by Susan Stoker
She pushed open the bathroom door and saw Elodie and Lexie standing at the sinks. There was no sign of the other two women, but since both doors to the stalls were closed and she could see feet on the other side, Kenna assumed that was them.
Elodie winked at her before turning back to Lexie. “I’m told one of the waitresses here is related to one of the producers of the latest Jurassic Park movie.”
“Really?” Lexie exclaimed in the fakest voice Kenna had ever heard.
“Yeah. You know they film on the northeast side of the island at that ranch…what’s it called again?”
“Kualoa Ranch?” Lexie asked.
“That’s it!” Elodie said with an overabundance of drama. “Anyway, so I heard Chris Pratt is on the island filming and they need extras for some of the scenes.”
“Ooooh, cool,” Lexie gushed.
“Right? And rumor has it the waitress helps her dad, or uncle, or whoever he is, find extras. Since she meets so many people, she asks random guests if they might be interested in working out at the ranch for a day,” Elodie said.
Kenna put her hand over her mouth to try to keep her laughter in.
“Who is she?” Lexie asked. “I want to kiss her ass so maybe she’ll ask me!”
“I don’t know,” Elodie said in a dejected tone. “But I plan to be as nice as possible to the waitress. I mean, can you imagine being a bitch to the staff, then finding out later you could’ve been hired for a Jurassic Park movie if you’d just been nicer?”
“That would suck so bad,” Lexie agreed with a huge smile.
“I think my hair is as good as it’s gonna get,” Elodie said. “You ready to go back? I need another drink.”
“Ready,” Lexie agreed.
The two women in the stalls hadn’t said a word, but Kenna figured Elodie and Lexie had gotten their point across more than adequately. She backed out of the restroom, with both the other women following and grinning like lunatics.
The second the door shut behind them, Lexie burst out laughing.
“Shhhh,” Elodie scolded in a whisper. “They might still be able to hear us!” They walked down the hall toward the dining area, and only then did Elodie join Lexie in laughing.
“That was awesome!” Lexie exclaimed.
“They’re gonna be kissing all the waitresses asses now for sure!” Elodie agreed.
Kenna couldn’t remember if someone had ever gone out of their way to do something like that for her. It was harmless and funny, but would likely be effective. Of course, there would always be patrons who felt it was perfectly all right to treat the waitstaff like shit, but for tonight, those two women would almost certainly do an about-face and change their attitude.
“Thank you so much,” Kenna told them. “They honestly weren’t all that bad, but I appreciate it all the same.”
Elodie got serious as she met Kenna’s gaze. “I’ve had more to drink tonight than usual, and I’d probably never say something like this otherwise…”
Kenna braced.
“I like you. I mean, I don’t really know you, but I like how Aleck can’t take his eyes off you. I like your smile and how you’re always looking over at him. And I freaking love that you didn’t hesitate to try to rescue him when you thought he was drowning. Aleck is a good guy. He’s funny—and yes, he’s the smart aleck that he’s named for. But when we all invited ourselves tonight, he didn’t say no. He didn’t pitch a fit. I think he was kind of glad because he was nervous. And he’d only be nervous if you mattered. So…all that to say…I hope things work out between you guys.”
Kenna was surprised. She kind of thought Elodie would tell her not to fuck with her friend or something. She definitely liked this woman. “Me too,” she admitted.
Lexie nudged Elodie and gestured not so subtly with her head toward the table they’d been sitting at. Their men were headed their way.
“Wow, they gave us a whole five minutes,” Elodie joked with a laugh.
Not able to stop herself, Kenna looked back at the table, and her gaze met Marshall’s.
“You okay?” he mouthed.
Kenna nodded at him.
Marshall made a big deal out of lifting his arm and looking at the watch on his wrist. Kenna smiled and held up five fingers. He nodded.
“See? You guys can have an entire conversation from across the room,” Elodie said. “That’s awesome.”
It was awesome.
