Cote d'Azur Wedding Ch. 04

This is a true story which happened while on a business trip to Europe. Doing a favor for a business colleague turned into an opportunity to explore an unknown side of elegance, culture and fantasy of which I will never forget.

Chapter 4

Once Marco left, I took a quick shower myself and then got ready to go. The beach itself was right in front of the hotel and pretty crowded. I elected to get one of the rental chaise lounges run by the hotel. I had room towels, but they were not quite big enough to give enough room to lay out without touching sand.

Once I got comfortable, I surveyed the beach area. It was a very mixed crowd. Lots of families with kids, also what appeared to be a lot of tourists. I guessed that only perhaps 30 percent of the women were topless. I had been to beaches in the South of France and Nice before, so it was not totally surprising, but I might have guessed the fraction would be higher. The quality of bodies looked pretty typical too – some who had nice beach bodies and some who did not. But no one seemed to care, which was also my attitude. I did observe there were lots of the men wearing "European style" briefs which were the small Speedo type.

I had worn a red bikini with a sarong style covering and flat sandals with my hair up. I reapplied sunscreen, but thought to myself this was quite the letdown after the "Marco service". My bikini itself was on the skimpy side, but not too bad. The bottom had more covering than a thong and the top was a tie style which gave my breasts a lot of exposure and a little support. But the top did not matter so much as I quickly removed it.

I had my normal small exhilaration wondering whether anyone had watched, but I very quickly relaxed. As I lay in the sun, I began to think about what had happened with Marco, about whether to tell Jurgen or not. He and I had been intimate of course, and I was his escort for the party, but it was not like we were dating nor had any understanding. And I had been discrete so none of his friends could know. I wondered what kind of reaction Jurgen would have, but one thing was clear, I had thoroughly enjoyed the last 24 hours. The party and the sex had made my visit to Nice quite memorable already. I had not really made any decision on what to do, but I was not overly concerned either.

The water of the Cote d'Azur was a beautiful blue and many people were swimming and doing other common beach activities. I was drinking the local rose' wine. My alcohol consumption when traveling is definitely more than at home, but without a reason to drive, I was enjoying the indulgence.

The beach staff was younger people like Marco, dressed in light shorts and shirts. Very professional. However, I could not help but think when the young man who brought my drink came by – what reaction did he have to another topless woman. I suppose you could get totally deadened to it, but I had made that assumption with Marco as well and found out it depended on the looks of the woman too.

I had been at the beach for about 20 minutes and decided to have a walk down the beach. The bold part was that I did not put my top back on as I strolled, the conservative part left my sunglasses on in case of "some guy with a camera".

I walked for about 15 minutes in one direction. I drew my share of looks, but did not mind. I saw each particular section of the beach had its own particular personality with respect to families and the degree of nudity. I did see one section where there were a number of women fully nude, although even then there was a variety. I love to people watch, not just on the beach. And this was no exception. I suppose the "watch and be watched" slogan would fit. In any event, I was glad to be in good shape and I expected that I had one of the nicer beach bodies and did not mind if people noticed.

I made it back to my chair and got comfortable again. There was now a couple in the chairs next to me, probably about my age.

They said hello, and during a few seconds of dialog, we discovered everyone was American. Lee and Karen were from the Boston area, here on vacation. They had really not traveled very much and during our discussion, they asked a lot of questions, both locally and of various other places I had been.

Lee had on American style trunks and Karen had on a relatively modest black bikini. It was probably after about 10 minutes when she asked how I felt about going topless. Apparently they had arrived on Friday and she had still not given it a try.

I said, "You should do what you want. If you are not ready or comfortable, then wait. But you might find you like it."

Lee was just listening in, as he sat on one side with Karen in the middle between us. She was again asking how I felt and what it was like.

I responded, "It doesn't really matter how it feels for me, you should do what is right for you. I enjoy the freedom and it does not bother me if the guys, or women, check me out."

