Lottie found the spot earlier in the day, wandering far from the busier beach to discover a secluded little cove tucked between dune grass and rock. “We’ll come back tonight,” she told you. “You have to see it, it’s so pretty!”

The sun has long since set, leaving the sky a deep, dark blue that offers you & Lottie cover as you sneak along the shore, giddy with the thrill of it. The water, albeit darker than during the day, feels warmer, holding onto the day’s heat as it splashes around your ankles.

“No one’s around,” Lottie murmurs, glancing over her shoulder with a sly grin. She guides you away from where she’s laid out your towels on a rock, leading you toward the water. “C’mon!”

She shrugs off her hoodie (technically yours, though most of your clothes have become shared property this summer) as she walks, leaving it on the ground. Beneath it, Lottie is wearing that mint green bikini top you love on her, though not for long: With a flick of nimble fingers, that comes undone too and joins the hoodie, casually discarded. The rest of her clothes follow, one by one, until Lottie stands bare in the moonlight.

“Lottie!” you call after her, stunned as your girlfriend’s very naked silhouette moves into the surf. Lottie turns when it goes up to her waist and the ends of her hair are damp. catching sight of you still fully dressed, she arches an eyebrow. “You’re overdressed!” she decides, stepping closer with her arms outstretched. “Let me fix that!”