[COMPLETE]
When Hanna Haddad embarks on what's supposed to be another uneventful summer as a lifeguard on Cape Cod, a trip to the past comes as an unnerving surprise. The discovery of her estranged mother's journal opens up the world of tragedy and...
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"What's your biggest fear?" I asked.
"Deep question, don't you think?" Jesse answered, turning his head towards me. Only inches separated our bodies as we laid out in an empty field, on a small sheet Jesse had found in his trunk.
I shrugged. "I ask this to everyone. And everyone always has a different answer."
Crickets answered me for the next minute and not the metaphorical kind. I was close to retracting my question, but Jesse decided not to leave me hanging.
"I'm afraid of losing the person I love. Not physically, like my father did—twice. But to watch a woman slip through my fingertips and find her comfort and solace in someone else's arms, while I sit and watch, helpless..." His voice grew quieter, almost inaudible. "To end up alone, by my own fault."
Another new answer to that question, and it left me stunned. For being so detailed, his reply didn't come off meticulously rehearsed in the slightest. I didn't want to question him further, but I couldn't anyway.
He inched closer and cupped my face with his hand, fingers cool against my warm skin. He propped himself up on his elbow, leaning down until his mouth met mine. The kiss was slow and chaste at first, delicate lips against delicate lips, until we both sat up.
Desire fogged our brains as we made out like there was no tomorrow. His lips were on my neck and then my mouth again, before finding another spot that made my fingers dig deeper into his back and want to beg for more. When we parted, Jesse didn't look at me, his gaze lost somewhere between the night sky and the endless green grass. His lips curled downwards, and his shoulders sagged, like someone had placed weights of equal size on each of them.
My heart sank as I thought of what I'd done wrong. I wasn't that bad of a kisser, or at least I hoped.
"Jesse, are you okay?" I asked softly, placing my hand on his shoulder. He turned around, blinking a few times, and nodded. The look on his face didn't get rid of the nagging feeling in the pit my stomach.
"Yeah, I'm fine." He held out a hand for me and pulled us both up. Gripping my hips, he brought me closer to him and tilted his head down to make up for the height difference. "This night has been perfect."
I stayed quiet and leaned my head against his chest, my arms curled around him. I didn't realize I was tired until my eyelids started drooping, and I almost nodded off standing up.
"Didn't know I made such a good bed," he joked. I laughed at myself, still refusing to pull my head off his comfortable chest. He surprised me by placing one hand on the backs of my knees and the other on my upper back, hoisting me up with ease.
"Oh my gosh, what are you doing?" My mouth fell open as he carried me down the grass back to his car parked on the side of the road.
"You're actually pretty easy to carry," he mused, shifting me slightly in his arms. "I guess I'm practicing for my epic lifeguard save that's definitely not going to happen."
