I turned into the maze of wooden paths that crossed the resort, hoping to avoid any security cameras as I ducked sideways toward Logan’s cabin. It was nestled amid a grove of flowering trees, their scent warm and heavy in the air. Golden light trickled out of the cabin, even more luxurious than the one I’d stayed in with my parents all those years ago. Yeah, Logan could afford the best. Which, to quote the resort brochure, meant ’a haven of harmonious design, where the boundaries of space and time dissolve—from a secluded plunge pool to your expansive terrace overlooking the endless blue of the Caribbean Sea.’

The door had been left ajar. I dropped my sandals by the entrance before I walked further inside. “Logan?”

“By the pool.”

I found him sprawled on an outdoor lounge sofa, shirt open, skin shimmering in the blue glow of the pool lights. His smile was as quiet as his voice. “Hey.”

“Hey yourself.” I sat down close and returned his smile. “Nice digs.”

“I’ve stayed in worse.” He offered me a glass of water from the side table, and the small gesture settled something in me, a last remnant of unease falling away. His fingers grazed my pulse point when I accepted the water.

I took a sip, muted tiredness still clinging to the edge of my vision. It was gorgeous out here. While trees crowded close to the cabin, a gap had been cleared to expose a slice of the sea, its charcoal surfaceslashed by silvery reflections of moonlight. The pool was just a few steps below us. Angled towards me, Logan’s long, muscular body appeared relaxed, his thighs splayed apart. The way he watched me burned like embers behind my ribs. I glanced at his mouth before I met his eyes once more, gazes holding, gravity a heavy pull between us.

What even were words? I dragged some up from the bottom of my stomach. “You look like an invitation.”

He swayed just a hint closer, the corners of his mouth turning up. “And are you ready to accept?”

“Thought I already did.”

His attention flickered to my lips and back up. “There is that.”

Less talk, more touching.

I set down the glass, crawled into the gap between his thighs, and curled a hand around his bicep. He twined his fingers into my hair to tug me in for a deep, unhurried kiss. His tongue swept along the row of my teeth, then nudged further inside. I sank into it—night shadows and quiet heat, caught in a summer haze.

“Well, well, well,” Tom said.

Logan pulled back just enough for a, “Fuck off.”

“Always with the eloquence, man.” Instead of heading back inside, Tom claimed a lounge chair just next to us, sounding happily unfazed. “So, how’s it going? Hope I’m not interrupting.”

Logan sighed, fingers skimming down the side of my neck, before he shot Tom a put-out look. “That’d be a lot more believable coming from literallyanyoneelse.”

“Other than Kyle,” Tom said.

”Kyle?” I asked.

”My roommate.” Logan sounded slightly pained. “He’s a good guy, but he’s a lot.”

I straightened with a laugh, steadying myself with a hand on the back of the couch. “You know that our choice of friends says a lot about us, right?”

“Logan likes to surround himself with people much cooler than him,” Tom said. “Keeps him grounded.”

“Remind me why I keep you around?” Logan’s lips were pursed against a smile, one hand still curved around my knee. It wasn’t overly sexual, more warm and comforting. Strangely, I found that I’d missed this—simple physical contact, being close to another person. I swallowed against the barbed ache.

“It’s my sparkling personality,” Tom said.

Logan nodded. “Must be it.”

“Nia gave you a ride back?” I asked Tom.

“She did.” Tom inserted a weighted pause. “What with how you two abandoned us.”

“Like it was such a hardship for you.” Logan’s tone dripped innuendo.

“Well, no. But some of us don’t put out on the first date. I’m a classy dude, man.”

Last I’d checked, Nia had no issue putting out on the first date. I squinted at Tom. “Really?”