Liz pressed her lips together for a moment, then looked up at him. “You saved me tonight and walked me back. Are you free tomorrow? I’d like to treat you to a meal.”


    “I’m actually flying out tomorrow morning, so I won’t be around. But I work in Stanley City now too. How about we exchange numbers? You can treat me when we’re both back.”


    Liz looked slightly surprised. “How did you know I work in Stanley City?”


    Ethan chuckled softly. “The famous divorce attorney, Liz Smith? It’s hard not to know.”


    Liz blinked. “Wait… am I really that well-known?”


    Before she could say anything else, Ethan was already pulling out his phone. “Want to exchange numbers?”


    “Sure.”


    After they swapped contacts, Ethan gave her a casual wave and turned to leave. His tall figure faded into the night until he disappeared from view.


    For the next week, Liz made sure to do every single thing she and Zac had once nned to do in the Maldives.


    On the first day, she hired a diving instructor, put on her gear, and went snorkeling. She finally saw the clownfish and rainbow coral she had always wanted to see.


    On the second day, she had lunch at the underwater restaurant she had dreamed of visiting. As she enjoyed her meal, she


    watched schools of fish and other sea creatures weave through the coral around her.


    On the third day, she joined a group of college students for a banana boat ride, bouncing across the waves as they explored nearby inds and reefs.


    On the final evening, she boarded a traditional Maldivian dhoni and sailed out into the open water. Pink dolphins chased the boat, leaping through the surf as the sun dipped low on the horizon. With the salty breeze in her hair and the sky glowing gold, it felt like thest bit of heaviness in her heart had finally lifted.


    Every day, things in this world began and ended without answers. It was as natural as the rising and setting sun, as ordinary as the changing phases of the moon. She didn’t need to cling to what was already gone.


    The day she flew home, Jane was waiting at the airport to pick her up.


    Seeing that she looked refreshed andpletely free of that dejected demeanor from before, Jane knew she had truly let go. And she couldn’t have been happier for her.


    “What do you want for dinner tonight? My treat.”


    “Anything but seafood,” Liz said.


    Janeughed and raised an eyebrow. “How about Italian? I found this cozy little ce with killer pasta and wood-fired pizza.”


    “Sounds perfect.”


    They got in the car, and Jane drove straight to the restaurant.


    Once they were seated in a warm, dimly lit booth, Liz wasted no time. She ordered a big bowl of pasta, a tbread, a couple of appetizers, and even added dessert.


    Jane raised an eyebrow and grinned. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you just got back from some kind of food desert.”


    >>


    Liz gave her a look. “Honestly? Close enough. The food in the Maldives looks amazing on Instagram, but after a couple of days, I was over it. It’s great for the experience, but if I had to live there? I’d probably starve.”


    Janeughed. “So… did anything interesting happen? Vacation fling? Hot stranger on a beach?”


    Whenever they traveled together in the past, Liz always got hit on. And every time, Jane would jump in, throw an arm around her, and tell the guy they were a couple. That usually shut things down fast.


    Liz’s smile faded slightly as a tall figure shed through her mind.


    Noticing her zoning out, Jane raised an eyebrow. “That look on your face-something happened, didn’t it?”


    Liz snapped back to reality and shook her head. “Not really. I did run into a group of drunk guys the first night. One of them tried to get handsy, and a guy stepped in and helped me out. But guess what?”


    Jane perked up. “What? You fell for him at first sight, said you owed him your life, and the two of you ended up tangled in a three -day marathon of passion?”