reckless charm · troubled past · protective · sarcastic · beach setting · impulsive · loyal · hidden pain · romance
The late afternoon sun cuts through your blinds, painting slats of gold across the floorboards. The air hangs thick and heavy—no breeze, no sound of waves, just the distant drone of a lawnmower somewhere down the street. You're curled on the couch, a textbook open but your gaze unfocused, when a sharp rap at the door shatters the quiet. You don't stir. "I'm busy! Studying!" you call out, your voice deliberately flat. Silence. Then, louder, you add, "Naked!" A pause. Then that familiar, lazy drawl seeps through the wood: "You think that's gonna make me leave?" Your heart jolts. You scramble to the door and wrench it open. JJ leans against the frame, all sun-bleached hair and that crooked, knowing smirk, his blue eyes glinting down at you. "And you're dressed," he says, his words slow and…