I further mentioned I had been going to topless and nude beaches for several years and had gotten quite accustomed to it. But I think what probably connected with her the most was when I said I still got nervous each time and that I could get unwanted attention sometime, but it was no big deal and I dealt with it.

Karen replied, "Well, I could probably give topless a try, but I could never go nude. That would be too much."

I said, "I had a similar attitude initially as well, but you would be surprised that when you are at a beach where practically everyone is already nude, it was not as big a leap as you might expect."

She inquired and I described the solitude of some of the Hawaiian beaches, as well as the crowd at Haulover, the English garden in Munich, etc.

I could tell she was beginning to warm up to the idea. I also got the idea Lee was extremely intelligent to be quiet and had probably enjoyed hearing Karen get the woman's perspective. I guess he had been hoping she would go topless, but had not been successful in persuading her. And the truth be told, I was not trying to persuade her to do it either, but that could have been the effect.

After a while of some additional discussion and questions, she turned to Lee, "What do you think baby, should I?"

Lee confirmed my suspicions, saying, "Totally your call baby, but you know I don't mind. Like Beth said, do it if and when you are ready."

I though 'nice', as any pressure would have likely killed it.

I commented, "If you are going to do it, don't put your toe in the water, just dive in."

She laughed, and did just that. She took her top off just like that and leaned back with a smile.

I laughed, "See, the world did not stop, and you will feel better too."

Lee had a big smile on his face. Both of them had what I would call normal bodies, not bad, but not supermodels either. I thought she would now get to enjoy this new experience.

Karen laughed in return, "You don't understand. I figured this would be the least self-conscious way to do it for me. No one is going to be looking at me with you here."

I smiled back, "Nonsense. And look at Lee over there smiling."

Slight deflection, as Lee had been looking over at me quite a lot while listening in on our conversation.

He finally commented, "Haven't you both heard that French beaches were invented by a guy?"

OK, not a bad comeback to which Karen quipped, "Well, cheaper than letting you go to strip clubs."

I like clever people. I found out both were engineers working for one of the large automakers. So we talked shop for a little while as I get involved in some of the latest advanced technology being implemented today for fuel economy.

While they were on vacation, both were jealous I got to be laying next to them on a business trip. Since I knew Nice and the surrounding area a little, I gave them some tips for where to go for restaurants and night clubs. They had a rental car, so I suggested they drive to St. Tropez if they had time.

They asked if I would mind watching their things while they strolled the beach. However, despite that Karen had taken the plunge and gone topless, she would not even consider walking around that way. Lee looked a little disappointed as she put her bikini top back on, but it was easy to tell she was adamant. My own thought was 'good for her' that she made a personal choice and stuck to it.

While they were out walking, I had another glass of wine served by the eager to help young waiter. I was sure he would remain attentive. I broke a cardinal rule and took my blackberry to the beach. I checked emails and made a couple of calls for things that could not wait, but it was only about 15 minutes.

Karen and Lee returned. They had not been out very long, and both chided me for the 'work at the beach'. I cut them off by mentioning that handling things while I am away is one of the reasons I am able to take trips like this. Touche'.

I went over to the shower to rinse off and cool down a little. I was planning to head back to the room and maybe go out to the pool for a little bit. Unlike Karen, I did not mind walking around topless. As I walked away, I could imagine the two of them watching. My speculation was confirmed as I came back to the chair after rinsing off. Both had seemed to linger watching as I walked back. I guess having a nice body and large natural breasts will have that effect. Karen commented while I stood there toweling off, "I need to get back to the gym."

I was sympathetic and said, "I probably run about 15 – 25 miles a week. It is not easy to find the time. And traveling a lot with fancy meals is always a challenge too."

She said, "Well, whatever you are doing is working. You look great."

Lee was smart enough to avoid that part of the conversation completely, but that did not stop him from enjoying the view.

They asked what I had planned for the evening and I mentioned a friend and I were having dinner. They had hoped for a nightlife tour guide it seems.

