Page 76 of Hot Saltwater Kisses

I twisted to look at him, my heart pulsing heavy in my throat. “You won’t?”

“No. Cleared it with my family just after our lunch—that’s the conversation I was worried about. Wasn’t sure how they’d take it.” His lips curved into a careful, half-formed smile, his entire focus on me as though the world had narrowed to just us. “Richard needs to go, though. He doesn’t embody the right values. So there’s some stuff to work out, maybe a bit of a transition phase while I work with his successor to make some changes I discussed with my aunt and uncle. Like hire a bit more staff, get some local collaborations going, that sort of thing.”

“You’re stepping down.” My mind spun, shards of reflected moonlight flickering through my vision. The pier seemed to sway beneath us. “For me?”

He opened his mouth, then hesitated, watching me closely. “Kind of?” It was edged in caution. “I mean, a little. Feels like Nia would be a better fit to run this place, though, and there might be another role I could play in the company. It’d be a new position, so I still need to sell my aunt and uncle on it.”

That was… big. Right? I grappled for a response. “So was that your idea from the start—to create a new role for yourself?”

Another hesitant second slid by before Logan shook his head. “No.”

Our eyes held as I asked, “What changed?”

“I met you.”

Simple and firm. Logan didn’t look away, and…God. Just like that, he’d moved us to even ground.

He could have asked me to uproot my life—work at some otherdive center for a couple of years, say, and then move back to Miami with him, where he’d set me up with a nice little apartment that wouldn’t even register on his family credit card. Instead, he was the one trying to rearrange things.

He didn’t expect me to bend for him.

“You lied to me.” I sounded hoarse, shaken.

“Yeah. I did.” He fell silent for a beat, chin dipping. “I’m sorry about that, Milo. I am. But you made it plenty clear that if I told you who I was, you’d be gone in a second. I just didn’t think I stood a chance. Not until...”

“Kyle?” I suggested, my amusement distant, as if seen through a stained glass window.

“Yeah.” Logan’s mouth quirked. “Kyle. And then you told me about Michael, and that made me think that maybe, yeah—you cared. That this wasn’t just a fun little fling for you either.”

Me? I didn’t even do flings. There’d been Michael, and then a very limited number of hookups that never saw the light of another day. And then Logan.

“You’ve been with tons of guys.” I hated the uncertainty painting my tone. “You could have anyone.”

Gently, softly, he shook his head. The glow of underwater lights caught in his eyes. “I don’t want just anyone. I want you.”

“Logan…” I didn’t know how to continue. Felt like I’d been knocked sideways, split wide open. Everything up in the air, and I wasn’t sure where the pieces would land.

“Milo.” Logan leaned forward just slightly, not enough to impose on my space. His words tumbled out, quick, like he was afraid I’d cut him off. “Listen, I’m... When I arrived here, I treated this like some sort of game, you know? Play detective, prove myself. But you...” He made an aborted gesture, fingers fluttering like butterfly wings, before his hand dropped back down to his thigh. “You made me want to think bigger. Like, there’s purpose in trying to shape a place—a resort, or a hotel—that doesn’t only serve its guests. It should also be a great work environment, with ties to the local community and economy.What I mentioned before, about a new role? I want to become Sustainability Lead for the entire Prescott chain. You inspired that.”

A memory floated to the surface—his voice soft in the quiet of my room, his warm hands a contrast to the sweat cooling on my back.‘Isn’t that what most people want? Find someone who gets it, but who’s different enough to challenge you. Who sees you, not the size of your wallet.’

I inhaled until my lungs felt ready to burst before I met his eyes. “I’m in love with you.”

Logan froze for a beat, staring at me. Then everything about him cracked open, a full smile breaking through, dimples carving deep craters into his cheeks. I lost my breath just looking at him.

He glanced down and back up with a newly mischievous tilt to his lips. “Yeah, I figured.”

Oh, you…I bit down on a half-formed laugh, feeling looser all of a sudden. This was us—still us. “You’re a dick.”

It sounded like an endearment, and Logan flashed me a bright look edged in caution. “Yeah. But I’myourdick.”

“So many puns—I just can’t choose.” Then I tipped up my chin, smile slipping. “But, Logan. Just so we’re clear.“ I paused as I fixed him with a hard look. “You lie to me again? You try to manipulate me like you did earlier? I’m walking.”

“I won’t.Milo.” Reverence swung in the way he said my name. He reached out, fingers lightly skimming over the back of my hand, still hesitant as though any sudden move might spook me. “I’m stupid about you. You know that, right? Crazy, stupid, head over heels.”

Waves whispered beneath us, my heart as wide as the open sea. Liquid gold twined around my spine as I filled my lungs with what might be my first real breath all day, Logan the only thing that made sense.

Somehow, I made my voice work. Letters, syllables, words. “Hey. Logan?”

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