After the first few wonderful days with Kate and Emma, reality set in, and I had to buckle down and concentrate on my book. While this was a vacation for the girls, it was a work session for me, and I had deadlines to meet. I’d brought a laptop loaded with research, and I spent over a week organizing the material and building my story’s framework. Then I knuckled down and started writing the first draft.

As the weeks passed, I wrote during the days and enjoyed romantic evenings with Emma and Kate. We never did decide on any kind of regular sex schedule, instead letting our mood guide us each night. During the daytime, the girls would head out on adventures to the surrounding towns, where they shopped and visited the many historic sites. Emma even convinced Kate to join her for jogs along the beach, where they met other sun worshipers and expanded their social circle. Of course, Em and I still swam every morning and the positive outcome was that everyone was relaxed, deeply tanned, and in amazing shape.

We’d reached the end of June, and I’d just submitted the first few chapters to my editor. His initial feedback was encouraging, which meant my plot was on the right track and I could step up the pace and let the story unfold without hesitation. To celebrate this significant milestone, I decided to take the gals out for dinner at one of our favorite restaurants. Even though it was a Friday evening, I was well-known enough to score a last-minute reservation for 7 o’clock.

Kate was ready first and chose a simple dress in teal and white. It was sleeveless and featured a modest neckline with a vee that ended between her breasts. The hemline, which struck a few inches above her knees, was ruffled with a tropical flower pattern sewn into the lace. Her long tanned legs were bare, and she wore off-white sandals with modest heels. The overall look was one of easy elegance.

A few minutes later, Emma emerged all polished and powdered. Her long, silken hair was formed into a casual twist and secured with a silver clip. She’d selected a pale yellow dress that perfectly emphasized her youthfulness. It was flirty, with an ultra-mini hemline and spaghetti straps that crisscrossed her mostly bare back. Her long legs were also bare and for footwear, she chose silvery ballet flats. At her décolletage hung the seahorse charm necklace I’d purchased for her last year. It glittered softly in the room light, adding to her fun look.

“Emma Jean,” Kate said. “That dress is far too short. You won’t be able to sit without exposing your underwear. Even a gust of wind will be enough to flash your private bits to anyone around you.”

“No worries, Mom,” Emma said, a mischievous smile creasing her lips. “No one will see my panties because I’m not wearing any.”

Kate’s face darkened, and she opened her mouth to lay down the law. But Em beat her to it.

Lifting her short hemline, Emma revealed a tiny pair of tight, black bicycle shorts.

“See Mom,” she laughed, “it’s all good. No risk of giving anyone a stroke.”

I had to laugh, though I noticed that Kate was less than pleased. It was going to be an interesting evening.

Dinner, as expected, was spectacular and everyone shared bites of their meal. Our waiter was young, and he spent an inordinate amount of time attending to Emma. He must have refilled her water glass a dozen times and made sure to serve her first with every course. Emma tried to act aloof, but I could see she enjoyed the effect she had on him. At one point, she dropped her fork and the young lad dove under the table to retrieve it. Given the shortness of her dress, it wasn’t surprising that his under-table excursion seemed to take a beat longer than it needed to.

After about five seconds, Emma said, “See anything you like down there?”

The tabletop jumped as the poor kid banged his head trying to make a hasty retreat. He mumbled something about bringing a new fork and hightailed it to the kitchen. After that, his visits to our table became less frequent. I smiled inwardly, knowing exactly how boys felt at that age, and I made sure to tip him generously both for his excellent service and his awkwardness.

Back out on the street, we strolled along the multitude of shops, enjoying the colorfully decorated display windows. Being the peak tourist season, the stores went overboard, filling their windows with attractive wares. As we neared the corner, I noticed that my favorite jewelry shop was open, so we went inside.

“Mom, this is where Uncle Steve bought my seahorse earrings and necklace last year. I wonder if they have any other matching pieces?”

The shopkeeper overheard her and, after taking one look at her necklace, motioned us over to a display case near the rear of the store.

“Hello Miss, my name is Alonzo and the seahorse necklace you are wearing is one of our signature pieces. We designed the setting in this store, and you won’t find the pattern anywhere else. We do have several other pieces utilizing the same seahorse charm. You mentioned you have the earrings too?”

“Hi Alonzo, my name is Emma and this is my mom and my Uncle Steve. Yes, he bought me the two pieces during our visit last year. Can I see what else is available with this design?”

Within a minute, arrayed on a black velvet pad, were a ring, an anklet, and a hair clip all featuring the same seahorse setting. Each was iridescent in greens, golds, and reddish hues.

“Ooh, I love the anklet,” Emma squealed. “It’s so dainty and pretty. I brought my own money, how much is it, please?”

When the shopkeeper told her the price, I saw her face drop. She had no idea how much custom jewelry cost, especially in a resort town. I, of course, was not going to let her be disappointed.

