What a Girl Wants

by Selena Robins

  Maddie sighed, feeling like the proverbial third wheel. She pinned her gaze on Alex and Natalie and grudgingly admitted they made a stunning couple. The earlier warm bubble-bath feeling now turned tepid, and all the bubbles dissolved.

  “A hui hou,” Alex said to Natalie.

  “What does a hui hou mean?” Maddie asked as they headed for the door.

  He opened the door before answering. “It means have a nice day.”

  They left the shop and walked a few yards. Alex stopped in his tracks and looked away. “Can you wait here for a minute? I want to ask Natalie if she can recommend a good steakhouse in this area. Where the locals eat. You know, for dinner.”

  Yeah, right. More like recommend her phone number.

  Alex didn’t lie well, unless he was nabbing a scoop. When they kidded around and told tall tales, he shuffled his feet and looked away, the way he was doing right now.

  Her spirits sank even lower when she thought about the conspiratorial look that had passed between Natalie and Alex. But she had no claims on him, he was free to do as he pleased.

  She sat on a bench, settled back, and tried to shake the distress from her mind. She pulled her recorder and a new tape from her tote bag. Work helped her cope with rejection.

  With the recorder light on, she began her monologue. “For the romantic couple, the island’s restaurants are seductive. Imagine having an intimate dinner on an outdoor patio, nestled in a cozy corner overlooking the sea, a starlit sky forming a canopy overhead. Of course, the island’s young beauties, especially the ones working in the shops, could entice your man away from you. No, nix that last remark.”

  She ran her fingers through her hair. “To continue. Dinner itself can also be sexy and naughty, with rich and creamy textures, a delightful foreplay to the evening ahead when you stroll along the ocean’s coast with that special someone, and gaze into the sunset.” She shook her head, attempting to wipe out the image of Alex holding Natalie’s centerfold-worthy body.

  A friendly looking older woman sat next to her on the bench. Maddie returned her smile and asked, “Excuse me. Do you speak English?”

  “Aloha. Yes, I speak English. What can I do for you?”

  “Can you please tell me what…a hui hou means?”

  “Till we meet again.”

  “Yeah, I thought it was something like that.” Maddie took a deep breath and nodded. “Aloha and thank you.”

  Her creativity now deflated, she clicked off her recorder and dropped it into her bag. The reason for her dejection walked toward her with a smile as wide as that of a kid in a candy store. Correction. A jewelry store. He had Natalie’s phone number in his pocket, no doubt.

  She knew when it was time to give up, throw in the towel, the lingerie, and even the Kama Sutra book. Why had she ever thought she was woman enough for a man like him?

  What did her mother always say? “Get over one man by getting under another.” For the first time in her life, she was actually going to consider Felicia’s advice.

  “I’m ready for more shopping.” Alex sounded pleased with himself.

  “Did you get her address too?” she blurted out and then wished her mouth had a rewind button.

  He cocked his head to the side and touched her chin. “I didn’t catch that. What did you say?”

  “I need a hat for my sundress too,” she answered over her rapidly beating heart. “But I’d like to head back. I’ve had enough shopping for today.”

  Unfortunately, she’d found what she wasn’t looking for.

  Chapter Twelve

  “Sometimes I wonder if men and women really suit each other.

  Perhaps they should live next door and just visit now and then.”

  —Katharine Hepburn

  The next afternoon Maddie stretched out on a lounge chair by the pool, as she worked on her article and dictated into her recorder. She drummed her fingers on her bare leg in tune with Israel Kamakawiwo’ole’s beautiful rendition of “Over the Rainbow” resounding from the tiki bar.

  “Hmmm. Where was I?” Oh yes, she was dictating a commentary about the hot bachelors she’d met at Mr. Hollister’s party. “Single gals will want to flirt with tanned eye candy, lick salt off margarita glasses, discover private corners and roll around in the fine sand. Yes, you will get sand in your bikini, but you’ll love it. And that sounds exactly like the right plan for this single gal.”

  She clicked off her recorder and tossed it into her beach bag. At the same time she clicked off any more thoughts of Alex. It was time for a siesta in a hammock to rest up for the fun she intended on having without Mr. Full-of-Principles. He was full of himself. From hereon in, they were only good friends, pals.

  Her plan for sexual boot camp had been hugely dumb.

  It wasn’t the tropical sun that burned her cheeks, it was embarrassment at her behavior. Especially since her plans had taken a turn into screwball land.

  She wiped a bead of sweat from her brow. Oh, God, what was I thinking? Everything I did and said was so frickin’ stupid.

  How dim she must have looked. Not to mention desperate. Like her mother. Okay, that almost made her hurl. She was in no way anything like Serial Bride.

  She took a sip of lemonade, then pressed the cool glass against her forehead.

  After all, can’t a woman be spontaneous and crazy every now and then?

