The Cat Easton Legend

Twenty minutes later we were hunting tarpon. Debbie was in radio contact with the weigh-in boat and revealed that only two small fish had been caught and released so far that morning, no tarpon had been weighed in.

It was almost an hour before we spotted a small pod of fish swimming south towards us. We coached Sally and Cliff into place and Sally hooked a small fish. We ran down and got in position. Catherine got hooked up on a huge fish on her second cast. I watched as she slammed the carefully honed needle sharp hook in as hard as she could. I prayed that it was in good solid bone. The fish made an uncharacteristic long run before he jumped. Even at a distance I could tell it was a monster fish. I took the remote control for our thrusters with me and joined Cat on the bow deck.

I whispered that she was doing great. She glanced at me and grinned. The fish went deep in another unusual tactic for a big tarpon. I eased the boat closer to the fish and after a while we were right above him. Cat struggled to pump the heavy fish up from the depths. When the tarpon was about thirty feet down we saw him. He was huge, the largest tarpon I had ever seen. I guessed it was well over 200 pounds. He took off on a fast run. When he was fifty yards out, he jumped clear of the water, thrashing about above the water then crashing back down in a cloud of spray. I praised Cat for her skill in bowing to the fish when he jumped and for her strength and courage in keeping a strain on the fish the rest of the time. An hour later Cat said, "Can you get me some water, I need a sip or two. I am getting tired." I got a water bottle from the cooler and a bottle of Gatorade. She opened her mouth while I squirted some water in. She smiled at me, "Thanks Honey, I think he is weakening some now, he doesn't seem as strong as he was at first."

I took my hand towel and wet it with the icy water and wiped her forehead and around her neck and across her upper chest. I held the Gatorade and she took a long drink. She grinned, "That felt good, I am ready to whip his ass now." We were following the fish again and I turned the boat a ten degrees to the right and increased the speed a bit.

In a few minutes the tarpon was off to our left. I said, "Honey, see if a little more pressure will turn him towards us. I want to change the direction he is going." I watched as she put a little more of a bend in her long fly rod. The tarpon gradually turned to his right some but fought against it. I waited for about five minutes then turned to the left and crossed behind the fish until we were on his left side.

"Sweetie, put the pressure on him again and make him change directions again." A few minutes later I saw the line coming up. I yelled, "Watch it! He is going to jump again!" The giant fish jumped high and flopped back in the water on his side. He jumped again and again each jump being lower until only his head thrashed back and forth above the surface. I wet the cloth again and wiped Cat's lovely face again and gave her another slug of Gatorade. She was starting to show some fatigue. I kissed her gently on her cheek and whispered that I thought she almost had him whipped and to ease up on him a little to ease the pressure on the knots. She grinned and told me she was gaining line now.

I watched for a moment and hurried to get the 'flying gaff', a large hook on the end of a rope fitted to the end of a pole that detached when the hook was set. I looked up and noticed we were surrounded by other skiffs at a distance. They were close enough to watch us but were well clear of the action. I stepped close to Catherine, "I love you Sweetheart, can you hang on for a few more minutes, he is ready to quit. Look around, we have an audience."

She looked up to see the fleet of fishing boats and the Ranger silently watching the battle between the beautiful young woman and the huge tarpon. "Wow! Where did they come from?"

"I don't know!" I turned and looked at our observer, Deborah.

She smiled, "They have been here for over an hour now, she has been fighting that fish for nearly three hours. I told everyone is was a possible world's record." A boat came along our stern and a man with a large TV camera asked if he could come aboard. I said he could if he stayed in the stern and out of our way.

The tarpon was finished. Cat was cranking him in now. I managed to get the gaff through the lower jaw, he jerked me around pretty violently for a few minutes then gave up and I soon had him secured to the boat. Catherine collapsed in my arms and I held her tight. Debbie handed me a fresh water bottle and I let Cat drink for a minute then stopped her so she wouldn't get sick.

