Cruise Doubledate with My Sister

Jacob was about to tell us what they did in Jamaica when Rebecca interrupted by asking, "Thomas, what did you do in Belize and the Grand Caymans?"

I looked at Rebecca when she talked to me and it was like a knife in the heart. She was so beautiful. She had an elaborate braid that made her hair look more gorgeous than ever. She had spoken in a soft, gentle tone that I loved so much to hear. I felt like crying.

Caitlin jumped in and described our trips. I added a little about our time in Stringray City. If it was this hard to talk to Rebecca with my sister/lover sitting next to me, what was it going to be like in the break room at work?

Once we had finished, Jacob told us about their riding horses on a beach in Jamaica and their going on a snorkel and picnic cruise in Puerto Rico.

"Thomas, what did you do in Jamaica and San Juan?" Rebecca asked.

Why is she asking me?

Again, Caitlin did most of the talking. I talked a little more than the first time. Still, it was so hard.

"Well, it was good seeing you," I lied as I pushed my chair away from the table. Rebecca was the only one with ice cream left - it looked like she had barely touched hers.

"I'm going to pay for my cruise," Rebecca blurted out.

"What?"

"I'm going to pay you for my share of the cruise expenses. When we get back to Boston, I'll come over, we'll go over the cruise expenses and I'll pay you for my share. It'll take me a while to get the money together, but I'll pay you as soon as I can."

"That's nice of you, Rebecca. It really is. I wasn't expecting that." Rebecca was the sweetest person I knew. "I'll throw everything into a spreadsheet and mail it to you."

I looked over at Jacob. All of us looked his way. Would he make the same offer?

"I'm going to do an errand then I'll meet you at the pool," said Jacob to Rebecca as he briskly exited.

I'll take that as a "No."

"Good talking with you," I said as I stood up.

Rebecca had an odd look on her face. "See you tomorrow at the airport."

I winced. I wasn't looking forward to that flight. "See you then." I considered getting a different seat when I got to the airport.

Outside the shop, I told Caitlin, "Whatever Rebecca gives me, I'll split with you."

"Thanks. That'll help a lot."

"It's only fair." We headed back to our cabin. "What did you think of Rebecca's behavior? I expected her to be all happy and bubbly now that she's with her true love, but she didn't act that way at all."

"I think you're killing her with kindness. She's feeling guilty as hell as she knows she did you wrong. If I was in her shoes, I would want you to yell at me, call me names, be ugly and nasty. Then I would feel justified."

I didn't see what there was to be angry about. Disappointed, yes. But Rebecca had been honest with me, had told me that she didn't love me. Who was I to say that she had to stay with me rather than her true love?

* * * *

This story was written by 8letters and published on Literotica

Once Thomas and Caitlin left, Rebecca walked to the trash can and threw her ice cream away.

I'm so stupid. So blazingly stupid.

She waited a few moments for Thomas and Caitlin to be out of sight, then left the shop and stopped. Jacob would be expecting her soon at the pool. She didn't feel like talking to Jacob. Or talking to anyone. She decided to go to the cabin and do some early packing.

It had seemed so easy last night.

As she had laid next to the sleeping Jacob, she had come up with a plan. She'd keep Jacob at bay today, dump him tomorrow morning, then rekindle her friendship with Thomas on the flight back. When she went over to Thomas' place to talk about the cruise expenses, she'd either ask him out on a date or outright seduce him. They'd be back together within a week.

Her first rude awakening had been this morning at the mobbed indoor pool. As she had been talking to Jacob, a little grandfatherly gent had come up to her.

"Weren't you with another guy at the start of the cruise? Tall guy?"

"Yes."

Rebecca had been sick of people asking her that question. Because of their height difference, lots of people had noticed her with Thomas. She had felt bad telling people about breaking up with Thomas and going off with Jacob back when she had thought Jacob was God's gift to her. By the time this little gent talked to her, being asked about Thomas had made her feel many times worse.

"When did you break up with the tall guy? Monday? Around lunch time?"

"Yes." She had wondered how this man knew.

