Island Retreat For Those Who Cheat
By You know what’s tough about having a steamin’ hot adulterous affair? Finding someplace to have it! Really, think about it. The situation can be fraught with frustration. If you’re both attached, you can hardly go to your own dwellings. So that’s out. Hotels are an option, of course, but they get expensive. You could shack up in the back of your car like canoodling teenagers, although do you really want to be busted in your birthday suit when Mr. Policeman raps on your steamed up car window?
Luckily, IllicitEncounters.com to the rescue! The U.K.’s answer to AshleyMadison.com, Illicit Encounters (“the U.K.’s leading married-dating website”) aims to hook up those who want to be hooked in a “no-strings attached” relationship, i.e., no commitment, please, we’re married. But in addition to the match-ups, IllicitEncounters tackles that nagging “where to shag” conundrum by, according to a recent article that first appeared in the New York Post, getting the bright idea of buying an island. Surf, sand, and decidedly unwholesome Frankie and Annette beach party fun.
The good news, as an Illicit Encounters spokesperson said, is that this ain’t just any ol’ island. No no. This will be the Las Vegas of islands! What happens there, stays there. Visitors will be required to sign non-disclosure agreements (which doesn’t sound like much of a problem, frankly, since non-disclosure is an essential part of any good affair). Then, with the paperwork all done, you and your lover are blindfolded (!) – to ensure the secret getaway indeed remains secret – and whisked away in a helicopter to your island love shanty. There you can have a banging good time with the left-behind spouses remaining none the wiser.
Founded in 2003, Illicit Encounters boasts a membership of over 748,000. Don’t think it’s all just men, either. According to the site, they have a healthy base of female members. But that site’s small potatoes compared with Ashley Madison (tagline: Life is Short. Have an Affair.) Despite last year’s hack scandal, Ashley Madison keeps calm and carries on, boasting membership of over…wait for it… 39 million. Clearly there are plenty of cheatin’ hearts among those giant numbers who’d love a sun-drenched island to which they can escape.
There are many who, for good reason, frown upon this. The subtext to the term “committed” relationship, after all, means you’ve committed to being faithful to that one special person. You’re not intending on shagging, banging, or having an “illicit” encounter of any kind and you expect the same of your spouse. So it may raise eyebrows a’plenty to look at the statistics of websites who all but rub your face in the fact that lots of folks are doing lots of cheating.
Putting any and all emotion aside, I admit that I’ve wondered whether most of us are truly wired to be faithful to a single partner. There are plenty of articles in which the question is raised. One interesting one appeared a few years ago at LiveScience.com in which sociology professor Pepper Schwarz says, “I don’t think we’re a monogomous animal. Monogomy is invented for order and investment, but not because it’s ‘natural.’ ”
Well, then. I have no doubt Ashley Madison would say, “Put that in your after-sex pipe and smoke it.” Natural or not, plenty of steamy hot affairs are happening now and will happen in the future. And if you’re dipping your toe in unfaithful waters, you can soon do in on the beaches of a secret sex island.
Elizabeth Shore writes both contemporary and historical erotic romance. Her recent releases include Hot Bayou Nights and The Lady Smut Book of Dark Desires. Look for her erotic historical novella, Desire Rising, coming April 29th from The Wild Rose Press. Pre-order available now.