Kenna nodded at Midas and Mustang as they arrived to collect their women.
“You good?” Mustang asked her.
Kenna couldn’t help but smile. “I’m good,” she told him. “Your wife and Lexie were awesome.”
“They can be a little…enthusiastic,” Midas said, wrapping an arm around Lexie’s shoulders.
“We are awesome,” Lexie agreed, snuggling into her man.
“Dessert arrived while you two were delivering your smackdown,” Mustang told them.
“We didn’t do any such thing,” Elodie protested. “We just had a conversation. That may or may not have been overheard.”
“We’ll see if it was when the bitches go back to their table,” Lexie said.
“Speaking of which, I’d better get more napkins for them,” Kenna said. “Thanks again.”
“Anytime,” Elodie said. “That’s what friends are for.”
Kenna smiled at both women and headed back toward the kitchen. She heard Mustang ask, “So you’re best friends with Aleck’s woman already?”
“Yup,” Kenna heard Elodie say, right before she entered the kitchen area. Smiling, she gathered up the napkins and fork, grabbed the appetizer for another table that was ready, and headed back into the dining area. She had time to do one more check on each of her tables before her much-needed and anticipated break.
After dropping off the poke tacos and crab wontons to table forty-three, she headed back toward table twenty-seven.
This time, the blonde and brunette couldn’t have been nicer. They apologized for being a pain and the blonde even complimented Kenna’s hair. It was such a crock of shit, because the ponytail Kenna wore wasn’t anything to gush about. But she merely smiled and asked the group if they needed anything else.
Kenna had to admit that Elodie and Lexie’s ploy was crazy effective. They hadn’t started a knock-down drag-out fight. Hadn’t shamed the two women. Had just lied their asses off with their elaborate tale, which had worked like a charm.
Making a mental note to never underestimate either woman—that was, if she had the chance to spend time with them in the future—Kenna headed for her next table to make sure all was well.
Five minutes later, she took off her apron, hung it on a hook near the kitchen door, waved to Carly, and headed for the front of the restaurant. She still had a couple hours of work in front of her, but she’d never been as excited for her break as she was tonight.
Chapter Three
Aleck stood apart from the patrons waiting to be seated at Duke’s and realized he was fidgeting. He never fidgeted. But anticipation over spending time with Kenna, even if it was only thirty minutes, had him shifting back and forth on his feet like he was a ten-year-old kid in the principal’s office.
He had no idea what it was about her that had him so off-kilter. All he knew was that he was excited to get to know her better.
When Aleck saw Kenna headed toward him, he couldn’t help but smile. She was laughing as she stopped by the hostess stand to speak to the woman working there. Then she was headed toward him.
“Hey,” she said as she approached.
“Hi,” he returned.
They stared at each other silently before she asked, “You want to take a walk or something?”
Aleck shook his head. “No. You’ve been on your feet all night. I’d prefer to find a place to sit where you can actually relax for a while.”
She didn’t say anything for a long moment.
“But if you’re set on a walk, that’s okay too,” Aleck added awkwardly.
&nbs
p; Kenna shook her head. “No, sitting sounds heavenly. I just wasn’t sure you’d want to do something so…lame.”
“Kenna, you’ve been working your ass off tonight. I’d be a dick if I insisted on adding to your fatigue.” He looked around the bright lights of the shopping area and inwardly groaned at the lack of privacy and the fact that all the benches were occupied.
But Kenna came to his rescue. “We could sit outside by the beach…if you wanted,” she suggested.
“Yes,” Aleck said immediately. The sun had set not too long ago and the temperature was absolutely perfect.
“We have to go back through the restaurant,” Kenna said. “I mean, we don’t have to, but it’ll be the fastest way to get to the beach.”
“Lead on,” Aleck said, gesturing toward Duke’s with his arm.
He followed close behind her, selfishly hoping like hell no one would need her as they walked past the tables toward the beach. Luckily, no one stopped her and soon they were walking on the sand, headed for a lounge chair.
