Chapter 20
Jonas’ voice came through Sierra’s phone speaker, crackling with that slightly fuzzy quality.
“Oh, one thing. The resort’s pretty packed right now, and the client booked everything last minute. The only room they had left has a king bed. Is that going to work for the two of you?”
Sierra glanced over at Lauren, who immediately gave her the most obvious wink in human history and mouthed “please” with exaggerated lip movements that made Sierra want to laugh out loud.
“We can share.” She tried to keep her voice professional while Lauren made ridiculous faces behind the phone. “No problem at all.”
“Perfect. See you both bright and early Monday morning.”
Lauren was a wreck getting through security. They kept pulling out their boarding pass as if it might change between checkpoints, and by the time they reached the gate their leg was bouncing so hard Sierra half-expected the chair to rattle apart.
Sierra buckled herself into the seat. “Alright, be honest. This is your first flight, isn’t it?”
Lauren latched onto her hand as if it was the only solid thing on the plane. “I just don’t trust metal tubes shooting through the sky faster than cars are even allowed to go.”
Sierra tried not to laugh, gave their fingers a squeeze, and shook her head. “You trust GPS to guide us through the middle of nowhere, but you don’t trust actual trained pilots?”
Lauren shot her a look that was half panic, half indignation. “At least GPS doesn’t drop you from thirty thousand feet if it has a bad day.”
“Fair point. But GPS also doesn’t come with tiny bags of pretzels and ginger ale. Plus, we can’t drive to Hawaii.”
“That’s not a terrible argument.”
Sierra laced their fingers together more tightly. “Hey. You’re safe, and when we land, we’re gonna be in actual paradise.”
Lauren took a few shaky breaths, but by the time they were airborne and cruising, Sierra caught them staring out the window like they were watching pure magic happen.
The endless blue sky reflected in their eyes, and their entire face had this expression of wonder that made Sierra’s chest feel warm and tight.
“You’re so beautiful,” Sierra said softly, not meaning to say it out loud.
Lauren turned to her with raised eyebrows. “What?”
“Nothing.” She grinned. “Just... I love your face.”
Lauren’s smile could have powered the entire airplane.
The moment they stepped off the plane, warm island air hit them like a hug, and someone immediately draped flower leis around their necks. The petals were soft against Sierra’s skin and smelled like heaven.
“Well, looks like we’re getting lei’d right off the plane.” Lauren tried to keep a straight face.
Sierra groaned so hard it hurt. “Oh, my God. I bet they’ve literally never heard that joke before.”
The resort was like stepping into a tropical fairy tale.
Palm trees swayed everywhere, ferns the size of small trees created natural canopies, and flowering vines twisted around every surface.
Their room had an incredible panoramic view of the beach, a full kitchen that was way nicer than Sierra’s actual apartment, a balcony that overlooked the ocean, and. ..
“One bed,” Sierra announced, grinning as if she’d won the lottery.
“What a complete tragedy.” Lauren deadpanned, then launched onto the mattress like a kid in a hotel for the first time.
Sierra didn’t hesitate to dive right after them. They bounced on the plush mattress, laughing and being ridiculous until Lauren grabbed Sierra’s shoulders.
“Wait. Hold up. We’re in Hawaii.” Lauren’s eyes went wide as if they were just now processing it.
“We’re in Hawaii!” Sierra shrieked.
They screamed and tore out of the room barefoot, not even thinking... through the resort, straight to the beach. The sand was scorching, soft, sticking between their toes. They didn’t stop running until the waves caught their ankles.
Both of them doubled over, laughing too hard to breathe.
“I can’t believe this is actually happening.” Sierra stared at the water rolling in.
Lauren pulled out their phone, snapped a shot of their feet side by side in the sand like proof it was real. Then they used their finger to draw a heart around them in the wet sand. “Now it’s real.”
They took about fifteen selfies, including one where Sierra was kissing Lauren’s cheek while Lauren grinned at the camera. Lauren posted it with the caption: Found paradise. Found everything.
