Jaxon and the guys had already hopped out of the truck and were waiting by the trailhead, casual as ever. After a minute, Jaxon stepped up to the SUV, knocked gently on Claire’s window. She rolled it down to the sight of that same crooked smile—the one that got him out of airport awkwardness and apparently into all kinds of trouble.
“Y’all come on,” he said. “It’s just over the dunes. You can already hear ‘em laughing, right? Fire’s going. You’ll love it.”
Claire hesitated, just for a breath. Then rolled the window back up and opened the door.
Taylor blinked. “What just happened?”
Macie smirked. “She’s gone, y’all. That smile broke whatever defenses she had left.”
As the girls met the guys at the base of the trail, Macie leaned in to Claire. “Okay, I gotta ask—what made you get out of that SUV? This is giving murdery woods energy.”
Claire shrugged, almost shy. “I don’t know. It should’ve felt sketchy. But near Jaxon? I just felt... safe. Like I didn’t need to overthink it.”
Macie raised a brow. “That’s either really sweet or how every Dateline episode starts.”
Claire laughed, rolling her eyes as the group made their way over the dune. And then—everything changed.
“Check this out,” Jaxon said softly.
They crested the ridge, and suddenly the world opened. A wide, sloping beach stretched out below, the tide licking the sand in rhythm with the wind. Firelight flickered ahead, painting golden strokes across faces and waves alike. Beyond the flames, the water shimmered with moonlight so sharp, it looked like it had been carved out of glass.
Claire’s breath hitched. “This is… beautiful.”
Jaxon looked at her, not the view. “If you think this is beautiful… wait until I show you my favorite spot.”
She met his eyes and smiled. “I can’t wait.”
They joined the circle of people already gathered—some locals, a few tourists, all with drinks in hand and stories spilling louder than the ocean. Carter and Trevor dropped the cooler next to the fire like it was sacred cargo, cracking open beers like they were kicking off a ritual.
“Come on, take a seat,” Carter said, grinning at Sara, who somehow already had a drink in hand and was raising it to her lips like she’d been born there.
Claire ended up beside Jaxon—of course—and as the fire popped and laughter rolled down the beach, they sat shoulder to shoulder, knee to knee, like they had all the time in the world.
The drinks kept coming. So did the jokes. At one point, Trevor tried to dance to music that wasn’t even playing, and Carter joined him without hesitation. It was terrible. It was glorious. It made everyone laugh harder than they had all week.
But amidst the chaos, the stolen glances between Claire and Jaxon kept deepening—longer, heavier, filled with unspoken curiosity neither of them knew how to voice.
After nearly an hour, Jaxon leaned in, his lips grazing her ear just enough to send a shiver down her spine.
“Wanna go for a walk?”
She smiled, nodding.
They stood quietly, breaking from the group without a word. As they walked along the shoreline, the laughter behind them faded, replaced by the hush of the ocean and the heavy beat of something unspoken.
Claire glanced back. “They’re all staring at us.”
Jaxon smirked. “Let ’em.”
“You think they knew this was going to happen?”
“Oh, definitely. You and I were giving ‘slow-burn main character energy’ from the jump.”
She laughed, eyes flicking to his. “You’re not wrong.”
They kept walking, barefoot now, shoes in hand, each step sinking slightly into the damp sand. Jaxon’s voice dropped, softer now, real.
“I want to know,” he said.