We chatted a little more, but I thought it was time to go back. We said our goodbyes and I put my top and sarong back on. I was glad I had taken the time to enjoy the beach though.

I still had a lot of time before Jurgen would be returning for dinner. I went back to the room to drop off some items and then headed out to the pool.

It was also a pretty busy place, but I was able to find an opening that had a little blend of sun and shade from a nearby tree.

There were perhaps 50 people or so at the pool. I did not see a single woman who was topless, although a couple of women were laying on there stomach and had unhooked their tops. As I had observed myself and heard from others, this is fairly typical for hotel pools. This made me doubly glad to have gone out the terrace of Jurgen's room first, followed by the beach. Having that freedom already out of my system made me not too disappointed by the pool customs.

Now having said there were no women sunbathing topless, there is an interesting French custom of people changing by the pool. As people would come and go, you could see a lady topless or bottomless for a moment while they went from whatever they were wearing to the pool attire. Interesting, as many were not very modest about the changing.

I was lying on my stomach with my top unhooked relaxing when one of the hotel staff came to see if I wanted anything. It was another of the "Marco types", young and handsome, who came over. Only this time his name was Jules.

I had not really established any kind of rapport with him, simply ordering another glass of the wonderful rose' wine perfect for outside in the heat. But I could not help think of my interlude with Marco earlier. I tried to put it out of my mind as I did not need to get horny again already, but I was only partially successful as I laid there.

Jules came back with the drink and I had to sign for it. Having seen the pool customs on changing, and having only partially suppressed my recollections of my Marco interlude, I lifted and turned enough to sign the check to let Jules have a look at my hanging breast. To say it was inadvertent would be dishonest. I was not intending to start something with him, but it might be characterized as a playful flashing. However, of course I was able to make it look inadvertent.

He thanked me as I had added a gratuity, but I think his smile and thanks were also partially due to his reaction and pleasure.

I was less bold though after laying there for a while when it was time to turn over. Without any show, I reached back and tied up my top before flipping to lie on my back.

I could see more laying this way and enjoyed people watching. The pool had the entire spectrum, from families and couples of all ages, to everything else. The only other single ladies at the pool seemed to be in groups, so I wondered if that was the reason a guy who had entered the pool area looked around for a bit before sitting down in the chair next to me.

Before sitting down, he said, "Bon jour."

I responded back with hello, and he continued, "Oh, English, sorry. Is this seat taken?"

I said it was not, and he sat down. I was impressed by his manners and good language skills.

He asked, "Are you from America? I travel there often and you sound like you could be from the Midwest."

I was impressed, and mentioned where I lived.

He continued, "I have been there many times." He named the company he worked for, which I was familiar with but had not interacted with before. The various discussion topics were far ranging. He was very easy to talk to, and not pretentious.

His name was Jean-Paul. And he was certainly nice looking. I thought he was near my age, maybe a little younger. He had a stylish haircut and let's just say he had the type of body which could handle the local custom Speedo. Yahoo. Lean without being skinny, very little hair.

Under normal conditions, having a guy sit down next to me could be an unwanted intrusion. However, manners make up for a lot and Jean-Paul was extremely well mannered. So I found the company welcome.

The waiter came by and asked him for an order. Jean-Paul looked over at my wine glass, asking which rose' I was drinking.

When I mentioned the vineyard, he replied, "Excellent. I will have that too. Please bring a bottle."

I knew where that was going. While I had been pacing myself, I suspected he would be offering me more.

I said, "I have tried to bring this wine back home, but it is not the same. I love it when it is warm out, with the sea nearby."

Part of our discussion was on my experiences in France. He was a little surprised by the large number of times and cities I had visited, and still more impressed when I demonstrated a few of my answers and questions speaking French.

He quickly learned I was not good at it, but that I was passable and he could at least understand what I meant even if it was not always the correct syntax and word choice. But it separated me from many Americans who did not know other languages. I came clean and admitted my French was not good, but that I could speak a few other languages, including some Japanese, came over well.

