“Yup! Last week. I graduated from second grade.”
“Wow,” Kai says, with more excitement than I probably mustered on Aya’s last day. “That’s so exciting. Oh my gosh, that means you’re going into third grade at the end of the summer?”
“I know. The time just flies by,” Aya says, sounding like me as she shakes her head with wonder.
Kai laughs at Aya’s lively way of communicating. I swear my child would be the perfect actress.
“Do we dance to music?” Aya asks.
“Of course, we do.” Kai kneels back down to her bag and sweeps her silky hair back over her shoulder, so she can find what she’s looking for.
I should stop staring. Maybe I should say something too. I’m acting like I forgot how to talk.
“So, are there different types of hula-ing?” I ask Kai.
“Hula-ing?” she repeats. “The Hula isn’t a verb. It’s a noun, a type of dance—a ritual. Did you ever leave base on Oahu?” She laughs after questioning me, but I guess I’m still acting like a Texan, with my lack of Hawaiian knowledge.
“Dad, how did you not know that? Even I knew that,” Aya digs the fact in a little harder.
“I don’t know how I missed the memo,” I tell her.
Kai pulls out a portable speaker and pairs her phone to it. “I guess it’s just going to be us today, but that’s okay. I can give you a private lesson.”
Aya doesn’t seem to care either way. I know she mentioned making new friends, but she always has her own agenda. If other kids want to join her, she welcomes them, but not much stops her from whatever path she’s going down. I’d like to think I had something to do with that. I want her to be a leader and never feel like she has to follow someone else’s dreams.
Kai turns up the music, and the sound of a ukulele and a steel guitar offer the soothing sounds I’ve become accustomed to.
“Aya, come on over here,” Kai says, pointing to a spot in front of me in the sun. With one more trip to her bag near the rock, Kai pulls out a grass skirt and a lei. She quickly helps Aya into the skirt and places the lei of flowers around her neck. “Okay, now you’re ready.”
Aya has a smile from ear to ear with pure happiness. “Are you just going to stand there and watch, or are you going to join us?” Kai asks me.
I laugh. “I’m a guy, so I’ll just watch.” Nice try.
“Uh, men dance the Hula all the time, Denver. Don’t be insulting.” Of course, I would insult her. What else could I possibly do to her? “Let’s go. You’re wasting our time.”
Since I didn’t move quite fast enough for Miss Kai, she lunges toward me and grabs my wrist, pulling me over to where Aya is patiently waiting. “I want to watch Aya learn,” I say, trying my best to get out of this. Last night was enough entertaining to last me until at least tonight, when I have to do it all over again.
“No, no, it’s important that you learn too,” Kai says with a devilish smirk. This is payback for what I did to her. Definitely payback. “First, cup your hands over your chest, like this.” She does as she instructs, gently resting her cupped hands over her bare chest.
“Like this?” Aya asks, mirroring Kai perfectly.
“Exactly,” Kai replies enthusiastically. “This means aloha to the guests who may be watching our dance.” I glance over to see if Aya is following directions and she is, so I cup my hands over my chest, feeling like a tool. “Very good. Now, we slowly open our arms out like this to say welcome.”
“I love this!” Aya shouts, not so eloquently.
Kai giggles and steps out of our three-person line and watches us perform her instruction. “That’s great.” She’s not paying much attention to me, thankfully, but it also makes me feel like a bigger moron for standing here out in the open—hula dancing. I realize it’s a common tradition here, but we’re surrounded by passing guests, not locals.
“Well, that was fun. I think I broke a sweat,” I tell her.
“We’re not done,” Kai says, pointing at me. “Hush.” Did she just hush me? “Now, we’re going to learn the basic hula arm movement. I want you to place both of your arms out to your right side, keeping your hands gently cupped.” I’m watching Aya follow Kai’s instructions, still being mildly inattentive, on purpose. “Aya can you show me what an ocean wave looks like as it’s rolling into the sand? Show me with your hands.”
