Warmth spread through me at his words. “Thanks. He really likes you.”
His hand found mine again. “The feeling is mutual.”
Finn came running back, arms full of treasures. “Look! I found the best shell ever!” He held it up triumphantly before adding it to our creation. Eventually, we had enough structurally sound towers and turrets decorated with shells.
Finn pressed a small piece of driftwood into my hand. “The flag! Put it on the biggest tower.”
“Let’s do it together,” I said, and the three of us planted the makeshift beach flag and declared victory. Thewarmth spread through me again, as fragile as the castles we built and as intense as the sun overhead.
I sat with it, this mix of longing and fear. Chase and Finn, side by side, already looked like a team. Like family. My hand went to my heart, resting there as if to keep it from breaking out and getting ahead of itself.
Sandcastles weren’t meant to last. But oh, how I hoped this would.