"That explains it. Monday afternoon, I want a break from the grandkids so I go up on deck. Here comes your old boyfriend, walking like a robot. With him is a woman who looks like she wants to bite someone's head off. I relax there for a while and around they come again. I watch them make two more laps then I go back to the grandkids." By this time, Jacob and a few other people had drifted over to hear the man's story. "Two hours later, I decide to take another break. I go up on deck and who do I see? Your old boyfriend and the girl. Same robot walk. The girl doesn't look so angry now. Worried." The man had paused to look around at his audience. "After that, I go up every hour. Every time, they are walking. I check one last time before going to bed and they are still walking. I expect to see a groove in the deck. Craziest thing I've ever seen."

Jacob had laughed. "That is crazy," he had said. Rebecca had felt like she had been punched in the stomach.

What had I ever seen in Jacob?

She knew instantly - he had been the solution to all the guilt she had been feeling.

The guilt had started before graduation. Her parents had wanted her to get a job in Amarillo or even closer to them. She hadn't found many opportunities in that area, certainly nothing comparable to her job offer in Boston. When she had moved to Boston, her parents had acted like she was moving to Gomorrah.

At first in Boston, she had felt guilt-free. She had ended her affair with Jacob and intended to wait until she was married to have sex again. She had found a good church that her parents had approved of. Guys had tried to flirt with her at work, but she had snubbed them because they hadn't been godly men.

She had hung out with friends with work, going to parties and events. Her parents had told her that she should be spending time with people from church, but the people from work were so much more enjoyable - sharp, optimistic, hard-working and fun. At the parties, she found herself gravitating to Thomas. Then she and Thomas had started doing long walks together as they both liked long walks. Thomas had looked up historical walking tours of Boston and she had enjoyed exploring her new city with him.

She had known that her parents wouldn't approve of her spending so much time with Thomas, so she had created The Lie. The Lie had started so small. When her mom - it was always her mom - had asked if she had met or talked with any guys, Rebecca had talked about how much she missed Jacob and how she hadn't met any godly men like him. Her parents had then been very sympathetic and the awkward questions had stopped. She had always implied to her parents that she had done no more with Jacob than kiss and hold hands. Her parents wanted her to again have a chaste relationship like they thought she had had with Jacob.

When Thomas had asked her to spend the night the first time, she hadn't put up much of a fight as she had fallen for him. After their first kiss, she had known they were boyfriend and girlfriend. But to have said it aloud would have meant she would have been lying to her parents when she told them that she had gone for a hike with a guy who was just a friend.

A month and a half ago, Rebecca had decided to tell her parents about Thomas. She had fallen in love with him and had accepted that she would soon give in to her desires for him. Then she had discovered how big The Lie had grown.

Several times during video calls with her parents, she had brought up that she really liked this guy at work. Each time, her parents had cut her off and told her to find a godly man to go out with. Her parents had suggested she get back in touch with Jacob and start a long-distance romance with him. She had told her parents that she didn't know Jacob's phone number, that he had dropped out of sight and that he probably had a new girlfriend. They had replied that the only way to find out was to get ahold of him somehow. Eventually, she had given up on trying to tell them about Thomas, but they had continued to push her to contact Jacob.

One thing she had loved about Thomas was that he had never pushed her, that he had always waited for her to be ready. Then he had repeatedly pushed her to move in with him. Part of her had wanted to and she had felt guilty about that. She hadn't been able to face telling her parents that she was moving in with Thomas, so she had always said no. She had felt guilty about always disappointing him.

She had tried to push the guilt aside, but it was always there. The littlest things began triggering guilt attacks. If something at work reminded her of her mom, she couldn't work for a few hours. If two people living together came up in a conversation, she had to walk away. If something reminded her of church while she was with Thomas, she would tell him that she wasn't feeling well and go home.

Despite the guilt, her love for Thomas had continued to deepen and she finally gave into her desires for him. The day after they had made love for the first time, he had asked her to go on this cruise with him and she had happily said yes. At first, she had been so excited about going on the cruise with Thomas. Eight days of adventuring, sleeping with Thomas every night. All of her friends had been envious. She had decided that if the cruise went well, she would agree to move in with Thomas.

