Page 15 of Spring Break with a Treasure Hunter
Cork was concerned Daisy seemed so out of it. She’d fallen asleep on the helicopter and barely woken up on the drive to the marina and the transfer toIntrepid. He told himself she was just exhausted, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong.
It was late by the time they’d arrived on the boat, and he had to admit he was pretty wiped out, too.
Beck had shown him to the cabin they would stay in. He lay her on the bed and gently removed her shoes, shorts, and top, wanting her to be comfortable, then covered her with a soft blanket. She was a sleeping beauty, and he gazed at her for a moment.
He turned off the light and walked over to the window and peered out the lowered blinds. Their cabin faced the berm, protecting the harbor with the sea beyond. It was dark now, and he flicked on a soft light, making sure it wouldn’t disturb Daisy.
He was hungry, but he didn’t want to leave the cabin. Grateful for the bowl of fruit on the table, he grabbed an apple and banana and ate them. Needing more, he hunted around for a mini fridge, pretty sure there would be one, and there was.Stocked with cheeses, meats, pastries, and other treats, he filled up and washed it down with a beer. He was crashing hard and nearly fell asleep on the couch. Getting a couple of bottles of water, he put one on the bedside table beside Daisy.
He needed to sleep too, and careful not to disturb her, he lay down next to her. As soon as he’d settled and pulled the comforter over him, Daisy rolled over. He put his arm around her and drew her closer. Liking how she rested her head on him.
Lord, it felt wonderful to lie down. He listened to Daisy’s breathing and with the gentle rock of the boat it wasn’t long until he was sound asleep.
Cork woke. For a moment, he didn’t know where he was. It was dark out and took a moment for him to remember he was onIntrepid. Thunder boomed overhead and he figured that must’ve been what woke him. He shifted and the body next to him moved with him.
He remembered he was in bed with Daisy. It was perfect.
Her arm draped over his waist, and her face tucked into his side. He pulled her closer, careful not to wake her and drew the covers over both of them. The warmth of her body, the soft sounds of her breathing, comforted him and eased him back to sleep with the echo of thunder around the boat.
“Cork, wake up.” Daisy’s voice pulled him up through the layers of sleep, wresting him from a very nice dream. “Wake up.”
He murmured, not really ready to open his eyes yet. “What’s up? Something wrong?”
He heard her sigh. “Where are we? How did we get here?” She gave him a nudge.
“We’re on Beck’s boat. Don’t you remember anything?” He opened his eyes and saw she was propped up on her elbow.
“Actually no, I don’t. The last thing I remember was being on the helicopter flying back here. So, what did you do—carry me?”
“Kinda. The flight from St Williams and the dive must’ve really done you in because you were out,” he told her and wished she’d go back to sleep. “I’m beat, can we talk in the morning?”
“That’s not like me. D-did we..? Because I’d hate to not remember that.”
He squeezed her gently. “No, comatose women are not my style.” He chuckled.
She gave a little snort. “I should hope not, but that’s so weird.”
“Not really. You’ve been busy with everything. Maybe the flight here and the dive brought it to a head.” He closed his eyes. “Come on, relax.”
“This is nice,” she whispered. She didn’t move her arm, and her fingers gently stroked his side.
Cork sighed and rubbed his thumb on her shoulder. “Yes, it is. It’s the middle of the night and way too early for this. Sleep.”
“Mmm, you too.” She snuggled closer to him.
Together like this seemed so totally natural. Like it was where they were meant to be. They’d grown closer with each passing day. He was drifting off, content and happy.
Lying cuddledup to Cork was so nice. In fact, it was more than nice, it was perfect. I closed my eyes again, not really wanting to move. This was just so darn cozy. My mind ran over everything that we had done yesterday up to the time I blanked out. For me to do that had to mean deep down, I felt safe with him. That he’d not let anything happen to me, and it moved me to the core.
He stroked my shoulder, and it lulled me. My body grew heavy, and I relaxed into the cushy bed. Being beside him made it even better.
“How long do you think we’ll stay on the boat?” I whispered.
“Why aren’t you sleeping?” His voice was soft.
“I can’t.”
“Couple days, depends how nasty Gilbert is.”
