Mary Ann Summers and Roy Hinkley spent the rest of the morning, and into the afternoon, occupied in their usual tasks of maintaining a liveable atmosphere on their little island.
"Ginger, are you going to go to the lagoon with me this afternoon to help with the laundry?" Mary Ann asked her hutmate, although she KNEW the answer: any excuse Ginger could think of.
"Oh, well, I promised Mrs. Howell I would help her with something."
"Hmmmm mmmmm," was Mary Ann's reply as she picked up the basket hamper of their few dirty clothes. She knew it'd be something; she didn't even bother asking what she had planned with the older woman.
As Mary Ann stepped out of her hut, Gilligan rounded the corner and ran into her, and the basket and clothes went flying.
"OH, I'm sorry, Mary Ann, here, let me help you!"
He quickly gathered the clothes, not wanting to touch ladies' unmentionables for TOO long. He made a point of looking anywhere but at the clothes in his hands. They were soon all rounded up, and Mary Ann smiled at Gilligan, ready to continue down to the lagoon.
"Hey, Mary Ann, you seen the Professor this afternoon?" he asked, tagging along behind her at a trot.
She thought for a moment. "Hmmmm, no, Gilligan. Why? Did the Skipper need him?"
"No, no, I'd asked him to do something, that's all."
"What's that?"
"Well, he was going to teach me some swimming techniques."
"You? Swimming?"
Mary Ann was surprised, because if NOTHING else, Gilligan swam very very well.
"Um, well, YEAH, why not? The Professor knows everything!" he stammered.
She stared suspiciously at Gilligan. Maybe he was right, but she figured it was more like Gilligan was going to teach the Professor swimming technique! Perhaps that was it. The Professor might've asked GILLIGAN to teach HIM something. Amazing. And here Gilligan was, trying to play it off as no big deal.
"I don't know, Gilligan, he could be anywhere, you know him."
"Well, if you see him, tell him I'll be over at the waterfall. I'm in the mood for fresh-water swimming this afternoon, and it's so cool and shady there."
She smiled sweetly at Gilligan as he turned to head back to the waterfall swimming area. "I'll do that, Gilligan."
"Thanks, Mary Ann!" he shouted as he ran off, full of energy as always.
She shook her head and chuckled, continuing down the path to the beach area.
Fifteen minutes into her laundry work, and she could understand why Gilligan had opted to go swimming at the 'falls. It was a real scorcher this afternoon, and even though the sun was moving behind the trees, the lagoon's beach area was ferociously hot.
Mary Ann looked around and, seeing no one, tied her little blouse up over her waist, exposing her flat stomach to the cooler air off the water. It helped somewhat, but the more she thought of it, the more she wanted to go swimming at the falls too.
It wasn't unusual, after all, for all seven of them to retire there on hot evenings as this was proving to be going toward. They'd pack up cold food into the baskets and carry them there, a little entourage, and picnic as the sun set. It was actually rather enjoyable, a little change of scenery from their usual dinner table.
And this afternoon, she'd hardly be alone with the Professor, right? Gilligan would be there, after all. Nothing untoward or unusual, no fuel for island gossip.
That's what I'll do, she thought with conviction. I'll finish this up, go tell everyone we're having one of our evening picnics at the falls, and march everyone up there. She knew she could do that, because via some unspoken agreement during their years there, Mary Ann had become in charge of all things related to food and cooking. If she says they picnic, then they picnic.
She finished the laundry as quickly as possible to hang it in the sun, turned around and almost ran into Roy.
"Professor! You scared me!" she laughed.
He stopped her by grasping her shoulders, smiling down at her reaction. "Sorry, Mary Ann. I was looking for Gilligan."
"Oh, for the swimming lessons?"
"He...he told you about that?"
"Yes, and I don't believe it for a second."
"What... what don't you believe?"
"That YOU are teaching HIM swimming techniques! Professor, you and I both know that is the one thing Gilligan does better than anyone else on the island, including the Skipper. He's like a fish, you know that!"
Neither of them realized it, at first, that the Professor was still holding Mary Ann by the shoulders. He suddenly noticed it, and released her.
"Yes, um, well... you're right, I wanted him to show me some things. This morning, when I tumbled in the water, I was almost nervous at first. I don't get as much swimming in as I should, for all we live on a tropical island! Besides, it's incredibly good exercise."
He glanced down, unable to stop himself, when she rubbed her sweaty tanned tummy.
"I know, and you picked a great day for it! It's HOT! I was going to join you two, if that's okay. I worked up quite a sweat with that laundry."
