He stroked her leg again, kneading her calf, then cupping both hands around it and squeezing as he ran them up to her knee. “You’re tense. Loosen up. Talk to me.”
Talk to him? With him touching her like that, with her foot tantalizingly near him?
But she gave him points for guts. One little slip of her foot and his voice would jump two octaves higher. Not that that’s what she had in mind.
She nestled her foot deeper into his lap, wriggling her toes and feeling him grow harder still. Remembering where this kind of play used to lead.
He didn’t give anything away and neither did she.
“You really want to know?” she asked at last.
“Yeah. I do.” He remained stoic as she snuggled her foot against him.
She took a deep breath. “In real life, I’m all alone.” Her voice broke unexpectedly. It was all so clear to her, she was all alone. Empty.
His hands stilled. His Adam’s apple bobbed. He stared at her but didn’t say anything.
She swallowed hard and studied him. He looked like his thoughts weren’t pleasant. “What about you? What’s your real life like?”
He stared out the window past her, his eyes unfocused. His brow furrowed. “I’m following a dream. Doing what I was born to do. I can’t imagine ever giving this up. Ever doing anything else.”
He focused on her again. “As long as the surf lasts and the adrenaline’s high, this is the life.” He rubbed her knee with the palm of his hand, then cupped it tightly in his hand.
She bit her lip and nodded. Irreconcilable differences.
“But at the end of the day”—he bent down and kissed her knee—“life’s a beach when there’s no one to share your triumphs with.” He looked up at her.
Did she imagine it or was he pleading with her to understand?
Her breath caught. She fought a nearly irresistible urge to run her fingers through his hair. She clenched her hands.
“Ever thought of giving up the nine-to-five office drag and just hanging out in a place like this?” he asked out of the blue.
She frowned at him. “What do you mean?”
“You know what I mean. Live in the moment. Be spontaneous.”
She sighed. “Chase adventure? Like you?”
“Yeah, why not?”
She stared at him. For the moment, he was so in character, so much like an actual beach bum, she practically didn’t know him. And yet she did. “What about a home?”
“Home is where the heart is.”
She shook her head and laughed. “Now you’re just spouting clichés.”
“I’m serious. What is home?”
“Don’t go existential on me.” She paused. “I need stability.”
“Really? Why?”
“Because.” She paused, trying to frame her thoughts. “Because in the long run, jumping here and there in search of adventure is no way to raise a family.”
“And you want a family?” His voice was tender, the question sounded sincere.
They should have discussed this before they married. But the thought of children had never come up. Until her accidental pregnancy she’d never thought she wanted children. And he didn’t want them even now.
“Yes.” She didn’t mean to sound so emotional. But since the miscarriage, just the mention of a baby brought tears to her eyes.
He was quiet for moment. “Even if kids are part of the game, why not?” He looked and sounded totally serious.
Did that mean he wanted children? That he’d relented?
“If you’re there with the person you love, why can’t you raise a family anywhere?”
She studied him, startled to realize he was serious. They’d been over this ground before. Many times. He wanted her to follow him on some of his longer missions. Be part of his cover life. Be with him.
It struck her for the first time that maybe she hadn’t always been there for him. She hadn’t thought he’d needed her support.
“Some people need more security.” She sighed. “We have conflicting lives. You and I would never work, beach boy. It’s a good thing we just have these few days and then it’s over.” And she meant it.
He squeezed her knee and stared intently at her. “Give us a fighting chance, Tref.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The rest of the trip into Paia passed quietly. Treflee slept snuggled into Ty, resting her head on his shoulder. The experts say you can’t sleep unless you feel secure. Just how well would she sleep if she knew even part of what he knew?
He watched her doze, wondering about her suddenly flirtatious nature. Either she was having way too much fun staying in character or she was up to something. In any case, her plan was going to backfire on her. You can only play with sexual heat so long before you get burned. And he meant to scorch.
