Scarlett's pulse hammered in her chest as the firelight flickered across the sand. The salty breeze tangled in her hair, but all she could notice was him—Jackson—leaning against the railing, effortlessly leaning back with that damn smirk she had memorized. Her stomach twisted. He did not just make her heart race; he made her ache in a way she could never admit.
"you are staring," Olivia whispered, elbowing her sharply. "I see you. Big crush, huh?"
Scarlett rolled her eyes, forcing a laugh. "i am not staring."
Olivia grinned, eyes gleaming. "I dare you. Kiss him. Right now. Right here."
Her throat went dry. Her chest felt tight. "I… I cannot," she murmured.
"You can," Olivia pressed. "Or everyone will see you chicken out."
Ethan snorted. "Come on, Scarlett. You are trembling—don't tell me it is fear."
Scarlett's legs moved before her brain caught up. Step by step, she closed the gap, the heat rising in her body. Every inch closer, her pulse raced. Every brush of air from his presence made her shiver.
Jackson's green eyes found hers, curious, amused… but there was an intensity there she had not seen before. Something dangerous.
"what is this about a dare?" His voice was low, teasing—but it made her knees weak.
"it is… nothing," she whispered, breath catching.
The world narrowed. Her chest rose and fell too fast, her fingers trembling. She could feel the warmth of his body, smell the faint scent of his cologne mingling with the sea air.
And then she kissed him.
It was reckless, desperate, electric. His lips were soft but firm, and the shock of their first contact made her shiver from head to toe. Jackson froze, green eyes wide, jaw tight. Scarlett's heart raced. Desire is tangled with fear, making it impossible to think straight.
For a heartbeat, the world disappeared—just firelight, sand, and him.
Then Olivia's laugh shattered it all. "Wow… that was explosive."
Scarlett jumped back, cheeks burning. Her heart threatened to burst. Jackson's hand hovered near hers, fingers twitching, yet neither moved. His eyes held a storm she could not read, a hunger she had never dared imagine.
The tension hung between them, electric and dangerous. Scarlett realized, with a thrill and a jolt of panic, that this was only the beginning…
And at that moment, she knew: nothing would ever be the same again.
Scarlett could not concentrate the next day. Every glance, every word, every memory of Jackson's lips pressed to hers replayed in her mind like a wildfire she could not control. In class, she doodled absentmindedly, her pen tracing patterns that somehow always curved into his face, the curl of his lips, the sharp line of his jaw. Her fingers itched as though touching the paper could summon the warmth she craved, the spark that had set her heart racing under the firelight.
She tried to focus on the teacher's lecture, but Jackson's presence made it impossible. He was sitting across from her, leaning casually, dark hair falling into his eyes in that infuriatingly perfect way, that smirk she knew meant he was thinking of something she should not know—and probably should not want to know. Scarlett's chest tightened, and she shifted in her seat, wishing for invisibility.
Lunch was worse. The cafeteria buzzed with chatter, the smell of fries and soda filling the air, but Scarlett could not hear any of it. Every brush of hands as students passed her table made her shiver. Every laugh from Jackson with his friends sent a thrill through her body that made her cheeks flush.