6. Teddy

Swimming with pigs is way more fun than I expect, and we end up rushing to get back to the ship before the five pm cut-off.

"I thought you'd be the reason we almost got left behind at one of the stops," I pant, holding my side as Jamie and I catch our breaths.

"We're not the last ones, at least," Jamie points to a dark-haired guy dragging an older man up the ramp while the crew work to unmoor us from the pier.

"Our lost sailors have returned!" The two men are greeted by the ever-peppy Magic who welcomed us similarly a few minutes before. "Sam, Marcos, did you have fun?"

"Daddy thought he could drink me under the table."

The term, Daddy, has me doing a double take and listening more closely than I probably should. They aren't touching each other like father and son. The younger one hefts the older one, supporting his whole weight on impressive shoulders while his other hand rubs his "Daddy's" broad chest.

"Marcos challenged me," the older man mumbles with humor. He must be Sam. "I forgot I haven't been out drinking like that in years."

"Well, sometimes Daddies need taking care of, too," Magic winks, and I remember being annoyed at him doing the same to Jamie. It doesn't bother me towards these strangers, but I have no clue why. "Do you want to visit the liquids lounge?"

The younger guy, Marcos, turns Magic down and they head off, which puts the attention back on us. I have no clue what a liquids lounge is, but I could use some water after a day in the sun. I try to steer Jamie away, but Magic stops us.

"Still might need you two for the game tomorrow night," he calls out like he's singing.

Where does he get the boundless energy to socialize, and can I have some?

"We're still a maybe," Jamie jumps in for me. "But I could use some liquid libations. What's this lounge?"

"Oh, that! The liquid lounge is where you can get an IV of fluids with nutrients to perk you up after overindulging." Magic chuckles before cupping his hand as if telling us a secret, "My guess is that boy is a brat and he wants his Daddy to feel the hangover."

"Ah, I see," Jamie replies with wide eyes, clearly as shocked as me to hear the gossip. Hopefully I hide it better. "Well, we're going to go find a drink."

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do," Magic calls out and skips off.

"Did he really just skip?"

"Yeah, I think he did," Jamie chuckles and leads the way toward the on-deck bar we went to the evening before. "Let's give ourselves a reason to check out that lounge."

"Last night wasn't enough?" I follow and roll my eyes at his back. "Can we eat before we drink more, this time?"

"To the buffet," Jamie calls out and some other guests cheer. There's an atmosphere of celebration I haven't felt before. I catch up so we can walk side by side and he throws his arm over my shoulders. "What do you want to do after food if not drinks? Gym?"

"My muscles could use less action for a couple hours."

Jet skis were more work than I expected. And the sun zaps my energy since I'm used to being hunched over books all day.

"Hot tub?"

"I'm down," I nod and let Jamie order drinks for us.

Looking down the bar, I notice another pairing of older man and younger, with the man who looks to be in his mid-twenties ordering for the one with a full white beard. I elbow Jamie and tilt my chin up to direct his attention towards them.

"Think they're a…" I'm not sure what to call the relationship like the one we encountered with Magic a few minutes before. "Daddy and brat or whatever pairing?"

"What are you talking about?" Jamie scrunches his forehead and tries to hide a smirk. He knows what I'm asking, but he wants to hear me say it.

"Like the drunk guy and his boyfriend, he called the older man Daddy. It sounded like Magic wasn't surprised. Like it's common in this community?"

Jamie turns to lean his elbows on the bar, looking out at the assembled guests having drinks by the pool. "I feel like that's true, from what I hear and see on social media."

I'm not sure why I'm pushing him on this, or why I'm so fixated, but my curiosity gets the best of me and Jamie always answers my questions. Usually with minimal judgment.

"So do you think the Santa-looking man with the skinny guy at the end of the bar are in that type of relationship?"

Jamie watches as the bartender hands them their drinks, the older man waiting for the younger to hand his tropical beverage over before thanking him. "If they are, the skinny guy is the Daddy, and Santa is the boy."

"No way? Really?" I watch their interaction and see the younger guy put his hand on the older man's lower back to guide him away. He did seem to be the one leading the larger man. "Huh, didn't know that was a thing."

"Stereotyping is bad," Jamie says sagely. "You pay a lot of attention to gay kinks?"

"What? No," I punch Jamie in the arm and feel my face heat.

We get our drinks and Jamie hands me mine before we head in towards a buffet line. It's not too long, so I sip the fruity cocktail he picked out while we wait.

"Does that mean I'm the Daddy in our relationship?" Jamie asks far too loudly for my taste.

"What the fuck, Jamie?" I whisper-hiss, "Shut up. Why would you say that?"

"I order for us, book our vacations," Jamie ticks off his fingers, "I even picked our apartment and speak for you in social situations…Yeah, I'm your Daddy."

"Get it, Daddy," a random person calls out from down the line.

The punch to his shoulder is harder than before, because he needs to shut the hell up. My face feels like it's a hundred degrees, and I don't think I got a sunburn on shore. Because Jamie kept reminding me to put on sunblock…

"Fine. Ow, that hurt." Jamie drops the conversation and we get through dinner without him razzing me again.

By the time we drop off our extra things and change in our room before hitting the hot tub, the sun is setting, and my embarrassment has faded. Jamie picks a deck with a sauna and pool in the same space, and on one side it's enclosed, but with open windows. The view of a sunset over the ocean is breathtaking.

"Wow."

"Beautiful," Jamie agrees as we kick off our sandals and step up to the bubbling water.

"Romantic, right?" a woman with curly blonde hair piled on top of her head comments. I don't have a reply since I'm not really the romance type. She's cozied up with a redhead, both in bikinis, so I can guess they're a couple.

"Sure is," Jamie drops the towel he's had wrapped around him since we left our room onto a nearby chair.

His swimsuit, if you can call it that, is not the trunks he wore on the shore excursion. Those stopped a couple inches above the knee and were loose. This scrap of clothing barely covers his privates, and is bright pink with green palm fronds. His upper body is tan from going shirtless most of the day, but his legs have a tan-line below where his hair gets thinner on his thighs.

And I can't stop staring.

Before I can speak, a guy with his feet in the hot tub whistles. I notice he's in similarly skimpy bikini bottoms as Jamie. My friend smirks, loving the attention, and I feel a surge of annoyance I can't quite place. The difference is probably the bulge at the front of Jamie's, which feels indecent.

Grabbing him by the wrist, I pull Jamie into the water to sit on the built in bench and hide his crotch from public viewing. Jamie practically falls into the seat beside me, sloshing the water as I gasp at the sudden temperature change.

"What's the rush?"

"What are you wearing?" I grumble under my breath, hoping the sound of the jets keeps my words from carrying across the water.

No such luck.

"Don't want everyone hitting on your man?" The redhead asks with a small smile.

"No."

My answer makes no sense, since Jamie isn't my man, but I don't know how else to reply. We have been mistaken as a couple for most of the trip, and maybe that's rubbing off?

Jamie raises a brow at me but throws an arm over my shoulders when I don't add anything. "He's possessive."

The man nods and stands to walk away, but Jamie doesn't remove his arm. After a few minutes, the women leave to get in the pool, and Jamie still doesn't speak. I feel like I have to say something.

"I don't want people ogling you…because you're not interested," I add on at the end because I don't have a real answer.

"Of course not."

"Good."

Something about this cruise has me feeling out of sorts. So when Jamie offers to get us another drink, I don't argue.