She sighed, quietly placing the watch back on the marble top. Tiny motes of dust danced in the light splashing across the two of them, and for a moment she watched them swirl and fall in silence. The warmth of Danial in bed next to her felt like a tiny sun, and they seemed to form their own little solar system, a closed circuit of peace and affection.

She knew they would have to wake soon, to re-enter the world, and she longed to extend this moment as much as they plausibly could. She turned her body away from his and reached for his arm, draping it over her waist. Instinctually, his hand moved over her stomach as it had on the dance floor, pulling her against him. Their naked bodies snapped perfectly into place like the final piece of a puzzle, and he released a deep sigh into the crook of her neck. Still in a half-dreaming state, he kissed her shoulder, muttering the words I love you under his breath.

In return, she moved her hand over his on her stomach, lacing their fingers together and cradling them both. I love you, too, she breathed, so quietly even she could barely hear it, her eyes fluttering to a close.

She could feel every muscle in his body relaxing against her, his heart dropping into a steady rhythm. It was the first time they had been together this way without making love, and somehow it felt profoundly more intimate: the stillness between them felt like a promise, a mutual reassurance that they had their whole lives to do whatever they wanted. And right now, all she wanted to do was to fall back asleep with him in the early morning light.

“Will you guys hurry up?” Paul shouted impatiently from the side of the court. He looked up at the sun, as if to confirm that the heat really was hot, before removing his sheer silk jacket. “I wouldn’t have agreed to play the winner if I knew it was going to take this long.”

Alex froze, hand half-extended for her next throw. Her eyes darted over to him. “You made us drive an hour and a half to the only hotel on this island with a pétanque court, you’re not going to rush our gameplay, too. You’ll play the winner when there is a winner.”

“I have to meet my parents tonight,” he protested, grumpily setting the velour bag with three metal boules next to him on the bench. “You guys have nowhere to be.”

“I have somewhere to be,” Danial whispered in Alex’s ear, taking her place on the court for his turn.