“Is this okay?” Kenna asked.
“It’s perfect,” Aleck assured her, and it was. The hustle and bustle of Duke’s was behind them and the sound of the calm ocean lapping at the beach was relaxing. He waited until she sat on the chair, then took a seat next to her.
“I know I already apologized, but I kind of feel I need to again—” Kenna started.
But Aleck cut her off. “No, you don’t.”
She looked over at him. “You don’t even know what I was going to apologize for,” she protested.
“It doesn’t matter. You have nothing to be sorry about. If you thought you might apologize for jumping into the water this morning, I’m definitely not sorry you did that. The training we were doing was boring. Yes, it was important, but being safety monitor isn’t my favorite thing in the world, so you did me a favor. And why would I be upset about a beautiful woman jumping on top of me?”
“I didn’t jump on you,” she protested with a small smile. He saw her glance down at her hands in her lap. It was endearing. Aleck had been observing her all night, and it was obvious she was outgoing and an extrovert, so seeing her shy whenever she was around him was kind of cute.
“And if you were thinking about apologizing for asking me to come tonight when you had to work, don’t. I’ve actually enjoyed watching you interact with others, and it’s been fun to see Elodie and Lexie let down their hair and truly relax.”
“You really like them, don’t you?” she asked, then scrunched her nose adorably. “I mean, of course you do, because they’re your friends, but sometimes guys don’t like their friends’ girlfriends and merely tolerate them.”
“I know what you mean. And if you mean ‘like’ in the sense that they’re my best friends’ women and they amuse me? Yes. They’re good people who have been through hell, and came out stronger on the other side.”
Kenna tilted her head at that. “But they’re okay?” she asked.
Aleck liked the genuine concern he heard in her voice. “Yeah. I’m sure they’ll tell you all about their experiences if you ask. They aren’t shy about it, and honestly, they’re some of the strongest women I’ve met. In a nutshell, Elodie was a chef for a mobster who took exception to the fact she wouldn’t poison a guest for him. She ended up cooking on a cargo ship, which was hijacked by pirates in the Middle East. She came to Hawaii but the mob guy wasn’t willing to let her go, so he tried to kill her.”
Kenna’s eyes were huge in her face. “Holy shit!”
“Yup. But she’s okay now, and the mob guy is out of the picture, and she and Mustang got married and they’re madly in love.”
“It’s obvious,” Kenna said, nodding. “I’m glad she’s okay.”
“Me too.”
“And Lexie?” Kenna asked.
“She was working in Africa and got kidnapped, along with a coworker. We rescued her, but unfortunately the man she was with didn’t survive the rescue. He had a heart attack. She came to Hawaii to work, but the twin of her coworker wasn’t happy that she survived and his brother didn’t, and tried to take out his frustration and anger on her.”
“Wow, you weren’t kidding about them having gone through hell!”
“Nope. But anyway, seeing them happy and relaxed is always nice. Lexie’s thing wasn’t too long ago, so seeing her so carefree is refreshing. So you have nothing to apologize for,” Aleck said. “Besides, I was pleasantly surprised by the food here.”
“What, you thought it would suck?” Kenna teased.
“No. But Waikiki isn’t my go-to spot to hang out or for food.”
“I know, but I think the area has gotten a bad rap for whatever reason. There are some amazing places to eat down here. And the business owners are super nice too.”
“I guess I need to get out of my comfort zone a little more,” Aleck said.
“I’d be happy to show you my favorites,” Kenna told him.
“Yes,” Aleck answered immediately.
They smiled at each other.
“So…what brought you to Hawaii?” Aleck asked, wanting to know everything about the woman at his side. He was aware that the clock was ticking and he didn’t have nearly the time he would’ve liked to get to know her better.
