the sun was slipping low, melting gold across the water as you and jj sat side by side on the edge of the dock, your legs dangling above the tide. the air was soft and sticky with the last bit of daylight, the quiet hum of summer settling around you. behind you, you could still hear faint laughter from the chateau — john b., sarah, and pope tangled up in their own chaos, music spilling from the porch speakers and mixing with the sound of the waves.

but here, away from it all, it felt like you and jj had your own little corner of the world. the boards beneath you creaked when he shifted, and when you looked over, he was already watching you — that lazy grin tugging at his lips, the kind that always meant trouble.

jj’s eyes sparkled with playful mischief as he watched you wipe off the kiss he’d just planted on your lips. his mouth curved into that knowing grin — the one that said he was far too amused by your attempt to play it cool.

“oh, so we’re doing this now?” he drawled, dragging a hand across his own lips in dramatic offense, like you’d just betrayed him in the worst way possible. the way he tilted his head, giving you that mock-hurt look, only made you laugh harder.

before you could even think of a comeback, jj was already moving in — that glint of challenge lighting up his eyes. “try wiping this one away,” he murmured, his tone all teasing confidence and trouble.

and then he was on you — his lips finding your cheeks, forehead, nose, again and again, quick and warm and reckless. each kiss landed somewhere new, messy and soft and impossible to escape, until you were half-laughing, half-protesting, squirming under the chaos of it all. still, he didn’t stop — his grin pressed against your skin, his laughter caught between each kiss, like he was trying to prove a point you’d never forget.