I sat on my bed brushing my wet hair out. The sun had set and I was exhausted after a full day of walking and being in the heat.

I got up to put my hairbrush on the dresser and then stared at myself in the mirror. My cheeks were tinged pink despite the sunscreen I had put on them, but fortunately, nothing seemed to be too badly burned.

Alex and I had spent the rest of the day on the beach without any more close calls, wandering along the sand and taking dips in the water whenever it got too hot. When we eventually called it a day and headed back to the house, Emilia and John were there, both freshly showered and looking sun-kissed themselves. They had spent their own beach day together, and while I wondered if they had considered it a date, I decided to wait until Emilia and I were both home to ask her.

The shower I took to wash all the sand and salt off of myself had only served to make me sleepier, so I slipped out of my bathrobe and threw on a loose t-shirt and panties before crawling into bed. Alex and I wouldn't be heading out too earlier the next morning, but I could still use the sleep. I was just about to turn off the light when I heard a knock on my door.

"Come in," I called, not wanting to get up and put pants back on to answer it myself. I sat up under my covers, crossing my legs tightly as Alex, and not Emilia as I expected, stuck his head in my room. He was freshly showered as well, and somehow looked as hot as ever in his t-shirt and sweats.

"Hey," he said. He came and let the door swing shut behind him, but didn't latch it.

I let out a silent breath. That was good. The last thing I needed was Alex behind a closed door when I didn't have any pants on.

"Sorry," he said. "I didn't know you were about to go to sleep."

I shook my head. "Don't worry about it. What's up?"

He leaned back against the doorframe. I desperately wanted to know what he was thinking. "I just wanted to know what time you wanted to leave tomorrow morning."

I shrugged. "It's not super essential, but maybe around eight? Nine at the latest, if that works for you. It'll give us more than enough time to get back, but I don't really want to cut things close, you know?"

He nodded. "Yeah, works for me." He shifted his weight back and forth on his feet. "Hey," he said after a few moments of silence, "thanks for today. It was nice just to relax. I don't think I realized how stressful the job could be."

I chuckled, his comment serving as just another hint that there was some type of mystery behind him. Anyone who had worked in any customer service job ever would know what type of stress our jobs could hold, but that was a conversation for another day. "Yeah, I had fun, too," I told him.

Alex's eyes lingered on me for a moment longer, and a shadow of a smile crossed his face. "Right, well, I could use the rest, too. I'll see you in the morning."

Another silent breath of relief. I'm not sure what I would have done if he had decided to stay, or God forbid, come any closer. "Good night, Alex."

"Good night, Ana."

He left the room, shutting the door behind him, and I flopped back on my bed, uncrossing my legs and letting out a sigh. I hadn't even noticed until he left, but there was a warmth between my legs that had definitely not been there before Alex had entered the room. And he hadn't even done anything, just asked me a simple question.

"Get a grip, Ana," I muttered to myself, before reaching over and tugging the chain on the lamp, plunging my room into darkness.

***

I felt a strong pair of arms snake themselves around my waist, my skin tingling as I felt Alex's naked body against my own as we lay together on our sides, my back pressed to his chest. I let out shallow breaths as he peppered kisses down my neck and shoulder, his hand trailing up my side until it reached my breast. I let out a small moan as his slightly calloused hand cupped my breast, kneading it and pinching and rolling my nipple in between his fingers as I let my head fall back against him.

"I think you're enjoying this," he whispered into my ear, his breath warm against my skin.

I couldn't manage words. Another moan was all that came out.

It didn't help that I could feel how much he wanted me, his hard length pressed up against my ass as he held me close to him.

My breath hitched and my body jerked in longing as his hand left my breast and trailed back down my side. My thighs were already slick with my own wetness, and I sucked in a sharp breath as Alex deliberately avoided my center with his hand and instead went down my leg with his fingers.

"Alex," I breathed, desperate to feel his touch.

He chuckled in my ear. "You want me, don't you?"

I could only nod, and I felt his hand come back up my leg. He rested for a moment on my hip, taking the time to pull me closer against him. My eyes fluttered as I felt his dick pressing hard into my backside. Then, his fingers worked their way into my warm, wet folds, forcing a gasp from my lips. "Fuck, Alex," I breathed.

"Fuck." I sat up with a gasp, chest heaving. "Fuck," I repeated, gathering my bearings as I tried to slow my breath.

I was very much alone in my bed, but that didn't mean my damp panties were my imagination.

Shit. Oh, shit. I sat back against the headboard and closed my eyes. I hadn't had a sex dream since, well, since never. My eyes automatically glanced at the wall that separated mine and Alex's rooms. The one, not very thick, wall. Shit, I had been moaning in my dream and saying his name. Had I done that out loud, or was it all in my head?"

No, no point in worrying about that. Anyway, he should be asleep.

One thing was for certain, I wasn't going back to sleep. I threw back my covers and swung my legs out of bed, taking a deep breath as I realized my legs were shaky. Trying to ignore how turned on I was at just the fantasy of Alex touching me, I dug through my bag looking for a fresh pair of panties.

"Fuck." I squatted down and put a hand on the floor to steady myself. I wanted to know what it would feel like for his hand to wander my body and end up in between my legs. I wanted to know what he would whisper in my ear as I let myself go for him. I wanted to know what he felt like when he was hard, and hard because of me.

I let my butt fall onto the floor. It was a lot easier to admit these things to myself in the middle of the night.

I glanced out the window. I could see the sky just beginning to turn gray. Checking my phone, I saw that it was just before sunrise.

Okay, maybe it wasn't quite in the middle of the night. But still, the darkness made me feel alone, not in a bad way, just in a way that made me feel like my thoughts and actions were more private than during the day. And the way I lusted over Alex was something I definitely wanted to keep private.

