Page 151 of Collide

SPLASH.

I shriek, freezing as icy water drenches all three of us.

Alex curses loudly. Broderick lets out a sharp, shocked inhale. He looks like he’s about to throw fists.

I turn slowly, dripping wet, only to find Riley standing ten feet away, grinning like an absolute devil.

With a garden hose.

“I had to do it,” she says, shrugging innocently, adjusting the hose like she’s holding a firearm. “You guys were getting a little too heated.”

Alex drags a hand over his soaked hair, glaring. “Are you insane?”

Broderick just stands there, rubbing his eyes, completely drenched and visibly unimpressed.

I wipe water from my face, stunned.

Riley grins wider. “That was gettingpainfulto watch. You should be thanking me.”

I sputter. “You hosed us down?!”

She doesn’t even flinch.

“Well, Ithoughtabout dumping a bucket over your heads, but this was more efficient.”

Alex lets out a disbelieving laugh. “You aresolucky you’re her best friend.”

Broderick exhales hard, muttering something under his breath as he runs a hand through his now-wet hair.

Riley tilts her head. “Oh,trustme. You guys needed that. Plus, you’re welcome for the free wet T-shirt contest. Very entertaining.”

Alex looks like he’s actively debating his life choices. Broderick looks like he wants to fire her into the sun.

And me?

I burst out giggling.

Because honestly? This is exactly what they deserve.

The pool party winds down,the sun dipping lower in the sky, casting a golden glow over the private beach. Most of the guests have either gone to their rooms to rest before the evening or are drunkenly wandering the estate, basking in the lingering afterglow of a day spent under the sun.

Alex leaves earlier for a birthday dinner with his friends—something I’m invited to, but as co-host of the weekend, it doesn’t feel right to leave.

Or at least, that’s what I tell myself.

Really, I just want a quiet moment with my thoughts.

I sit alone at the edge of the private beach, my toes buried in the cool sand as the waves lap rhythmically against the shore. I’ve done this so many times before at home. The air is thick with salt and warmth, the sound of the ocean soothing, but my mind is anything but quiet.

Then, there’s a soft crunch of footsteps in the sand behind me.

I don’t have to turn to know who it is.

Broderick.

He settles next to me, close enough that I feel the heat radiating from his body, even as the cool breeze from the ocean brushes my skin.

“Hey, co-host,” he murmurs, his voice low, familiar, with that hint of teasing that always makes my heart flutter in ways I can’t explain.