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| Todd |
Todd’s naked body was face down, spread wide on the bottom bunk. His ass was kind of beautiful in the way that is was perfectly round and smooth. His balls were visible between his thick thighs. I took in the sight, realizing that once I would come out, Todd would probably become much more careful about what he showed. Plus, it was just Todd. I wished I could see Harrison just like this one day.
I took my off-charter uniform with me into the bathroom. I made sure to be quiet. I brushed my teeth, took a shower and got changed. I did my hair and looked at myself in the mirror.
I felt ready for the day. Guest pick-up. I remember how the first dinner always came with added pressure. If the guests didn’t like the first dinner, I felt it was something they remembered throughout their charter. And it was often reflected in the tip. I shook off the pressure.
“You got this”, I whispered to my mirror image.
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| Todd |
“Hey. Good morning”, his voice croaked.
“Good morning”, I replied.
“Up at the same time”, he commented as he put on his polo. “Wanna have a coffee and breakfast together?”
I smiled.
“Sure.”
I made Todd a coffee while he got ready in the bathroom. Soon he came out to the crew mess, looking professional, awake, and ready. As we had breakfast, he asked me what I was going to make for the guests today. I then realized I knew the dinner menu by heart already. As I summed it up, his eyes lit up and it was like his mouth began to water.
“That sounds amazing”, he said.
I wanted to ask something about his job in return.
“Are you feeling confident in your team? First time leaving the dock today.”
He smiled.
“Yeah, they’re a good bunch. Danielle and especially Rodrigo are very experienced. Harrison is a little green but eager to learn. We’ll be fine.”
Becca walked down the stairs into the crew mess, she was clearly up before we were.
“Good morning boys! Ready for pick-up day?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be”, I replied.
“Can I have a chat with you?”, she asked me.
“Sure!”
Todd offered to clean my cup and bowl. Becca and I went to the galley, where she wanted to run through a few things.
“So I’ve decided to put Yasmin on earlies. So she’ll be here from 6 AM, helping you with anything you need, all right? I’ll be up by 7.30, so I can help with breakfast service. If we find out that’s too late, I’ll adjust my schedule. And then Gloria will be on lates. And all three of us will do dinner service.”
“Sounds good.”
“I do worry a bit about Gloria. She’s strong in housekeeping, but with her on lates I’m not sure if she’ll be OK doing drinks by herself.”
I looked at the photos of the guests I had put up on the wall.
“I would be surprised if they’re really going to be drinking late”, I said. “It’s a family trip.”
“You never know though!”
“True”, I chuckled.
I took Becca through my plan for welcome snacks. And I wrote down the dinner menu.
“So this is definite?”, she asked. “You won’t change your mind?”
I chuckled.
“No?”
“Oh my gosh, you’re already my favorite chef I’ve worked with.”
She hugged me.
“All crew, all crew”, both our radios went. “Provisions on the dock.”
It was Rodrigo. Becca and I went out on deck and the van was there. As was the entire deck team, willing to help carry on all the food. I always hated this part.
“Check the meat and the fish”, Becca said. “I’ll make sure everything gets into the galley.”
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| Harrison |
“Good morning!”, I said cheerfully.
“Morning, mate! No worries, we’ll get all your stuff inside.”
He was already carrying a box of fruit out and walking it to the boat.
Everything looked good and seemed to be the amount that we had ordered. By the time I had checked everything, I could still carry a few things on, but most of it was already done. Great work from the deck team. I was just starting to put all the food away into fridges and cabinets when my radio went.
“Jay, Jay, Todd.”
“Go for Jay.”
“Are provisions complete? Over.”
“Yes, thank you. Over.”
“OK, allowing the van to leave. Over and out.”
The morning went by so fast. I had made sure everything was where I wanted and that I remembered where I put things. After lunch I was making the welcome snacks – mini beef tourtieres - when suddenly the radio went.
“All crew, all crew. Get into your whites. Guests are arriving at the dock in 10 minutes.”
Captain Aaron’s announcement saved me. I didn’t know it was that late already. One crew member after another passed the galley to go to their cabin to get changed into their white uniforms. The cups were ready, the cream cheese was ready. I just needed to finish the ground beef once the guests were on board.
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| Todd |
“Hey”, he said, “All ready?”
“All ready!” I replied.
Todd walked ahead of me when we went up the main deck to welcome the guests. There’s something to be said about men in uniform. Especially when their asses are nice and round and the uniform is white.
