“You’rebeautiful.” I smiled. “In fact, I hope it doesn’t freak you out, but I want to take some photos of you before we leave.”
She flashed a mischievous grin. “Naked ones?”
“Believe it or not, no. I just don’t ever want to forget you.” I shook my head. “I mean, I’llneverforget you, but I don’t want my memory of you to fade at all. I have a feeling I’m gonna get home and wonder if this was all a dream. I want to be able to look at the photos and smile when I’m down.”
“Well, then you have to let me do the same. And of course, we’ll have to take some together.”
“Maybe we can get that angry waitress to be the photographer.” I winked.
She laughed. “Why not ask? We’ve already pissed her off...”
Once we finally managed to get out of bed and downstairs, Blair and I ate the quickest breakfast we could, not wanting to waste time. We’d have plenty of time to eat after we left each other.
After breakfast, we took a walk on the beach hand in hand, reminiscing about our short trip together as if it had been a lifetime—everything from the first meeting at the kiddie pool to the helmet diving and massage, to the moment I saidfuck itand we never looked back.
Eventually we found a shady spot under a tree. Blair took an envelope out of her bag and handed it to me.
My eyes widened. “What’s this?”
“It’s a letter I wrote you. I don’t want you to read it until we leave each other, though.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “You’re making me emotional, and I haven’t even read it.”
“I needed to get some things off my chest that I knew I wouldn’t be able to articulate tomorrow morning in the rush of having to leave.”
It made me feel horrible that she’d done something like this, and I hadn’t written anything.
As if she’d read my mind, she said, “Don’t feel like you need to do the same. Truly. It’s just something I wanted to do.”
I exhaled. “Honestly, I wish Icouldarticulate everything, but I’m not very good at writing. It would take me all day to organize what I’m feeling into words, and I don’t want to waste our time together trying to get my brain to work. I’d prefer to be with you.” I looked down at the envelope again. “I don’t understand, though.Whendid you write this? We’ve been together the entire time.”
“It’s not long. I put it together while you were sleeping last night. I had a little insomnia.”
“I had no idea you were awake in the middle of the night.”
“It was just an hour. After I wrote it, I was able to go back to sleep. I think all of these emotions had been nagging me. Once I got them out, I felt better.”
I shook my head. There was so much I wanted to say to her before we parted. Maybe Icouldfigure out a way to write it down. Or even better, maybe I could convince her to give me her contact information, though she’d still said she preferred that we not exchange last names.
“Should we take the photos now?” I asked.
She stood and wiped some dirt off her skirt. “Sure.”
We picked a spot under some palm trees. The sun wasn’t too bright—it was perfect. Blair leaned against the tree as her hair blew around in the gentle breeze. I was sure there was no more beautiful woman in the entire world. I wondered if I’d always believe that or if my opinion was skewed because of the massive fog of lust and admiration currently engulfing me. Maybe there was a stronger word to describe what I was feeling, but I wasn’t willing to let my mind go there.
After taking several photos of her with my phone, I switched positions with her so she could take photos of me.
I leaned against the same tree, making various flirtatious faces at her, some downright silly.
“Be serious for a minute, Tate.”
I forced my mouth into a more serious expression. That meant letting reality seep in, which was why I’d been avoiding it.
“Now look at me like you’re hiding a secret,” she said.
I chuckled and did my best to accommodate her request. I couldn’t help but think of the secret Iwashiding. If she only knew it was taking everything in me not to sayfuck itagain and ask her to run away with me. If she only knew how often that crazy idea had been at the tip of my tongue. I doubted she understood how weak I was when it came to her. I’d put up a strong front, explaining all the reasons why continuing this beyond the resort was a bad idea. But the truth? I was hanging on by a thread.
“I’m gonna ask you a question you’ve asked me before,” she said, putting down the phone. “Where did you go?”
