Searching For Love – the Bradens & Montgomerys (Pleasant Hill – Oak Falls)

by Melissa Foster

  When he collapsed against her, their hearts thundering to the same frantic beat, her muscles were too weak to move. They murmured their love between kisses, and Zev shifted beside her, gathering her in his arms. She snuggled into him and closed her eyes, his sweet whispers carrying her off to sleep.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  SATURDAY MORNING CARLY and Zev lay with their bodies intertwined beneath a thick blanket, the cool ocean air drifting over the cliffs and into the open doors in the back of the van. They didn’t have long before their flight, but neither was in a hurry to move. Carly nuzzled closer, and he kissed her softly. He wanted to keep her there forever, so they could love each other and dive for treasures together, and at the same time, he wanted to share her life in Colorado, hang with her friends, and help her business thrive.

  He knew she worried about how they’d make a long-distance relationship work, and having her all to himself made his mind skip ahead, too—to visions of a future he wanted, and needed, to figure out. A future with the only woman he’d ever loved. The person with whom he’d grown from a silly boy to a possessive, horny teenager, eventually giving Carly her very first orgasm when he’d made it his mission to find the elusive G-spot they’d heard about.

  Carly moved her hand over his chest and said, “What’s that smile for?”

  “You don’t want to know,” he said, kissing her forehead.

  She leaned up on one elbow, her beautiful eyes imploring him. “Now I really want to know.”

  “I was thinking about when we first tried to find your G-spot.”

  “Oh my God!” She buried her face in his chest, laughing.

  He threaded his fingers through her hair and said, “We had so much fun.”

  She lifted smiling eyes and said, “Remember when you helped me learn how not to gag when I was…?”

  “Heck yeah. I remember letting you get the hang of it and then thrusting hard to make you gag, just so you’d want to keep practicing.”

  “You ass.” She smacked his stomach.

  “I think it was a brilliant plan.” He hugged her and said, “I’ll never forget when you told me my come tasted gross.”

  She flopped onto her back, cracking up. “You were so offended!”

  “What’d you expect? The girl I loved hated something about me.”

  Her brows knitted. “Was that why you were so upset? I thought it was because you wanted blow jobs in your future.”

  “Well, yeah, that too,” he said honestly.

  “I figured as much.”

  He leaned over her and said, “I could have lived without blow jobs, but it felt like something that could drive us apart. I hated knowing there was something about me you didn’t like.”

  “Aw. I’m sorry.” She ran her fingers over his lips and said, “But you found a solution.”

  He’d read everything he could to try to figure out how to change the taste, and he’d eaten cinnamon, peppermint, pineapple, cranberries, and celery on the daily. “Yeah, but my poor mother thought I must have had some sort of vitamin deficiency to crave all those foods every day.”

  “At least it worked,” she said playfully.

  “Yeah, and then Nick turned me on to pineapple juice.”

  Her eyes widened with shock. “Please tell me you did not tell him.”

  “I didn’t have to. He used my computer and found it in my browser history.”

  “That is so embarrassing.” She was quiet for a second, and then she said, “I definitely owe him a thank-you card.”

  “I’m the one who sought out the answer,” he said, feigning jealousy.

  “And as I recall, you were rewarded often for that research. Would you have rather had a card?”

  “Hell no.”

  “Well, if I didn’t thank you appropriately back then, thank you for going the extra mile, and thank you for this trip. I’ve loved every second of it. I love your friends—”

  “Our friends now,” he corrected her, kissing her neck. He was going to kiss her so many times over the next twenty-four hours, he could stock up and draw on the memories when they were apart.

  “I love being on your boat and here in your van. I love sharing your world, Zevy.”

  He fought the urge to say, Then stay in it with me. He didn’t want to put her in the position of having to choose between the two lives she loved. Instead, he said, “I love sharing it with you. I told you, I don’t want any Carly-free zones.”

  She rocked against his erection with a seductive glimmer in her eyes and said, “I have a particular zone that needs a little—big—dose of you right now.”