We all stood in a line and everybody looked perfect. I stood in between Becca and Rodrigo. I hadn’t failed to spot Harrison who for some reason looked so young. His uniform suited him very well though. I was hoping to see how it fit his ass later.
“Guests are approaching”, Captain Aaron said, who stood closest to the dock.
I spotted them. They looked friendly enough. A big Latinx family on a holiday. They came on board and shook our hands one by one. Third stew Gloria gave them all a glass of champagne. I introduced myself, and I could tell they kept a close eye on me being the chef. I was well aware that good food could make or break a holiday like this. I felt the pressure again.
Captain gave his welcome speech as I took in the crowd. Primary guests were a couple in their 50s, Cris and Ariana. His mother, Rosa, was in her 70s and she looked so sweet and happy to be there. Then there was a gay couple in their 40s, Ben and Tino, who were Ariana’s brother and brother-in-law. And then Cris and Ariana’s children: Esteban, Flora and Nicole, seemingly all in their 20s. Esteban and Flora had brought partners, Ciara and Troy respectively.
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| Harrison |
Once they were gone, I rushed back to my cabin to change into my chef’s on-charter uniform and then get back to the tourtieres, which I wanted to have ready once the guests finished the tour. On the radio I heard the deck team and the Captain talk a lot as they were preparing to leave the dock.
As if by clockwork, Yasmin came into the galley to ask how I was getting on when I was done plating the tourtieres. A big board of 24 cups so that they all had at least two. Yasmin asked what they were and practiced the pronunciation with me, before she took them away.
Only then did I realize the yacht was on its way. I had found a spot where I could go outside to watch the view and feel the wind in my hair and on my face. I smiled. Despite the hard work, I had to remember to enjoy being here and realize how lucky I was.
Right. Tonight. I had planned to make my own tagliolini, which is a kind of spaghetti. I should get started on that now. A lot of the guests had requested authentic Italian food and I was going to give them the most luxury version of that. I returned to the galley and immediately found Becca. She had come down to tell me the guests loved the tourtieres. Good start.
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| Todd |
Becca came into the galley to give me a bit of a sense of how she had experienced the guests so far.
“They don’t seem that high maintenance at all. They seem to just enjoy it, possibly their first time on a boat like this for most of them. But they’re acting like it. Like, nobody is getting drunk or yelling. So, perfect guests to start the season with!”
“That sounds great!”
“Oh, and my Spanish isn’t great, but I think…”
She looked at the photos of the guests I put up on the wall.
“Nicole… She fancies Harrison. To the extent that Flora… and… Ciara are teasing her about it. They are calling him Guapo.”
I laughed.
“So that could be an opportunity for us to increase our tip. I’ll check with Harrison to see what he’s willing to do.”
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| Harrison |
“Oh, and is it true Todd gave up his break to make pasta with you?”
I looked at her.
“I didn’t realize it was his break.”
She laughed.
“He does like food a lot. Don’t feel guilty about it.”
We discussed some of the wine options that would go well with my menu and then she left me in peace to really get into it. I found myself getting into a groove, like I hadn’t left this job for two years. Crew members came into the galley to thank me and compliment me on the crew dinner. But now for the most important part.
At 8.00, the guests were at the table getting their wine, water and bread by Yasmin and Gloria. Becca came down.
“Ready?”
“Ready.”
“You are perfect.”
Becca called down Yasmin, Gloria, Todd and Harrison, who had agreed to help with service.
“Fuck, that looks good”, Todd said.
They got two plates each. Becca let everyone go ahead.
“This is goat cheese stuffed sole with lettuce and prickly pears. Except for this one, Flora doesn’t like fish, so she gets a vanilla beef carpaccio with peach.”
“I memorized it”, she smiled, “because you prepared your menu ahead of time.”
I smiled back. We were off to a good start, or at east so it seemed. Becca took the last two plates out, with the carpaccio. I got straight back to work on the main course.
“They love it”, Becca said before she even set foot back in the galley.
“Awesome.”
She watched me work for a while, commenting how delicious it looked.
“Oh, I forgot to tell you. I wanted to ask Harrison to bring out the meals shirtless, but he wouldn’t.”
I laughed.
“I’m going to get us that tip, you better believe it.”
“I am sure you will”, I commented.
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| Todd |
“Done. Sour butter tagliolini with sheep tartare and majoram flowers.”
“Looks fantastic, dude!”
Todd, as well as all the others, took two plates and left.
Dessert was partly done and in the fridge already, but I knew as the final course, there’s no messing up the dessert. And I had planned something really special.
