“That little thief? He’s a good dog, but way too sneaky for me.” Zev embraced her and said, “How was your honeymoon?”
Charlotte clasped her hands under her chin and lifted her shoulders, smiling brightly. “It was better than a fairy tale! Beau planned a ton of fun outings and romantic dinners and dancing. I showed him all the places my grandfather used to take me, and we visited a real castle. I have bunches of pictures. It couldn’t have been more perfect. But I hear you had a pretty magical time yourself.”
“Congrats on the vessel being arrested,” Beau said as he pushed to his feet, looking even happier than he had at his wedding, which Zev hadn’t thought possible. He ran an assessing eye over Zev, and as he pulled him into a manly embrace, he said, “You look different. It’s good to see you, man. Thanks for watching Bandit and the Chickendales.”
“I think we need to have a little talk about that animal-watching arrangement. I heard all about Char’s matchmaking plan.” Zev eyed Beau and said, “And I hear you were in on it.”
Charlotte put her arms around Beau, his big body dwarfing her petite frame. “Don’t blame Beau. It was all my idea. He just agreed to go along with it. But in his defense, that’s what a good husband does.”
“Thanks, babe.” Beau stood up a little taller, grinning like a proud peacock. “If you’re looking for an apology, Zev, the best I can do is to say I probably shouldn’t have blindsided you.”
“I can’t say I like you doing shit behind my back, but, man, I owe you both heaps of gratitude.”
“Yay!” Charlotte hugged Zev. “I’m so happy! I want all the details. I’m sure it’s a book in the making.”
Zev chuckled. As an erotic romance novelist, Charlotte was always looking for new story lines. “Sorry, Char, but you’re not getting details from me.”
“Then I guess I’ll have to pump Carly for information. Where is she, anyway? I thought she’d be here to say goodbye to you.”
“She had to go to the chocolate shop to get ready for the festival.” Zev wondered how Carly was holding up. He was tempted to text and ask her for a selfie to see if she was still crying, but he worried that would just make it harder for both of them.
“He doesn’t do goodbyes, remember?” Beau reminded Char.
“That’s right. I forgot about that.” Charlotte turned a serious expression to Zev and said, “But you said goodbye to her, right? You’re not just sneaking out of town?”
Zev bristled, although it was a fair question given their history. “I’m not sneaking off, Char, and I didn’t sneak off last time. I said goodbye. That’s why I never say it anymore. I’ll never hurt Carly like that again.”
“You’d better not, or I’ll sic my husband on you.” She tucked her long dark hair behind her ear and said, “I’m just kidding. I did my research before putting this whole scheme into action. From what your brothers and Jilly said, Carly really is your forever love. Everyone agreed that you would never hurt her again, or we wouldn’t have tried to reunite the two of you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to see my Chickendales. I’ve missed them so much.” She kissed Beau, said, “Toodles, lover boy,” to Zev, and as she ran toward the woods, she twirled around, yelled, “Come on, Bandit!” and skipped down the path, singing at the top of her lungs.
Beau watched her disappear into the woods with a goofy grin on his face.
“She’s something else,” Zev said.
“And she’s all mine. I’m one lucky son of a bitch,” Beau said. “Actually, it sounds like you and I are both pretty damn lucky. What time is your flight?”
“Nine. Jack’s picking me up at the airstrip. I’ve got all my stuff in your truck.” He looked at his watch and said, “We’ve got about twenty minutes before we have to leave.”
Beau slung an arm over Zev’s shoulder and said, “Good. Just enough time to catch up.” They went around to the back of the inn and sat on the patio. “You doing okay?”
“Yeah, man. I’m good. You? Married life treating you okay? Was your honeymoon everything you’d hoped?”
Beau’s face brightened. “There are no words to describe what it’s like to wake up to that woman every day, much less spend time in a place that brings her so much joy. I’m afraid to