Authors POV
For the first time since going on vacation, Kimberley spent the entire day in the sun and enjoyed every moment of it. She played in the waves, laid out on the sand, hunted for seashells, and laughed her ass off when Cheryl built the sorriest looking sand castle ever. They played like children all afternoon, right down to making sand angels and wrestling in the water.
Once out of the water, Kimberley put her bra and boy shorts back on, not quite brave enough to run around stark naked. To her relief, Cheryl followed her lead, They were covered in sand and their underwear was more wet than dry, but they didn't care.
Eventually, they grew tired of frolicking in the water, and Cheryl suggested they make the SOS signal.
"I suppose we should," Kimberley said mournfully her smile slipped away, looking at the setting sun. She didn't want the day to end.
Cheryl must have noticed her reluctance, because she regarded her for a long moment, then said, "There's enough wood on the beach that we could build a fire and hang out here a few hours more."
Kimberley's smile reappeared in an instant. "That sounds like a lovely idea." Her stomach, however, ruined it by growling.
Cheryl's lips twitched with amusement. "How about I work on the SOS and building a fire, and you go and get dry clothes and something to eat and drink?"
Kimberley snapped her fingers at cheryl. "Now that sounds like a plan. I'll be right back."
"Take the flashlight," cheryl told her, and picked up a heavy piece of wood, dragging it forward into the sand.
Kimberley's remembered she had seen some bottles of wine earlier and thought it might be pleasant to enjoy one on the beach. They had sticks of beef jerky taken from the gift shop, and she could probably find some cheese in the restaurant somewhere. If they where making a fire they should have s'mores. With that in mind, kimberley went to the restaurant and raided the kitchen until she found exactly what she was looking for. With the foodstuff and a few bottles of water to round things out, along with a spare blanket that they'd left out to dry earlier, she headed back down to the beach.
While kimberley was inside, the sun had set even lower, turning the orange skies into a deep, smoky purple. On the beach, she could see that cheryl had spelled out a SOS using wood, and set up a pyramid of wood on the far end of the beach. She headed there and made it to Cheryl's side just as the fire caught.
Cheryl glanced up at her with a look of satisfaction as she got to her feet and continued to feed small pieces of wood into the burning pyramid. "You look great."
Kimberley laughed at that, glancing down at her bare, sandy legs, in aqua shoes. She was now wearing a lemon-yellow Bahamas T-shirt that was two sizes too big and went down to her thighs, and she was pretty sure that her hair was one big knot. "I didn't do anything."
"I know. But you still look great." The look cheryl gave her was appreciative. "I'm glad you're back."
Kimberley lifted the wine bottle. "I brought drinks, food, and dessert."
"I'm a lucky woman."
"And a flirt," kimberley teased back, but she couldn't help smiling. "But I think that's a forgivable offense."
They spread the blanket on the ground and set up the food, taking bites out of the jerky, crackers, and cheese and drinking straight from the wine bottle.
The sun disappeared below the horizon, and the sky grew dark. Soon, the only light glittering for miles was their small fire. It made Kimberley feel very small and alone, and she moved closer to Cheryl.
