Aria's eyes flew open, her body in a cold sweat. Sitting up on the bed, she glanced around her dark bedroom. No zombies. It was just a dream.

That's the last time I binge watch The Walking Dead before bed.

Soft exhales next to her caught her attention. Ben was fast asleep on his back, one arm stretched out toward her. The fear she'd been feeling moments ago dissipated, replaced by a warmth that was becoming her norm every time she looked at him.

Two weeks she'd known the man. And yet, there was no denying there was something here. It was insane...right? She wanted to believe that it was just lust, but that didn't fit what was happening between them.

Hell, she had cried in front of him. And why?

She still didn't really know. Sex had never been such an emotional release for her before, but this hadn't felt like sex. It felt so much more. He'd cherished her, made her feel valued and precious. She wasn't a virgin by any means, but she'd only had sex in serious relationships she could count on one hand. Even then, not a single one of those experiences had made her feel as loved as Ben had.

Which was insane because they didn't love each other. They didn't even know each other.

So, why did it feel like they did?

Aria ran a finger across the V on his hips that pointed down under the neon tie-dye pants he was still wearing. She'd asked him yesterday if he'd wanted to date. The look on his face...he'd been horrified.

He didn't want to date her.

She definitely didn't want to date him.

She didn't want to be with anyone. Her career was just starting, and honestly, she was still feeling hurt and haunted by her relationship with Russell. Until the movie was released and officially done, he'd always be lurking nearby. Everything about her life right now was so unresolved and unstable.

Dating Ben Lawson was not an option.

Falling for Ben Lawson was even less of an option.

Pulling her legs underneath her, she crawled closer to him and leaned against his chest. "Ben?" she whispered, stroking the side of his face with the back of her hand. "Ben, wake up."

"Mmm," he mumbled.

"Ben," she coaxed again, this time placing soft kisses across the line of his jaw. "Wake up."

He circled her with his arms, pulling her across his warm chest. "What time is it?"

"I don't know, but I want to show you something. Get dressed."

Ben opened his eyes, his brow furrowed. "Are we going somewhere?"

"Yep!" She was already up and out of bed. Sliding his shirt off her body, she tossed it to him. A couple minutes later, he was dressed in his regular clothes from earlier and she was in leggings and a loose sweater.

"It's one in the morning." Ben pointed at the clock then looked at her like she was crazy. Maybe she was, a little. "What are we doing?"

"Going to the beach, of course." She smirked, enjoying purposefully leaving things unclear. If this was their once-in-a-lifetime weekend, their free-agent vacation, it had to include a trip to the beach.

"What!" Ben sputtered. "Is it even open? Am I going to have to get someone to bail us out of jail?"

"Santa Monica is actually one of the only beaches in Los Angeles that's open around the clock, because of the pier," she informed him, pushing him out the door and locking it behind her. "Come on. It'll be fun."

"All right, but if you need a handsome knight in shining armor to save you from beach vagrants, I charge for my services."

Aria laughed. "What's the charge?"

They reached the bottom of the stairs of her apartment complex, which opened onto the sidewalk. He immediately took her hand in his, kissing the back of her fingers. "Wild monkey sex for hours and hours."

"We weren't already doing that?" she teased.

He swatted her ass then wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "I cannot believe you have me up at one in the morning to go to the beach. I haven't done something like this in…probably a decade."

"Since college?" she asked, sliding her arm around his waist as they walked in the direction of the beach under dimly lit streetlights. "How old are you anyway?"

"I just turned thirty last month."

"Oh man, I didn't realize I was getting involved with such an old-timer," she kidded. "I'm only twenty-five. Really, you're robbing the cradle."

Ben laughed, the same deep belly laugh she loved feeling vibrate through his entire body. "Five-year difference. Wow, we're such deviants." His sarcasm was thick.

"Deviant enough to go to the beach at one in the morning."

"True." He kissed her temple and squeezed her even closer to him. "Do you do this often? The beach at night?"

"Sometimes. If I can't sleep. It can be a bit dangerous alone."

"Please don't do this alone," he quickly interrupted, gripping her tighter. His gaze turned hard, his voice strained. "Promise me, Aria. If you want to go to the beach in the middle of the night, call me first."

"I thought we were going our separate ways after this weekend…" She didn't know why she mentioned that, because honestly, she didn't want the reminder. She didn't want to hear his rejection.

He didn't say anything for a few seconds, then he let out a heavy sigh. "We are, but...just call me."