  As he lowered his lips to hers, their phone alarms went off.

  Zev uttered a curse and Carly groaned. They’d set their alarms for the very last minute, allowing them just enough time to get to the boat for a quick shower and then to the airport.

  “Think we can turn our six-minute record into three?” she asked.

  He shook his head. “I want you more than I want to link our treasure to the Pride, but I am not going to earn a three-minute crown that’ll leave us both unsatisfied.” He gave her a chaste kiss and said, “I promise to make it up to you so fantastically you’ll never want to do it quick again.”

  LESS THAN AN hour later they were seated in Tessa Remington’s luxurious small plane. Going home was bittersweet for Carly. She had Zev for only one more day, but at the same time, she had Zev for one more day! One more day to sit with him, hold his hand, and kiss his lips. She’d already relived their dive, the dinner with Ford and Randi, their walk through the sanctuary, and every moment of last night so many times, she could recall it all like a movie. And now, as she added this morning’s memories to her stockpile, she realized she’d never even set her eyes on Fortune’s Landing. She’d only seen the sky. But what a glorious time they’d had!

  She glanced at Zev and saw deep affection gazing back at her. She was trying to go with the flow, but as their time together neared an end, it wasn’t easy not to think about how their relationship would work in the long run.

  As if he’d read her mind, he took her hand and kissed her cheek, soothing the rough edges of her worries. How could they have only found each other a week ago? It felt like the wedding had taken place ages ago. But Zev had always had that effect on her. She leaned closer, their shoulders touching, and said, “You always make me feel like I’ve lived a month in just a few days.”

  “It’s not me, Carls. It’s us. We’ve always lived more than anyone else.”

  It was true. When they were younger, they had experienced many of the same outings as their friends, but somehow they’d always gotten more out of them and came away feeling higher and more in love than ever. She realized that not only hadn’t she thought about her to-do lists even once, but she hadn’t made a to-do list since Zev had come back into her life. She wasn’t sure if that was good or bad, but the fact that she wasn’t stressed over it had her leaning toward pretty damn good.

  Tessa stepped from her seat in the cockpit and stood at the front of the plane. She was taller than Randi, with dark blond hair and serious but friendly brown eyes. “We’ve got a long flight ahead, so make the best of it,” she said with a wink.

  She slid the partition between the cockpit and the seats closed, and Zev and Carly’s eyes collided with the heat of a torch. Zev put his hand on her leg, brushing his fingers over her upper thigh, and her breathing quickened as the plane moved down the runway. She thought of a litany of dirty things they could do now that they were alone.

  Zev held her gaze, squeezing her thigh as the plane took off and leveled out.

  She didn’t want to level out.

  She wanted to rock his world.

  They took off their seat belts, and he lifted the armrest between them, leaning closer. They were so in sync: one heart, two bodies.

  “Please tell me you haven’t joined the mile-high club in Tessa’s plane before.”

  “I haven’t ever joined the mile-high club,” he said firml
y. “But I sure as hell hope to with you.”

  He slid his hand beneath her miniskirt, under which she wasn’t wearing any panties. He growled with the surprise. All of the filthy promises she’d seen in his eyes that morning were nothing compared to the hunger looking back at her now.

  She grabbed his shirt, pulling him into a deep, penetrating kiss, and over the next several hours, he fulfilled every last one of those promises.

  Twice.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  THE DAY HAD started out perfect, waking up in Zev’s arms on Fortune’s Landing, joining the mile-high club, getting lost in fits of laughter and long, steamy kisses. But after their beautiful morning together, Carly had gone into the shop and thanked Birdie and Quinn profusely for holding down the fort and making the treats for the baby shower so she could go away with Zev. They asked Carly so many questions her head spun, and she poured her nervous energy into preparing inventory for the festival and making a dozen truffles to give Cutter as a thank-you for watching the animals. She gushed about the incredible time she’d had, telling them about Zev’s boat, their run-in with Roddy and Archer, what it was like to spend time with Randi and Ford, and how much she loved being part of Zev’s world again. She couldn’t stop thinking about the freedom of being on the water, the thrill of not knowing what their dive would turn up, and her elation at diving with Zev again. She told them about their discovery, the shark, the arresting of the vessel, and his call with his family. But as she relayed Zev’s plans for next week and the exciting possibilities of what he might find, reality crept in.

