The Cruise, The Choice

Choices had to be made before the cruise ended

This is just a bit of light work. No BtBs and no descriptive sex scenes, so if you are looking for that, then you might want to skip this one.

I'd like to thank sbrooks103x for reading and editing this work. His comments during the editing of this story made it better as well as the many, many grammatical corrections. Thank you. Any remaining errors are my own.

The itinerary on the website advertised that it would be a wonderful cruise; romantic, relaxing, divine food, interesting stops and amazing beaches along the way. Monica Blake had hoped it would rekindle their love and settle John's concern that she loved her work more than him. John had hoped she could and would prioritize their marriage for this short vacation which they so desperately needed.

Nine days on a luxury cruise ship in the western Caribbean, visiting Mexico, Belize and Honduras. John paid to upgrade the cabin to a large suite, at least large by cruise ship standards. The suite had two separate rooms: a nice bedroom and also a nice sitting room with a large flat-screen TV in each. It was very much like a nice hotel room, which on a cruise ship is rare, indeed. It even had a balcony large enough for a small table, two chairs and two chaise lounge chairs. The ship was amazing, as were the destinations. They were both eagerly anticipating the trip.

At just thirty years old, Monica had rocketed up the corporate ladder. She was in investment banking and was now helping companies bring their bonds to market. Her manager, Linda, worked Monica, and others, hard, but as Linda was promoted, Monica would get promoted into Linda's vacated position. That had worked well for the tandem, with three promotions in the last four years each, but more hours at work meant fewer hours with her husband. Seventy-hour weeks for Monica were no longer uncommon.

While Monica and John lived and worked in San Antonio, Texas, John worked in data science for a large consulting firm based in Austin, where he was raised and went to college. His firm didn't really care where he lived, as long as he had internet access and could travel several days each month.

The past several months had seen him increase his travel to several days each week, occasionally not returning home until Saturday. When Monica complained, John's response was, "Why should I try to rush home if you aren't going to be here? Are you suggesting that I should hang around on the off chance that you 'might' be available?"

"But how can we spend time together if you aren't here?" she replied.

John's response was, "I don't want to get into a fight, because we've had this discussion many times before. When you can answer that question yourself, then come ask me again."

That conversation was a couple of months ago before John left for a work trip, which would keep him out of town for a full week.

John felt like this upcoming vacation was their last chance to save what they had. His complaining about her work had obviously fallen on deaf ears. Monica realized she needed the vacation as much as John did. She felt like she was losing her husband and hoped to re-establish some of their connection and intimacy that had been lost. Unfortunately, Linda wasn't helping Monica in her quest to keep her marriage together.

Two days prior to their vacation, Monica was dreading the upcoming conversation, but in her mind, it couldn't be avoided. She told him, "John, I need to take my laptop with me, just in case. I hope I don't need it, but they may need me to look at a few things while we're at sea. If they do need me, having my laptop should get me finished quicker than when I only had my phone last time." She prayed he wouldn't blow up over this.

On their last get-away vacation, to St. Maarten, Linda had called her over some crisis, and she spent several hours for a couple of days on her phone. John was seething and Monica felt terrible, but she didn't confront Linda. She simply did her best to try to make it up to her justifiably upset husband.

With this new revelation concerning her laptop, John had to bite his tongue. The whole point of this trip was for them to spend time away from work because for the last three years, all Monica did was work. She was rarely home before seven on weeknights and many nights and some weekends it was even later. Hence his reason for traveling more for work.

With both of them approaching thirty, John had been trying to bring up their having children, but Monica, who had been for it, had been putting him off the last few years. They were always supposed to start after the next promotion, but after each of the last three, she kept working even harder.

He said, "I thought we agreed to focus on us this trip and take a break from work. What happened to that?"

"We are going to be gone nine days, and you know that I have that huge client meeting as soon as we get back. I can't be disconnected from the firm for that long."

John fumed, "Do they know or care how much they are hurting our marriage? Do you?"

Monica snapped back, "Comments like that hurt our marriage even more."