She didn't respond. Arms linked, they arrived at the beach a few minutes later and headed down onto the sand. The Santa Monica pier was to their right, but far enough down that the lights barely reached them. It was gorgeous though, and one of her favorite parts of this walk. Bright red, gold, and green lights twinkled across the wooden pier, the large Ferris wheel standing tall and casting a gorgeous shimmer over the water. It was iconic and mesmerizing, and one of the reasons why she never wanted to leave Hollywood.

Aria slipped off her sandals, and Ben carried them plus his own shoes. The sand looked black beneath her toes, the water stretching out in front of them like a mirror reflecting the stars above.

"It's really beautiful," Ben murmured as they reached the water's edge.

Beautiful barely even did it justice. The water was like glass, cast with the lights from the pier. She could stare at it for hours.

She shivered against the chill brought on by the wind over the water despite the chunky sweater she wore.

He rubbed her shoulders but looked just as cold. "I wish I had a jacket to give you. Maybe we should head back?"

She shook her head. "The walk will warm us up. Plus, you haven't seen the best part yet."

"I think I have."

When she looked at him to see what he meant, he was staring right at her with a dreamy smile on his face that made her core heat and need pulsed through her entire body. "Charmer," she teased.

"Prince Charming?" He laced his fingers with her as they walked toward the pier on the sand.

She laughed. "I definitely did not say that."

"That's what I heard." He shrugged. "And, I agree."

Aria rolled her eyes. "I swear, I have no idea why I like you."

"But you do like me, so joke's on you."

"MOVE!" A kid came barreling past them, almost knocking her over, as they got closer to the pier. "PIKACHU!"

"What the fuck?" Ben grabbed her and pulled her out of the way of several kids now running past them.

Aria just laughed. "This is the best part I was telling you about. Come on, let's get a good seat."

"Are they playing Pokémon Go?" he asked. "Not that I'd know what that is."

Aria laughed at his embarrassed tone. "Suuuure you don't."

They walked up the beach away from the water and sat down in the sand. Kids were milling around the beach under the pier and nearby, their phones in the air. They'd randomly shout out the name of a Pokémon, and other kids would rush over with their phones held high. It was exciting and fun, and absolutely ridiculous.

"This is what you like to do? Watch kids play a game on their phones?" Ben asked, his elbows on his knees.

Aria wrapped one arm around his and leaned her head against his shoulder. "Yep."

"It does look like they're having fun," he admitted. "It's certainly fun to watch. They're bumping into each other."

"Sometimes I need to remember what it's like to be so unencumbered. So free. Just innocent kids playing a silly game, and enjoying life in the moment," she explained, curling tighter into him. God, he felt so good. Just pressed against his body, his thick arms and the warmth radiating off him. She'd never been so affectionate in her life, but with Ben, she never wanted to stop touching him. "Can you even remember a time in your life where you were so free, you'd play games on a beach in the middle of the night?"

"Never," Ben admitted.

She looked up at him, her chin on his arm and a heaviness weighing on her heart. There was so much intimacy in his reply, and she wanted to take everything he was offering her and ask for more. "Never?"

His face grew cloudy, troubled. "I started working when I was a teenager. My mother didn't stick around long enough to see me take my first step. My father raised me, and he was a great man—truly wonderful—but he was tough. He worked in the industry and had me working alongside him by the time I was thirteen. I've been working ever since."

"You never got to be a kid." Aria's heart ached for him, for the loss of his innocent childhood years, and a mother's love.

He shook his head. "Waste of time, according to my pops."

"My parents would spoil you," Aria said after a few quiet moments. "They'd love all over you. I'm the oldest of three girls, and my parents are still as in love as they ever were."

"I think I saw your mother on set...was that her?"

Aria nodded. "She's my manager, so she's with me on most projects. The rest of the time, she's taking care of my father. He has multiple sclerosis, and it's pretty advanced."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Ben leaned down and moved to kiss her cheek.

Turning her face, she captured his lips with hers instead. Soft, sensual, sweet...their kiss was affection, not lust. He pulled her down onto the sand until he was stretched out next to her, his top half leaning over her as they kissed.

She ran her fingers through his dark brown hair, parting her lips as his tongue explored her mouth. They were far enough from the pier to be alone, and the lack of lights left them in near darkness. She kissed him with abandon, putting her whole heart into it.

And it hurt. It hurt so fucking much.

Because in less than twenty-four hours, it would be over.

He'd be gone.