Just Breathe (30 page)

“Oh my God.” Elizabeth covered her mouth. “What happened to his fluke?”

“Looks like a killer whale got hold of him. Or a shark,” Zoe said.
Does it still hurt?

It’s sore, but Mum’s taking good care of me. I’ll be all right.

“Poor little guy.” Dani appeared at Zoe’s side and gestured to the cantilever. “Do you want me to do the tagging?”

God, she must have thought Zoe was a total nut job, standing there, staring over the front of the boat at the mother-calf pair. She handed Dani the pole and stepped back to give her some space. “Yeah, sure.”

Probably best. Zoe had conversations to conduct anyway. She caught Adriene’s eye, and a wink of acknowledgment told her to go about her business.

Lily ghosted away, deeper into the water, leaving Araluen at the surface.

Zoe climbed around to the back of the boat and stood on the small diving platform.
Do you have any news from Lana? Is the Water collection going okay?

I understand she’s handling her responsibilities well and that tithes are still pouring in. As you can see, the whales in the bay are happy, therefore the Elementals are, too. The Wæters may be able hold their own after the tithing ritual in a few days.

Though Lily said the right words, the pensive wistfulness in her voice bugged the shit out of Zoe.

A patch of darkness threw Zoe in shadow. She glanced to the sky. The gathering cumulonimbus clouds had moved in fast. Perhaps under an Elemental escort? With rising waves and the promise of rain, the research team would have to head back to harbor soon. But first she needed more information.

Are your followers supporting Lana, too?

I cannot force them to do anything against their will, but I’ve asked every Elemental I meet to make the tithe accordingly.
The whale’s tone lacked confidence.

You’re not convincing me that everything’s peaches and cream out here.

What will be will be.

It wasn’t so much what Lily said that bothered her, but what she didn’t say.

A crack of lightning sliced open the air, a knife wound through the sky, and foreboding thunder rolled behind it.

Another big storm coming.

Chapter Thirty-one

Zoe’s stomach had been out of sorts since she spoke to Lily that afternoon, and the nagging good news/bad news about the VP job came with a side of flambéed spleen. “I have something I need to tell you.”

She and Gavin lay on his bed on their sides, facing each other. He looked beat. Dark smudges underscored his faded blue eyes. Red lines shot through the whites. Furrows seemed permanently entrenched in his forehead. Even his hair spikes drooped.

She was worried about him. For a lot of reasons.

It was late, and he clearly needed some rest, but this was important. Plus, she just plain needed to be with him. He grounded her.

She’d been chewing on how to break the promotion news all day. It wasn’t fair to keep it from Gavin any longer.

“What is it?” His neutral expression gave no indication of the feelings hiding behind the wall he’d put up.

God, was he back to being distant again? Last night, he’d practically devoured her in front of Jack. Now his hesitant body language screamed, ‘Approach at your own risk.’

Time to close the gap with a little honesty, painful as it might be. “I got a promotion. I’m the new Vice President at Cetacean Research Network.”

The hard, flat set of his lips curled upward into a muted grin. “That’s great, love. Congratulations.”

“I’ve been waiting for an opportunity like this for my entire career.”

He palmed her cheek and kissed her with guarded softness. “You deserve it, Dr. Morgan. What does the new gig entail?”

She’d hoped he wouldn’t ask that. “I’ll manage research projects around the world, head up fundraising efforts, and oversee training for researchers. I’m sure there will be other stuff, but that’s the bulk of it.”

“So, you’ll manage the projects directly? In the field, right?”

“Well…maybe some of them.” She hadn’t considered the possibility of not being out with the whales.

“That’s where you belong. On the ocean. Not behind a desk.”

“I won’t be behind a desk.” Randy wouldn’t do that to her. Would he? No way. She was his best researcher. He’d told her so. He couldn’t afford
not
to have her in the field.

Gavin bit his lip and looked away for a moment. When he focused on her again, the mixture of exhaustion and hope in his face almost broke her heart. “Any chance you’ll be able to work from Australia?”

Flapping butterfly wings tickled her gut, like her stomach was laughing inside. He wanted her to stay?

