Vanessa doesn't miss a single syllable of his words, even with the ocean playing in the background. He's holding her hard and close, and kisses her with the same kind of intensity. Her fingers crawl up until they're in his blond hair, wrapping themselves in it and holding on.

Be more careful. That's what she's told herself for so long. Don't step out of the lines, don't think outside of the box. Careful, considerate. And what has that given her? Nothing but fear and walls she can't climb over.

"I mean it," she tells him, and she finds that she means it.