All the boats pulled in tighter and the official weigh-in boat eased in along side of us and I gladly passed the rope holding the tarpon over to her crew. We watched as they maneuvered the huge fish into the weighing sling. The Certified Official scale was on a chain hoist and they soon had the tarpon in the sling clear of the water. There was a cheer from the boat. A man yelled out the weight. "301 pounds 9 ounces. A new world record!" He grinned, "That is an 'All tackle' record. Ma'am! That is the biggest tarpon ever caught on hook and line." The boat moved in close and Catherine climbed aboard for pictures with the fish. There was a crowd of photographers both TV and still cameras. Cliff was beside her in the other boat so I eased my boat back out of the way. I backed away and eased over to Ranger and picked up Tom, Callie's husband, and had him take me back to the weigh–in boat.

Tom pulled us along side and I stepped aboard. I tried to push my way over to where Catherine was standing. I got to within about five feet of her but I couldn't get any closer. I wiggled my way between two men who were making notes on pads of paper. One large man was between Cat and I. He was talking to her but she was constantly looking around. Finally she spotted me. Her face brightened into a huge smile, "Scotty! There you are, I thought I had lost you!" The big man glanced around at me and I said, "Catherine, what do you want to do?"

She grinned, "I need a shower and some clean clothes."

I nodded. "Come on then, let's go!" She started toward me and the big guy grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

She swung around and yelled, "Let go of me, I'm going with him." He didn't let go fast enough for her and she punched him in the chest. I was already moving toward him and he pulled back an arm as if he were going to hit or slap her. I grabbed his arm before it started forward. I jerked his wrist up between his shoulders, shoving him forward. His upper thighs hit the gunwale of the boat and he flipped over the rail and into the water. I waved Tom in and helped Cat into our boat.

I had Tom back off about ten feet and watched as the big man was helped aboard the other boat. When he was aboard I yelled, "Give me your attention please! Miss Easton will answer some of your questions after the Award Ceremonies for the Tarpon Tournament. You may organize a press conference there at the Yacht Club with their approval. Miss Easton will answer questions she deems appropriate. She will answer questions as long as the press is polite and tasteful in their questions. Thank you."

Someone on the other boat yelled, "Will there be a 'Photo Opp' too?"

I laughed, "I guess I can probably talk her into a short picture session."

Cat, Sally and Cliff, several of crew and I all enjoyed the Awards Ceremony. We all felt bad that it turned out to be 'the 'Cat' Easton Show', but how could it be otherwise considering the performance she had put on in the tournament. We also were stunned when she was awarded a check for one million dollars for weighing in a World Record Tarpon.

Million dollar awards for world record fish are common in fishing tournaments. Cat's was the first time I had ever heard of anyone winning the big prize. There were more press people there than there were anglers. All of them wanted pictures of Cat. The young beautiful angler and the giant tarpon were the hottest news of the day.

I thought Cat was very lovely when she answered a few questions, she was wearing a short khaki cargo skirt, a yellow tank top, a yellow sweater and little yellow flat sandals. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail. The effect was athletic yet glamorous. She smiled charmingly as she answered questions about the fishing and ignored questions of a personal nature.

Catherine held up her hand, "I'm sorry folks, I have to end this NOW! My ride home is leaving in a few minutes and I must go now, Thank you." She hurried out as cameras flashed. I headed back to where both the boats from Ranger were waiting. The canvas cuddy top in the bow of the 25 footer was up and I ducked out of sight and told Tom to send Cat in to me. She joined me in a few minutes and both boats headed back to ranger. It was late that evening when we got back to Ranger. The crew members who had stayed aboard had recorded the News shows from the satellite TV showing Catherine fighting the big fish. The commentators referred to it as a 'monster tarpon'. There were excellent pictures of Cat fighting the fish. They showed me gently wiping her face with the damp cloth. In the close up telephoto shots, concern showed on my face and her lovely face was tense as she struggled with the strong tarpon.

The guy who had come aboard with us had a lot of great shots of Catherine's struggle. To me the most awesome clip of all was a shot of my love accepting the award standing next to the huge tarpon. She was gorgeous in cargo skirt outfit. She was dwarfed by the over three hundred pound fish hanging beside her. The weight of the fish and the date were painted on the fish. They had her hold up the fly rod she had used and it seemed impossible that anyone, much less this delicate little beauty, could conquer that fish with such an insignificant weapon.