His only concern was whether he’d have the staying power he wanted once he actually touched her, or whether he’d lose himself all too quickly. He hadn’t had sex in the six months since he’d left her. Just her breast brushing against his arm as the van jiggled along aroused him.
Fast and furious wasn’t what he had in mind. He had to make her see how much he loved her. In those close, intimate moments after lovemaking, he had to coax her into telling him what he’d done that was so heinous she was tossing him out of her life. He had no intention of being her boy toy. He wanted to be her husband again. That was the mission, his personal mission now that had nothing to do with Emmett’s orders. He wanted her love and nothing short of it.
Keoni pulled the van to a stop in Baldwin Beach Park. Treflee stirred and sighed. In the instant before she was fully awake, she looked up at him and smiled in the loving way she used to when she first woke in the morning, looking almost like she was about to kiss him. Then she woke enough to come to her senses and pulled away.
Too bad. He could have shown her how good a wake-up kiss could be.
The second Big Auau van waited for them, just as planned.
“Wake up, sleepyhead. We’re here.”
Tref rubbed her eyes. “Where’s here?”
“Historic Paia.”
Keoni jumped out of the driver’s seat and ran around to open the van door.
The other bridesmaids and the ex-bride stirred and woke up. Carrie popped to attention like the soldier she’d been and prairie-dogged out the window.
Ty nudged Tref. “What’s she doing?”
“Looking for Kane.”
“Why would he be here? How would he know where she is?”
Tref stretched and sighed. “Kane’s a cop, an expert tracker. That’s his specialty. Always gets his man and all that.”
“I see.” Ty shook his head, feeling skeptical. “And she thinks—”
“Yep.”
Carrie had stepped to the van door. She looked around cautiously before slowly getting out.
“Oh, boy.” Ty couldn’t help sounding frustrated. The last thing he needed was a jumpy client and a cop tracking them.
“Yeah.” Tref nodded her agreement. But when it was her turn to file out, she paused at the door, too.
“Worried about Kane?” he teased her.
She frowned at him. “You know who I’m worried about.”
He leaned in and whispered in her ear, close enough to do a little heavy breathing just to rattle her. “Stay close to me and in character and you’ll be fine.”
She shook her head and got out of the bicycle tour van.
* * *
Oh, yeah, Treflee planned on sticking to Ty like Super Glue or something even stronger. Well, maybe not Super Glue, that stuff never let go. She was dissolving this “two shall become one” union in favor of the separate halves soon. Maybe she’d just stick to him like that high-strength poster tape—hangs on for as long as you need, releases when you want it to, and leaves no scars behind.
The coast, literally the coast, seemed clear and sparkled prettily in the just past high noon sun. Oh, to be on the beach, wading in the surf, a blanket on the sand, ha
lf a dozen beach reads at her fingertips, and a cooler stocked with diet cola. Now that was the life.
Damn Ty and his constant intrigue. When this was all over and done with, she was going to take a real vacation. One where she didn’t run into any nearly ex-husbands. Fortunately, there was only the one. And she was smart enough to check with Emmett about where that one would be before she booked her next getaway.
Laci and the girls formed a protective barrier around Carrie. Treflee had never known her cousin to be such a coward. Treflee was convinced Kane was no danger to Carrie physically. He was a cheater, not an abuser. That left only her heart at stake. Which confused Treflee—wasn’t Carrie the one who’d called things off? Couldn’t she just tell Kane to take a flying leap and go home?
Treflee caught herself. Wasn’t she in the same situation as Carrie? Well, similar. But as she knew, it wasn’t all that easy to just let go of someone. She knew that all too well and felt a sudden pang of sympathy for Carrie.
Ty asked the girls if they wanted a few minutes to stretch and enjoy the beach. They declined, strangely eager for a three-hour car trip along a winding, slow road almost guaranteed to make one carsick. Ah, well, the fickleness of adventurers.
Ty held the Big Auau van door open for the ladies to climb in. When Treflee tried to board, he caught her arm. “Ride up front with me. I could use the company.”
