Chapter 1023:

“Honestly? Before you came into my life, I was too exhausted to even think about anything like that.” He pulled her close with a low sigh. “But after meeting you… I couldn’t stop thinking about you. And now you’re really here.”

There was something raw and sincere in his eyes, as if the walls he normally kept up had cracked open just for her.

Rylie eyed the condom in her hand, then brought it to Brad’s lips with a firm, unspoken challenge. “Open it,” she told him.

He did, tearing it carefully without looking away from her. And before long, the world narrowed to warm skin, whispered breath, and the quiet, unmistakable closeness that existed only between the two of them.

The afternoon light felt cozy on her skin, but the breeze rolling in from the ocean added a crisp, pleasant chill.

Brad had sworn he would catch her a fish, and he was serious. After they settled in, he set up a small recliner for her, helped her sit, and handed her a bottle of water and a quick snack.

Whа𝘵 𝘦v𝖾𝗿y𝘰n𝖾 іѕ 𝗿е𝘢𝘥iո𝘨 𝗼𝘯 𝗀аln𝗈𝘷𝗲𝗅𝗌.c𝗈𝘮

Rylie watched him wander around collecting branches, carving away like he knew exactly what he was doing. When a makeshift three-pronged spear appeared, she burst out laughing. “Wait, you’re actually planning to use that?”

“Yep,” Brad replied, completely confident, without a hint of doubt.

For a second, his normally stern face softened, and he looked almost boyishly excited.

At first, Rylie figured he was just fooling around. But then he waded out, took aim with that stick, and, shockingly, actually caught a fish.

Dripping wet and grinning from ear to ear, he held up the still-squirming fish. “Rylie! Check it out!”

She couldn’t help it. He was ridiculously adorable.

And when she tasted the fresh-caught fish he cooked, her respect for him only climbed higher. Adorable and talented was a dangerous combo.

With no one else around and the whole island feeling like their private getaway, she drifted into the woods, showing Brad different plants like she was his personal tour guide.

At one point, she scrambled up a tree with surprising ease, plucked some fruits, and tossed them down to him while he stared like she’d just performed a magic trick.

“You climb like a monkey,” he said, wide-eyed. “How do you even move that fast?”

“It’s all technique and body weight,” she explained, offering him a handful of fruits. “Too much bulk makes climbing harder.”

Brad lifted one of them. “This one looks good.”

“Pretty, right? Don’t trust it,” she warned, holding the shiny red berry delicately. “This one, Velvetbane, can mess with your nerves. Eating too much can cause hallucinations, numbness in the hands and feet, and, in severe cases, even lead to a coma.”

Brad instantly dropped the one in his hand like it had burned him.

She chuckled and picked up a different fruit, small, rough, and brown. “This plain-looking Vitalidew is the good one.” She cracked it open effortlessly, revealing golden flesh. “Sweet, sour, hydrating. Basically nature’s energy food.”

Holding it near his mouth, she asked with a smirk, “Want a taste?”

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