Chapter 50

What a mess I've got myself into! Waving goodbye to Dad and Bill it hadn't registered with me and certainly not with Dad that I was now alone in a foreign part of the world with two genderless passports but male bits between my legs while otherwise female in appearance… My home and means of transport, until I got to the Dominican Republic, was being supplied, for only as long as they wanted, by a family of American who so far knew nothing about me but in the narrow confines of a boat might soon know far too much for comfort.

'Slowly.' I thought to myself? 'What has changed since yesterday or any of the other days since I joined WorthIt? Dad and Bill aren't here to protect me but then I never really looked to them for protection before. Mr and Mrs Worth were Rich Texans which might mean religious fundamentalist homophobic mid-westerners or religious racist southerners who being Texans would solve their problems with a gun?' That didn't feel right either but then it hit me what I had to do.

Before even lunch I asked everyone to gather in the yacht's saloon then tidying my appearance and picking up my passports I went in to make my pitch…

"Mr Worth, Mrs Worth, I'd like thank you for the opportunity to sail from Las Palmas - it has been a wonderful experience. I hadn't expected to mention this this but when you arrived with your boys I decided it best to avoid future embarrassment. As you can see by my passports I have due to genetic reasons no recognised gender. With adults this hardly matters but I was concerned that you might think your boys not mature enough to cope with the situation if they noticed any difference from the usual. If it is a problem I will of course leave but first I would like to give you time to talk this through among yourselves."

"We wouldn't dream of making you leave Miss Williams; please let me introduce my family properly. Michael my husband you were of course expecting but my sons, Daniel in red and Jacob in white are very mature for their 19 years. My name is Samantha but please do call me Sam."

"Thank you so much for that Sam and please call me Venus. My family we just waved goodbye to but I'm sure my father Isaac and grandfather William would have appreciated your kindness to me."

Did my approach make the difference between a comfortable accommodation between us and acute embarrassment? Maybe, maybe not but I did know that my technique was pure big sister Litara! The ice broken lunch was a boisterous affair and afterward Michael suggested a walk to the top of nearby Shirley Heights. The view would be I'm sure spectacular but at 490 feet on a hot tropical afternoon the expedition turned into an all male affair while Sam, Tracy, Sheila and I got to know each other.

"The look on Bruce's face," laughed Sam, "and he almost dropped the salad bowl. Is there anything else we should know Venus?"

"The only difference it makes is that you won't see me in a bathing costume."

"When I saw Daniel and Jacob on the quay one of my first thoughts was that we might have a whole trip of watching the two of them competing for Venus all around the boat," said Tracy.

"We still might knowing my boys so I'd like to plan a trip that keeps them well occupied or preferably exhausted. They thought their Christmas was going to be spent skiing with their cousins in Colorado but with that side of the family ill, joining Michael and I on the boat seemed the best bet. Christmas Day in St Thomas is still set but other than that I'm open to suggestions Tracy."

With that Sheila and I made our excuses to go shopping for extra provisions to cope with our new expanded hungry horde leaving Tracy and Sam to plan the trip through to the Bahamas.

Sheila's shopping was no joke with a change from 6 crew and 1 guest (Michael) changing to 4 crew and 1 guest then to 4 crew and 4 guests within a couple of days. "The rich really are different," she sighed. "As crew you may come to think of Mrs Worth as a friend on this trip but what happens on a day when she is with a rich friend who doesn't get on with you? As chef if I cook a poor meal for the crew you have to put up with it but I'd soon lose my job if the Worths thought my cooking was below their standards."

Once back at WorthIt with a taxi full of supplies unloaded I began to see what my life would be for the next fortnight when compared to the Worth's. Today was Saturday so we would remain for the evening so that the boys could go clubbing. At dawn we would cast off motoring in what Tracy hoped would be calm air round the east side of Antigua to give us a good sail up to Barbuda 32nm north where there was good snorkelling and beach combing for the rest of Sunday then early Monday sail back to the west side of Antigua for a tour ashore while Tracy cleared customs and immigration so once dinner was complete we could sail overnight to St Barts which was 72 nm northwest where there was great shopping for Sam and Michael before we continued to St Maarten and…… By the time I followed the plan that far I pretty much understood that this was a cruise for the Worth's and expedition for the crew who would grab what sleep we could as the opportunity arose.