crowd, strobe lights catching in her hair. It was the fog, the smoke, the psychedelic lighting, but he swore he saw angel wings rising up around her. “Cass,” he sighed.

This time, she heard him. This time, she saw him. Thor was gone, and she had a look of concern etched across her beautiful face.

“Are you okay, Austin?”

“I’m so okay.” He stepped up close to her, slipping his hands over her hips. Her skin felt so soft. How was her skin so soft? “I’ve never been more okay.”

She cocked her head, studying him. “Let me guess, you got something ‘extra’ from the bar?”

“I did!” She got it. She always got it. He thought. Or maybe he was speaking. It was hard to tell where his thoughts ended and his mouth began. “You always got me, Cass. Why did we ever break up?”

He felt her fingers entwine with his, and that felt amazing, too. He squeezed her hand, which seemed to fit so perfectly in his. “I love you, Cassandra. Like, I’ve always, always loved you.”

She looked at him with an expression that he couldn’t decipher through his drug-induced haze. “Come on, let’s get you some water, and somewhere quieter.”

“You don’t want to dance? I love to dance.”

Cassandra laughed. “Now I know you’re on something. Unless you’ve really changed. Come along, my love. Just… trust me.”

And he did. He always had. He always would.

*****

So what happens next? Leave your comments below, and find out next Tuesday!

If you're at all curious about the Glow Party Rave, or want to read more about that brunette on the sofa, check out Kirsten McCurran's book. The brunette is Nicole from The Hotwife Cruise: Nicole (naturally).

You can preorder The Hotwife Cruise: Cassandra, on Amazon now. It'll be out February 27, 2025, at all major retailers.