Catherine had wanted me in all the pictures but I whispered that publicity was something I had to avoid in my business. She understood. I was never far away from her though. She did a wonderful job of fielding questions from the reporters. Finally one man asked how long she had been fishing with her guide. She was quick on her feet and answered, "I did not have a paid professional guide. We entered as an unguided team. He is my fiancée, but he is a fine angler, and is as good as any guide, as you can easily see. I must confess that he deserves as much credit as I do for landing this fish. He spotted the fish, coached me during the fight, and gave me wonderful moral support the whole time, then did a wonderful job of gaffing that monster. Unfortunately he has urgent business elsewhere this evening."

Our big trawler yacht waited just outside the pass and we were back aboard in a short time. After we had a role call, and everyone was present, we hoisted the boats aboard, and Ranger got under way. In an all hands meeting it was unanimously decided that we would head for the Marquesas Keys so everyone aboard could have a chance to fish.

Jack and Tom figured it was only a little over a four hour run at 35 knots so we would be there around three o'clock in the morning and we could get in some good night fishing on the reefs and wrecks near the Dry Tortugas. They said that they and a lookout could run Ranger while everyone else got a good nap.

Catherine and I were still too excited to sleep so we sat in the pilot house for an hour before we went below. I told her how proud I was of what she had done. She was smiling happily until I said, "Honey, you know they took the line, leader and the tippet to test for strength don't you?"

"I didn't think it would matter for an all tackle record."

"Hey, you're right about that but they also put you in for a fly casting record for 20 pound tippet. I think that will also give you records for all strength classes above that if it tests under 20 pounds."

"I don't suppose you tested the line you used beforehand did you?"

"Of course I did, I wouldn't use a tippet I didn't test. It tests out between 18 and 19 pounds."

Cat threw her arms around my neck and kissed me passionately. "I knew you wouldn't let me down."

"Baby, do you realize what you did? You fought and landed a fish that weighed 15 times the breaking strength of the line. A twelve pound fish on a four pound test line is considered a phenomenal catch. That is a 3 to 1 ratio. A 1200 pound Marlin on 200 pound line is a fantastic feat. That is only 6 to 1! Your tarpon was a 15 to 1 ratio. That is unbelievable! I am in awe of you sweetheart! I guess you won't bitch about my leaders anymore!

"We had a certified observer in the boat with us too! Perfect! I do not believe any one in history has come close to that. That record may never be beaten! Catherine Marie Easton will be in the record books forever."

"Oh Scotty, we both know it was mostly luck. We were lucky to find a fish that size. Lucky to get a hook-up. Everything had to be perfect for me to land that fish. You are the one who made everything perfect."

"NO! You are the one who fought the fish, you deserve 98 percent of the credit, your Dad gets one percent for teaching you to how to fight a fish and I get the other one percent for whatever I did. That is realistic.

YOU made all the final judgments, YOU made the cast, YOU stripped the line for the retrieve, YOU enticed the fish to eat the fly, YOU set the hook, YOU decided how much pressure to put on the fish, no one but YOU ever touched your rod! YOU CAUGHT THE FISH! BABY, YOU, AND YOU ALONE, CAUGHT THAT DAMNED 300 POUND TARPON!"

Cat grabbed my hands, "People are going to be after me for endorsements and interviews aren't they?"

"Hell yes, it was an amazing feat, you are a beautiful woman, it is a terrific story. All the TV shows will want you. The people who made the rod, the reel, the fly line, the backing line, the monofilament leader, and the fluorocarbon tippet, and tied the fly will be after you for endorsements. It will be worth millions to you. Your life will never be the same again! So much so that I think you need to hire an agent to handle all this for you."

"I have no idea of who to get."

"I'll make a few calls for you and find someone good."

"Thank you Scotty, I don't know if I want all of this. We don't need the money. I know you would have to quit your business and let Andy and Angie down. I will NOT do anything that separates the two of us for one fucking minute! Zero time apart. ZERO!"

There was real fire in her eyes. I grinned and pulled her into my arms. "Honey I will do whatever it takes to be with you, let's see what an agent comes up with before we get too excited."

"Scotty if it was to help Andy, Daddy or something, but to make money we don't really need, no! I won't go for that."

"Are you saying you would pass on a couple of million so we can stay together?"

"Yeah! I think so."

"Do you know what is strange about this?"

"What?"

