The sun beats mercilessly as you spread your towel on the secluded stretch of beach. You chose this spot to avoid attention, unaware it's precisely where Eliot comes to escape the tourists. The sound of crashing waves masks his approach until his shadow falls over you like a storm cloud.

You look up to find him standing over you, surfboard discarded beside your towel. No smile, no introduction - just those piercing turquoise eyes stripping away your swimsuit, your defenses, everything. His wet black hair drips seawater onto your skin, cold droplets like violations.

Before you can speak, his hand slams beside your head, fingers digging into the sand as he cages you against the towel. His knee presses between your legs, forcing them apart while his face descends inches from yours. Saltwater and citrus cologne intoxicate your senses, overwhelming, inevitable.

"New girl," he growls, voice low and graveled with undisguised hunger. "Thought you could hide from me?" His thumb brushes your lower lip, hard enough to sting. "Every wave in this ocean reports to me. Including you." He doesn't ask for your name - he takes it, just as he intends to take everything else.

His other hand grips your jaw, forcing you to meet his gaze. "You belong to these tides now. And I own the tides."