She hadn't missed his glance, and she saw a red flush go over his cheeks as he turned his eyes back to her.
"That would be fine, yes, if you don't mind Gilligan and me hogging the deep end, by the falls!"
"Let's go back to the compound and get our swimming suits on. Gilligan should already be there."
When Mary Ann emerged from her hut in her two-piece bathing suit, the Professor was already there in his swimming trunks. He wore his white shirt, unbuttoned, over the trunks and was barefoot.
"You're not going barefoot through the brush, are you?" Mary Ann asked with concern.
"My feet have gotten pretty tough this season, and it's a regular path. I'm sure I'll be fine."
"I hope so, because I won't be able to carry you if you get a thorn or something!"
He laughed as they turned down the trail to the fresh-water swimming area. "No, I'll be fine, don't worry."
It was about a fifteen minute hike, and by the time they got there, they were both sweating profusely, even though they'd been in the shade the whole time. They didn't hear any splashing other than the falls, knowing Gilligan would not be swimming alone. He knew that cardinal rule well; they were confident he'd be waiting on a rock for the Professor to show up for the lesson.
As the Professor held a fern branch away, for Mary Ann to pass through, he was startled to discover there was no Gilligan there.
"Where is he?" he asked, looking around.
He saw a note, held in place on a tree by a broken stub of a branch.
"Prof, Skipper needed me for the afternoon. We'll swim tomorrow. G."
"Hmmmm, would you look at that? Guess I've got a reprieve. Now I know how my students feel when I find myself unable to attend a class!"
Mary Ann kicked off her little Keds sneakers, threw her towel down and went to the rock that edged the deep end.
"We're here, let's have fun! I don't need to start dinner for a couple more hours. Shellfish don't take long to steam, after all!"
He smiled and followed her to the big rock. He dallied a bit, waiting for her to turn her back, before he removed his shirt. He couldn't believe how shy he could be, but now? Alone with this lovely girl?
No, you're being silly, Roy, he told himself. Not like she hasn't seen you in your trunks before, right?
Mary Ann turned to say something to Roy, just in time to see him slip his shirt off. She had to fight to take in a gasp, he looked so darned good to her.
Without missing a beat, she asked, "So, you wanna just jump in? Dive? Scare the critters away?"
"Let's cannonball, that should do it!"
She laughed and took his hand in hers, and before she could marvel at the sensations that touch evoked, they were careening over the edge. Their screams echoed through the jungle canopy, and they came up laughing and sputtering.
Mary Ann slapped the water. "Okay, varmints, away with you!"
Roy joined her, and their noise and fuss did the job and any creatures that had been languishing in the cool water were driven away for the day.
Now that critter-eviction duty was over with, Mary Ann swam away from Roy, toward the shallow end. The water was very chilly, but after that hot sweaty beach it felt marvelous.
The two of them swam like that for a while, back and forth, not really drawing closer to one another. They'd each sneak a glimpse of the other, sometimes making eye contact, usually not. As the hour wore on, Roy and Mary Ann noticed that their circling was getting closer, and closer.
Roy dove under water, swam like an arrow to Mary Ann, and came up behind her. This was it, they knew Gilligan wasn't going to burst in this time! Watching her swim around so gracefully, so effortlessly, had worked its magic on him.
She heard him surface, and before she could turn to face him, she felt his hands on her shoulders. He kept them there, not moving, not going up and down her arm, simply resting there.
"Mary Ann," he whispered, leaning in close to her ear.
His warm breath on her cool neck, on her ear, made Mary Ann shiver in anticipation. Is he...? she wondered. Is this it? Her muscles quivered as she became conscious of the heat emanating from him, from his chest and his stomach. He'd moved close enough to ALMOST touch her back, but not quite.
"Professor," she sighed back at him, leaning her head back to rest on his bared shoulder.
A vibration and a numbness went through her when he kissed her little earlobe, breathing out to tickle her ear canal.
"I think it won't break any rules of propriety if you call me 'Roy,' Mary Ann. In fact, I wish you would."
"Roy," she agreed, saying it aloud. It felt odd to her mouth, but she'd get used to it. Right now, all she wanted to do was drown in the feel of him. His hands on her shoulders, his bare shoulder holding her head up. The feel of his mouth so very very close to her neck, his lips touching her earlobe. His sighing exhalation as he whispered her name again. She drew in a deep breath through her nose, reveling in his scent. He smelled of greenery and water, and a tang of sweat and musk. The odors combined with their shady glade made Mary Ann drunk with sensory overload.
"Mary Ann," he said, ending the sigh with the most delicate of nibbles on her earlobe.
