by Cathryn Cade
The fish swarmed back and forth with the rhythm of the surf, a waltz of underwater life. Their eyes on the snorkelers in their midst, they darted away whenever someone came too close. Claire kicked her way along, using her flippers and slow motions of her arms to move through the water.
Bella grabbed her arm and pointed to a large fish shaded in delicate turquoise and lavender, munching on the reef itself. His big face and beaky little mouth were in such contrast to his lovely colors that Claire laughed through her snorkel tube.
Daniel beckoned to them. Without waiting, he swam over the end of the reef to the deeper waters beyond, and Claire followed.
A school of small brown-and-white fish scooted along underneath Daniel, turning when he did, their little fins whirring. In spite of her pique, Claire had to smile at his comical escort. Then she blinked as she noticed the tangs swirling around his shoulders, also. None of the denizens of the reef fled from him—quite the opposite. They seemed to consider him one of them.
Daniel looked back again and hung motionless in the water, waiting for her. She swam up beside him, and their eyes met. His were nearly friendly behind the mask—must be an optical illusion. One she neither trusted nor welcomed, she assured herself. He was a retro jerk, and a man-slut besides.
He pointed down at the outer edge of the reef below. Claire looked and nearly swallowed her snorkel tube. Without thinking, she grabbed his arm, warm and hard in the cool water.
Two long, impossibly graceful shapes slithered out of the shadows of the reef only a few feet below. Eels, each as big around as her arm and twice as long. They were chocolate brown, with small, pretty white polka dots, but their open mouths revealed rows of needle-sharp teeth. Fins rippling like lace, they passed just below Claire and Daniel and away into the shadows of a large clump of coral.
She grinned at him jubilantly around her snorkel, squeezing his arm. He winked at her and then swam on, towing her with him. Realizing at last that she was hanging on him, she yanked her hand away and lingered, waiting for Jack and Bella. Bella pantomimed the length of the eels excitedly.
Daniel led them along the reef, pointing out a pair of long, translucent needlefish swimming just under the surface, and a pair of beautiful Moorish idols lingering by a coral outcrop, their long dorsal fins dangling like loose ribbons.
Jack pointed to a colorful striped fish swimming busily along the top of the reef, and Bella gave him a thumbs-up. She tapped Claire’s shoulder and swung her feet down to stick her head out of the water. Claire surfaced to join her, pulling her snorkel from her mouth.
“What?”
Bella laughed. “That was your humuhumunukunukuapua’a.”
“Oh, good. Wouldn’t want to miss him.”
Daniel surfaced beside them, water streaming from his ebony hair and the broad, golden slope of his shoulders. He pulled his mouthpiece free. “We should head back.”
“Oh, not yet,” Claire protested. “We’ve only been out for a little while.”
“Few minutes longer. You’ll burn.”
They continued on to the end of the reef, and then Daniel pointed decisively back the way they’d come. The others turned, but Claire looked longingly at the low ridge of lava jutting out into the beckoning blue and the clear sandy bottom beyond. She really wanted to know what was on the other side.
The water swirled around her, and a big hand grabbed hers. Daniel pulled her upright to face him above the water. He was frowning through his mask, his snorkel mouthpiece hanging by his jaw.
“I know this island and this sun,” he said to her. “You listen to me and to Frank, you got it? You stay out here too long, you gonna burn your pretty ass.”
Claire blinked. Somewhere in there had been a compliment. But he was lecturing her like her father when she’d been a kid, fooling around his fishing boat.
He stroked backward in the water, towing her with him. His grip on her hand was firm but surprisingly gentle. She wanted to hold on, but she reminded herself of her resolve to stay away and pulled at her hand. His grip tightened.
“And don’t come out here by yourself,” he went on. “There are tides and currents you don’t know that will carry you clear down past the south end of the island. Not to mention manō.”
She spit her mouthpiece out. “Oh, you and your manō. Are there really any right around here?”
“Tiger sharks all over these islands.” He snapped his strong white teeth at her. “They’d love to take a bite of dat ‘ēlemu. Sunburn like barbeque fo dem.”