Then reality killed the elation. More good news/bad news.

“I doubt it. I’m sure I’ll be back every year to continue the Hervey Bay project. My boss knows I’m best suited for this type of work, and being here makes me happy. If he wants to keep me that way, he’ll send me again next season.” She almost said, ‘It feels like home,’ but stopped herself.

He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. “Your boss has a thing for you, Zed.”

She let go of her breath in a rush.
So
didn’t want to talk about Randy with Gavin. “He
used
to.” A lie, yes.

“You dated him, didn’t you?” A hint of accusation framed his tight voice.

She propped her head in her upraised palm and leaned close to his face. “Okay, we dated. But it was a while ago, and I’m not the least bit interested in him anymore. We have a professional relationship, and that’s it.” She laid a hand on his chest. “Did you notice who I’m lying beside? I’m beyond content with you.” And she actually loved Gavin, a feat she’d never pulled off with Randy.

He gazed at her for a long moment. Touched her hair. The tender but torn expression sliced her through the stomach. By the look in his eyes, he was thinking the same thing she was: in two months, she’d be gone.

Worse, it was the only way things could be for them.

“I’ve made so many bad choices since I met you, I’m not sure why you’re still around.” He looked away. “You’d probably be better off with a bloke like him instead of a total fuck-up.”

Fuck-up or not, she wouldn’t trade him for a thousand Randies. Or anyone else. “I’m with you no matter how many times you screw up. I don’t know what the future holds, but together or apart, I won’t regret a single moment we’ve shared. Only the
now
matters, remember? Let’s enjoy what we have, while we have it. The world might end in a couple days.” She meant it as a joke, but the truth of it rang clear.

Some hidden battle warred behind the front lines of his gaze. She laid a hand over his, hoping to reassure him. He stared at it for several heartbeats, his face twisting subtly as he wrestled whatever inner demons plagued him. She wasn’t sure which side won, but he lunged for her lips in the aftermath.

Zoe guessed that meant
she
won.

The heat of his breath and mouth set her belly alight, but not with the Fire she often felt around him. This was more of a glow. The usual passion for him had cooled to something equally as powerful, but with a different kind of edge.

Her deep feelings for him grew in density and volume the longer they were together. Every day they strengthened, like a slowly building tidal wave with no crest in sight, only a steady rise.

She slid her fingers across his stubbly cheek. He needed Water to fight Fyres. She’d give it to him in spades, but not because of the Elemental threat. Because Zoe loved him.

She’d let that love keep growing until it was time to go home. Consequences could be faced later. The ensuing heartache of losing him would be worth every second they shared now. Like the old saying went, it was better to have lived and loved than never to have loved at all.

Man, that couldn’t be truer.

“I’m ready for another of those kisses.” She stroked his chin with a thumb.

Behind his tired smile, he wiggled the lip ring with his tongue.

“You know that drives me wild.” She latched on, sucked, pulled, tongued the loop.

His eyes shut and hands encircled her waist. The kiss deepened. The tenseness in his frame loosened, but only a tad. She smiled against his lips.

“And these…” She traced the patterns of his Water tattoos. They were cool under her fingertips. “I love these, too. When they’re around me, I’m safe.”

He dragged her body on top of his. Her hair curtained their faces, and she kissed him again. Beautiful arms of blue, yellow, green, and red enclosed her. Ancient power coursed through them, into her.

He hardened, his erection pressing at her core. “I love that, too,” she whispered into his ear.

Desire sparked in his eyes, and a thrill shot through her. He ran his hands up the inside of her shirt to her breasts and kneaded them through her bra. Her tight nipple ached as he rolled it between his thumb and forefinger. She moaned softly. God, she needed this. Him.

He pitched forward to a sitting position and pushed her up. Anticipation shivered through her as he whipped off her shirt and fumbled with the hook on her bra. After a moment’s struggle, he tossed them both to the floor. Locking his lips and tongue around a nipple, he worked her nerve endings into a frenzy. Her breath rushed at the graze of teeth, the warm wetness of his tongue, his quick exhale against her breast.