“Oh no, sorry,” Emma said. “I can’t afford that. Maybe on our next trip.”

“Alonzo,” I interrupted. “I see the price tag on the hair clip, and I’d like to buy that for Emma too. She’s always wearing hair clips and this piece is beautiful. How about a thousand total for the anklet and hair clip?”

Kate touched my arm. “Steven, no,” she began.

Alonzo, sensing the deal might go sour, jumped in with, “I can do eleven hundred for both.”

After the items were wrapped and paid for, we stepped back outside, where Kate grabbed my arm.

“Emma, please go on ahead and wait for us. I need to speak with your uncle.”

As Emma walked away, Kate turned to me and said, “I know you’re in love with my daughter, and maybe even in love with me, but you know I’m not comfortable with large expenditures of money. And Emma’s too young to appreciate how hard it is for normal people to earn that kind of money. You can’t keep doing this!”

I held up my hands in surrender. “Look, I understand you’ve never been comfortable with me paying for things. But I love you both dearly, and I have more money than I could ever spend in a lifetime. I have no one else in my life, at home I live modestly, and if I don’t spend some of it along the way, then when I’m gone it’ll all go to you guys anyway, with the government taking a healthy cut in taxes. It makes me happy to spend it on both of you.”

Kate’s demeanor softened, and she took my hand in hers. “I hear what you’re saying, but I live on a tight budget and this kind of frivolous spending makes me uneasy. Your wallet is not bottomless.”

“Kate, darling,” I began, “I say this without any boast or brag. I just want you to understand my finances. Each year, my investments provide more income than you make in ten years. That’s what I spend while never touching the tens of millions of dollars in the bank. And all that’s before I include the advance for my latest book and the profits it’s certain to generate. But even if I never sell another book, I, we, are set for life. Plus, I have a bulldog of an accountant who keeps me in line.”

Kate’s eyes widened as she tried to absorb my financial reality. It was not a subject we’d ever talked about in detail. Taking a deep breath, Kate smiled and leaned into me, hugging me tightly.

“You win. I’ll try to adjust to your world, but let’s not spoil her too much, okay?”

I agreed, and we hurried to catch up to Emma. By this time, most of the shops were closing, so we walked back to the car and headed home. After changing our clothes, we settled down to watch a movie and around midnight headed to bed. Between the big meal and the stress of the money talk, it was one of the rare nights where everyone slept alone.

The next morning dawned bright and early and I awoke first. I tiptoed into Em’s bedroom and found her buried under the covers with one bare foot sticking out. I tickled her sole to wake her up and after some moans and groans, she agreed to meet me on the deck for our swim. I donned my suit and then waited for fifteen minutes until the princess dragged herself outside.

Today’s Speedo was pure white with a fluorescent orange stripe. Like the others, it clung to her like a second skin and in the cool morning air, her nipples were doing their best to pierce the stretchy fabric. The suit was so tight, her camel toe was more prominent than usual, and I could just make out the small bump of her clitoris. Once again, I wondered if forgoing the swim and taking her back to bed would be the better choice.

But she grabbed my hand and dragged me through the sand to the water’s edge, where we waded in and made good time on our swim. In the past month, we’d extended our distance to five miles, and now we were in top physical condition. Slogging through the soft sand back to our house, we greeted several regulars who were setting up umbrellas and blankets. Back on the patio, we sat for a few minutes to drip dry in the early morning sun. This gave me the chance to reveal today’s surprise activity.

“In the mood for an adventure today?” I asked. “I rented that boat again, the one we used last year. I thought we could head out to that island with the pool in the cave. I bet your mom would enjoy the trip.”

“Hell yeah, she would,” Emma exclaimed. “And I’d love to go back there too. It’s where we first admitted we loved each other, and the cave was pretty cool too.”

While Em showered and dressed, I went to Kate and gently woke her up. She was never a morning person, and this day was no exception.

“What’s with you two and early wake-up? Christ, it’s just turned seven o’clock.”

“Need an early start today. We have a long boat ride ahead of us. You can sleep along the way if you'd like. Now, no questions. It’s all a surprise.”

I was showered and dressed fifteen minutes later, just in time for the delivery of the picnic supplies. One insulated basket had the food, while the other had various beverages. I stowed these in the car and went inside to pack a duffle with towels, sunscreen, and other supplies. By the time the girls emerged, we were ready to roll.

Emma and Kate both wore flip-flops, shorts, and oversized shirts. I would have to wait to see which swimsuits they’d picked for the day. We piled into the car and headed for the marina, arriving about thirty minutes later. A large blue and white cabin cruiser was tied up at the end of the pier, near the marina office. We loaded our supplies onto the boat and I went inside to fill out the paperwork. Ten minutes later, we were slowly motoring across the lagoon, heading for open water.