"This vacation was supposed to be for us."

She replied, "It is for us, or I wouldn't be going."

John simply shook his head. He had hoped the cruise would give them a chance to close the gap that was growing wider and wider between them. He had already had serious doubts, but now? It was time for him to take some precautionary action. He decided not to say anymore. He didn't want to get into an argument that could spill over into their vacation. They needed this vacation to turn out well.

_____________

On the first day of the vacation, the early flight to Miami was uneventful and put them there in plenty of time to get on their ship and settle in before it departed. They had their clothes hung and dressed for dinner and some dancing.

They were assigned seats with an older couple from Dallas, Mark and Jessie Sutton, who had brought their recently divorced daughter Andrea with them to try and cheer her up. Monica and John had an enjoyable dinner speaking with all of them. Andrea, who was several years older than Monica and John, struck up a good conversation with Monica about many things, including overbearing bosses. John wisely did not join that conversation, otherwise, he would likely have started an argument.

Later, while Monica and John were dancing, Monica saw Andrea dancing with her dad. Without asking, Monica eased her and John, over towards the other couple and then said, "John, would you mind dancing a few dances with Andrea. I think it would be nice for her to dance with someone besides her father."

It wasn't really what John wanted, because quality time spent with his wife was a rarity recently. He wanted to monopolize all of his wife's time, but he didn't think a few dances could hurt.

Andrea seemed to enjoy herself, and they danced comfortably together. After the fourth song, John saw Monica sitting and talking to Andrea's parents and they decided to sit for a few minutes also.

Monica was smiling as he returned to the table. As he approached, she smiled at the Sutton's, thanked them for a nice evening, and took John's arm to escort him outside. They walked the decks until late, and when they returned to their cabin, they made love, quietly, into the wee hours of the morning, on their truly private balcony.

Before curling up together in their bed Monica told her husband, "Thank you, John. This was just what I needed."

He kissed her on her nose and they fell asleep together.

The next day, cruising at sea worked out well, which meant they slept in after such a late night. Some early morning sex and a great brunch was a good way to start the day.

They laid by the pool holding hands and generally enjoying being with each other. John was pleased to see his pretty wife in a bikini instead of her usual one-piece. The Suttons found them and joined them. They and the Suttons shared the same table at dinner that night, and they felt very comfortable chatting and enjoying themselves. After a wonderful dinner, they skipped the dancing for a risqué show, which made Monica hot enough that she was ready to have sex in the elevator. They barely made it to their cabin with their clothes on.

The ship's first stop was Puerto Costa Maya, Mexico, where they toured the pyramids and shopped until late in the day. The Suttons had gone into Cancun and they compared notes over dinner. They were having a great time, and the tension from Monica's work and John's recent travel seemed to float away in the breeze each time the ship pulled anchor and sailed on towards the next port.

The next day brought a new destination. The Blakes and the Suttons decided to spend a relaxing day on the beach in Belize. Monica and Andrea both wore bikinis on the beach, and John couldn't help but notice that Andrea still had a nice figure for a woman near forty, with an impressive chest straining her bikini top. After returning to the ship, the newly formed group of Suttons and Blakes spent the evening dancing after dinner, and the Blakes had another wonderful night in their bedroom.

Unfortunately, it wasn't to last. The next morning, prior to their leaving for a shore excursion to West Bay Beach in Honduras, Monica received a call from Linda. John could only hear one side of the conversation.

"Hey, Linda. What's up?"

"Oh? They want to change what? Today? Can't Marshall do it?"

John was not getting a good feeling about this

"MmHmm. MmHmm. Okay. I understand." She looked at John with her sad, puppy-dog eyes and said, "I'm sorry, Sweetie, but I need to stay here and work some. The client wants to make a few changes to the language in the bond offering. I hope I can join you guys after lunch or midafternoon."

John just shook his head. "How often do you get time off, away from the firm? Not very often, and Linda knows that; yet she still reaches out to you. Why doesn't she ask someone on your team?"

