Page 8 of Spring Break with a Treasure Hunter
“I’ll tie off the bow.” Daisy leapt off the boat with a line in her hand and expertly secured it to the cleat. “Can you toss me the stern line, please?”
Cork shut off the engine and did as she asked. She knew what she was doing and was full of surprises. He knew a bit of her history, about her father and his search for antiquities. Clearly, he’d passed his desire onto Daisy. He wondered if she’d catalogued the donations from the other night yet.
She jumped back on board and grabbed her dive gear. As did he and slung the small cooler strap over his neck.
“Do you need a lift back to your hotel?” Cork took one last look around the boat to make sure nothing was left behind, then jumped onto the dock.
“Thanks, but I do have my car.”
He held out his hand, which she took, and she stepped off the boat. He followed her, and they paused at the office where he’d rented the boat.
“I’m going to turn in the keys. Do you need help to get your gear off the dive boat?”
He followed her gaze to where it was moored a few docks over.
“I’m gonna have to see if they left my stuff on the boat or took it to their office. But first I want to put this gear in my car. There’s no point lugging it all around,” she told him.
“Hang on a sec, let me get rid of the key and I’ll come with you.” Cork was reluctant to part ways with her just yet. Which was a very unusual occurrence for him.
She nodded. He quickly returned the key and signed off on the papers. In the doorway, her elegant beauty struck him again, and he paused. Still in her bikini, she was barefoot and held the wetsuit in front of her with the dive tank standing by her feet. He actually felt his heart clench at the vision. Another reaction he’d not experienced before, and it unsettled him.
On one hand, he had the urge to distance himself from her so he could ignore these new feelings. But, really, all he wanted to just carry her off and have her all to himself. Cork cleared his throat and walked outside.
“Right, let’s get your stuff in your car and then go see what’s going on with the dive boat.” He grabbed her tank before she could and smiled. “Lead the way.”
“My car is just over here under that tree. I always look for a shady spot so I’m not cooked when I return to the car.” She glanced back at him with a grin. “Damn, my keys are in the bagthat were on the dive boat. Do you mind waiting here while I run back to get it?” She put her wetsuit on the trunk.
“Sure, I’ll wait here for you.”
He put down the tanks, and rested his hip against her car. She jogged away, carefully avoiding sharp stones. He’d discovered long ago that life took you in directions that could surprise you. Some of them may not be where you wanted to go, but in the end he’d accepted that going with the flow was usually the right way. It wasn’t worth fighting and most times, you ended up exactly where you were meant to be. A bit woo woo perhaps, but he was a believer in intention and manifestation.
Watching Daisy disappear behind the dive shack, he decided he definitely wouldn’t resist this new tack he seemed to be on.
5
No one was aboard the dive boat. I glanced around. I reluctantly got on the boat to look for my bag. I checked under all the benches and my heart sank. It wasn’t here.
“Shit. Now what?” I got off the boat and walked back to the dive shack, worried if they were gone, I’d be stuck.
The door was locked, and a sign said they wouldn’t return until the end of the day after their charter. I cupped my hands around my eyes and peered through the door window. I hoped they had my bag, but I couldn’t see it and prayed they had safely locked it away.
Cork was leaning against my car, and on his phone. He didn’t notice me approach until I was beside him.
“Any luck?” he asked.
I shook my head. “No, it’s not on the boat, and the office is locked, because they’re out on a charter. I’m screwed.”
“No, you’re not. I’m here. Your knight in shining armor.” He tucked his phone away and pushed off the car. He picked up our gear. “Come on. I’ll take care of you.”
A little tremor rippled inside me. Those words could be taken a couple of ways. The lilt of his accent fit perfectly with his claimto be my knight in shining armor. I had a feeling this probably wasn’t going to end well.
“I’m over here. Unfortunately, I didn’t think to park in the shade, so it’ll be hot inside.”
I followed him to the vehicle. It wasn’t as splashy and in your face as I thought it would be. Just a typical SUV rental.
He opened the back hatch and tossed everything into the cargo space. “Hop in, I’ll start it up to cool the interior down.
I was angry at not returning with the dive boat, because then I wouldn’t be in this mess. It would’ve been easy to blame Cork; he was the one that distracted me after all. But I couldn’t, because I let it happen. Hot air whooshed out when I opened the passenger door. I placed my palm against my cheek, feeling the heat that wasn’t from the sun.