Then it had hit her - she had to tell her parents about the cruise. She would miss three video calls with them. Every time she had thought about telling them, she had felt sick to her stomach. She had put off telling them to the last call before the cruise, which was on Tuesday.

The call had been pure torture. She had told her parents that she was going on a cruise with a friend. Her parents had kept asking her if she was going with a guy and she had always replied that she was going with a friend. She had felt so transparent in her duplicity. They had gone on and on about how much sinful and immoral activity happened on cruises. They had tried to convince her to not go. They had ended the call by telling her that they would spend every hour that she was gone praying for her soul.

She had felt so awful after the call. She had prayed and prayed, asking God to help her. She had wanted to make God and her parents happy while following her heart and she couldn't see any way of doing that. The next day, she had prayed the whole evening in the sanctuary of her church. On Thursday evening, she had spent a long time in prayer in her apartment, begging God for a sign, for a miracle. Friday, she had decided that it was in God's hands and she would worry about it no more.

On Saturday, a miracle had happened - Jacob had appeared out of nowhere. Jacob the guy her parents had wanted her to date. Jacob the guy she had spent months praising. Jacob had been her first love and her true love. And once she was with him, Jacob had been wonderful - handsome, sweet and funny.

Saturday when Thomas and Caitlin had gone for a walk, Jacob had told her that his relationship with Caitlin was going downhill, that they fought a lot and that they were close to breaking up. The great time she and Jacob had had at the pool making new friends had brought back a flood of happy memories.

Thomas had annoyed her by constantly checking out the other women at the pool. When they had gone dancing, she had hated it - the lyrics of the songs had been disgusting and people had been making out next to them on the dance floor. Thomas had been oblivious and had been disappointed that she wasn't having a good time. Jacob on the other hand had been so caring and attentive. She mildly disapproved of gambling and dancing, but she could just watch gambling and the watching had been so exciting.

While she had been watching Thomas and Jacob play blackjack, she had had a vision. It had been like God had pulled back the curtain to show a small piece of His plans for her. Her relationship with Thomas was to be like her relationship with Paul. No more premarital sex. By the end of the cruise, she and Jacob would fall in love and agree to get married. They would break up with Thomas and Caitlin, then long-distance date. She wouldn't see Jacob again until she arrived back in her hometown for their wedding. The next time she would have sex, it would be as Jacob's wife.

God's plan had solved everything. The guilt would be gone. God and her parents would be happy. She'd be happily married. All she had had to do was follow God's plan.

Sunday night when she had been dancing with Jacob, he had told her that he had never stopped loving her. God's plan is working! she had thought. She had been swept up in the moment and had told him the same thing.

Thomas had surprised her Monday when he had confronted her and had told her to pick between him and Jacob. Then it had come to her - God must have spoken to him as well! Thomas had accepted God's will that she was meant to be with Jacob, like Joseph had accepted marrying Mary when he had found out the she was pregnant. God will bless him some day for his obedience she had thought.

But Thomas had not been accepting; he had been crushed. He had loved her, had been so patient with her and she had thrown it all away for an old flame she had once wisely left behind.

Embracing The Lie didn't make it true. She may have been in love with Jacob at some point, but she hadn't been when she had graduated. She had been happy when he had suggested that they wouldn't long-distance date and would count on God to bring them back together. Since they had broken up, she had changed to be even less compatible with Jacob. Embracing The Lie had destroyed everything.

Was this like what Paul had gone through? Having to embrace a lie in order to make his friends and family happy? No, that was trivializing what Paul had done. He had lost everything when he told everyone the truth - he had been disowned by his family and friends. He had not let the cost deter him from being true to himself. If she had moved in with Thomas, what would have happened? Her parents would have been disappointed with her. Her friends in Boston would have been happy for her. She would have still had her job. She was certain that Thomas had wanted to marry her in the not-too-distant future. Probably a little discomfort with her parents for a little while, but she had been unable to face even that. Paul had been brave and she had been a coward.

