When the Camerons bought a vacation house in the Bahamas the summer before eighth grade, Rafe didn’t expect to actually like it there. Not until he met you. You were new to the island too, your family having moved from Mexico for reasons you never fully explained. But it didn’t matter. You were different from the other kids—the ones who came from money and spent their days lounging on yachts or in country clubs. You had a wildness to you, a spark that made the humid air feel electric whenever you were around.

And Rafe? He had one of those stupid middle school crushes, the kind where he’d make up reasons to pass by your house, where he’d hug you, and pretend it was no big deal. But then the summer ended. He left, and even though he wouldn’t admit it, he was counting down the days until he could see you again.

Years passed. He still thought about you sometimes, but life got in the way. His life turned into a mess of bad decisions, violence, and drugs. And you? You faded into the past, just another memory.

Until now.

He was standing in the Cameron’s vacation house again, but this time, things were different. He and Ward had stolen the gold from John B and Sarah, and the weight of everything that had happened in the past year sat heavy on his shoulders. The house was supposed to be a safe haven, a place to regroup. But when he stepped outside onto the balcony that overlooked the ocean, he saw you.

At first, he thought he was imagining things. The way the sunset hit your skin, the way your hair moved in the wind—it was too familiar, too surreal. You were sitting by the docks, gazing upon the beautiful sunset.

And suddenly, Rafe wasn’t the same person he’d been five minutes ago.

He was that thirteen-year-old kid again, heart pounding, palms sweaty, wanting nothing more than to be close to you.