"John, don't give me a hard time, please. I don't want this either, but this is my client and it's a $100 million bond offering. I'll get a very nice bonus when this is all finished. Also, this is quite the feather in our cap, because this business usually goes to Wilcox's firm in Austin. After the scandal last Halloween, we've picked up some of their business. We want to keep it."

He shook his head and said, "What good is having a big bonus if you never get the time to enjoy it? At what price are you and your managers willing to sacrifice your families for a few extra dollars?"

This irked Monica to no end. It seemed that they continued to have the same battle with no ground gained by either side. What she neglected to tell him was that there weren't any successful families at her level and above; just distant couples struggling to stay married or divorcees looking for the next one.

Monica replied, "I'm doing the best that I can. Hey, we've enjoyed ourselves on this trip so far. Hopefully, this won't take very long. Give the Suttons my apologies and enjoy yourself. At least you still get the day off. Take lots of pictures for me."

"Monica, I don't want to start an argument while we are trying to enjoy our vacation, but this is not good. I'm not very happy. I'll try to be understanding, but you know this has been an ongoing issue that has been hurting us. We need to find a way to fix this problem."

"I know we do, Sweetie. Please try and be patient with me. I love you." She walked over and kissed him on the lips. He allowed himself to kiss her back but was burning up inside.

He said, "Text us when you are on your way."

Monica lit up at what seemed to be his consenting to her staying behind. John apologized to the Suttons and they left the ship for their excursion.

It wasn't the same for John without his wife. He would have to admit that the beach they went to was fun. They had a VIP section with free food and drinks. They went snorkeling in the morning, had a sumptuous lunch and tried to fight off food comas on the beach under their umbrellas.

Andrea asked if John would put some sunscreen on her back, and he obliged, though he felt uncomfortable doing that. He texted Monica to see if she was finished yet, and she replied that it looked like she was going to be tied up until they returned.

Andrea tried to cheer him up, with only moderate success. Their afternoon activity was to be a jet-ski excursion and they had initially reserved three jet-skis, but Andrea convinced John to share, so she let hers go back.

While riding together, she either had her arms around him or when she drove, he had his arms around her. She seemed to enjoy it, and after a while, John gave in and allowed himself to enjoy it also. With the close contact, there were times when he had to fight off a boner, and he was certain Andrea had to feel it.

When she sat behind him and he would hit a bump, occasionally her arms or hands would bob up and down and bump into his groin, which was firm from her arms wrapping around him and her breasts being pressed into his back. When he sat behind her, he alternated between wrapping his arms around her and trying to hang on to just her waist. When his arms were wrapped around her waist, her boobs would bounce up and down, hitting his arms. At times, the jostling would cause his groin to rub up against her bottom and he suspected that she could feel him.

Andrea could feel him, but she respected his marriage. She didn't try to grind herself against him or try to place his arms or hands directly under her breasts. At the same time, she wasn't about to go out of her way to avoid the normal contact caused by the bumps. They were adults and would just deal with it. At the end of the ride Andrea was driving, and before they got off the jet-ski, she turned, kissed him on the cheek and said, "Thank you for being such a gentleman. I've not had that much fun with a man in a long time."

John smiled and felt a little bad for her if that was true.

Upon returning to his room, Monica was sitting out on the balcony working on her laptop. When she saw him, she gave him a weak smile and sad eyes. John saw those eyes and felt bad for his wife. He walked over to her and kissed her on the lips.

"Wow. I wasn't expecting that."

He said, "I missed you today. I had fun, but it would have been better with you."

"I missed you too, Sweetie. I'm wrapping up now. If you want, go ahead and grab your shower, and I'll be right behind you."

"I could wait, and you could join me."

"I'd like that, too, but you should go ahead."

After his shower, Monica hadn't moved. "I promise. I'm coming. Go ahead and go to dinner without me. I ate a sandwich not long ago for a late lunch, so I'll be okay."

Perturbed at his wife, John grudgingly went. Not long after he sat at his table, the Suttons arrived, and Andrea sat by him. He offered his apologies for Monica, saying that she should be joining them soon, or at least he hoped so.

