Whispers of the South Wind

Chapter 18

It took you far longer than you wanted to admit to decide what swimsuit you wanted to wear. You really only had a couple of choices and none of them were a one-piece, much to your displeasure. It wasn't that you normally minded wearing a bikini, but with Keigo being there, you couldn't help but feel a little bit flustered at the thought of showing so much skin. How the hell was it possible you only owned two-piece swimsuits? You groaned as you shuffled through your drawers, gritting your teeth slightly as you pushed aside things desperately before finally giving up.

"Bikini it is," you muttered in defeat, reaching back into the drawer and looking over your options again with a frown.

In the end, you decided on a deep red bikini with white polka dots all over it, pulling on a white sundress over it. The halter on the bikini showed due to the neckline of the dress, but you honestly didn't mind; it wasn't like anyone was going to judge you for wearing it down at the river. You quickly grabbed a few beach towels, sunscreen, and a change of clothes before finally heading back into the kitchen.

Thankfully, Anthony had already busied himself making sandwiches for the day, though how your kitchen managed to look like a nuclear bomb went off was beyond you. You groaned from the doorway, eyeing up the sink full of dishes with annoyance as Anthony turned around to look at you in confusion. It seriously had to be a man thing to use every possible utensil and dish to make the simplest thing because Luke had been the exact same way. That is why you always cooked and he cleaned up after.

"I hope you know you're comin' back here after and cleanin' this," you said, putting down the things you'd gathered for the day on the table. "I ain't your mama and I am not Mary. I refuse to clean up after ya."

"It ain't that bad," he argued, sliding another sandwich into a bag before putting it into the small pile he'd made. You rolled your eyes before heading back out towards the hall closet and grabbing a large beach bag to put the towels and things in before reaching for the picnic basket that sat on the floor. You hesitated as you reached towards it, frowning slightly. You'd received it for your wedding, though you hadn't had a chance to use it before Luke passed away, the tag still attached to the handle.

Your heart twisted sadly as you quickly looked up at the wall, your eyes landing on the picture that Keigo had asked about a couple of weeks back. He hadn't seemed bothered by it, even telling you that you looked happy together. Was it possible that you were reading too much into your relationship with him? Stressing yourself out for nothing? He'd never done anything that would make you think he was interested in you, didn't react to pictures of Luke with the jealousy you'd expect. You frowned, turning back to the basket as your stomach twisted slightly.

You didn't want another relationship, you already knew that much, so why the hell did the thought of him not being interested in you hurt so bad?

You clenched your jaw, opting to try and silence your thoughts for now and grabbed the basket, quickly closing the closet door. Anthony glanced at you as you walked back in, frowning as he screwed on the lid of the mayo container. You placed the basket on the counter beside him, quickly gathering the multiple dirty knives and plates he'd used and depositing them into the sink with a loud sigh. You could see Anthony staring at you out of the corner of your eye and you gritted your teeth slightly.

If you didn't get him distracted and thinking about something else quickly enough, he was going to turn this around on you which was the last thing you wanted. He had explaining to do and you weren't giving up without answers.

"You know you could use one knife if you did a production line for the sandwiches instead of having to dirty up so many." You told him, turning to face him with a large smile. He blinked at you a few times, green eyes narrowing before he tilted his head with a frown.