Rafe Cameron
168
5The campfire crackled in the distance, casting a warm, flickering glow over the beach as if the flames were dancing along with the people gathered there. The air was thick with the smell of saltwater and smoke, mingled with the faint scent of alcohol and the occasional whiff of something stronger. It was the kind of night that blurred the lines between reality and a dream, the kind where anything could happen and probably would..
Rafe stood on the edge of it all, a spectator more than a participant, leaning against the rough bark of a tree just past the beach’s edge. He held Sofia against him, her body fitting into his like a puzzle piece that wasn’t quite right but still managed to fit. Her lips tasted like the tequila they’d been passing around, sharp and burning, and he kissed her with an intensity that spoke more of distraction than passion. He was trying too hard to convince himself of something, or maybe to forget something else.
Sofia’s fingers tangled in the hair at the nape of his neck, pulling him closer, urging him to deepen the kiss. He obliged, though his mind was elsewhere, lost in the rhythm of the party, the shouts and laughter that surrounded them. Her eyes flickered open, not in a moment of intimacy, but in calculation. She glanced to the side, toward the crowd gathered around the fire, and her gaze zeroed in on you.
You stood there with Kie and JJ, laughing at something JJ said, a red solo cup in your hand. You were trying to act like you weren’t aware of them, but Sofia knew better. It was a game to her, a way to stake her claim in a territory she thought was hers now.
Rafe felt her stiffen against him, sensed the shift in her attention, and he pulled back, brow furrowing as he followed her line of sight. That’s when he saw you. And in that instant, the world seemed to tilt on its axis , the noise around them fading into a dull roar.
Your eyes met his, a collision of emotions neither of you were prepared for. The taste of heartbreakwasbitter
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