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Leaning back casually against his seat, hands buried in the pockets of his black sweatpants, eyes locked on me with that same infuriating mix of arrogance and amusement.

His expression is pure provocation, lips curled into the faintest smirk, the kind that says he knows exactly what he’s doing to me.

God, why do men like that always have to be the ones who get under our skin? The untouchable ones. The complicated ones. The ones who can’t commit to anything other than their own damn chaos.

Or order, in Ethan’s case.

Why can’t we ever fall for the kind of men who actually want to make us happy?

Annoyed with myself for even reacting, I turn abruptly toward the front again, straightening in my seat and fixing my eyes on the road ahead. I even pull away subtly, as if a few extra inches of space could somehow shield me from him.

But my movement only seems to please him more. His laughter fills the car—deep, rough, shamelessly loud—and I swear I can feel everyone turning their heads to see what’s so funny.

Nothing. Nothing’s funny here.

Go flirt with your new girlfriend, Ethan Hardy. Because as far as I’m concerned, you don’t exist anymore.

TWENTY-SIX

Ethan

The drive to the resort takes almost two hours, long enough to cross nearly the entire island.

The farther we go, the more unreal everything starts to feel, as if we’ve stepped into a different world entirely. The people, the colors, the rhythm of life here—it’s all vivid, unfiltered, strikingly different from anything we’re used to.

Everywhere I look, there’s something worth taking in.

And yet, my eyes don’t cooperate.

They keep finding her.

Thalia sits just in front of me, and no matter how many times I try to focus on something else—the view sliding past the window, the conversations around me, the emails I force myself to answer—my gaze drifts back to her. Every time.

By now, it’s obvious. Two nights with her weren’t enough to fuck her out of my system.

And that’s a problem.

Because I can’t touch her again.

Not because I don’t want to, but because I know exactly how messy it would get. I’ve already crossed that line twice, and I’m not careless enough to do it again.

The moment she starts expecting more, it turns into a complication I have no interest in managing.

But that doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy myself.

I can still tease her. Watch the subtle tension take over her body, the way her jaw locks as she pretends it doesn’t affect her.

I can press every button she has, one by one, push just enough to crack that flawless composure.

Because watching her struggle to stay in control is almost as intoxicating as the way she sounds when she finally loses it.

“Welcome to Hooda Resort,” the manager greets us, his voice carrying the polished ease of someone trained to make people feel important without effort.

“As requested, the entire resort has been reserved exclusively for your group. You’ll have complete privacy during your stay,” he adds with a professional smile.

“Wait… seriously?” Thalia asks, her eyes widening. “Zayn, we’re on vacation, not hiding from the world. Was it really necessary to book the whole resort for us?”

“Yes,” Noah answers before Zayn gets the chance, his grin unapologetic. “The last thing I want is to see our faces all over the tabloids again. We’re here to relax, not pose for cameras.”