He shifted to the other one—thank God. His free hand climbed over the lip of her shorts and dove into her damp panties. So ready for him. His fingers slipped inside her, and she dropped her head back with a long sigh. Heart racing, she opened her legs wider to give him better access.

The combination of his flicking tongue on her breast and his fingers sliding in and out was maddening. She laid a hand on his crotch and rubbed him through his jeans. He seemed as eager as she was.

He let go of her nipple and gazed up at her through the tangles of her hair, priming her with two fingers. Some of the anxiety in his face had smoothed, but the intensity lurked under the surface. “How does it feel, Zed?”

“Amazing.” The word came out long and breathy. She clawed open the button at his waist, unzipped the pants, and popped his erection free.

“I need
this
—” she squeezed his cock and gently guided it to where his hand was going to town— “inside me.”

He quickly lost his pants and shirt. Eagerness replaced the exhaustion from earlier. He tugged her shorts and underwear down to her knees. She kicked them off.

The warmth pulsing between her legs was enough to send her over the edge. God, if he didn’t hurry, she’d explode. The beautiful young face, the need in his eyes, the hunger. He eased her to her back and stalked up her body to her mouth where he feasted like a starving man. Their fused lips became a conduit for the Water roaring between them. He gave. She took. Back and forth it flowed.

Mouths locked in a delicious tug-of-war, she parted her legs and devoured him. The shock of the first thrust flared cool fire deep within her core. Her gasp severed the kiss. He gave her a moment to adjust to his length, and she lifted her hips to greet thrust number two. She smiled at the depth and fullness of the sensations her nerve endings greedily feasted on.

“I could come just looking at you.” She pressed her smile to his and welcomed another push from that amazing cock. God.

“Ditto.” As if to make a point, he pulled out, clenched his teeth, and choked his length in his palm for a moment. Concentration stilled his features.

She licked her lips. “I want a taste.” She wrestled his shaft from his hands and slid it slowly into her mouth, staring up at him all the way down. He curled his fingers under her chin as she spun her tongue around his veined flesh. Fluid pooled from the head, mixing with her own flavor, and she went down for another dive, as deep as her throat would allow.

Gavin’s knees wobbled as she sucked him, teasing with subtle swipes of teeth every few seconds. Then she stroked his erection while her attention fixed on the weighted balls calling to her. Pressing her face into them, she took each one into her mouth, tongued them. Her gentle nibbles brought hisses from Gavin’s lips. When she was pretty sure he was about to lose it, she backed off and squeezed his shaft as he’d done earlier.

His face flushed, and he shook his head with admiration. “Fucking hell, you know how to suck a cock, Zed.”

She settled on her back on top of the covers, raised an arm over her head, and rested it on the pillow. She tipped open her legs. “More, please.”

Gavin charged face-first into her core, coaxed her juices to the surface with soft flicks of the tongue. Not what she had in mind, but she certainly wasn’t complaining. After a few moments of that, he crawled the length of her torso, kissed her, and entered her again. His heavy weight drowned her. But this felt nothing like the panic she imagined came with drowning. More like the easy slip from lucidity into a drug high.

Her legs bracketed his pumping hips and hauled him hard against her. Warmth zigzagged between them, crossing boundaries of flesh and driving deeper into dangerous territory—her heart.

The bridges of their noses pressed together. He drew back and stared into her eyes, casting his Watery fishing line into her soul. She gobbled the bait. The tug within her chest, the intimate connection between them was palpable. She threw her arms around his shoulders and held on tight. As long as she could feel him, she’d be okay. Another kiss, and she had everything she wanted: his body, his soul, his heart.

Her perfect Mr. Perfect.

“This is where I get off.” The orgasmic tumblers deep in her brain rolled into the unlocked position. A smile took the place of her breath, and she surrendered to her body’s whims. The climax kicked her back into a twist, prolonging the intensity of her million-dollar prize. It went on and on, and her hips rallied to savor every last drop of the wave.

His eyes sparked blue—the first sign of life she’d seen there in a while. He dipped his lips to hers and slowed his surges and retreats. She matched his rhythm, eager to receive the results of his passion. His breath rushed through his nose against her cheek.