MacKenzie clutched her chest dramatically while Ryan pointed toward Blaze like he’d just witnessed a supernatural event.
“Look at what’s happening,” Ryan announced loudly. “Our boy’s in love again.”
Blaze ignored every last one of them. Instead, he guided Johanna farther down the shoreline away from the louder crowd and toward the quieter edge of the firelight where the sand felt smoother beneath their feet and the ocean sounded louder than the conversations behind them.
Johanna glanced around suspiciously. “You moved us away from witnesses.”
That slow smile returned.
“Maybe I wanted privacy.”
Heat rushed instantly into her cheeks.
Blaze had become entirely too confident for her emotional stability.
Behind them, the bonfire crackled beneath strings of lights while music drifted softly through the February night. Couples swayed together near the fire as ocean waves rolled steadily onto shore carrying smoke, salt, and cold sea air through the darkness. The entire beach looked wrapped in romance.
Which meant Johanna absolutely should have stayed home. Instead, she stood there with Blaze’s hand resting at her waist while her pulse behaved like it lacked basic home training.
His touch wasn’t hesitant. It wasn’t possessive either. It felt steady and certain. The kind of touch that said he already knew exactly where he wanted her.
“You nervous again?” he asked quietly.
Johanna lifted one eyebrow. “You ask that question a lot.”
“That’s because I like honest answers.”
His thumb brushed against her waist beneath the sweater, and Johanna had to inhale carefully before responding.
“Maybe a little.”
Something warm moved through Blaze’s expression.
“There she is.”
Johanna frowned slightly. “Who?”
“The woman who finally stopped pretending she doesn’t feel what’s happening between us.”
Johanna looked toward the ocean because eye contact suddenly felt dangerous.
Blaze stepped closer instead, his body heat sliding through the cool night air until she could feel him through the thin knit fabric separating them.
“You know what’s funny?” he murmured.
“I’m almost afraid to ask.”
A low laugh escaped him. “I spent years imagining what it would feel like touching you again. Then I spent the last five months trying not to think about it.”
His eyes dropped briefly to her mouth before returning to hers.
“And somehow it’s worse now.”
Johanna swallowed hard. “Worse?”
“Yeah.” His voice lowered another notch. “Now I remember how hard it is to stop.”
The honesty wrapped around her like heat. Worse still, she understood exactly what he meant. Being close to Blaze again felt dangerously familiar, like her body remembered him long before her mind agreed to it. Which would have been easier to enjoy if she didn't remember how much it hurt when he left.