However, Monica was a no-show during dinner. Mark and Jessie liked the idea of John dancing with Andrea, so they suggested they go dancing again. While not 100% comfortable with that, John and Andrea went with them. Andrea said, "John, you don't have to dance with me without Monica if you are uncomfortable, but if you would like to, I would, too."

"I'll try to be good company. If you can't tell, I'm a little irritated right now."

"I suspected you were. I'm sure Monica is also."

John didn't bother responding with what he was thinking, which was that apparently, she wasn't irritated enough. Monica didn't appear until the second set of dances that John danced with Andrea. When she walked into the room, she saw them chatting away while dancing with each other. It was perfectly innocent, but she had to admit to herself that it did bother her a little. He was supposed to be dancing with her. It was entirely her fault, or more accurately, Linda's fault, but still.

She walked up to them all smiles, "Hey, you two. Mind if I cut in?"

Andrea smiled at her, and thanked John for the dance. Monica asked, "Are you okay, John?"

He sighed, "It's been a rough day. Everything I did with her, I wanted to do with you."

Monica stood on her tiptoes and lightly nibbled on John's earlobe. "Well, there are some things that we can do together, that the two of you better not. I'd like to go back to our room and do some of those things very soon, after I get a bite to eat." Monica was deliberately trying to get his mind off of the lost day and off of Andrea. Also, she had bad news that she knew was going to disappoint him again.

John liked the sound of spending some quality time with her in the bedroom.

Monica ate a little, after which the two of them politely excused themselves. Once in their room, Monica made an extra effort to screw her husband's brains out. She knew how to prolong his orgasm and was very persistent in making sure she took a long time before she allowed him to climax. She also doubled her efforts to get him hard and did it all over again.

John wondered about the enthusiasm on her part and hoped it was only her trying to make up for the day.

____________

The next morning the ship was back in Belize, and when they woke, Monica made love with him again, and once they were finished, she said, "John, I know you are going to be angry with me, but I need to do more work today."

She could feel the heat that began to radiate from her husband and knew that he must be furious. She eased away from him, not from fear, but because she wanted to give him a little space.

He was furious. Without saying a word, he got out of bed and got into the shower. Monica wanted to join him, but she knew that wasn't a good idea.

When he reentered their bedroom dressed and ready to leave, he said, "So, all last night while we were having sex you knew you had to work today?"

She nodded.

"You didn't say anything because you knew I would be angry, which would stop me from wanting to make love with you."

Again, she nodded.

"So, last night was all about you? Not us."

"No! It wasn't. I wanted to show you how much I love you and care for you. If you were angry, you wouldn't have let me."

John shook his head. "Your work is killing us, Monica. I hope you realize that. We'll never get these days back. Good memories that we are supposed to be building together are being replaced by anger and frustration. Even if your bank repaid you for this trip, which they won't, and give you make-up time to replace this vacation, my work won't."

"I know."

He continued, "This trip was supposed to be for us; our marriage." He waited, but she didn't say anything. "I want you to think long and hard about what is more important to you, your work or your marriage because the time is coming very soon that you may not have both."

She was stunned and angered by that statement. "What's that supposed to mean? I thought that we were in this together?"

John looked at her for a second waiting for her to catch the irony of her statement. She didn't, so he pointed it out to her. "Yeah, when we got married, I also thought we were in this together, too. Since before our previous vacation, I keep getting the feeling that I'm in this alone. I pay the bills, cook the meals, take care of the cars, wash and fold most of the clothes and clean the apartment. I do all these things to try and remove some of the friction from your life so I can spend your downtime with you on fun activities. Unfortunately, the reason I have time to do all those tasks is because I'm usually at home by myself.

Tears were beginning well up in Monica's pretty brown eyes.

"Speaking of apartments, weren't we supposed to go house hunting? Isn't the house supposed to be for children? I know I'm about to blow up our vacation, but I will not have children with someone who puts their job first -- children and marriage have to come first.