Page 49 of No Summer Hotter than You

Not on the measly corner of the lips.

I wanted to lean into her and kiss her on the lips the way a man did to a woman he desired. I wanted her the way I had never wanted any other woman before.

“I need to tell you something later,” I said, trying to nip my desire in the bud.

“About?” she asked, pouring a bit of the salt on to her hand.

I tried not to stare as her tongue slipped out to lick the salt, but I couldn’t look away. Her wet pink tongue drew across her palm, leaving me lightheaded and my cock pulsating just slightly. She finally grabbed the shot glass, threw it back one gulp like a champ, and sucked on the wedge of lime.

“Nothing too serious. We’ll discuss it when we get home.” I poured myself a half shot and swallowed it down hard without the salt or lime.

“Sounds good,” she said with a nod as she walked over to her hallway mirror to check her makeup. I took the opportunity to adjust myself a bit.

Once I hauled a rideshare, we were on our way to the bars. I tried not to think too much, but I was sure she’d let out a breath of relief the moment I told her that we should stop all this. I knew this fake relationship thing was putting heaps of pressure on her, and it made my guilt worse. The great thing was that we wouldn’t have to put on an act anymore of being in love. Then our lives would simply fall back into place the way they were before.

At least that was what I was hoping for.

But I already knew something shifted in me when I had that dream about her.

My relationship with Shoua was never going to be the same after this and the only one to blame was me. It was all my fault.

CHAPTER 20

shoua

I could feel Anthony’s gaze on me, but before I could catch it, he had already turned the other way. He had been distant all night and kept his hands to himself. I expected his arm to be thrown around my shoulders or his hand to be on my hip, keeping us close. But there was none of that. Although he was only inches away from me, emitting his warmth, he had never felt so far away.

The girls and I were discussing the details of Jackie’s horrible first date last night. We tried our best to include Evelyn in any of the conversations we had, but she was mostly disinterested.

When I glanced over to Anthony, he and Evelyn were in a deep conversation about a bookshelf she thrifted for her studio apartment.

“I started watching a bunch of videos online about tips and tricks on how to fix up the old bookshelf,” Evelyn explained. “I’m such a newbie that I couldn’t do much.”

He nodded along, curious about her project. “I gotta say, Evelyn, I didn’t even know you liked furniture refurbishing.”

“You’re always talking so much about it whenever my mom and I visit, and I became fascinated with it. I think it’s amazing how most of the furniture in your home is refurbished,” she said. “It’s pretty great when there’s so much overconsumption in the world that you choose to do this. The work you do on all these pieces of old furnishings is gorgeous too. I was looking at your website for local buyers here and?—”

I forced myself to turn my attention back to Jackie and the conversation I was having with my girls. I was distracted for a moment when Evelyn walked up to Anthony with a smug smirk on her face, worried that she might be forward again with me right there.

“I swear to god, these men are even worse these days, Shoua! Maybe it’s the heat during the summer,” Jackie yelled over the music and crowd, grabbing my attention. She paused to sip the margarita in her hand. “Because all these assholes just want to fuck around and never want to commit. But come fall and winter, they’re at your doorstep with flowers and looking for something supposedly long-term. And then once summer is around the corner again, they’re ready to leave you in their dust.”

“Why do you think I stopped using those dating apps for this city years ago?” I laughed. “You should really consider deleting your account.”

“I would if I had a hot best friend who lives next door who I can fall in love with,” Jackie said with a big smile. She turned to Alicia. “I also wouldn’t mind deleting my entire experience on there if I had a high school sweetheart I’ve been in love with for over a decade like Alicia over here.”

Alicia shook her head, frustrated for Jackie. “In our defense, we just lucked out with Anthony and Arjun.” She glanced over at her boyfriend as she mentioned his name with this bright smile and then turned back to us. Evelyn was no longer talking to Anthony and Alicia took this opportunity to call out to her. “Evelyn, one tip: Don’t date men from Sunset Valley during the summer. Only date them in the fall or winter.”

The three of us laughed as she smiled with us.

“Actually, I wouldn’t mind if I got the chance regardless of the season. The men here seem to have the whole package,” she started as she glanced around the bar only to stop on Anthony. His loud laugh boomed, and her smile tipped into a smirk when she locked eyes with me. “They’re gorgeous, handsome, dependable, know what hard work is, and are great in bed.”

Was she implying she had been with Anthony intimately? She was bluffing, because he’d never.

I continued to keep my smile stretched across my face and let out an amused laugh. “True, my man certainly knows what to do since he hangs like a horse.”

I lifted my glass of Long Island iced tea up to the sky as if to cheer and downed the rest of the two thirds of it in a single gulp. It might’ve not been the best idea to drink it all at once since it’s so strong, but I was done with Evelyn.

With alcohol pumping through my body and my patience wearing thin, I wasn’t going to entertain Evelyn if this was how she wanted to play. I wasn’t even sure why she was still insistent on trying to nab Anthony anyways.

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