What was he up to? It really didn’t matter. She was grabbing that front seat. With her tendency toward motion sickness, she wasn’t taking any chances.
Laci overheard and horned in. “What? You mean one of us can ride up front with you?” She smiled sweetly at Ty. “I’m more fun and I can read a map.” She winked at him.
Yeah, reading a map was code for putting her hands all over Ty as he drove. On Ty’s leg, up his thigh, squeezing, teasing until she found something she liked and got what she wanted.
Ty gave Laci his slow, sexy smile. Which irrationally irritated Treflee. He let his gaze rake over Laci as if he were enjoying every inch of the view, and then sighed as if it were a pity he’d already asked Treflee to join him.
“He doesn’t need a map. He has GPS.” Treflee took his arm. “Besides, I get carsick easily.”
Carrie chimed in. “Yes, she does. Let her ride up front, Lace, or we’ll all be sorry.”
The truth was, Treflee hadn’t actually gotten carsick since she was eleven years old. Woozy, yes. But actually losing the cookies, no. She reserved that for vicious roller coasters and roiling seas.
Laci’s smile remained in place, but her eyes grew hard as she glanced at Treflee. “Sure.”
Seats settled, they all piled in. Ty fired up the van. They backtracked a few miles into Paia proper where they stopped at a local restaurant full of touristy flavor to pick up their catering.
Carrie eyed the bar and grocery store that flanked it on either side. “I need a drink.”
A chorus of “me, toos” rang out. Next thing, Carrie and her entourage had piled out and were streaming into the bar.
“Coming?” Faye asked Treflee.
Treflee shook her head.
“No?” Faye looked quizzically at her.
“Alcohol makes the motion sickness worse.”
Faye shrugged, looking sorry for Treflee. And she was off.
Ty looked at Treflee. “Come with me. I’ll buy you a cola while we wait. That always helps calm your stomach.”
Treflee followed him into the restaurant and sat at a stool at the counter, sipping her cola while Ty shot the breeze with the girl behind the counter, browsed the souvenir racks, and made a purchase he obviously didn’t want her to see.
“Presents for you girls.” He winked as he clutched his plain brown bag.
Twenty minutes later, Ty loaded a well-stocked cooler and an overflowing picnic hamper into the back of the van. He tossed his brown paper bag on the front seat and eyed the bar. “Go drag them out, girl.”
“Me? Why do I have to be the bad guy?”
“Hey, I’m just the amiable tour guide, not the cop.” He shrugged. “They can stay as long as they like as far as I’m concerned. I don’t mind blind hairpin turns in the pitch-black of night. In fact, I kind of like them.”
“Oh, fine.” Treflee glared at him. She found them sitting at the bar, swaying on their barstools, piña coladas sitting in front of each of them.
“Hey, let’s hit the road. The road to Hana is treacherous in the dark,” she said to them.
It took them several minutes to settle the bill and decide whether they wanted the souvenir pineapple mugs. Which looked suspiciously like the mug Hal had bought Treflee at that burger joint. Finally, pineapple mugs won. But empty pineapple mugs were apparently anathema.
Carrie insisted on stopping by the grocery to pick up liquor to refill them. “You need Drama … Drama … mine.”
Carrie nodded sagely, as if she were the best cousin in all the world and not simply using Treflee as an excuse.
Oh, boy! Slurred, choppy speech and sway were not good.
Finally, another ten minutes later, the bridal party from hell reappeared carrying brown bags full of liquor and pineapple mugs decorated with tiny umbrellas.
Carrie waved a box of Dramamine at her. “Got it!”
“Open the van doors, Ty,” Treflee whispered to him. “Before they escape. Watching over them is like herding cats.” She sighed. “I suppose you’re going to insist on checking their mugs for bugs?”
“No need. I’m sure they’re clean.” He winked at her again.
Great, I’m the only one he doesn’t trust to bring home a clean pineapple mug!
Carrie insisted Treflee down a Dramamine before they got in the van.
Treflee humored her. “Satisfied?”
