Page 93 of No Summer Hotter than You

I giggled as he wrapped his arms around my waist and showered me with kisses. But his hand suddenly came up to muffle my laughter and stilled me against the tree. A voice was soon heard from the trail.

“Anthony? Shoua?” Jonathan called out. He sounded slightly worried, but he didn’t seem to be frantic. “Are they that far behind?”

We heard him pacing for a moment near us before heading back to the rest of the group. The moment he was gone, Anthony placed a quick kiss on my temple.

“We should catch up to them before they start suspecting anything,” he said.

We quickly cleaned up with baby wipes so we would look and feel presentable again, giggling quietly the whole time. Once on the trail again, Anthony pulled me into a tight hug and buried his nose in the soft spot behind my ear, where I put my perfume. He took in a deep inhale and exhaled, lightly tickling me with his breath.

The chuckle he let out was low and teasing. “I’m yours, baby,” he whispered into my ear.

“I know now, gorgeous,” I said with a smile.

CHAPTER 36

anthony

Today was the last full day Aunt Sue, Evelyn, and Kelvin were going to be here, and I was ecstatic. Our time at the lake house was great, but the last two days of it were awkward with Kelvin brooding and avoiding us as if we were the ones who harassed him. I was grateful he wasn’t vindictive toward Shoua. But he still seemed to be victimizing himself with the way he scowled at me.

Regardless of how he was toward us, the lake trip ended mostly on a good note. Sai and Evelyn were now no longer on speaking terms, but they weren’t as awkward with one another the way Kelvin was with Shoua and me. Aside from them three, everyone else seemed happy with their stay at the lake house. This made me want to work harder so I could buy a lake house one day and our family could experience this every year.

Tonight was finally one more day of Kelvin, Evelyn, and Aunt Sue with the barbeque party my parents were throwing.

I took a swig of the IPA I was holding and searched the crowd for Shoua. Now that the party was in full swing, my parents’ backyard filled with friends, family, and our neighbors. Aunt Sue was always popular with the crowd because she was boisterous and outgoing.

I loved her, but her reaction to Kelvin’s harassment of Shoua left me feeling uncomfortable. I couldn’t shake the bitter, hostile look she gave Shoua. Perhaps that was her real nature. In many ways, I was glad she was leaving and taking Evelyn and Kelvin with her. Aunt Sue wasn’t as kind as I had always thought she was; I knew it’d be best if I keep my distance the next time she visits my mom.

In the distance, I saw Shoua walk past Andy and Julie with her mom and older brother. I immediately followed them, a little worried. Why were they walking off to the back gate by themselves, where no one else was around? My brows furrowed in apprehension. I was about to call out to her when she turned to her mom with angry eyes and thin lips.

“Why are you telling everyone Anthony and I are getting married by the end of the year?” Shoua immediately asked.

Her furious question made me stop in my tracks. I was hidden from their view since I was standing behind a wall. But I could see everything. What was going on? Was that what her mom had been saying all night long?

“Lee, tell your sister that she can’t tell me what to do or say,” her mom said, but she only looked at Shoua’s older brother.

“Shoua, just let it go. You know how Mom is,” he said and sighed.

She looked at her brother in disbelief. “You can’t be serious!” she said. “Do you even know what people have been saying to me all night? They’ve been asking when my wedding is. Anthony and I haven’t even dated for three months, and you’re telling me to just let it go?”

What? Her mom had been saying that all night? I blinked, surprised. Now I started to understand why some people had been congratulating me and asking when our wedding was going to happen. I just figured everyone naturally assumed we’d consider a serious relationship after being such good friends for so long.

Lee blinked slowly at Shoua as he crossed his arms. I expected him to be angry with her, but he was the least concerned about what was going on. “Why does it matter? You two are going to get married at some point, aren’t you?” he asked, unconcerned.

Shoua let out a long, wobbly breath full of anger and frustration. “We just started dating, and Mom can’t just go around telling anyone who’ll listen to her baseless gossip,” she said rather calmly. “Anthony and I haven’t even been dating that long. But you’ve been dramatizing my relationship and you can’t just do that?—”

Their mom’s face crumpled immediately. “Oh! I can’t, can I? Now that you’re finally dating Anthony and will soon be marrying him exactly like I told you to, you’re too good for our family?” her mom said hauntingly. She scoffed as her face twisted into a deep scowl. “If I hadn’t been the one to tell you to date Anthony, then would you? No, you wouldn’t have, and now you think you’re better than me just because you have a rich boyfriend. You ungrateful little bitch. Why are you looking at me like that? Are you going to cry and be the victim now?”

Shoua’s chin trembled a bit as she stared back at her in disbelief. Her lips parted, ready to say something as she turned to Lee. I waited for him to defend her, but he did nothing. He only stood there, staring back at her passively as if he was waiting for it all to boil over. I was surprised to see him behave like this, especially when I had always seen him as Shoua’s reliable older brother.

“Mom, please, you know what you did wrong,” Shoua choked out as she looked her mom in the eyes. Her gaze was glassy as her voice shook slightly. She took a moment to let out another breath before continuing. “You can’t just go around telling people these lies.”

“So, you think you’re better than me because I said those things—” started her mom before I spoke up.

“Shoua,” I called out firmly, immediately interrupting them before things could escalate as her brother pretended to be a bystander.

All three of their heads whipped to me. Her mom’s and Lee’s eyes went wide while Shoua frowned. Her pretty brown eyes tore away from mine, embarrassed.

“Anthony,” she said, looking away with bright red face. She looked her mom right in the eyes as I approached them. “I don’t think I’m better than you, Mom. What I’m trying to say is that you shouldn’t go around telling everyone lies. What you’re saying isn’t even true. If it’s any couple that should be getting married, it should probably be Julie and Andy?—”

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