Hannah and I walk together out to the waves, holding hands as the waves wash the sweat and stickiness from our bodies. Watching her wade deeper, I feel like I’m watching a myth in reverse, Aphrodite not emerging from the sea but returning to it. But she’s taking me with her, and as the warm water laps over my chest and I turn to her, I pull her close. “Hannah, you . . .”

There are no more words as I gather her in my arms, kissing her deeply as the water washes over us. We move together back into the shallows, Hannah tracing her fingers over my face as if she’s memorizing me the way a blind person would. I kiss her salty fingertips, brushing her hair out of her eyes as we kiss again, our bodies pressing together and washed by the rolling waves.

I reach down, and she understands, lifting her legs and wrapping them around my waist as I hold her effortlessly in my arms. The water sways our bodies, my legs spread as I hold her. “Hannah,” I whisper in her ear as I feel her warmth tingle against my belly. “I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I want you to know . . . you’re the most special woman I’ve ever met. I knew that the first night I saw you. I was just too much of a fool to say it right. I knew there was a spark between us.”

“I—” Hannah says, but I shake my head, running my hand down and slipping a finger over her pussy.

“I don’t know if I’ll ever have the guts to say this again,” I whisper, my cock hardening again as I feel the warm wetness of her entrance. I’m quickly back to full hardness, and I adjust myself, slipping inside her, guided only by the warmth of her body. “You’re more important than this contract. You’re more important than anything to me.”

I thrust my cock deeper into her, taking away Hannah’s reply. I don’t know if I want the words. I’ve never trusted them as much as the feeling coursing through my skin and along my nerves as I hold her. The salty water makes her feel almost weightless as I thrust in time with the waves, the backwash pulling her tighter into me as she holds onto my shoulders and back. Our lips barely part, gasps and moans slipping from our mouths as I give her all I can. My fingers dig into her hips as I grip her ass, my cock pumping harder and faster inside her, just on the limits of what the ocean will allow us.

I don’t know how long I thrust, my cock aching and throbbing as we move with the ocean, our hips making waves of their own. My breath sears in my chest as Hannah’s fingers dig in. She’s coming again, and her pussy squeezes my cock so hard that I can barely keep stroking, moving with the pulse of my heart. There’s no sound except the crash of the nearby waves and our breaths as I speed up, fighting the ocean now, but I need her. I clutch Hannah to me, her breasts squashed against me as she tries to ride me too, faster and harder. I’m desperate. There’s nothing except her right now, and I feel my balls grow tight.

“Hannah!” I cry, my cock bursting deep inside her again. Hannah wails, her fingernails piercing my skin and making the wounds burn as ocean water washes over them, but I don’t feel the pain, just the burn in my heart and in my mind as I fill her with my essence.

My knees unhinge, and I start to collapse into the water when suddenly, there’s an arm under me, holding me up and helping me toward the shore. I look, and it’s Hannah, my angel, a soft smile on her face. We curl up on the blanket, the night air just this side of cool and making it comfortable as I spoon her against me.

“Tomorrow . . . I want you to be happy, no matter what,” I say. I don’t know what I’m saying, but at the same time, I do. I’ve waited all this time to hear her say that she needs more than a good vacation fantasy. I’ve waited for her to say she wants more, that she wants me with all of my imperfections and all of my mistakes.

I’ve waited, and she hasn’t said it. I understand. Neither of us has come out and directly said our feelings, but I hope she understands what I’ve tried to tell her with my body. She owns my heart, from here on out.

Hannah murmurs something under her breath, but whatever she says is cut off by a large yawn. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay, babe,” I reply, my throat tight. She snuggles against me more, and I wrap my arms around her, snagging our t-shirts to use as a pillow under her head. Within minutes, she’s snoring lightly, and I kiss her on the temple. “It’s okay, I’ve got it all . . .”

I can’t lie anymore. I don’t have it all under control. Watching her snore in the moonlight, the first tears trickle down my cheeks. My heart is breaking in my chest, but everything will be fine if she’s the one who wins. I’ve had the time of my life with her, and I’ll never forget this.