It was one of those summer nights where the heat didn’t bother anyone because it was expected, and the air hummed with the kind of unspoken tension only the Outer Banks could create. The Kooks were living their best lives at the Mid-Summers event, sipping champagne and throwing around insults about the Pogues that had become so routine, no one bothered to even respond. But us?

We weren’t at the event.

Sarah, Kiara, and I had slipped away from the crowded lawns of the country club, escaping the fake smiles and shallow conversations to find our own fun. We weren’t supposed to be on Topper’s dad’s yacht, but none of us cared. The music blasting from the speakers below deck was the only thing keeping the night from feeling too quiet, but it wasn’t loud enough to drown out the things left unsaid between us and the guys we’d just ditched.

Rafe, Topper, and Kelce were sprawled across the deck, pretending to be bored with their fancy drinks in hand, but I knew better. They were always pretending with us.

But tonight, I had no interest in pretending.

I threw my towel to the side, glancing over at Sarah and Kiara, both wearing that look on their faces—the one that said let’s cause some trouble. And I didn’t need to be asked twice. Without a word, the three of us shed the last of our clothes, leaving only our underwear and bra, our bare skin lit up by the stars and the lights from the yacht.

Topper had already turned his attention to his phone, pretending like he was too good to care.

Rafe, however, wasn’t pretending at all. He was watching me, his sharp eyes following every move I made, his lips twisted into a smiirm that was equal parts amused and dangerous and screamed trouble

“Come on, Rafe,” I called out, my voice teasing as I stepped closer to the edge of the yacht “You’re not scared of a little swim, are you?”

then Sarah, with her lack of hesitation, jumped into the water, I didnt hesitate I dove in after her.