Aya perfectly swoops her hands down and up in a wave motion while looking up into the sky. It’s as if she’s done this before, following the instructions so flawlessly. If I tried, I’d look like an Egyptian mummy trying to break free from the wrap. “How’s that?” Aya asks.
“Oh gosh, that’s absolutely perfect, Aya. You’re obviously a natural.” Kai crosses her arms over her chest and heads over to me. “And you?”
“You don’t want to see my wave,” I tell her.
“I do. I’m teaching a class, and you’re my student. I don’t want to get in trouble for not doing my job.” I can’t tell if she’s being serious or not since she’s obviously mastered the best poker face I’ve ever seen, which is a lot to say after some of the men I spent years around.
“Fine.” I toss my hands out to the side, doing little to cup my hands. I’d rather they hang from my wrists. Complying with her demand would be too simple. If she’s going to force me to dance, I’m not going to make it easy. Rather than getting annoyed with me though, she takes my hands and gently shapes them into slight cups.
“I’m sure you’ve seen what a wave looks like,” she says.
“Never, actually.”
Kai wraps her small hands around my wrists and guides me in the correct motion. “See, that’s not so hard. Is it?”
“Nope. Not hard at all,” I say, louder than I intended.
“Good. Now, switch sides, and do the same thing on your left.” Aya has lost herself in the music and is dancing away to her own beat. “Now that we have the hand gesture down, we can add in some hip movement.”
I swear the record just scratched, but that would only be in my head. “Oh, I already know how to do this,” Aya says, showing us that she does, in fact, know how to sway her hips to the same rhythm of her hand movements.
“Good job, Aya,” Kai says while moving around behind me. What is she doing—
Kai’s hands fall softly onto my hips. My trunks are lower than I thought because her hands are on my skin, and I need to think of hurt puppies or Aya’s mom—something horrible—or this won’t end well.
“Like this,” Kai says softly. She knows exactly what she’s doing right now. Unbelievable. Is it, though? I did this to her last night. She guides my hips slowly from side to side, and she needs to take her hands off me–like–right this second.
“Okay—so game, set, match—you win. Yup. We’re good. I—um—can you watch Aya for a sec? I need to run to the restroom really quick.”
Kai chuckles. “Of course. Oh, Denver, did you want a lei to take with you? I have an extra.”
I turn to face her, dumbfounded, wanting to ask if she’s kidding, but by the arch in her brow, I don’t need to ask. I turn back toward the pool area and continue walking, thinking about everything and anything except for Kai’s hands on my hips.
“Twenty Waia Road,” I tell the driver.
“Are we going to see our new house now?” Aya asks as I buckle her into the cab.
“Yup, and our truck should be there by now too.”
“I hope my room is purple,” she says.
“Well, we can paint it if it’s not, so don’t worry about that.”
“I had fun today. I wish we could live at the hotel with Miss Kai.”
My heart does a little flip at the sound of her name coming out of Aya’s mouth. “Baby, Kai doesn’t live at the hotel. She just works there, and people don’t typically live at a hotel.”
“Fine. Then maybe we should have Kai move in with us,” she continues.
“Aya, you just met her.”
“So did you,” she points out.
&
nbsp; “I’m not the one suggesting she should live with us or we should live with her.”
“Yeah, you are.” Why am I fighting with a seven-year-old, like a seven-year-old?
The ride is less than ten minutes from the hotel, which is good because by the looks of the cars out front, I think we’re going to be heading right back there. The previous renters were supposed to be out of here hours ago. Maybe it’s the cleaning crew, but the toilet paper running along the front shrubs doesn’t scream clean to me. “Um, can you just hold on a minute?” I ask the driver. “I have a feeling we’re going to need you to take us back to the hotel.”
“Of course,” he says.
“Aya, come with me,” I tell her, opening my door. She unclasps her seatbelt and slides out behind me.
“What’s the matter?” she asks.
“Hold on, baby.” I take her by the hand and warily walk up to the front door and knock.
“People are yelling inside,” Aya says.
