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The ocean smelled like freedom. Salt and warmth and something untouchable hung in the air, a promise waiting just beyond the horizon. She stepped off the wooden boardwalk and onto the sand, her sandals dangling from her fingers. The sun, molten and endless, spilled its gold across the waves. Somewhere in the distance, music floated from the resort-soft guitar strings, laughter, the clinking of glasses.

Adanna had promised herself this summer would be different. She hadn't come to the coast to chase anything-or anyone. She came for stillness, to find a version of herself that wasn't tied to deadlines, heartbreak, or the noise of the city. She wanted nights quiet enough to hear her own breath. Days calm enough to remember what it felt like to smile without forcing it.

But fate doesn't keep promises. Fate writes its own.

She spread her towel on the sand and let her toes sink into the heat. The waves curled forward and retreated, curling and retreating like a heartbeat. She lay back, closed her eyes, and inhaled deeply. For the first time in months, she felt light.

That was when she heard it-laughter, low and unrestrained.

It cut through the ocean's rhythm, sharp as a spark. She turned her head and saw him.

He was running along the shoreline, a surfboard tucked under one arm, water glistening down his chest. Not the polished kind of handsome you find in magazine ads-something wilder, sun-bitten, messy in a way that made her stomach stir. His hair, wet and dark, clung to his forehead; his skin carried the bronze kiss of too many afternoons under the sun.

He glanced her way-just once, just enough-and for a second the whole beach disappeared.

She looked away quickly, pressing her palms into the towel, heat blooming beneath her skin that had nothing to do with the sun. She wasn't here for distractions. She had come for peace, and peace never looked like that.

Yet peace didn't seem interested in her tonight.

The surfboard hit the sand with a soft thud. She felt rather than saw his presence beside her, the kind of awareness that tugged at the edges of her body. When she opened her eyes again, he was crouched near the tide line, running his fingers through the water as if searching for something.

"Beautiful evening, isn't it?" His voice carried over the rush of waves. Deep, playful, threaded with ease.

She blinked. For a moment she thought he was speaking to someone else. But when his gaze slid toward her, his mouth tilted into the kind of smile that knew exactly what it was doing.

"It is," she answered, her voice steadier than she felt.

"First time here?" he asked.

She nodded. "And you?"