The muscle in Sofía’s jaw twitches, and Doug adds his two cents, even though no one asked. “I’ve been telling Jett the same thing. Never leaves the house. How’s he supposed to find that grand love he talks about if he doesn’t start searching for it?”
Sofía’s gaze locks with mine. “Grand love?”
“Oh yeah,” Doug answers for me. I kick his seat, but he’s undeterred. “Real hopeless romantic, this one.” He throws a thumb over his shoulder, pointing at me. I want to dissolve into the seat. “Always talking about his special someone and how he hopes to find her one day.”
“That’s enough,” I mumble, humiliation flooding my cheeks.
So what if I dream of a love like Doug and Molly’s, like Mateo and Charlie’s? I don’t think it’s too much to want to find something special. It’s taken me a long time to believe in that dream again after Grace stomped on it.
“I think that’s a nice dream,” Sofía whispers. “A pretty great one, actually.”
Those brown eyes hold me captive, suspending the time between us until the rest of the noise in the car fades away and all I hear is the blood pumping in my ears.
If only she knew she’s becoming the star of that dream.
I am a lizard on a rock, absorbing the sun’s heat, living the life of an ectotherm. At least, that’s what I imagine, eyes closed, sprawled out on a beach towel on one of the massive boulders at the creek. The sound of rushing water and rustling leaves add to my illusion, and the comfortable warmth lulls me into a state of bliss.
Peace is shattered by the scent of cherries and vanilla and a shadow blocking my sunshine.
Begrudgingly, I crack an eye open.
“So this is what you call work,” Sofía teases, standing over me.
I lift a hand to block the sun—an immediate mistake. When I closed my eyes half an hour ago, she was still clothed in her swimsuit cover and denim shorts. Those are gone now, leaving nothing but a black string bikini that dries my throat.
The image burns into my memory despite snapping my eyelids shut. Keeping them open will only cause problems.
“I’m supervising,” I say, waving a hand around. “Keep up the good work, Doug!”
Sofía chuckles. “Doug and Molly went on a walk. It’s only us.”
“Well then, you’re doing a great job at…standing there.”
Her foot presses into my calf. “I thought we could try recording something to post later. For our PR relationship.”
Leaning back on my palms, I wrangle the attraction pummeling my chest and open my eyes. Sofía bounces back and forth on her feet. “Are your feet burning?” I ask.
“No.”
The skin of her calf is soft beneath my fingers as I wrap my hands around her and drag her onto the towel. She releases a relaxed sigh. “Stubborn woman,” I mutter, knowing she can hear me. “What did you have in mind?”
“I thought we could hop in the water and set up the camera to record us. That way we can crop the clip to mask our faces a bit, and we have lots of options.”
The ball cap I offered her on Magnetic Island—the one she silently stole—sits on her head, shielding her emotions from view. I slide my hand down and release a low hiss from the cut of my palm.
The sound sparks a reaction, and she retreats.
“Lead the way,” I tell her, guilt eating at me as I memorize the curves and slopes of her body, following closely in case she slips on a boulder.
Once I find the best angle, I perch my phone against a rock and hit record. There’s an area to leap about ten feet into the creek’s deepest pool, and I take a running start, arms flailing as I fly through the air, my heart pumping in my chest when I crash into the freezing water.
Sofía’s scream is the last thing I hear before I submerge. I hold my breath, allowing myself to acclimate to the chill, and when I surface, she’s peering over the ledge, her hand pressed against her chest.
“Are you crazy?” she yells. “What were you thinking? You could have been hurt.”
“People were leaping off earlier,” I argue, treading water. “I took an educated guess. Your turn.”
She shakes her head. “I’ll climb down.”