The grocery store run felt surreal, like they were playing house in the most beautiful place on earth.
They grabbed tropical fruit, local snacks Sierra had never heard of, a bottle of wine, and basic supplies.
Lauren insisted on taking a picture of Sierra holding a fresh pineapple above her head like some kind of tropical trophy.
Then they made a store employee take one of them in front of the produce section, which they tagged domestic life in paradise unlocked.
Back in their room, they spread everything out on the bed and ate like they were having the world’s most exotic picnic.
Jetlag hit them both like a truck around seven PM.
They put on a random movie, but neither of them was watching.
They just curled into each other on top of the covers, legs tangled together, breathing evening out into sleep.
The alarm went off at four-thirty in the morning, which felt like actual violence.
Lauren made a noise that wasn’t quite human. “Someone needs to delete the sun.”
Sierra rolled over and buried her face in the pillow. “You first.”
They shuffled into the bathroom together, took one look at their combined bedhead situation in the mirror, and burst into laughter.
Lauren tried to brush their teeth with one hand while attempting to tame their hair with the other. “Wow. We are absolutely beach glam ready.”
Breakfast wasn’t possible, so they grabbed coffee and bagels from the lobby, packed up all their equipment, and met Jonas and the models down on the beach as the sky turned that perfect golden color.
Sierra fell into work mode, moving around the shoot with her camera as if she were dancing.
Lauren was in their element, too, touching up makeup and adjusting hair while the ocean breeze tried to undo all their work.
They moved around each other as if they’d been working together for years, occasionally brushing shoulders or stealing glances when they thought no one was looking.
By noon, they were done and exhausted but happy.
Lauren stretched their arms above their head. “Okay, new rule. We didn’t fly all this way to work and sleep. Let’s explore.”
They wandered through this incredible outdoor market, taking in all the colors and smells.
The energy was incredible. Street vendors were selling everything from hand-carved jewelry to fresh coconut water.
Lauren stopped dead in their tracks when they spotted a small sign advertising free hula lessons.
“Oh my God, Sierra. We have to do this!”
Sierra backed away. “Are you joking? Me hula? I can barely walk in a straight line. I can twerk a little, and that’s literally it.”
“That’s complete bullshit!” Lauren grabbed her hand and started dragging her toward the instructor. “Come on, it’ll be fun!”
The lesson was a beautiful disaster. Sierra tripped over her own feet multiple times. A hip-shimmy by Lauren nearly resulted in a face-plant against a tiki statue. The instructor, this sweet older woman with flowers in her hair, gave them the most polite pity claps Sierra had ever witnessed.
They thanked her way too many times and continued wandering, eventually stopping at a food stand to try poi for the first time.
“It’s very... earthy.” Lauren was trying to be diplomatic, though their face screamed otherwise.
Sierra made a face. “You mean it tastes like someone mixed sand with disappointment.”
They both tried hard not to offend the sweet lady who kept offering them more samples.
Back at the resort, they had enough time to shower off the beach sand and change into fresh clothes before the evening shoot.
Lauren touched up their makeup kit while Sierra transferred the morning’s photos onto her laptop.
As if they had always done this, they moved around the room with a gentle rhythm.
Just before the light turned golden, they returned to the beach with their things.
The second shoot went even better than the morning one. Sierra expertly captured every perfect moment as Lauren flawlessly blended bronzer on sun-kissed skin. In between setting things up, they’d share smiles, eye contact, and light touches.
By the time they wrapped, the first stars appeared in the darkening sky. They were both sun-drunk, salty, and ridiculously happy.
Back in their room, they had every intention of recreating some of the romance from their last night together. They began showering together, rinsing away the salt and sand, until Lauren yawned mid-kiss and Sierra almost dozed off.
They toweled off, changed into soft pajamas, and fell into bed, utterly spent.
Sierra’s face planted into her pillow. “Tomorrow.”
Lauren curled up against her side. “Definitely tomorrow.”
And they were both asleep before either of them could say another word.