The Bouncing Buns Gentleman's Club

Chapter 11

The Galveston yacht basin was alive with activity. Unlike Beverly's marina in League City, occupied primarily by weekend pleasure craft and the occasional live aboard, the basin was active during the week as well.

In addition to pleasure boats, it was also home to a multitude of work boats that assisted their owners in making a living. Fishing boats, charter boats, boats used by underwater services, the Fisheries and Wildlife Service, and others could be found there. There was also the constant presence of Coast Guard boats from a nearby station, seen coming and going from the basin fuel facility.

The orange glow of light forming in the East reminded Beverly and Dan they'd been up all night now. Adrenalin was running high and neither of them felt the least bit tired. It was now Saturday morning, typically the busiest day of the week at the basin.

"Have a look over there, Dan, the sun's coming up! I'm starved. How about you?" Beverly had suddenly noticed her stomach had started eating away at her backbone.

"I am too, but I don't think we should leave right now. They came with clothes bags in tow which could mean they're here to stay awhile, or getting ready to go somewhere else. We still need to find that out. I think we should go visit the guy that used to have that slip and see what he knows about the boat that moved in. We can see it from his boat. Besides, he owes me a favor for all the ice that has gone into his blender from our machine before he moved!"

Dan was referring to his friend, Kevin, who had occupied the slip next to his for several years. Kevin had to vacate it after one too many complaints regarding his partying habits and was now in a similar slip on the adjacent pier occupied by work boats and less sensitive neighbors. Since that time, Dan had seen Kevin get married and was amazed to hear he had even settled down a bit.

As a live-aboard, Kevin spent a lot of time at the marina. He knew most everyone and usually knew something about any new boat coming in. Kevin owned a large fishing yacht and its tuna tower caused him to be in an open slip at the end of the pier where he had a view of everyone coming in and out of the basin.

There were other advantages to being out on the end of the piers. They were next to Pelican Cut, the shipping channel that takes cruise ships out to the gulf and on to their various ports of call. They came through most days around five o'clock and were exciting to watch at so close a distance.

The basin was also next to facilities that unloaded the huge freighters that came in from foreign ports, mostly China. Across Pelican cut, one could watch work boats heading out to the many offshore platforms in the area, and see pelicans by the dozens diving for fish, or sitting on top of a handy pylon gazing into the water waiting for the next meal. Aside from the amazing view, Kevin's slip provided an ideal place for observing the new boat at the end of the adjacent pier, and the elevated observation area on his boat could offer yet another vantage point.

Dan started the golf cart and they moved quickly across the dock and up Kevin's pier. The more Beverly saw of this place, the more she liked it. All the restrictions at her marina stifled creativity and decreased her quality of life in subtle ways. The people here were obviously free to decorate and live as they pleased. Of course, she saw the occasional less than tasteful or even trashy slip, but for the most part they were well done and maintained.

They arrived at the end of the pier, parked the cart and went through the walkway leading to the slips outside.

"Good grief, this CAN'T be Kevin's place. He must have moved again. What has he done this time?" Dan wondered until he was sure it was Kevin's boat in the slip. "I must be dreaming!"