Chapter Nine

Before I knew it, brunch was over, and it was time to go. I'd barely felt the minutes pass. My aunt and Carla had traded snide remarks all morning, but I hadn't noticed them at all. I was having a wonderful morning.

“May I walk you out to your car?” Freddie asked after I'd said my goodbyes to everyone.

“Sure,” I said before remembering that my car wasn't exactly something I wanted to show off. But I wasn't about to miss out on a few extra minutes with him.

The sun beat down on the black asphalt as we worked our way through the rows of cars.

“Is summer like this in Paradisa?” I asked.

Freddie looked around at the sizzling pavement, the screams of cicadas, and the rising humidity and shook his head. “Not at all. It's hot, but not like this. And our insects are a bit quieter.”

I chuckled. “What kind of summer activities do you have?”

He shrugged. “We ride horses, there's swimming, and the ocean is close.” He smiled, his eyes going distant. “We do bonfires on the beach. The water is alwa