Carrie nodded and waved the girls into the van. Finally, the girls were all loaded up.
Grinning like an idiot, in a way that only made him more attractive and brought up her hackles of suspicion, Ty climbed into the van and opened the bag.
“Think fast!” He tossed a small box to each girl and watched their reaction times. Definitely impaired. Hopefully they’d sleep it off before they reached Hana.
“Heard you girls are on the lookout for Carrie’s ex. Thought these would help. Bonus—they’re great for scoping out the flesh on the beach. Very subtle.”
Carrie broke out laughing as Ty handed a box to Treflee.
“Hawaiian rearview spy glasses? ‘Check out the beach bodies and action behind you without drawing attention.’” Treflee arched a brow as she read the front of the box they came in. “You got these at the restaurant?”
He nodded. “Awesome, huh?”
Oh, the man is good. He had a killer sense of humor.
“Funny, I didn’t see Bond’s gadget maker, Q, lurking about anywhere?”
He laughed. “He wouldn’t be much of a spy if you did, would he?”
She shook her head and leaned in to whisper, “Is that where you go for all your spy gadgets?”
He just grinned.
“‘Secretly see what’s going on behind you. For ages over five’” Treflee read aloud from the back of the box. “And look, they have UV filter lenses and flexible frames. Wow! High-tech.”
“Yeah, and they say Maui on them, too. Notice that?”
“Yeah, I did. Great camouflage for the vacationing spy. Blend right in with the other tourists and no one’s the wiser,” she quipped.
“Exactly!” He smiled and looked directly at the girls. “All the secret agents on the island use them.”
And then she couldn’t help it. She burst out laughing as she pulled hers out of the box. “Pink? Very subtle.”
“And girly,” he added.
Yeah. He knew pink was her fave. Nice of him to remember.
She put her glasses on and gave them a try. Hmmm, worked like a charm. She could watch Laci scowling at her with crystal clarity.
“Okay, let’s get this show on the road.” Ty started the engine. “We don’t want to be on the roa
d in the dark.”
No, she didn’t want to be anywhere in the dark right now. Not after the vicious attack on the volcano. Funny how even though it had happened in daylight, dark still seemed scarier. Then there was the fact that being anywhere in the dark with Ty was dangerous business—to her heart.
They were off. One thing you could say about Ty—he drove smoothly. No sudden starts or stops, just fluid motion with the scenery humming by.
He should be smooth. He’d taken enough extreme driving school classes for half a dozen men. You didn’t get to be a high-performance driver like Bond without some schooling. Plus he loved to drive. Which meant that when they were out, he always did the driving and she did the backseat driving. Hey, whatever worked.
In this case, Treflee appreciated his smooth skills on the twisting, turning, sometimes one-lane roads, other times on the sharp turns. And she got to admire the view, which consisted partly of his strong profile.
In the back, the girls opened their liquor and had a round of pineapple schnapps, getting louder and sillier as they drove on.
Ty played tour guide to perfection, pulling over for all scenic spots and tourist traps. They stopped at the painted bark eucalyptus trees—beautiful. And the girls had another drink. The Maui Grown Market. Clink, have another drink. The Waikamoi Ridge Trail, where they strolled through trees, bamboo, and ferns. The Garden of Eden Arboretum, where they spent a fascinating few hours strolling the amazing gardens. And Ty got so up close and personal with her, Treflee began thinking of the reason God had made woman for man in the original Garden of Eden. Back before there were fig leaves! Was it really appropriate to be fantasizing about your naked nearly ex?
And of course, clink pineapple mugs! Have another drink or two at the van before departing.
While the girls were distracted by their pineapple mugs full of spirits, Treflee was totally distracted by Ty.
Somehow at each stop, wherever she turned, however she turned, Ty was there beside her, flirting, teasing, smiling. He stood too close, brushed against her too often, touched her arm or her shoulder, whispered in her ear when a simple comment from afar would do. How he could be so calm when she was looking behind every bamboo shoot for a guy to jump out with a lethal bike pump was beyond her.
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