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Gasping for air, we pulled apart.

“It’s absolutely delicious!” I moaned. God, was my utter lack of eloquence the result of brain freeze?

Ruben’s cheeks flushed red as he beamed at me, his eyes sparkled.

“I’m glad.”

I pointed along the beach. “Shall we walk a few steps together, or do you have to go back?”

Ruben shook his head. “Sway is filling in for me while I take a break before the big rush tonight.”

We strolled off.

I scraped the last bits out of the bowl and licked it clean.

Ruben’s laughter made me pause. It was infectious, and I grinned back.

“I can carry the bowl.” He held out his open hand to me.

I didn’t miss the opportunity and took it. I had to practice keeping my distance again. But after only a few days, I was addicted to Ruben’s touch.

His eyes widened, and he glanced at our intertwined fingers. However, he didn’t comment on it.

We walked a few steps in silence.

“I didn’t know you sold ice cream.”

Ruben shook his head. “I don’t. But the truck is fully equipped, including an ice cream machine, and I thought I’d give it a try. I also had leftover pistachios . . . ”

“Ha. I guess I got lucky today.” I turned to him, watching his profile.

He smiled and shook his head slightly. Ruben swept his foot through the water, and drops of the little wave splashed against my lower legs cooling my skin. “I don’t want to get out of practice. My head chef in Germany insisted that ice cream had to be on the menu. Every day. I guess it’s not a bad thing to know how to make it.”

I nodded, and a twinge in my stomach reminded me again why what we had was rather fleeting. No matter how much my heart protested. After a few days, I couldn’t trust any emotions. They were deceptive anyway.

Ruben had traveled the world. He had a college degree. He was incredibly ambitious. After graduating from high school, I spent my time hanging out at one beach or another. Always chasing the sun.

But as always, I quickly remembered my personal motto. Chill! Enjoy every second of life instead of worrying about things you can’t change.

I put my arm around his shoulders and gave him a quick squeeze. “In any case, it was worth it. It’s delicious. I’m sure you could put it on the menu here. People would love it.”

Ruben inhaled deeply. As we walked side by side, he leaned into my embrace. His weight at my side was comforting. And it confused me. However, it encouraged me to leave my arm around his shoulders.

“I can’t experiment too much. My selection has to be kind of stringent. You were the perfect guinea pig, though. Maybe I’ll offer it at my next stop.”

“Oh. Are you already planning to leave?”

“Yeah. That’s why I wanted to talk to you.”

Those kinds of sentences never ended well. I peered at him questioningly. “Yes? What’s up?”

“The reason I came here in the first place was the Pride party. Business there is awesome. It makes up for the many slow days in between. And it’s over tomorrow.”

He didn’t finish the sentence but let it blow away between us in the wind. I desperately pulled him closer to me. When I didn’t say anything, he continued talking.

“Now, I wanted to move my truck to a beach further down south. The most lucrative days for me are over after the party and the end of the surfing competition anyway.”

“Oh. I didn’t know that.” We walked on, huddled together closely. I hadn’t expected it to be over between us so quickly. Although it didn’t have to be. But we weren’t in a position to make big decisions after a few days. Or were we? “How far are you going?”