Claire rolled her eyes at him and his pidgin, but she was suddenly happy to follow him back across the reef, hand still tucked in his. She looked over her shoulder as they crossed it, swearing she could feel flat, cold eyes watching her from the blue depths.
When she stood up in the shallow water by the dock to take off her fins, her legs were rubbery. “Whoa, I still feel like I’m moving.”
“You rode the waves over an hour,” he said at her shoulder, his deep voice rumbling in her ear. “Your body gets used to it.”
The waves weren’t the only thing keeping her off balance. Trying desperately to ignore him, Claire handed her fins and snorkel up to Frank on the dock. “Thanks, Frank. Do you want me to rinse these?”
“I’ll do it, thanks,” he said, squatting down to accept the gear. “See anything good?”
“Eels and turtles and lots of fish. It was great.”
Frank looked over her shoulder. “You got your eels to come out and show off, huh?”
Daniel reached past her to hand his snorkel and mask to Frank. “They gave a good show,” he agreed, his breath gusting on her cheek, his chest brushing her back.
Claire sidestepped away, jittery as a sand crab. So now he couldn’t keep away from her? She waded onto the hot sand, peeling off her rash-guard shirt as she headed for the shower.
Bella waded out to join her. “You okay?” she asked quizzically as Claire rinsed off. “You look ticked off.”
“I’m fine, thanks.” Claire smiled, stepping aside so her friend could rinse off. She was not getting into a discussion of her weird, tangled relationship with Daniel, even with Bells.
The way he blew cold and then hot. The way he’d kissed her, and then pushed her away. The way he’d flirted with her earlier today. The way his gaze on her nearly naked self at once thrilled and confused her.
He must think she looked all right in a bikini. He hadn’t offered her a muumuu, yet anyway. Of course, his girlfriend was even heavier, she thought sourly, remembering the tall, plump Hawaiian woman.
Back at the beach lanai, she pulled two bottles of cold water from the cooler and handed one to Bella. Claire sank back in her own lounger, sighing with pleasure at the heat of the sun. She just wanted to catch some rays and forget about men. From the corner of her eye she watched Daniel stroll out onto the dock where Frank was working. Daniel said something, and Frank looked over at the beach. The two men laughed, the low rich sound carrying across the bay.
“I’m going for a walk with Zane,” Bella said.
“Are you kidding?” Claire groaned. “Where are you getting all this energy?”
“I don’t know. There’s just so much to see. I can’t sit still.”
“Well, have fun.” Claire didn’t understand Bella’s fascination with the rain forest above them, but whatever made her friend happy.
She closed her eyes and relaxed until a large hand closed on her arm. She opened her eyes to find a broad silhouette blocking the sun. Daniel, of course. He was trying to drive her crazy.
“Time to move into the shade.” His fingers trailed down her arm as he straightened. She sat bolt upright, struggling to control her shiver of reaction.
Daniel shook his head at Jack, sprawled in the lounger next to hers. “Hey, haole boy, gonna fry yourself, first day out.”
Claire didn’t usually burn; she tanned fast and well. But annoyance at Daniel aside, the tropical sun was strong, and she didn’t want to ruin her vacation.
She swung her feet to the hot sand and rose. She looked down at Jack, who did look flushed. “Come on,” she invited. “Let’s go for another swim.”
“You go,” he said, yawning. “I’m just gonna move into the shade.”
“Race you out to the reef,” Daniel offered, a challenge in his voice.
“You’re on,” she shot back. She was grinning as she dashed across the strip of hot sand. She executed a low, racing dive into the surf, and let herself glide forward underwater before coming up into a fast crawl. Rolling for a breath on the third stroke, she noted that Daniel was nowhere in sight. Yes! All those laps at the YMCA were paying off.
Then, midway across the bay, a large sleek body surged past her, leaving her awash in wavelets. She battled her way to the first outcropping of the reef and let her legs swing down, her toes resting on the lava. She swiped water from her eyes with her hands and squinted in disbelief at the man dripping on the flat rock before her.
