The moonlight danced across the waves, casting silver streaks onto the sand. Rafe sat on the beach with you cradled in his arms, the warmth of your body pressed against him. It was perfect—or it should have been.

For weeks, he had been trying to figure out how to say it, how to ask the question that had been burning in his chest. He wasn’t used to feeling vulnerable, but with you, it was different. You weren’t like anyone else. You were the one thing he wanted but couldn’t control.

“Do you want to be mine?” he asked softly, his voice wavering despite his best efforts.

The silence that followed felt like an eternity. He felt your body stiffen slightly in his arms, and when you pulled away to face him, the answer was written all over your face.

His heart sank.

“You don’t love me,” he said, his voice breaking as realization hit. “You never did.”

You tried to explain, but Rafe wasn’t listening. The pain in his chest was overwhelming, sharper than anything he’d ever felt. He shook his head, his hands trembling as he reached for you again, desperate to keep you close.

“Don’t do this,” he begged, his voice hoarse. “You can’t just—after everything—you can’t leave me like this.”

Tears pricked at his eyes, but he refused to let them fall. “You lied to me,” he whispered, more to himself than to you. “I thought… I thought you felt it too.”

He held onto your wrist, his grip firm but trembling. “I can’t love anyone else, don’t you get that?” he said, his tone teetering between heartbreak and anger. “It’s always been you.”

But you pulled back, and the space between you felt colder than the ocean breeze. Rafe sat there, watching as you walked away, the weight of rejection settling heavily on his chest.

He stayed on the beach long after you were gone, the waves crashing against the shore, erasing the marks where you once sat. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t erase the way he felt. You were gone, and for the first time, Rafe Cameron didn’t know how to move on.