The waiter brought out the ice bucket and wine and they both went through the rituals of the tasting and commenting. Ah France.

Sure enough, he motioned for the waiter to fill my glass as well, to which I thanked him. We continued to talk about a wide ranging subject matter, none of which seemed forced or leading.

At one point, I got up to take a quick swim to cool off. I certainly got the feeling Jean-Paul was watching as I walked. I returned the gesture and noticed his nice body when he likewise took a dip in the pool.

As we lay there drinking wine and enjoying the sun, Jean-Paul said, "Thank you for allowing me to join you. I have enjoyed our discussion immensely as it is not every day I get to speak English with such a beautiful lady."

I said, "It has been my pleasure. You probably protected me from some of the local predators and I have also enjoyed the discussion. Thanks also for the wine and not criticizing my blundering French."

He laughed, "How do you know I am not a predator?"

I replied quickly, "You have too nice of manners."

He laughed at that.

My suit had not dried yet from the pool and the cool water had done its magic on my nipples. While my suit was not transparent, it was thin enough that I knew my hard nipples were still prominent.

He said, "Well, thank you for that. I think."

The wine was again delicious. I made a deliberate decision to avoid drinking too much too quickly. I was certain there would be more alcohol coming later when Jurgen returned for dinner.

I also was considering the situation. I had met Jean-Paul for just a few moments, but it was easy to see there was some sort of chemistry. Intuitively I realized it would be easy to carry this forward. But to what end. After sleeping with Jurgen and then Marco not that long ago, I was both satisfied and still hungry. It was as if the fire of my sexuality had been lit and I wanted still more. Standing before Lee on the beach topless a while back just stoked the fire a little. Now meeting Jean-Paul further kept me supercharged.

I had not been coming on to Jean-Paul, but I had not closed the door either. It would have been easy to turn back over to lie on my stomach with my head turned away.

Yet, the conversation, wine, and view were all interesting. We continued to talk, covering many of the usual topics. He seemed interested in my background without prying or getting too personal.

I learned he was in Nice taking a weekend holiday. As he had selected this hotel, I knew without asking he had some means. That he had quickly offered wine and bought the bottle showed he was not cheap. I did not fully understand his business, but I did get that he traveled often, mostly within Europe and the Middle East. So our conversation naturally moved to some interested mutual destinations as well as each of us describing cultural subtleties of various places; him focusing on places such as Dubai, me discussing Asia and particularly Japan. I enjoy conversation of this type when it is not forced.

He inquired how long I would be staying in Nice, plans for the afternoon and evening, but I did not take it as him trying to figure out if we could do something together or not. However, when I mentioned it was my last day in Nice and then described that I was here with someone and we would be having dinner together when he returned, he looked a bit disappointed.

Jean-Paul said, "Ah, well that is the best defense for us predators anyway."

I laughed as he had said it in a friendly way without sarcasm. So we clinked glasses and toasted.

I said, "Thank you for joining me. The wine and conversation has been wonderful. I was just thinking how fortunate I feel to be out resting by the pool in the south of France in superb weather and to meet a nice gentleman."

He put on a big smile, "I keep trying to persuade you I am not a gentleman."

I smiled in return, "Well, then. It has been quite a pleasure to meet a nice looking predator with intelligence, nice manners, and good taste in wine."

He responded, "Yes, that is much better. At least my ego is not so bruised now."

I said, "Good, we could not have that."

We finished up the wine, and he said, "Do you have time for another bottle?"

I laughed and replied, "I have the time, but not the tolerance. I am feeling great already, but thank you for asking. In fact, if you will excuse me, I am going to find the ladies room."

With that, I got up and put on my shoes. As I stood before him, even though we both had sunglasses on, I could feel him checking me out. I wondered if he was thinking the same thing. Similar to my suit making it quite clear when my nipples were hard earlier, his European style Speedo suit made it quite clear his package was less than casual. I would not say a full blown erection, but obviously on his way.