At least for the time being.

I changed my panties and put on a bra, and pulled on a pair of shorts and a tank top. After making sure I had everything packed up in my bag, I made a modest attempt to remake the bed, thankful that only my panties and not the sheets under me had been damp. I really didn't want to explain that one to Emilia. And then, as silently as I could, I slipped out of my room and stole downstairs.

I took a breath of salty air as I stepped out onto the front porch. The slightest bit of pink had begun to color the sky as I sat down on the outdoor sofa, my legs curled underneath me and a cup of hot coffee in my hands.

The sunrises here were second to none. I usually wasn't up early enough to watch them, but now it was the perfect thing to help me calm down after a less than ideal night's sleep.

"Hey, mind if I join?"

Or maybe not.

I glanced up at Alex, my grip on my coffee mug tightening ever so slightly. "Not at all."

I couldn't figure out if I had just lied to him or not.

"Couldn't sleep?" He sat down on the other end of the sofa, thankfully not close enough for us to accidentally touch.

I took a moment before answering, trying to determine if there was anything in his voice that hinted at him having heard whatever noises I had been making in my sleep. But he really did just seem curious. I shrugged. "Just woke up early," I told him. "Figured no point in going back to sleep when there's a sunrise to watch. You?"

The look he gave me was almost sheepish. "I might have planned this."

"You planned to get up at five in the morning to watch the sunrise?" I asked doubtfully. "Why? I mean, you live in a house that faces the beach. Don't you see this all the time?"

"Well, when you put it like that," he grumbled. "But hey, you would be surprised with how many tourists come out to the beach to see the sunrise. It kinda ruins the mood."

"So you admit, you have been up to see the sunrise from your house."

"What? Are you telling me that in the however many years you've lived on Delphine, you've never gotten up to watch the sunrise on the beach?"

Touché, I guess. "I have," I admitted. "So you just wanted to watch it from here? That's why you planned to get up ridiculously early?"

"I figured it would be peaceful. I could use peaceful."

Another statement that seemed to have a lot of weight behind it. I decided not to pry. We sat in silence, which in some ways was nice, but the pause in our banter meant that the awkwardness of sitting next to a man I had just had a sex dream about washed over me once again. Not that he knew what I was thinking, but still.

I closed my eyes as the sun came up over the horizon and bathed the landscape in orange, pink, and gold light. I couldn't help but steal a glance over at Alex as I opened my eyes back up, and my heart fluttered in my chest to see him also sitting with his eyes closed, his lips parted slightly. The sharp angles of sunlight highlighted his cheekbones and jaw, casting shadows in all the right places.

I jerked my head away to stare back out at the ocean as his eyes opened, and if he had noticed my staring, he didn't say anything. The silence continued between us as the sun rose, the light turning to a bright yellow, the ocean becoming a brilliant blue as the morning passed on.

"I should probably go finish packing up my stuff," he finally said.

I glanced at my phone. It was almost seven. I nodded. "We should have time for breakfast, though," I offered.

He chuckled. "I mean, your friend might kill me if I left without saying goodbye," he pointed out. He put his hand on the doorknob to go back inside but stopped before opening the door. "Did her boyfriend go home?" he asked.

I gaped at him and then laughed. "If you want to stay breathing, don't call John Emilia's boyfriend in front of her," I warned him.

His brow furrowed. "Why?"

"Well, for one, because he's not," I pointed out. Then I shrugged. "She's very guarded," I said. "If it turns into anything with him, it'll be at her own pace. And she's not big on people making assumptions about her."

"Fair enough. Did her boy space friend go home last night?"

I rolled my eyes but couldn't be mad. "No idea."

As it turns out, John did not go home, although I had no doubt in my mind that Emilia had put him in one of the many guest rooms. The four of us had breakfast, and much to my own delight, John apparently was an artist in the kitchen as much as he was in his studio. I had never had banana pancakes that were so delicious.

I would have to talk to Emilia about how long she was planning on keeping him around. I could get used to breakfast like this.

Emilia helped me carry my stuff out to my car, and after saying goodbye to John, Alex got in the passenger's side and Emilia and I stood together in the driveway.

"Drive safe," she told me, pulling me into a hug.

I grinned and wrapped my arms around her in return. "You know I'll see you in like two days."

"It feels like longer."

I had to agree. I was used to her being gone for a few days at a time, and while I liked my alone time, after a few hours I ended up missing her.

I pressed a quick kiss to her cheek before pulling away. "You'll live."

She sighed. "I mean, easy for you to say. Look at who you have in your car right now."

I suppressed a short of laughter and glanced up at the house. "Oh, and you don't have perfectly good entertainment waiting for you in there? I mean you have the house to yourself, now."

What I had told Alex was true. Emilia would move with John at her own pace. But that didn't mean I didn't get to tease her about it. I was the only one who could.

"Oh, shut up."

I got a lot of delight out of the pink tinge that appeared on her face.

"Hey, just don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"That's unhelpful," Emilia said, shaking her head. "There's nothing you wouldn't do."

I couldn't help but glance at my car where Alex sat waiting. "I'm not so sure about that," I murmured.

Emilia just scoffed. "When I get home, we will have a talk about your stupid no coworkers rule," she said, thankfully with enough sense to keep her voice down so Alex wouldn't be able to hear her. "Especially given that you've already broken the rule with him."

"Bye, Emilia," I cut her off, taking a few steps back toward my car.

She just looked and me, shaking her head and laughing. "Drive safe!" she repeated, calling after me.

Grinning and shaking my head, I got behind the wheel of my car. Alex gave me a curious look but didn't ask. "Alright," I told him. "We both have work tonight. So let's get going."