“You set it on fire in under three seconds. That’s impressive.”
She’s trying to look offended. Her mouth keeps betraying her. “Give me another one.”
I hand her a fresh marshmallow and watch her try again. She rotates the marshmallow carefully, brow furrowed, until it turns golden and a little puffed at the edges.
“Perfect,” I say. “Now you’ve earned the next phase.”
I break a graham cracker in half and show her how to stack the chocolate and the marshmallow before pressing the top down.
She takes a bite. Her eyes close.
She makes a soft sound that goes straight to my cock, and I have to look away for a second—like that’s going to do a damn thing.
“Good?” I ask, clearing my throat.
She opens her eyes and stares at the s’more in her hand with a look of betrayal.
“How have I never had this?”
“Criminal negligence.”
“I’m serious.” She takes another bite, chocolate at the corner of her mouth. “This is absurd. This is obscene.”
“It’s a marshmallow and chocolate and a cracker.”
“Don’t diminish it.”
The wine is awful.
We drink it anyway.
At some point I notice Natalia curled half into herself under the blanket, shoulders inching tighter every few minutes. I take the bottle out of her hand, set it in the sand, and tug her over into my lap. Then I wrap the blanket around both of us before she can argue.
The ocean is a dull, steady roar beyond the dunes. The fire pops and settles. For the first time since she walked out of that hotel room in Vegas, I’m not crawling out of my own skin.
Nothing’s fixed. She’s just here, leaning against me, and right now that’s enough.
Three marshmallows in, she goes quiet. She’s staring at the fire with the bag in her lap, fingers still.
“What is it?” I ask.
She shakes her head.
Then, without looking at me, “You remembered.”
I don’t say anything.
“My list.” Her grip tightens on the bag. “The stuff I said I wanted to do.”
She swallows. “You remembered.”
I look at her for a second, I ease the bag out of her hands before she crushes it flat and toss it into the sand beside us.
“What, you thought we were done after the ocean?” I pull her in a little closer against me. “Not a chance.”
She’s quiet for a moment. Then, “I’ve had more fun with you than I’ve ever had with anyone.”
She says it like she means it. I have to look at the fire for a second before I answer.