  Zev was leaving tomorrow, and she wouldn’t be taking part in more dives anytime soon. She had a chocolate shop to run. She couldn’t have been more grateful for the constant flow of customers and the festival preparations, both of which helped to keep her mind off the longing that was burrowing deep inside her.

  Carly carried a stack of gift bags out of the supply room, thinking about the million things she still had to do for the festival. “We need to package the pretzels for the festival,” she said as she caught up to Quinn, who was carrying a tray of brownies out to the front display. “I have to package the truffles, too, and price them.” She wondered what else she’d forgotten to do.

  “You know you told me both of those things already, right?” Quinn said. She looked chic in a pair of skinny jeans, a cute pink top, and high heels, which she zipped around in like roller skates. “Are you okay? You’ve been a bit scattered today.”

  “Huh? Yeah. Fine.” I just feel like my entire life is swirling above my head and I don’t know which pieces to hold on to.

  Birdie was standing on a ladder behind the counter in her pretty yellow minidress, hanging up a Divine Intervention T-shirt with the festival logo and the year printed underneath it. They’d sold out of them so fast the last two years, Carly had doubled her order this year.

  Carly set the gift bags on the counter and said, “I could have done that. You’re wearing a dress, for goodness’ sake.”

  “I came prepared.” Birdie lifted up her dress, showing off spandex shorts with eggplants printed all over them.

  “Eggplants? Really?”

  “I said the same thing,” Quinn said as she slid the tray of brownies into the display cabinet.

  “That’s about as close to the real thing as my hoo-ha is getting these days,” Birdie said. “I’m living vicariously through you and Zev.”

  “Me too,” Quinn said. “Not the hoo-ha thing, just living vicariously through you and your hot treasure hunter.”

  They sure were having enough sex to go around!

  As Birdie came down the ladder, Carly said, “I guess I should be glad you’re not wearing a thong.”

  “Speaking of thongs, you can thank me now for picking out such a sexy one for you.” Birdie waggled her brows.

  Carly gave her a deadpan look. “You know I hate them.”

  “I’m sure Zev loved it,” Quinn chimed in.

  “I wouldn’t know. I took it off before dinner, remember? Commando was way better than having a string up my butt all night.” Carly reached for a package of price tags, realized what she’d revealed, and froze. How had she let that slip?

  “What?” Birdie exclaimed. “No-thong Carly went commando?”

  Thinking fast, Carly said, “Did I say that? That’s not what I meant. Of course I didn’t go commando.” She slapped the price tags on the counter. “You know me better than that.”

  Birdie covered Carly’s hand with hers and said, “I thought I knew you, but, girl, that man does bring out your adventurous side. And apparently the secretive side, too, which I am not okay with. I bought you all those sexy clothes. I deserve all the dirty details.”

  Carly pulled her hand free and said, “Sorry, but no.”

  “Aha! You did go commando!” Quinn said.

  “Where are all the customers that were bombarding us?” Carly grabbed the tags and said, “Focus on work, you guys. I feel like we’re forgetting a hundred things. Oh no! We forgot to make the coconut clusters!”

  “Coconut clusters are Friday’s specials, Carly,” Birdie said. “Today is Saturday. We made the specials—don’t worry.”

  “Right. Sorry. Missing yesterday totally threw me off.”

  “Another good reason for you to hire me full time,” Quinn said. “So you can take a day off every now and again and not feel like it’s the end of the world.”