What am I to do?

Thomas was wary of her now. Once bitten, twice shy. She had seen the pain in his face every time he had talked to her. He had kept her at arms length. He had rejected her idea of coming over and instead wanted to do everything by impersonal email. She had wounded his heart badly and talking to him as she had always done just reopened the wound. How could she get him to date her again?

Thomas will never want to date me.

He hadn't wanted to date her when they'd first met. Why would he date her now that she had betrayed him? Several girls at work had expressed interest in him. Why would Thomas date her instead of one of them?

"Attention please! Attention please!"

Rebecca jumped at the sound of the voice over the loudspeaker. She looked around her. She was in her cabin, with an empty suitcase in front of her and tears streaming down her face. She didn't remember walking back to the cabin or getting the suitcase out.

"Due to the storm we have spent the day traveling through, we will be delayed arriving at Miami. We estimate a ten am arrival time. We are sorry for the delay and the purser will work with anyone who needs to adjust their travel plans." The voice repeated that information several more times while Rebecca returned to her thoughts of what to do about Thomas.

She would have to beg Thomas to take her back. If she begged hard enough, he would. When? Not before the flight. With the delay, they would have to rush to catch their flight and neither of them would be in a good mood. Not on the plane - it would have to be in private. His car was at her apartment. When the taxi dropped them off there, she would convince him to go into her apartment. Once inside, she would beg him to take her back, to give her a second chance. She would tell him she had been so stupid and that she loved him and had for a long time. He was such a sweet guy, he'd forgive her.

Yes, he'd forgive but he'd never forget. The wound would still be there; their love would be a shadow of what it was before. But what could she do? All she could do was love him. No, she had to do more than that. She'd have to demonstrate her love for him with something so incredible that it would knock the memory of her betrayal out of his heart. She'd have to be brave and seize the opportunity to do so when it came.

But would it ever come?

* * * *

Caitlin and I were naked in bed. Dancing hadn't been as much fun tonight as it had been, partly because it was getting old and partly because we were both sad that the cruise was coming to an end. Our post-dancing sex had been slow with lots of caresses, like we were trying to memorize the each others' body.

After we kissed and cuddled for a while, I brought up the question that had been weighing on my mind. "So, what happens to us after tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow, we have one more fuck in the morning then we go back to being your typical brother and sister."

"Caitlin..."

"Thomas, give it up. Long-distance relationships are hard and an incestuous long-distance relationship has no chance."

"You could fly up to see me..."

"I'm in the hole on vacation days and I don't have the money for plane tickets."

"I could fly down to see you..."

"Yeah, then stay at my apartment with one bed rather than staying with Mom and Dad. That wouldn't look suspicious," she said sarcastically. "And don't ask me to try to sneak into your bedroom at Mom and Dad's. If they knew we were fucking, they would have a heart attack. And if any of their friends suspected we were fucking, they would shrivel up and die."

"You could quit your job, move in with me while you look for a job in Boston, then we could live together to save rent."

"I can't quit my job right now. I have bills I have to pay every month and I'm barely able to pay them as is. It would look bad on my resume to quit my first job after less than a year. I would love to move to Boston, but not now. Maybe in a year I could, but by then you'll have a new girlfriend and I'll have a new boyfriend." I sighed. I knew she was just being practical as always, but it hurt. "Thomas, I have had a great time with you. You turned a costly disaster into something wonderful. I feel super close to you now. I got over Jacob in record time. You're hopefully over Rebecca. It's time for us to go back to our real lives and find someone new."

I sighed again. "I'm not over Rebecca yet. I'm going to see her regularly at work. Every time, I'll think about what would have been if I hadn't gone on this stupid cruise. You were never that serious about Jacob while I thought Rebecca was the one."

Caitlin looked up at me and stroked my face with her hand, soothing me. "I'm sorry, Thomas. It saddens me that you're hurting, but trying to hold onto me isn't the answer."

Caitlin went back to snuggling on me and I held her close. She was right and I knew she was right. I was sad - terribly sad - and tears started to flow.