“I came here in college with some friends and fell in love with everything about it. The weather, the sunsets, the people, the culture. After I graduated, I got a job in Pittsburgh that I hated. The winters sucked, and I spent most of my days in a cubicle. I made an impulsive decision to quit and move out here. I arrived with three suitcases and huge expectations.” She shrugged. “My life hasn’t turned out how I thought it would. You know, making big bucks at some huge corporation, changing the world in the process…but I’m happy.”
“That’s good,” Aleck told her. “You been working at Duke’s long?”
“I tried to find an accounting job, which was what my major was, and even though I was offered one or two, something kept me from accepting. I couldn’t imagine living here and being stuck in another cubicle, staring at numbers all day. It was one thing to do that in Pennsylvania, where it’s grossly hot in the summer and freezing and gray in the winters, but to do it here in Hawaii, where the weather is literally perfect all the time, just seemed wrong.
“So, while I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do, I took a waitressing job. It was awful, and the pay sucked…but I realized I loved meeting all sorts of different people every day. That job led to another, and after a while, I met someone who put in a good word for me here. It’s been a few years now, and I can’t imagine working anywhere else.”
The enthusiasm and honest enjoyment of her job was clear in her tone. She wasn’t blowing smoke up his ass. She honestly seemed to love what she did. It was somewhat of a revelation for Aleck. He just assumed she was waitressing temporarily while she looked for a “real” job. But it was obvious this was a real job for her.
“What about you?” Kenna asked.
“What about me?” he asked.
“You’re a SEAL. How’d that happen? Were you one of those kids who always dreamed about joining the Navy and becoming a superhero? Or were you forced to join up because you were a troublemaker?”
Aleck chuckled. “Neither, actually. I was an okay student, didn’t get into trouble, and was voted class clown,” he told her. “After high school, I was kind of lost. Didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. Wasn’t really ready for college. I went down to the recruiting office in San Francisco and talked to all the recruiters. The Navy offered me the most money and benefits. So I joined up.”
Kenna smiled. “You totally played them off each other, didn’t you?”
“Yup,” Aleck said without remorse. “I got through boot camp and sat through a recruiting session about the SEALs. I thought it sounded like a challenge, so I signed up.”
“And here you are,” Kenna said.
“Well, it wasn’t quite that easy,” Aleck said with a snort.
“I know. I’
m not an expert, but I know about BUD/S.”
“Yeah, Hell Week and BUD/S sucked, but there’s so much more to becoming a SEAL than just that.”
“I figured. So…you’re from San Francisco?” she asked.
“Yup. My parents still have a home there too. They travel a lot, but that’s home base.” He wasn’t about to get into the fact that they were multi-millionaires right now. Or that he had quite the healthy trust fund. He wanted Kenna to like him for who he was, not for how much money he had.
Silence fell between them for a long moment. But it wasn’t awkward. Not really.
“How old are you?” Kenna asked.
“Twenty-nine,” Aleck said without hesitation. “You? Or…am I not supposed to ask that?”
“I’m thirty. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t like twenty-one or forty. I mean, there’s nothing wrong with either, but after Carly’s recent terrible experience with an older man, I’m not sure I want to go there. And twenty-one just seems super young to me.”
“It is,” Aleck agreed. He was curious about her friend’s situation, but Aleck knew he only had a little bit of time to talk to her tonight. He wanted to know more about her, not her friends. “You grew up on the East Coast?”
“Yeah. Richmond, Virginia, actually. I went to Virginia Tech, then got that job in Pittsburgh.”
“Any siblings?”
“Nope. I’m an only child. My parents are divorced but still friends, weirdly. They were one of those couples that had a whole parenting plan. I spent weekends with my dad and was with Mom during the week.”
“That had to suck,” Aleck said.
Kenna shrugged. “Not really. As I said, my parents were friends. They didn’t fight, and I didn’t think much about my situation until I was in middle school and realized it wasn’t really normal. My dad got remarried, and I really like my stepmother. She’s very different from my mom, which is probably why she and my dad’s relationship works so well.”
“Did your mom ever get remarried?” Aleck asked.