Ryan shook his head, chuckling as he walked up to them. "Alright, alright. I can admit when I''ve been beaten." He offered Ethan a fist bump. "You''re a monster, man."

    Ethan bumped his fist in return. "Appreciate it."

    Kyle was still sprawled in the sand. "Damn... should''ve stretched more."

    Vanessa grinned, planting her hands on her hips. "Better luck next time, boys."

    Ryan laughed. "Yeah, yeah. We''ll get you next time."

    With the game settled, the four of them made their way back toward the shaded area near the palm trees.

    Ethan grabbed a water bottle from the cooler Vanessa had brought, twisting it open and taking a long sip.

    Vanessa sat down next to him, stretching her legs out. "Alright, I need to know — where the hell did you learn to move like that?"

    Ethan glanced at her. "Training."

    She raised an eyebrow. "Just training?"

    He smirked. "A lot of training."

    She shook her head, exhaling. "I was expecting you to be good, but not pro-athlete level."

    Ethan leaned back on his palms, gazing at the ocean. "Guess I don''t like losing."

    Vanessa studied him for a moment before chuckling. "Yeah, I noticed."

    A comfortable silence stretched between them, the sound of waves filling the space.

    In the distance, other beachgoers were laughing, splashing in the water, or lounging under umbrellas. The air was warm, the salty breeze refreshing.

    Vanessa nudged him with her knee. "You having fun yet?"

    Ethan glanced at her, then at the volleyball court they had just dominated. He smirked.

    "Yeah. I think I am."

    The ocean breeze rolled in, bringing with it the scent of salt and sunscreen as Vanessa rummaged through her bag.

    Ethan watched her from the corner of his eye, still cooling off from the intense beach volleyball match.

    The heat of the midday sun was strong, but he barely felt it compared to the warmth lingering in his muscles after the game.

    "Turn around," Ethan said, his voice low and even.

    Vanessa hesitated for a split second before complying.

    She shifted, giving him her back, and tried to ignore the way her pulse picked up when she felt his hands press against her shoulders.

    His touch was firm but careful as he worked the sunscreen over her back, tracing down her spine, his fingers gliding over her toned muscles.

    The warmth of his palms against her bare skin sent a shiver through her — not because of the temperature, but because of something else entirely.

    Her thoughts were going haywire and she couldn''t blame herself, this would genuinely be the reaction of every woman when a hunk of a man was applying sunscreen on them.

    The moment stretched between them, the only sounds being the distant laughter of beachgoers and the rhythmic crashing of the waves.

    Ethan continued working, moving lower down to her waist, his thumbs brushing the sides of her ribs before stopping just above the curve of her hips.

    "There. All done." His voice was the same as before — calm, matter-of-fact.

    Vanessa swallowed, willing herself to keep her cool before finally turning back around.

    She tried to act normal, crossing her arms and clearing her throat. "Thanks. Appreciate it."

    Ethan simply nodded, wiping his hands off on a towel before tossing the sunscreen back into her bag.

    Vanessa, however, felt anything but normal.

    She wasn''t even sure why she was so flustered. It was just sunscreen. But the way Ethan had handled it — so effortlessly, so seriously — it made her feel...

    She shook her head, pushing those thoughts aside.

    She wasn''t the type to get flustered over dumb things like this.

    Nope.

    Absolutely not.

    "Alright," she said, stretching her arms as if nothing had happened. "Let''s hit the water."

    Ethan grunted slightly. "Trying to wash off all that sunscreen already?"

    Vanessa shot him a look. "Shut up and come on."

    With that, she grabbed his wrist and pulled him toward the shoreline.

    The cool water rushed over their feet as they stepped into the waves, and just like that, the tension from earlier melted away into the vast ocean breeze.