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“Oh, I’m not going to avoid you,” I promise. “I’m not going to leave you alone. I’m going to keep you plenty busy with sex and punishments and kinky play on the boat. I promise I’ll keep you from getting into too much mischief.”
The look she gives me has me seriously thinking about ditching the whole exploration idea and taking her back to the boat right now. But her eyes are shining as the tall limestone cliffs of the islands come into view, and I find I’m just as happy showing her the world as I am showing her the darker side of her sexuality.
What we’re doing is called big-wall paddling, and it’s a little intimidating at first, paddling right next to the fortress-like limestone walls that rise out of the impossibly blue water to heights of almost seven hundred feet. We stay close enough so we can talk as we paddle, and I love experiencing this with her and watching the wonder in her face as paradise unfolds. She’s in good shape physically, despite her self-deprecating jokes to the contrary, and she handles her kayak adroitly.
We start at the visually striking Tapiutan Island, with its sheer limestone walls, where we enjoy a late lunch that we brought from the hotel on the beach on the southeastern side of the island. After we eat, we snorkel in water so clear it’s like swimming in an aquarium, discovering lion fish, huge sea cucumbers, zebra moray eels, brightly colored sea anemones, and parrotfish. From there, we paddle to Matinloc Island. We tie up our kayaks and swim to Secret Beach, which you can only get to through an underwater narrow crevice in the rock wall. McKenzie is hesitant at first, gripping my hand fiercely as I show her the small hole hidden from view that we must swim through.
“Don’t think!” I remind her. “Come on. I won’t let go of you.”
She nods resolutely and dives in with me. I hold her hand as we swim, and when we surface on the other side, I take a mental snapshot of her face as she takes in the hidden, secluded white sand beach surrounded by steep rock walls as pointy as skyscrapers. I store it away in my memory for the lonely days I know will follow when this assignment is over and I have to say good-bye to her. I’ve travelled just about everywhere in the world, but the Philippines has earned a spot as one of my favorite places on Earth, partly because of its beauty and partly because I’ve shared it with McKenzie. The cathedral-like walls that surround us make it seem like a church, and I can’t help but think of McKenzie offering her body to me last night like a sacrifice, although if truth be told, I was the one who worshipped at the altar of her sweet submission.
The coral here is amazing, and we spend a good hour snorkeling.
“You ready to take a break?” I ask as she surfaces next to me. I figure if I’m ready for a breather, McKenzie must be. We still have more islands to explore, and I’m afraid she’s going to wear herself out.
“Not yet.” She pouts at me, and I find myself wishing we were alone on the beach so I could put those pouty lips to good use.
“McKenzie, we’re taking a break,” I say more firmly. “You’re going to be too tired for the rest of the trip if you don’t pace yourself.”
“Fine.” She rolls her eyes.
I smack her bottom playfully. “I’m sorry. What’s the correct response?”
“Yes, sir?”
“Exactly.” I reward her with a smile. The little minx just rolls her eyes at me again.
“Let me guess. You think you get to make all the rules because you own me until Malaysia.”
“Damn straight. And I don’t think I do; I know I do.”
She laughs as I scoop her up in my arms. “And if I don’t follow your rules?” She’s looking up at me from beneath long lashes with feigned innocence, and I can’t resist. I kiss her. Hard. Then dunk her. She comes up sputtering, and I lick the salt water from her lips.
“Disobedient girls get punished,” I say in a low voice. “And just because I haven’t followed through on the punishment you earned last night doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten it.”
“Oh,” she says in a small voice, but she’s snuggling in closer to my chest in that way that makes me never want to let her go.
“Trust me to know what you need. And right now, you need to rest.”
“I kind of like the way you take care of me.” She says it so softly I have to strain to hear her.
I set her down on the soft sand and sit next to her, closing my eyes for a few minutes. I must have dozed off, because when I open them, McKenzie’s talking to a young girl with a long braid and freckles sprinkled across her nose. A couple, whom I assume are her parents, are watching a younger boy build a sand castle nearby.
“You American?” A young Filipino guy plops down in the sand next to me, and I’m grateful for the excuse not to join in the conversation with McKenzie and the girl. The less time I spend with kids, the better. The memory of Maggie still haunts me, and the pain is too great imagining what she would look like, and who she would be, if she were still alive.
The man and I start talking, and it turns out that he offers guided cave tours around the islands. I’d wanted to explore some of the caves in the area, but deciding to spend the day island hopping with McKenzie had been a spur-of-the-moment decision, and I’d just thrown together a quick itinerary. I hadn’t had time to research where all the caves are, the best way to explore them, or how safe they are. But he obviously knows the islands and caves well, and it sounds fantastic. I ask Kenzie if she’s up for it, and she eagerly agrees. Now that she’s gotten the hang of trying new things, she’s becoming downright unstoppable.
The little girl’s father overhears us talking, and they insist on joining us, so in half an hour’s time the tour guide, me, McKenzie, and the girl, her mom, dad, and younger brother are in our respective kayaks and paddling Bacuit Bay in search of caves carved into the limestone.
The first opening we find looks like the door to a cathedral, and once we’ve navigated through the small opening, we emerge into a cavern with high sheer rock walls decorated with stalactites. It is absolutely stunning. The sun streams through a hole in the top and illuminates McKenzie on her kayak in the middle of the pool of blue water as if she’s some sort of goddess. Which, of course, in my book she is.
“It looks like the Emerald City from theWizard of Oz,” the little girl says, paddling up next to McKenzie. McKenzie has told me her name, but I can’t remember it. She seems to have latched on to McKenzie, who chats with her like they’re best friends.
We explore several more small caves as we travel to Miniloc Island, where we paddle through a narrow channel aptly called the Tunnel of Love, pushing off the limestone walls like we’re on a flume ride at an amusement park, before emerging into Big Lagoon, a marine lake. Jake, the tour guide, tries to convince the girl’s family to stay and snorkel in the lake while he takes McKenzie and me to one more cave, but at the last minute, the father and the girl end up coming along.
The scenery is much the same as what we’ve seen so far, and Jake waves us on as he stops with the girl and her father, who has somehow managed to capsize his kayak.
“There’s an amazing cave around the rocks ahead,” Jake says to me. “You two go ahead and explore. We’ll catch up with you in a few minutes.” I nod, and McKenzie and I continue on. We’re joined a few minutes later by the girl.
