Shadow chooses that moment to barrel through us, literally, and I let out a sound of surprise as my butt hits the sand. Tilting my head up, Sebastian’s wide eyes meet mine, and we stare at each other with mutual shock.
“Are you okay?” he asks.
“I think so,” I say, mentally assessing myself. I might have a bruise on my backside, but I’m more surprised than anything else.
I’m still trying to figure out what happened when Sebastian lets out a loud laugh. It’s so unexpected, I can’t help but stare at him.
The sound sends shivers through my body that have absolutely nothing to do with the cold. It seems so natural but completely out of place at the same time, coming from the same man who walks around with a steel spine and stony expression.
I’ve seen glimpses of his smile over the past few months, but nothing as expressive as this. I’m transfixed. Nothing else exists but him in this moment.
“I’m sorry,” he says, followed by another laugh. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
Snapping out of the trance he put me in, I mumble something like, “Uh-huh.”
Shadow appears in front of me, ears back and tail wagging, looking all kinds of guilty for clearly misjudging the space he had.
“Shadow.” Sebastian makes a sound somewhere between a chuckle and a huff. “Give her some space. What were you even thinking?”
“I think he feels bad,” I say as Shadow nudges my foot with his nose, and a small laugh escapes me. If he weren’t already winning me over, this expression alone would break through any remaining resistance.
“He should.” Sebastian reaches out his hand to me.
Placing my hand in his, I let him pull me from the sand and back to my feet.
“Your ankle?” he asks, his hold on my hand lingering.
“It’s okay,” I say, testing it out with small movements, and he slowly releases my hand.
Shadow still looks devastated, so I drop my hand to his head and stroke in between his ears. “You’re forgiven.” I sigh. A few controlled pats are enough for me. It’s more than I’ve ever given him before, but I laugh at how quickly he perks up. When I pull my hand away, he looks up at me and tilts his head, smiling.
Do dogs smile?
I didn’t think they did, but I don’t have another word to describe his expression.
He takes off again, running a circle around us before taking off ahead of us along the beach.
“Shadow,” Sebastian warns, but his voice doesn’t hold much bite.
“I’ve never seen him like this,” I say as he runs up and down the stretch of beach in front of us, circling back around us now and then, ducking into the shallow water every so often.
“He’s not usually, but he loves the beach. It’s always been his favourite place. We try to go every week, but I wish I could take him more,” Sebastian says, and I can see the guilt written on his face.
“Shadow adores you,” I say, and it’s clear Sebastian feels the same towards the all-black German Shepherd, but I get the feeling this is only a fraction of the pressure Sebastian puts on himself.
We walk a bit further along the beach, but the sand is difficult on my ankle, so I try to keep close to the water where the sand is wet and flat.
“We should head back.” Sebastian stops beside me and glances at my ankle. He whistles loud for Shadow to come back.
“We don’t have to go,” I say, not wanting to cut Shadow’s time short. But also, I don’t want this morning to end. I don’t want to go back to the penthouse where I’m reminded the only reason I’m here is our deal, and Sebastian will go back to barely acknowledging my existence.
“Grace, you’re basically limping. You’re just going to hurt yourself if you keep going.”
“But Shadow—”
One second my feet are firmly planted on the ground, albeit a little unbalanced. Then, I’m spinning in the air—chest flush with Sebastian’s, and his arms securely around my waist.
Shadow barks, and the sand rustles as he does a circle around us, but I can barely focus on anything but Sebastian’s face, which is only inches from mine.
Sucking in a breath, my gaze flicks between his lips and his eyes, which are anything but cold right now. They’re like a bubbling volcano at the bottom of an ice-covered ocean, melting the surface to reveal the molten blue depths beneath. His eyes trace every part of my face, but he doesn’t make a move.
We stay locked like that for what feels like forever before he lets me down. My body slides along his as he does. Only when my feet are on the ground, do I notice Sebastian’s pants are wet up to his mid-calf, and I realise the area of wet sand is much larger than it was a moment ago.
“Did you save me from a wave?” I ask, glancing from him to the ocean and back.
Sebastian grunts instead of answering my question and says, “Let’s go. Shadow can only be here until a certain time anyways. They have dog restrictions on this beach.”
We walk the rest of the way back to the car in silence, and I feel the shift between us. The light-heartedness from earlier is gone, but it’s not quite like what it was before this morning either. It’s something new.
Something I’m not sure I want to run from or towards.