Kate stripped off her clothes, revealing one of her new swimsuits. It was a yellow one-piece with white and green geometric patterns. I expected her to head below to snooze during the two-hour journey, but she was having too much fun on deck watching the other boats and enjoying the salt spray. Emma was with her, but chose to keep her clothes on. It was then I suspected which swimsuit she was wearing.

The ocean was very calm, and we arrived at the island earlier than expected. Rounding the bend, I motored into the narrow inlet and tied up at the huge pilings just offshore. Emma and Kate floated the insulated containers to the beach, while I carried the duffle and other supplies. Within minutes, I had everything arranged under the shade of the umbrella and we began our adventure.

It was at this point Emma stripped off her clothes and I saw, unsurprisingly, she was wearing the micro-bikini we’d purchased last month. Just the act of removing her clothes had uncovered her nipples, and she quickly pulled the suit back in place.

“I figured this island was private enough,” she said, answering the unasked question. “And if things go as expected, I won’t even be wearing this for much longer.”

I laughed and saw that even Kate had to chuckle at the cheeky comment, knowing in her heart that her daughter’s statement was probably true.

“This is all beautiful,” Kate said, smiling and changing the subject. “What exactly will we be doing?”

“First we’ll explore a bit, and get ourselves hot and sweaty. Then I have a special spot to show you, and then we’ll end at an even better spot. That’s all I want to reveal right now.”

Kate rolled her eyes and grabbed the insulated water bottle I handed her. I gave one to Emma and off we went. We hiked for about two hours, slowly ascending to where the vegetation became lusher. We stopped frequently to sip water and admire the flowering plants and small animals along the way.

“Uncle Steve, this is a lot more overgrown than last year. They must have gotten a lot of rain since we last visited.”

“Yes, absolutely correct. I checked the weather service and this region had over a foot more rain than average earlier this year. I’m hoping that means good things for where we’re headed next.”

We continued hiking, now descending single-file along a well-worn footpath. The vegetation was thick, making it difficult to see very far ahead, but we could hear the loud babbling of water on rocks. As we rounded a curve in the path, the area ahead opened up, and we were back at the crystalline pool Emma and I’d visited last year.

“Wow!” Emma exclaimed. “Look at how deep the pool is. And the waterfall is pouring buckets rather than just trickling.”

“Oh, Steven,” Kate said. “This is gorgeous. Look at the force of the water gushing into the pool.”

The freshwater pond was as clear as glass and you could see the bottom covered in multicolored pebbles. I ran my fingers through the water, noting its coolness. Carefully, I crouched and stepped into the pool. It was about three feet deep at our end and at least twenty feet distant from the side with the waterfall. I easily swam the distance, and soon the chilly spill of water pummeled my body. Kate and Emma joined me and we frolicked in the refreshing, clear water.

“This feels so good on my hot skin,” Emma shouted over the pounding of the water.

Emma submerged herself and slithered along the bottom of the pool, making her way over to her mom. She erupted from the water and grabbed Kate, wrapping her in a bear hug. Heads together, they spoke to each other, but I couldn't hear over the noise. I noted with amusement that Kate was holding Emma firmly by her tight, compact ass, and their breasts were pressed firmly against each other. Hmm, I thought.

Tired of swimming, we sat on the rocky edge of the pool, dangling our feet in the cool water. The waterfall made conversation nearly impossible, unlike the quiet interlude Em and I experienced last year.

“Okay, time to get moving,” I shouted. “The next stop will be even better and much quieter.”

We followed the winding footpath downhill until the surroundings grew silent again. Now, at least, we could speak normally.

“Mom, the next part will be a little creepy at first. It’s all dark and crunchy underfoot, but It’s worth it, you’ll see.”

“Dark? Crunchy? Where the heck are we going?”

Minutes later, I pointed to the dark smudge on the rock face, about a hundred yards down the path.

“Is that a cave?” Kate asked, her voice rising an octave.

We continued to walk until we were at the cave’s entrance. Five feet in, it was too dark to see anything.

“I’m not so sure about this,” Kate said. “There might be bats or rats or who knows what else in there.”

“No bats that we saw last time,” I explained. “I think the ceiling is too low. As for other animals, they’re probably more scared of us. It’ll be okay, trust me.”

We held hands and entered the cave, pausing a few feet inside to let our eyes adjust. In the distance, we could hear echoes of what sounded like water slapping against rocks.

“The cave curves to the left and then opens up into a huge space with a break in the ceiling vented to the sky. It’ll be much brighter there.”

We walked slowly, feeling our way. No one spoke, and the only sounds were the crunch of seashells beneath our bare feet and the water against the rocks. As the path twisted, the area ahead glowed with shimmering illumination, making it easier to walk more confidently. At the path’s end, it opened up into a huge space with a roughly...