The moan that escaped Mary Ann's mouth assured Roy that he was doing just fine, thank you. He didn't know what had come over him: for once, he wasn't analyzing things to death. It was obvious, even to him, that Mary Ann wanted this, oh, how she wanted it! he was ecstatic to discover.
And he loved to say her name, it rolled so sweetly off his lips.
Roy stopped thinking about anything, and let his very capable instinct kick in. He kissed down her neck, from earlobe to nape, while one hand moved forward to grasp her under the chin, over the throat.
He nibbled, kissed and lapped at her, savoring the taste of her, planting the sensation in his mind. She smelled so sweet, so fresh and clean and green. This was a lovely spot, this little glade, a barrier from the fierce tropical sun.
Mary Ann was gone. Her knees began to grow weak, and she relaxed, leaning completely against Roy. Oh, my, was all she could think when she felt him pressed against her. The dizziness, the swooning made her moan once more.
"Roy," she gasped, and he put his hands over her arms to steady her.
"Yes, Mary Ann?" he sighed against the other ear.
"You... you... I... " she couldn't get anything out.
He gently turned her so she was facing him. The two gazed into one another's eyes, dilated with desire. Her eyes were almost black, and his eyes were black with a narrow blue ring.
Before she could say a word, Roy put his big hands behind Mary Ann's ears, pulling her soft pouty mouth to his, and softly, and oh so carefully, touched her mouth with his.
Mary Ann closed her eyes when he placed his hands on her, leaned in and she was lost once more. She could hardly move, let alone breathe, and when that beautiful mouth touched hers, when she felt it open partly and gently probe her own with the tip of a tongue, she was convinced she'd died and gone straight up.
She didn't want it to end, but finally a part of her asserted some control over her voluntary muscles. Without a thought, she flung her arms around Roy's neck, dragging his head closer to her, and kissed him hungrily, as though she would die if she did not.
She opened her mouth to match his, and their tongues began their erotic dancing, twining and tasting. It was as if a dam had been opened up, and the two couldn't cling to one another close enough. The passion that arose from the two, through the two, surprised them.
Finally, needing to pause for breath, their lips reluctantly separated.
"Oh my God, Mary Ann, you can't know how long I've dreamed of this, and to have it today, in this lovely glade, all alone, I..."
"Shhhh, Roy. I've been dreaming of this moment too, for well over a year, and today it happened, it actually happened!"
Joy rose like a glowing bubble in the two of them, and they simply hugged, languishing in the feel of being in one another's arms.
An eternity passed, and Roy pulled back enough to gaze down into Mary Ann's glowing eyes.
"I love you," he said. Simple and to the point he wanted to be. They'd been apart long enough.
The smile that lit her face told him all he needed to know.
"I love you too, Roy!"
And the kiss that followed that declaration seemed to drag on and on, into its own little eternity, until they again had to come up for air.
They realized they'd been standing in the cool water all this time, and holding hands, began to walk back to their rock. That was their special rock now, they'd decided. It's where it all began.
They sat down, toweling off, eyeing one another up and down.
"You're so beautiful," Mary Ann said. "It was all I could do to keep my hands off you when you took your shirt off."
The laugh from Roy made Mary Ann smile. Twice in one day she'd managed to elicit a real laugh out of him!
"I'M beautiful? My God, Mary Ann, you can't know how gorgeous you are to me! And today, when you had that cute tummy showing, well..."
The dam was still bursting, and the two felt a freedom they'd not had before and couldn't stop telling one another how they drove each other crazy, living so close, working together and not being able to DO anything about it! Now they could.
Roy, now in his white unbuttoned shirt, leaned over to take Mary Ann's head in his hand. He whispered to her, "You know something else I've dreamt of?"
"Hmmmm mmmm, I'm sure I don't have to ask."
He nibbled down her neck again, although this time to the front, to the hollow over her chest. His tongue tickled her, his teeth teased her hot skin.
"Roy, um... I think it'd be wise to wait on THAT for a time," she said, before he went too far down her.
He stopped, his head sagging down. Oh no, Mary Ann thought.
But he was smiling when he looked up at her. "Of course, Mary Ann, I know. We don't want to say those special words and jump into bed the same day, after all. Now that WOULD be against my rules of propriety."
She was grateful they had that understanding between themselves.
She hugged him to her. "Oh, my sweet darling Roy, I should have known you'd understand."
They couldn't resist, and both said "I love you" at the same time as they sat there, arms around one another, drowning in the joy and passion of this new day in the rest of their lives.