“Milo! Don’t you dare?—”
Too late.
He’s already striding toward the pool with me in his arms, a wicked grin on his face.
“Yes, Milo!” Aria squeals, clapping her hands together. "Dunk her!”
“Put me down!” I laugh, playfully smacking his chest. “I’m wearing your shirt!”
“And you look fucking beautiful in it,” he replies, his voice warm against my ear.
With one powerful leap, he jumps off the edge.
We hit the water together in a huge splash. The cool shock steals my breath for a second, but Milo’s arms never let go. We surface laughing, my legs wrapping around his waist, his hands supporting me effortlessly. Water streams down his face and drips from his lashes as he looks at me with a cocky smirk.
“You’re such an asshole,” I gasp, pushing wet hair out of my eyes, but I’m smiling so wide my cheeks hurt.
He grins and spins us slowly in the water. His hands glide down to my waist, holding me close as the water laps around us. One palm lingers at the small of my back, his thumb tracing slow circles just above the edge of my bikini bottom. The touch is light yet deliberate, sending little sparks across my skin.
I shrug out of the button-down and toss it onto the edge of the pool. It lands in a damp heap, leaving me in nothing but the tiny pink bikini. Milo’s eyes flick down to me for a heartbeat, darkening with something that has my thighs trembling.
Aria paddles closer on her unicorn float, grinning. “So… how was the catamaran last night?”
“Oh, it was incredible,” I reply, still clinging to Milo. “The sunset from that far out on the ocean was unreal.”
Milo’s fingers flex against my waist. He leans in, his lips brushing my ear so only I can hear. “The best part wasn’t the sunset.”
Heat rushes to my cheeks.
Aria eyes us suspiciously. “What are you two whispering about?”
I open my mouth to tell her to mind her own business when Ethan suddenly jumps onto the unicorn float and tips Aria upside down. She gasps as she surfaces, then instantly splashes water into Ethan’s face. She tries to jump onto his back to dunk him, but he’s quicker, grabbing her waist and dunking her.
That’s how we spend the next hour in the pool—splashing, teasing, Milo and I stealing quick kisses when Aria and Ethan aren’t looking. He keeps me close, his hands never far from my waist or back. The water makes everything feel weightless and intimate.
It’s perfect.
As we head our separate ways to shower and get ready for the rehearsal walk and dinner, Milo and I walk hand in hand up thepath, dripping wet and still laughing about him jumping into the pool with me.
My fingers tighten around his. The sunlight feels incredibly warm against my already flushed skin, and when he glances down at me, that small, almost-smile curving his lips, something inside me shifts.
For the first time in my life, wanting more doesn’t feel like a trap.
It doesn’t feel like I’m giving up my freedom or signing away my independence.
It feels like coming home.
Like I’ve been running toward something my whole life without knowing what it was, and now it’s right here—walking beside me, holding my hand, looking at me like I’m the best part of his day.
“You okay?” Milo suddenly asks, his thumb brushing my knuckles. “You’re oddly quiet.”
I look up at him, heart full, a little scared, and so, so hopeful.
“Couldn’t be more okay,” I respond, smiling.
And for once, I actually mean it.
Chapter Thirty-Three
