Chapter 3

The humidity in the indoor water park hung heavy against my skin, a thick, oppressive blanket that had nothing to do with the temperature and everything to do with him. The air was thick with the scent of chlorine, wet concrete, and the faint, cloying sweetness of the tropical fruit punch drinks we’d abandoned hours ago. The event was winding down. The staff had started pulling down the colorful banners that framed the lazy river, their plastic ribbons flapping softly in the recycled breeze, but the main hall was still echoing with the distant, muffled laughter of stragglers from the wave pool. I sat on the edge of the wide, tiled bench near the entrance to the river, my legs dangling over the side, water dripping from the hem of my sundress. It was a disaster. The fabric clung to my thighs, heavy and translucent, outlining every curve, every shiver. I felt exposed, vulnerable in a way that had nothing to do with the cold. My hair was a tangle of damp curls at the nape of my neck, and I could feel the weight of his gaze on me from across the small clearing. He hadn’t moved. He never