"Sugar, I totally agree with you."

We went to our cabin and made tender and gentle love. It was mostly cuddling and lot's of sweet long kisses and soft butterfly touches. We made love for several hours and I was rock hard the whole time even though I came many times. I whispered to my lover that this was the most satisfying and pleasant sex of my entire life.

She smiled tenderly at me, "I adore my eager, ardent, hard driving Scott, I love my studying, testing, experimenting Scott, I am crazy about my devoted, slightly submissive, eager to please Scott, but tonight's Scotty is my favorite of them all."

"Wow! You get four for the price of one."

"Oh! There are several more around too."

"Who?"

"Well, there is the suave, debonair, smooth talking, man about town, Scott with the roving eye who likes to rescue girls in distress."

"I don't think he is around anymore, I haven't seen him since I met you."

"I think he was sweet and I might like to see him again if I am the only damsel in distress he ever sees."

"Don't hang around with big horny guys and he might come back, until you get me killed anyway."

She looked at me wide eyed, "Oh Scotty, don't even joke about that, it scares me to death. I am scared to death something might happen to you, I would die too!"

"Catherine, Honey, you have my permission to say NO if I want to do something dangerous."

"Lover, you have my permission to say NO whatever I am doing."

The fishing off Dry Tortugas was fantastic. Everyone had a great time bottom fishing. We caught large groupers, King Mackerel, African Pompano, large snapper and a couple of cobia. Whenever one of the Ladies aboard hooked a fish they would scream for Miss Catherine to show them how to fight it. Cat took it in her usual good natured way. She joked back that she was going to charge for professional advice.

I hooked a fish and yelled for her to coach me. I had a really huge fish on. It turned out to be Goliath Grouper (Jewfish). He must have weighed four hundred pounds. It is a protected species and we cut the line and released him. I was teased mercilessly about not being able to land the fish. I grinned and said I didn't want to out-do Catherine because she might not let me in her bed tonight.

There was a big hoot about that. One of the women yelled, "That ain't gonna never happen Mr. Scotty! She throw that damned tarpon fish back before she do that."

Cat grabbed my hand and yelled that she was right, she was going to drag me to bed right then. She did too!

Cat and I went to our cabin, she showered while I checked my e-mail messages. I showered and found her reclining on the bunk when I walked in our cabin. She smiled at me and beckoned me to her. She wore her panties and her bra. The bra fit her perfectly and looked as if it had been thinly painted on the globes of her breasts. I knew she was hot because her nipples pushed bumps in the snug sheer see-through fabric. One knee was raised, with her knee bent, this exposed the whole panel of the gusset of her sheer panties. I could see the material glisten with her wetness. I kissed her cheek and her arms pulled me close to her body, she whispered, "Please hold me tight." I did and she was asleep before my head hit the pillow.

We anchored on a good reef the next day. Most of us slept until early afternoon. Some people fished but the real action took place the following night when we found another good wreck and anchored over it. The fishing was amazing that night and everyone got their bag limits.

When I woke up the next day and opened my eyes I was looking into Cat's lovely blue eyes from only inches away. I said, "Good morn----" and that was all I got out before her soft warm lips were pressed against mine. It was a tender loving kiss and started my day off perfectly. I excused myself and hurried to the head to relieve myself and brush my teeth. When I returned Cat did the same thing. I had gotten back in the bunk and she joined me, snuggling up to me.

I found the TV remote and turned on the wall mounted Sony. I switched to the 'Tell Tale' channel that showed our position on a chart and our projected course. We were on our way home. I rolled towards Catherine, pulling her against my body and held her tight. She grinned, "Are you hungry now or do you want to play some first."

"I am hungry for you, my Love. It is an overpowering hunger that food will not satisfy; only you, Catherine, can ease that hunger."

She giggled and sat up and pulled her nightie off over her head. "Sweet Baby Boy, let Momma ease your hunger, come to Momma."

I pulled her up over my body and when I thought she was in the right spot I clinched my muscles to make my hard cock bounce upwards. I thrust up and felt the head hit the wet heat of her pussy. Her little hand raced down to guide him home. She lifted as she slipped him into her vagina. I helped her as she rose and put her feet on either side of my body, I had to lift with her to keep my cock from slipping out.