I pull her behind me and lean over to peer into the frosted glass window. I can’t see much, but there are people inside.
The door flies open, and a burly guy wearing a stained, wife-beater shirt with his gut hanging out stares at me for a long second. “What do you want?”
“I’m the new renter. Are you—”
“We’re the current renters—the renters who aren’t leaving. Take a hike, kid.”
If Aya weren’t standing behind me, I’d have more words to share with this bozo, but I’m not risking anything with her here. I pick her up from behind me with a scoop of my arm and continue backward, shielding her from whatever shit is going on in the house. “Dad!”
I ignore her as I turn around and jog toward the cab, quickly tossing her inside. “Buckle up, Aya.”
“Thanks for waiting. Mind taking us back to the hotel?” I ask the driver.
“No problem, kalani.”
“That means ‘chief’ in Hawaiian,” Aya schools me. She’s learned most Hawaiian words in school and knows I’m not well versed, so she feels the need to teach me whenever necessary.
“I know. Thank you.”
“Are we not getting that house?” Aya asks.
“It doesn’t look that way. I guess we’ll have to go find something on our own. I’m worried that the truck wasn’t there, though.”
I pull out my phone and see a missed call from Noa. Of course. I didn’t feel the damn thing vibrate. I call him back, and he picks up on the first ring.
“Dude, I am so sorry. They are having a legal issue with the house you were supposed to rent, and I don’t think that option is going to pan out. First, the realtor I was working with needs to find a new career. She didn’t tell me about the situation until an hour ago. Second, she had your stuff sent to storage and your truck sent to the hotel. I’m so sorry. I don't even know what to say. I’m friends with this woman, but I’ve never worked with her before, and I won’t be working with her again; trust me.”
“Yeah, we just showed up at the house, and there are some really classy inhabitants still there who weren’t very welcoming. It’s fine, though, but do you know where the storage unit is? I have to get some stuff out of there. We were each traveling with just a bag full of crap.”
“Yeah, yeah, it’s like a mile down the road from the hotel, so it’s close by. I’ll totally help you find another place. I know you’re not familiar with the area yet.”
“Noa, don’t worry about it. I have it under control. I’ll be fine, but thank you for trying to help.”
“You know what? I’ll see if Lea can get you a room for a few nights at the hotel. It’s the least I can do, seeing as this is my fault.”
“That would be really great. It would give me time to look around a bit, so I find a good spot for us.”
“Plus, spending more time with Kai wouldn’t be the worst thing … hint, hint. Right?”
I clear my throat and look over at Aya, who’s gazing and daydreaming out the window, probably about the same thing Noa is teasing me about. “When did I become prime bait for everyone to play matchmaker with?”
“After you turn twenty-five, you have to throw your hands up.”
“That’s insane,” I tell him.
“I know, but she’s hot, and I’m marrying her sister, and … just think … we could be brosephs for life, dude!”
“Bye, Noa.”
“See you tonight, broseph.”
“Bye, Noa.”
“Good news,” I tell Aya.
“You’re marrying Kai, and she’s going to be my new mom?” Holy shit. She’s seven, but even at that age, why would she think life moves that quickly?
“Who has gotten into your head?”
“What are you talking about? Someone can get in my head?” She wraps her arms over the top of her head, taking me literally.
“Never mind,” I laugh.
12
Kai
“Kai … Kai,” I hear Lea shouting from across the pool.
I pull my sunglasses down the bridge of my nose to find out what she wants and why she needs to yell it. I put my hands out to the side questioningly, and she holds her pointer finger up while jogging toward me. She knows I can’t leave my chair while on duty, though she forgets daily.
“What’s the matter?” I ask as she makes her way over to me.
“Will you be okay if I go straight to Noa’s after work? He’s going to pick me up since neither of us is working tomorrow.”
How is it almost the end of the week? I feel like the week just started. “Why wouldn’t I be okay?”
She rests her arms on the chair’s middle brace and looks up at me. “I know I’ve been gone a lot lately, and I hate the thought of you sitting alone every night.”