“H-how did you…?” She peered over her shoulder at the distance to the beach and then up at Daniel again. It just wasn’t possible for anyone to swim that fast, but there was no way for him to have cheated, either.
He grinned at her, white teeth flashing in his glistening face.
“Oooh!” She smacked her hands on the surface in irritation and then splashed him with a handful of water for good measure.
He didn’t even bother to duck, just closed his eyes as the water hit him, and then chuckled, that deep huh-huh in his chest that she’d heard on the boat. “Poor loser, wahine?”
Speechless, she made a face at him. With a sudden move that made her gasp, he slid into the water before her, only a few inches away, and sank until his head and shoulders were level with hers.
“Want me to show you how it’s done?” His low, rough murmur licked through her like a curl of hot liquid, and the matching heat in his eyes drew her in. Claire’s insides clenched with sheer desire. She wanted him, right now, just the way he was, sleek and powerful and wet, a wild creature in his element.
She shook her head, taking a step back, off the lava onto the sandy bottom. She curled her toes into the soft sand. This island was getting to her—the wild dreams she was having every night, and now this. He was a huge, hot, tattooed native, yes, but still obnoxious. He’d kissed her, but apparently only to make a point.
“Maybe.” She shrugged. Yes, say yes, her libido clamored.
“’A’ole paha,” he answered.
“What does that mean?”
He shook his head, drawing the corners of his wide mouth down beneath his mustache in mock sympathy. She watched in reluctant fascination. “Means ‘maybe not’.”
“Why not?” Now she was confused. Were they still talking about swimming?
“Here, I’ll show you.” He took one of her hands in his and drew her arm out to the side. Letting her hand go, he stretched his arm past hers, his knotted forearm sliding along the sensitive skin of her palm. “There, you see?”
She turned her head, looking at their arms lying together in the water. With their shoulders even, the tips of her fingers did not reach the base of his palm, and his arms were easily twice as big around as hers, maybe three times. He had what swimmers called “wingspan”.
Claire realized her mouth was open and pressed her lips together, sucking the lower one between her teeth. “Um…I see what you mean,” she managed huskily.
“Yeah?” he watched her lips.
She nodded, her arm relaxing against his, her hand curving naturally over the top of his wrist. His skin was warm and smooth over the knotted muscle and tendon beneath. She could feel his pulse against her fingertips, beating slow and perfect time.
Her breathing slowed to match, and she gazed into his eyes, mesmerized as they narrowed with intent. The water swirled between them as he moved closer yet.
A loud yell from the beach jolted her out of her sensual spell. Claire kicked backward in the water as Zane and Bella dashed into the water, laughing. They both struck out for the dock.
Claire shaded her eyes with one hand, watching as they splashed vigorously across the bay. Darn their timing, she thought, and then blinked as Daniel moved again, diving under the water. He swam away, a sleek shape gliding out toward the break in the reef.
“Those two must run on batteries,” Jack called from the beach. Claire nodded, looking surreptitiously for Daniel. He was gone. She swam back toward the beach.
Zane popped up by the dock first. Frank was working by his boat, but he paused to smile down at them.
“Aue,” Zane crowed, standing in the hip-deep water. “I won. I hike faster, I swim faster. Yeah, let’s hear it for da kāne, the man.”
“I beat you up to the overlook,” Bella said indignantly, standing up beside him to flip her wet hair back.
“Sounds to me like you got a tie,” Frank said, deadpan. “Maybe you should arm wrestle.”
“Yeah.” Zane flexed his biceps teasingly at Bella. “Let’s go, wahine.”
“I’m not messing with you,” Bella said, her nose in the air as she waded up onto the beach. “But Claire could take you.”
Zane followed her back to the lounge area. He cast a look of disbelief at Claire, who had waded out of the water and stood in the sun. “Uh, no offense, but she’s a wahine too, yeah?”
Claire and Bella looked at him. He raised his hands defensively. “Hey, just stating facts here.”
“You didn’t see her in our self-defense class,” Bella grinned. “She threw the instructor the second week.”
