Our old childhood saying hits me right in the chest. My heart aches sweetly at the memory of us whispering it to each otherevery night. We’d repeat it through tears and laughter, through every stage of growing up together.
A promise.
A reminder.
No matter where life took us, we’d always find our way back to each other.
My eyes sting. Aria notices immediately and cups my cheeks, giving them a gentle squeeze as if she knows my thoughts before I even do. Then she flashes me a smile before bouncing back toward the stage.
Once there, she taps the microphone again. “We thought the runners-up deserved something special too.”
The crowd quiets.
“So,” Ethan says with a grin. “We’ve arranged a romantic beach dinner for them tonight.”
The announcement continues, but it fades into the background because all I can focus on is Milo and the warmth of his fingers mindlessly stroking my thigh as we stand there.
The solid presence of his body beside mine anchors me, while the constant swarm of butterflies in my stomach reminds me, again and again, that this is real.
And it’s starting to not feel like a vacation fling anymore.
Chapter Thirty
Milo
The catamaran glides smoothlythrough the water, its sails fluttering overhead in a soft, steady rhythm. The late-afternoon sun hangs low over the horizon, turning the ocean into a shimmering sheet of liquid gold.
Sienna leans against the railing, her white sundress lifting and settling against her thighs with each breeze. Her face is tilted toward the sunset, eyes half-closed, lips slightly parted as if she’s trying to breathe the entire moment into her skin.
I can’t look away.
It’s not the sharp hunger from this morning—though that’s still simmering beneath the surface. This feels deeper. Quieter. I notice how one thin strap has slipped off her shoulder, revealing a single freckle. The absent way she tucks a wind-blown curl behind her ear. Every small detail feels worth memorizing.
My gaze drifts to her left hand resting lightly on the railing.
She’s still wearing the ring.
She probably hasn’t even noticed, but seeing it glint in the dying sunset does something visceral to me. A raw, bone-deep surge cracks open in my chest.
Mine.
The word echoes through me, even though all of this between us was meant to be “fun only.”
She catches me staring and turns her head slightly to look at me. “You’re doing it again.”
“Doing what?” I ask, stepping closer until I’m right behind her.
“Looking at me like I might disappear if you blink.”
I bracket her body with my arms against the railing, my chest gently pressing against her back. She leans into me without hesitation, tipping her head back against my shoulder as if it’s the most natural thing in the world. I rest my chin on her head and breathe her in.
“Maybe I’m scared you will,” I admit quietly against her ear.
She stills for a second, then slides her hands over mine on the railing, threading our fingers together. The ring presses cool against my skin, sending another jolt through me.
“I’m not going anywhere,” she whispers so quietly I barely catch it.
“Not today,” I murmur. “But in six days…”
