Harper pours another bucket of sand on top of Cole. You can only see his head now, and he’s grinning from ear to ear, seemingly loving it as much as Harper, if not more—if that’s even possible.
Her giggle seems to travel in the sea breeze. “You’re covered now, mister sand man.”
“I am. You’re right. How do I go to the bathroom?” he asks in mock horror.
She bends down toward his ear. “Cole, do you need to pee?”
Cole looks at me, as though I know whether he needs to pee or not. “No, I’m good.”
“Okay, cos big boys hold their pee.”
Cole nods at her in agreement.
“Lucas, can you save some of those shells for me?” Harper asks. “I like the pretty ones that shine.”
Lucas holds a shell up to show Harper. “Like this one?”
“Yep.”
“Okay, I’ll pop it in the pink bucket.”
“You know what I need?” We turn our heads toward Cole.
“Do you need to pee?” Harper asks with a raised eyebrow.
“No, I need an ice cream.”
Harper’s eyebrows shoot up, and she glances toward me in question.
“I got them.” Lucas stands and brushes the sand from his legs. “Are you coming to choose, Harper?”
“Can I, Mommy?” Her blue eyes meet mine, and not for the first time today, I consider how much my little girl is like me. And not like him.
“Sure.” I smile tightly like I always do when thoughts of him invade me.
Lucas takes Harper’s hand, and they walk toward the ice cream store.
“Beauty, can you help me out of here?” Cole tilts his head toward the sand, making me chuckle that his head is poking out of the top.
I lean over Cole and breeze my lips over his in a sly movement that doesn’t quite equate to a kiss. “I think I like you restrained.”
“Beauty, the only restraining going on will be when you’re tied to my bed later.” He moves his face forward, taking my lips in his. He pushes his tongue into my mouth, and I moan at the sensation of his piercing flicking inside.
“Fuck, beauty, I’m so damn hard, my cock could drill through the sand.”
I pull back laughing. “Now that would be funny!”
“Yeah?” He smirks. Then, he rests his head down before making me jump when he forces his body up from the sand with an almighty roar and lunges for me. Throwing me over his sand-covered shoulder, he slaps my ass cheek and runs toward the water, throwing us both into the waves.
He lowers me down his body, and I wrap my hands around his neck.
“I love you, beauty.” His green eyes sparkle with love and admiration.
“I love you too.”
His lips meet mine. Every grain of sand is washed away, along with every doubt in my mind that the three of us were never meant to be.