Becca came down to the galley with a big smile.
“Tino said it was the best pasta he had ever had in his life. Cris and Ariana agreed.”
I was so happy.
“Oh my God, that is such a relief.”
“Everyone seems to love it though! You’re knocking it out of the park.”
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| Todd |
Again, it was all empty plates coming back to the galley. Todd was doing the dishes again as I plated dessert.
“That looks so cool, man!”
Harrison and Yasmin had gone to bed by now, so Rodrigo stepped in to help. I also carried up two bowls of dessert and faced the guests for the first time since their arrival.
“Good evening, I hope you’ve enjoyed your dinner?”
“The best!”
“So good!”
Several of the guests told me how much they had enjoyed it.
“So to close off your dinner, I’ve made caramelized popcorn with a banana and lime mousse and some praline peanuts. Enjoy!”
I walked back down and suddenly felt sweaty. Did I look sweaty? I turned around to Becca who was walking back with me.
“Do I look sweaty?”
“You looked in control and handsome.”
I smiled. I loved having her as a co-worker. She hugged me.
“Honestly, great start.”
I cleaned up my kitchen as the empty dessert bowls came back down and Todd washed them for me. We were done at about the same time. I sat in the crew mess for a while to calm down before bed. Todd was going to shower and get to bed immediately. He was already snug under the covers and snoring when I got to the cabin. Once I got into bed I felt such a sense of relief. This was a hard job, but I really enjoyed doing it again.
I was woken up by the alarm. I had slept so deeply, it took me a while to fully wake up and turn off the alarm. I looked down and saw Todd sitting up, blinking.
“Morning.”
“Good morning”, I replied.
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| Todd |
“Aww, thanks!”
“Must be nice when someone makes food for you every now and then”, Todd smiled. “Even if it’s a bowl of cereal.”
Yasmin came down to the crew mess.
“I have 4 of them up with coffees”, she said. “But they’re not that hungry for breakfast yet.”
“Perfect”, I replied.
Breakfast went well and Becca was up in time for service. Captain Aaron came down to the galley.
“How are you holding up, Jay?”
“Pretty good, I think.”
“I asked the guests how they enjoyed their first day and they all mentioned the food first. Only then the boat, the views, the jetskis.”
I smiled.
“You haven’t lost your mojo, man!”
I laughed.
“It did feel pretty good last night.”
“Awesome.”
Captain told me that today would be a good day for a beach lunch as they had requested. It always required a little more prepping, but I was up for it today.
“Cool. I’ll inform Becca and Todd.”
A beach picnic was always quite an operation. I just had to make sure all the food was packed and I could finish it on-site for it to be served. Not all food was good for a beach lunch, but I knew exactly what I wanted to make.
Becca checked with me if I wanted to go.
“Yeah, I prefer to be there to make sure everything gets served how I want.”
“Perfect. You’ll be with Yasmin, Rodrigo and Harrison.”
“Cool.”
“Tender ready at 12.30? Does that work?”
“Sure!”
“You’re the best!”
Becca was off to prepare a cooler with all the drinks the guests could possibly want at the beach.
Becca came back to help me wrap up my food and make sure it made it to the beach alright. Just as we were done, Rodrigo came in and started carefully carrying it to the tender. Becca also put the cooler in. And off we went. Rodrigo got me to the beach. Harrison and Yasmin were already there and had created a nice little set-up.
It was so nice to be off the boat. With the food, the drinks, and me off the boat, Rodrigo was going back to pick up the guests. I checked the food and everything was looking good. Now we just had to wait for the guests to arrive.
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| Harrison |
“So, is everyone on the crew single?”
“I am”, Yasmin said.
“Me too”, I answered.
“Becca has a boyfriend back home”, Yasmin knew.
“Todd just got divorced”, Harrison said. “I thought he might be into her?”
“Really?”, Yasmin said. “Don’t see it.”
“So, do you fancy anyone?”, Harrison asked Yasmin.
She smiled. I suddenly got a feeling he wanted her to say she was into him.
“Rodrigo is pretty hot.”
Harrison chuckled.
“Nice. See what comes of that during crew night out.”
Harrison turned to me.
“You fancy anyone?”
I felt myself get sweaty.
“No, not really. I am gay though, so there’s usually no option for me anyway.”
“Aww yeah. Who knows though, you might meet a sexy Italian”, Harrison replied.
“Yeah, Italian men are hot, right?”, Yasmin said.
And that was it. Harrison was not into me.
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