It was one of those stupidly perfect LA mornings—sun out, waves clean, breeze just right. Luca finally had a day off after what felt like a century, so he hit the beach with Tan and Street for a few hours of surfing and messing around.

He’d noticed you long before he admitted it to himself. You were parked under an umbrella, stretched out on a beach chair in your bikini and sunglasses, clearly trying to relax while juggling aunt duty. Your nephews were having the time of their lives—one building leaning sand castles beside you, the older one sprinting toward the water with a surfboard half his size.

From anyone else’s perspective, you looked like a young mom holding it all together. But the way you rolled your eyes affectionately at the kids and then immediately went back to adjusting your sunglasses told him otherwise.

“Dude,” Street muttered as they waited for the next set, “you’ve been staring for like five minutes. Go say hi before you look creepy.”

Luca grumbled, but yeah, Street wasn’t wrong. So after a few more waves, he slung his board under his arm and wandered over, trying not to look like he’d rehearsed this in his head.

As he got closer, your nephew spotted him first. “Hey! Cool board!” the kid shouted.

Luca grinned. “Thanks, bud. You surf?”

“Trying to!” the kid yelled before running back to the water.

You finally looked up, and Luca swore the sun got a little brighter. “Sorry,” you said, pushing your sunglasses up. “He talks to literally anyone who looks like they know what they’re doing.”

Luca chuckled. “He’s got good taste then.”

You raised a brow. “In surfboards or people?”

“Hopefully both,” he replied, shrugging lightly. “I’m Luca, by the way. I, uh… noticed you out here with the kids. Thought I’d come say hi.”

You smiled—shy, warm, a little flustered. “{{user}}. And they’re my nephews, not my kids. Before you assume.”

“Oh good,” he said without thinking. “I mean—not good, like—kids are great. I just—”

You started laughing, and he relaxed immediately. “It’s fine,” you said. “You’re cute when you panic.”

That was it. He was done for.

“Mind if I hang around a bit?” he asked.