  “That’s not a bad idea, Quinn,” she said, mulling over the idea of having those potential days off with Zev. But now was not the time to get lost in possibilities. They had too much to do. “But don’t worry. I’ve got this. I just need to reorganize my brain. Did I remember to tell you guys that we need to double the amount of fudge we make for samples? We always run out so fast.”

  “Yes,” Birdie and Quinn said in unison.

  “Good.” Carly tried to recall what had been on her to-do lists, which she’d misplaced. “Did we get the cereals to make the special treats we talked about?”

  “I told you we did the last two times you asked. What is wrong with you? Did Zev literally screw you senseless?” Birdie exchanged a worried glance with Quinn. “Where are your lists?”

  “I don’t know—about the lists, not the screwing. They’re in the back somewhere, I think.” Why was she so scatterbrained?

  Birdie studied Carly’s face. “Your lists are missing? You don’t even usually need the lists for the festival prep. You have it all ingrained in your brain.”

  “Maybe the sea air or all the traveling wore me out more than I realized.” Carly sighed and leaned on the counter. “I don’t feel tired, but I can’t focus. Do you think there’s something wrong with me?”

  “Yes, but I think it has more to do with a certain sexy man whisking you across the country and romancing you all night long than anything else,” Quinn said.

  Birdie grabbed a legal pad from the counter and said, “Lucky for you, I was trained by the best chocolatier in Colorado, and I always have your back.” She rattled off a list of things Carly had mentioned needed to get done. “Carly, why don’t you take a breather? Rest in your office for half an hour. Maybe you’re jet-lagged. Let me and Quinn find your lists and make sure we’re checking off all the to-dos. I’m sure they’re around here somewhere, or in the kitchen. I saw you carry them out of your office a little while ago.”

  “Rest? I have too much to do to rest. I’m fine.” Or at least I’m trying to be. Ugh.

  “Is your earring bothering you?” Quinn asked. “You keep touching it.”

  Carly dropped her hand. Okay, maybe she wasn’t fine.

  “We’re a team, and we kicked ass while you were gone,” Birdie reminded her. “The baby shower order is filled and ready to be picked up tomorrow morning, and we’re right on schedule with inventory for the festival. You know I can handle keeping us all on schedule.”

  As Birdie urged her to take a breather, Carly suddenly realized what was wrong. She was trying so hard not to think about Zev
leaving tomorrow, or missing out on all the things she wanted to do with him, it was impossible for her to think clearly about anything at all. If she couldn’t ignore her emotions without her entire life becoming upended, then maybe she really wasn’t very good at being a fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants person anymore.

  That thought brought a wave of regret. Could she have lost her ability to do things on a whim and bounce right back on track? Did that mean she would never be okay not knowing when they’d see each other again? Flying loosey-goosey?

  Oh boy. This wasn’t good.

  She needed to wrap her head around this. “I need a plan,” she said under her breath.

  “You have a very good, detailed plan,” Quinn reminded her. “We just need to find your lists so you feel better about it. Give yourself a break, Carly. You don’t have to be Wonder Woman. It’s okay to be tired or a little off-kilter after flying across the country.”

  “And being screwed senseless,” Birdie added.

  “You’re right,” she said absently. It was okay to feel off-kilter. She had a chance at a future she never saw coming, and the man she loved was leaving.

  “See? She did have awesome island sex,” Birdie said.

  “I meant about needing a break,” Carly said, but her mind was three steps ahead, drowning in anxiety about Zev leaving. “I’ll be in my office.”

  She strode through the kitchen and closed her office door behind her, steeling herself against the out-of-control feeling gnawing away at her. She thought she’d prepared for this. She’d known Zev was leaving and that they would have no idea when they’d see each other again. A lump formed in her throat, but she refused to let it take hold. They’d had a wonderful time together, a new beginning. They’d been given a second chance at forever, which should be celebrated, not mourned by a layover. She thought about her independent aunt, who would never let a man derail her, and Wynnie, and all the things she’d learned from her about staying grounded and seeing things clearly even in the toughest of times.