Chapter 1
Caitlin walked into her and String's bedroom at the beach house that they had rented in Florida with Saint John and Dom. String was lying in bed with only his bathing suit on and was waiting for Caitlin to get ready. She quickly went into the adjoining bathroom with her bathing suit in hand.
"Hurry up in there," he said. "I'd like to get a little alone time on the beach while they are out fishing."
Caitlin walked out of the bathroom wearing nothing but a tiny bikini. She smiled when she caught the look on String's face.
"Why hit the beach?" she asked. "We can have just as much fun right here."
Caitlin dove onto the bed and String immediately moved closer to her. He began kissing her neck and continued down the small of her back before untying her bathing suit top with one finger. She giggled as he moved on top of her and continued his kisses down her chest. Next he untied the side strings of her suit bottom and continued his kisses down her belly. Before he could go on further he thought he heard the front door open and shut.
"String!" yelled Dom. "Hey String? Where are you?"
"Damn him," said String. "He has the worst timing of anyone I know." Then he yelled. "We're in here Dom. We'll be right out."
Caitlin sat up and Hawke quickly helped her tie her bathing suit back on. "Oh well," she said. "We can continue this later."
Hawke winked at her. "You bet we will," he replied. Then he stopped a moment and looked at her again. He walked over to the dresser and pulled out one of his t-shirts. "Here, put this on. Saint John doesn't need to see you in that bikini."
"What's wrong with it?" she asked jokingly. "I was going to wear it out to the beach."
String walked up to her and kissed her before responding. "Please don't," he said. "I'd kind of like it if you saved this one just for me."
"Okay," she replied. "But I'm going to wear the top with shorts out on the boat tomorrow."
String grumbled but finally didn't object. He knew he really didn't have much say in the matter anyway.
The two walked out into the main living area of the house to find Saint John lounging on the couch and Dom in the kitchen.
"I thought you two were going fishing?" asked Hawke.
"We were," replied Saint John. "But, a storm's coming in so we had to come back early. It's just as well. I think the two of you should have come with us anyway. It'll be more fun that way."
"Not for us," whispered Caitlin.
"Huh?" asked Saint John.
"Oh, nothing," replied Caitlin while slightly blushing. "It sounds like fun Saint John. We already planned to go tomorrow."
String shot her a disappointed look. "Yeah, we're going tomorrow," he replied. "Why don't we find something for lunch now though?"
"Great," said Dom. "We'll go first thing in the morning. Oh, and I have lunch covered. You two just relax and go back to doing whatever you were doing."
String smiled. "Uh, we were just going to go out to the beach," he lied. "I guess the weather will keep us in now."
Dom looked at Caitlin and then at String. "Nice t-shirt," he said sarcastically.
Caitlin laughed. "Hawke doesn't like my bikini," she replied.
"That's not true," replied String. "What I don't like is anyone else seeing her bikini."
"Hey, my mama always said if you got it, flaunt it," said Dom with a laugh.
String shot him a dirty look. "She's not your mama," he replied. "Come on Cait; let's sit out on the porch."
The two could hear Dom and Saint John laughing as they walked out onto the back porch of the house that overlooked the ocean. It had a cover and several beach chairs lined up along the back of the house. They sat down beside each other and held hands as they watched the storm move in from the ocean. With it came a light refreshing breeze.
"Wow, that feels great," said Caitlin. "I love it here. I enjoy watching storms come in. I use to do this quite often when I lived down here."
String squeezed her hand. "It is pretty relaxing," he said. "This is just what we needed after the tough few months we've had."
"I agree," she replied as she leaned over and kissed him thoroughly.
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The next morning the group rented a boat and headed out on the water to fish. Caitlin preferred to just soak up the sun and enjoy the view. She let the guys do the fishing. Normally, she enjoyed it but this time around she decided to pass.
They dropped anchor at a spot Dom thought looked promising. In no time the three men had their poles in the water and were relaxing and waiting for the fish to bite.
"String, will you help me and put suntan lotion on my back," asked Caitlin.
String smiled and got up to join her towards the front of the boat. He grabbed the bottle of lotion and applied it liberally to her back and shoulders. Caitlin enjoyed the fact that he took his time to rub the lotion in thoroughly.
"Damn you're good with your hands," she said with a smile.
"You two quit while you're ahead," said Dom. "Were fishing. There's no time for other nonsense."
"Nonsense?" asked String. "What nonsense?" He winked at Caitlin before going back to fishing.
About a half hour later Saint John thought he had something on his line. He pulled and pulled but couldn't get it out of the water.
"I don't think it's a fish," he said disappointed. "I think it's caught on something." He grabbed his snorkel and mask. "String, want to go down with me and check it out?"
"Sure, why not," he replied.
The two men jumped off of the boat and dove down into the water. Caitlin and Dom watched intently as they surfaced and then dived back in again.
"What is it?" asked Caitlin. "Do you see anything?"
A few moments later, Saint John came back to the surface with a small trunk about two feet in length and a foot wide. String helped him with it as Dom assisted the men back onto the boat.
"What is that?" asked Caitlin. "Looks like a little treasure chest."
Dom studied the box carefully. It was covered in symbols and strange writing. "Uh oh," he said. "I don't think I like this."
"What is it?" asked String.
"These symbols," replied Dom. "I've seen them before. They mean that the person or people who possess this item will have bad luck."
"What?" said String. "Do you really believe that? Now that's what I call nonsense."
"I'm not sure," said Dom. "I've never seen it myself but I've heard stories over the years from guys who found artifacts like this and things didn't go well for them."
"Don't worry Dom," said Saint John. "That's just and old wives tale. Let's see if we can get it open and check out what's inside."