He nodded. “Self-defense, yeah? That’s good for wahines to know.”
Claire smirked at him, sleeking water from her hair. “Twenty bucks says I can take you, even if I am a wahine.” These Ho’omalu men were so full of themselves. She was ready to show at least one of them that women could beat them at something.
He snorted. “Yeah, that’d be the day.”
She waggled her eyebrows tauntingly. “Oh yeah? You wanna piece of me, local boy? Not arm wrestling. Full body.”
He laughed, his face even redder. “Okay, yeah. You’re on.”
She beckoned to him. “C’mon. We’ll go in the water so no one gets hurt.”
Jack watched from his lounger in the shade, shaking his head. “You’re both crazy.”
Claire and Zane waded into the water, and Claire turned to him. The two of them circled each other, both laughing, eyeing each other. Then the young Hawaiian darted at her, arms spread.
Adrenaline spiked, her heart pounding. He was fast, but she was ready. She let him grab her, and then twisted smoothly, sliding her forward foot past his and using her turn to shift her weight out from under him, letting his forward momentum flip him over her hip.
He landed in the water with a huge splash. Claire stood there, panting, glee tinged with guilt. Her arm hurt, but the move had worked—just like in class. Zane came up coughing water, swiping his face, his golden skin glistening.
“Wow,” he said, eyeing her with respect. “How’d you do that?”
She allowed herself a small smile, setting her hands on her hips. “Self-defense training.”
Bella was hopping up and down on the beach. “Woo-hoo! Wahine rule.”
“Evidently they do,” Jack agreed, saluting her with his beer bottle. “Go, wahine.”
“No wahine,” said a deep voice behind Claire. “Da kine tita.”
Her heart gave another great thump, but Claire made sure her smile was proudly intact as she turned to face Daniel, hands on her hips. “And just what does that mean?”
He waded up out of the bay, water streaming from him. His cheeks creased as his gaze ran down her body and back up again. She wanted to slap that smirk off his face—or kiss it off. That irritated her even more.
“It means you’re plenty tough island girl,” Zane said cheerfully. “One I want on my side in a beef, yeah?”
“Mahalo,” Claire said to him, ignoring Daniel.
“You gotta show me how to do that m
ove.” Zane slicked his wet hair back from his forehead.
“I’ll show you,” Daniel said. He waded past Claire to face Zane.
He cast a taunting look over his shoulder. “E maliu mai, e ku’u ipo. Pay attention, sweetheart. You might learn something.”
She gave a huff of displeasure and turned to splash back up onto the beach beside Bella. Her friend widened her eyes at her and then turned back to watch. Claire watched as well, unwillingly fascinated as Daniel coached his young cousin, showing him the move Claire had used on him.
The two men grappled, Zane grunting with effort. Claire could see that Daniel was being careful with his cousin. Daniel had at least seventy or eighty pounds on him.
After a couple of failed attempts, Zane managed to take Daniel down. He threw his head back, letting loose a hoot of triumph. Bella cheered enthusiastically, jumping up and down in a scissor kick Claire remembered from high school cheerleading.
Daniel emerged from the water like a sea creature breaching, not even bothering to wipe the water from his face. If only he weren’t so darn gorgeous. As for his flirting today, was that just because he thought she was easily available?
“Nice job, Zane,” she called, joining Bella’s clapping. “But you should’ve held him under longer.”
Turning, she sauntered back to her lounge chair and her cold beer.
“You wanna piece o’ me?” Zane offered Jack, beckoning with a wide grin.
Jack laughed. “Mahalo, kanaka. I’ll pass. I’m here to relax, not throw my back out.”
To her displeasure, Daniel decided to join them on the lanai. He accepted a beer from Zane and sat in the sun, right in the middle of Claire’s sea view. Water sparkled in his jet hair, and ran from his broad shoulders in little rivulets, glittering against his golden skin. One drop followed the line of tattoos down his massive pectoral, and over the brown coin of his nipple. Her mouth watering, Claire looked away.
“Zane says you have a boat, Daniel,” Bella said. “Where do you keep it?”