I reposition myself in my chair because I’m uncomfortable with the topic I’ve been trying to come to terms with. “Lea, you’re a grown woman, and you’re getting married soon. It’s inevitable that you’re not going to be with me every night anymore. It’s okay. You don’t have to worry about me.”
Lea doesn’t look like she believes what I’m saying, but it’s true. I’ll be fine. I don’t mind being alone, and what matters is that she’s happy. “Maybe once I move, you might consider a roommate?”
“I can hardly live with you, never mind some random woman.”
“True,” Lea agrees. “A puppy?”
“I’m not home during the day. It wouldn’t be fair to the dog.”
“True … a boyfriend?”
“Lea.”
“It’s going to happen whether you like it or not. It’s like a train coming at you full speed, and there’s no time to get out of the way.” She slaps her hands together, making a crashing sound.
My forehead crinkles from the confusion running through my head. “Having a boyfriend is like a train running me over?”
“No,” she groans. “Why are you so annoying?”
“Why do you use weird analogies?”
“You should go out with Denver or something, okay?” she continues.
Denver has been coming and going from the pool for the last few days with his flirty winks, smiles, and compliments that make my stomach turn inside out. All I have done is try to maintain a straight face, ignoring the fluttering in my heart, along with the desire to explore the avenue of whatever it is he represents, but I don’t think he’s my type. He’s basically a stripper in a sense, and with my lack of dating experience, I feel like I’d be diving into shallow waters just looking to get hurt. Heartache isn’t on my agenda. I’ve experienced enough of that to last me a lifetime.
“Is Denver supposed to be the train in this situation?”
“Well, obviously.”
“So, if I don’t move out of the way—I mean if I had time, that is, Denver would run over me?”
“You know what? Forget it.” She slaps her palm against her forehead.
“Lolo.”
“Lolo? Don’t call me stupid because you’re saying ridiculous things.”
> Lea rolls her eyes and walks off in a huff. I never ask for her wrath, yet it’s always handed to me whether I like it or not.
Speaking of the devil—it’s like they’re in cahoots. She tries to set something up, and he comes walking along casually as if she didn’t try to push the boyfriend subject on me just two minutes ago. Maybe I’m inexperienced, but I’m sure a date of sorts would come before a boyfriend title, so I think Lea’s expectations are a little off. Denver hasn’t even asked me out. In fact, I doubt he is thinking of me in any way, other than as an easy target to embarrass at his Bunville job, which won’t be happening again.
“Aloha, Miss Kai,” Denver says, approaching me alone today, without his adorable sidekick.
“Good morning,” I offer, keeping my focus set on the kids playing in the pool.
“I have a question to ask you,” he says.
“Do you, now? Did Lea tell you to ask me a question?” I ask.
He chuckles, and out the corner of my eye, I see him shaking his head. “No, but since you’re assuming that, I’m going to remember not to tell Noa my plans before I act on them. Those two have the biggest mouths I’ve ever seen in my life.”
“Well, that’s something we can agree on, but what is your question?” He lost me before he started talking about Noa.
He sighs with exasperation. “I told Noa I was going to ask you to do something tonight, and he obviously went running to Lea, who must have tipped you off well enough to assume she was setting something up. Right?”
“Yeah, they both have incredibly large mouths and can’t be trusted with any type of information, important or not.”
“Noted. Definitely noted.” Denver was going to ask me out. I nearly missed that part while getting riled up about learning that Lea and her soulmate happen to have a matching set of big mouths. “Anyway, I was able to secure a sitter for Aya tonight. For some reason, when I started working with Noa on Monday, I thought he told me I was on the schedule each weeknight this week, but apparently I either misunderstood him, or he meant to say ‘except Thursday.’ I should have looked at the schedule sooner than last night, I guess. In any case, I’m off tonight, and I keep hearing something about the sunset on the peak of Mt. Haleakala. Would you be up for joining me tonight?”
The Man Cave Collection: Manservant, Man Flu, Man Handler, and Man Buns Page 97