When he finally escaped to their hotel room that night, he stared at the ceiling, uncertainty swirling in his thoughts. Glances were exchanged throughout dinner, teasing but aware, and he felt trapped in a delicious purgatory. Every minute apart from Sharla felt like surrendering to a fate he had long accepted but now questioned.

Unable to sleep, he tiptoed onto the balcony, allowing the cool ocean breeze to wash over him. The moonlight shimmered on the water’s surface, a sparkling reminder that just beyond his reach, Sharla was waiting—a magnetic pull he could not ignore.

He reached for his phone, fingers tapping hesitantly against the screen. Just like that, he was back in the game, messaging her under the cover of night.

“Are you still at the beach?” he typed, holding his breath.

A response came almost instantly, igniting a rush of anticipation. “I am, hiding behind some dunes. I needed some air too. You okay?”

“Not really. Stuck between the life I have and the one I want,” Javier admitted.

“You can’t escape that forever, Javier. We need to be careful.”

“I know,” he replied. “But every moment apart is harder. I feel like I’m forgetting what it’s like to be me.”

Silence followed, and he could almost hear the gears turning in her mind. “Meet me at the wall behind the beach—a little after midnight. We can talk.”

Javier’s insides roared with both excitement and trepidation. “I’ll be there,” he replied, determination setting in.

As the clock ticked closer to midnight, he felt as though he were preparing for battle, adrenaline surging through his body. He made sure Maria was asleep before slipping out of their room, moving like a shadow through the resort corridors.