He should probably take me home.
I know that.
Normal people would leave.
Go back to real life.
But neither of us moves.
Luca stands beside me with his hands tucked into his pockets, staring out at the ocean like he's thinking about something miles away.
I tilt my head up to look at him.
"You know something?"
He glances down.
"What?"
"You're not as scary as people say."
His eyebrow lifts immediately.
"Careful."
The warning should probably make me nervous.
Instead, it makes me smile.
"You're just complicated."
The wind lifts a strand of my auburn hair across my face.
Before I can brush it away, Luca reaches out and tucks it gently behind my ear.
The small gesture sends warmth through my chest.
"And you're brave," he says quietly.
I blink. "Why?"
He studies me for a long moment.
"Because you're still standing here."
It takes a second for the meaning behind those words to settle.
He's not talking about the beach.
He's talking about him.
About his reputation. His past. The walls everyone says he has.
And yet somehow… I'm still here.
Standing close enough to feel the warmth of him through the cold night air.
The truth is -
If I keep standing here…
I might not want to leave.
And that thought is both terrifying and the most honest feeling I've had in a long time.
And I can't help but want to know more.