  Taking a deep breath of salty air, she resolved that it was time to get over Alex. Move on.

  Alex can go his stripper-boob chasing way, and I’ll go my fun-loving way.

  She tried to ease the inexplicable ache in her chest at the thought of Alex with another woman. Odd. She had seen him dating over the years. She had never been jealous before. Okay, maybe a little, but not to the point where she wanted to smack him so hard he’d have to maximize his dental plan.

  Why did it bother her so much now?

  Because the man is a tease and a big jerk.

  A tanned, blondish guy peeked out from the edge of the pool. He beamed a “Say hello to me” smile to her. She smiled back.

  He lifted himself out.

  Damn, he’s wearing a banana hammock. That’s wrong on so many levels. She liked her rocks in a cocktail drink, not peeking out of swimwear.

  She turned her smile upside down and shot Mr. Speedo a “Don’t bother me” glare.

  Next.

  She scanned the pool area for other eligibles.

  The sudden appearance of a large shadow hovering over her chair and the faint clean scent of citrus sandalwood interrupted her search.

  She turned her head to the side, away from him.

  Alex touched her arm.

  Annoyed at her traitorous heart for performing a little flip at the contact, she clicked her tongue and shut her eyes.

  “Hey, Mads.”

  She slid her sunglasses down to cover her eyes and clicked her tongue again. Louder, this time.

  “Maddie, look at me.” He lifted the sunglasses off her face, turned her head toward him, and pulled up a chair. With his elbows on his thighs, he locked eyes with her. “You’ve been ignoring me and acting strange since yesterday. What’s up?”

  She shook her head at his perplexed expression. He was the most intelligent man she knew. How could he not understand her annoyance at his picking up Natalie in front of her? Least he could have done was admit that he went back into the jewelry shop to get her phone number. “I’m not in the mood to talk.”

  He nodded. “I understand.”

  “You, do, huh?”

  He lay back in the chair with his hands behind his head. “Totally.”

  “Aren’t you the enlightened one.” Not.

  “Yeah, remember, I did grow up with a few sisters.” He winked.

  He actually winked.

  Idiot man.

  “I get it,” he said.r />
  “Get this.” She sat up. “You were right. And I was wrong. You happy now?” She knew she was more pissed at herself than at him, but he wasn’t helping the situation one bit.

  “Right about what?”

  “Us. Me. You. We won’t work.”

  “Hey, I thought we cleared that up the other day.” He gave her what looked like a sympathetic smile. “Okay, you won’t be yourself for a few days. I get it.”

  Again with the “I get it.” The nerve.

  She gathered her book, reading glasses and lotion and tossed them into her beach bag.

  He touched her arm. “I’ll shut up now, and we can enjoy the sun in silence.”

  Any minute now she expected Mr. Know-It-All to pull out a bottle of Midol. She hoped he would do exactly that, because she’d take a lot of pleasure in sending him into the Soprano Hall of Fame.

  She stood and grabbed her flowered sarong.

  “Where are you going?” He pointed behind her. “Look, Frank is headed this way. How about I order you something sweet? A chocolate martini?”

  Cripes. What’s he gonna suggest next, a diuretic for bloating?

  She tied the sarong around her hips. “Ever since we’ve arrived I’ve done some stupid things. And not all of it, including my mood today, has anything to do with PMS, you big idiot.” She clutched her beach bag tight, resisting the urge to bop him over the head with it and dashed toward her room.

  “Hey, gorgeous,” Tim said, stepping onto the patio. “Where are you going in such a hurry?”

  “To a place where I won’t have to encounter stupidity of the third kind.”

  “Huh?”

  She waved off any further conversation and pushed through the glass doors. First things first, take a shower, shake off her conversation with the idiot and then start having some real fun.

  Without said idiot.

  Confused, Alex watched Maddie leave.

  Man, he’d never seen her this moody before.

  He sighed. He didn’t like the fact that she was obviously steamed at him, but he should at least be pleased that it looked like she’d given up her pursuit of a no-strings arrangement with him. Not that he’d ever given it serious thought. Okay, maybe for a few minutes.

  He hoped she didn’t think it was because she was undesirable.

  Was she blind? Christ, whenever he was within a few feet of her, the blood drained from his upper body.

  Since arriving on Makana he had a laser-like focus on her. Time to dim the light and let her enjoy herself on her own, and he’d do the same. She was a grown woman after all, and he’d never been accused of holding a double standard.

  “Hey.” Tim now occupied the same chair Maddie had vacated. “You look like someone tore the head off your G.I. Joe. And Maddie wants to have a tribal meeting to vote you off the island. Come on kiddies, can’t you get along?”

  Alex shrugged his shoulders. “I had a conversation with her that felt like I was in a phone booth with an open umbrella. It didn’t matter which way I turned, I got it in the eye. Sometimes I don’t get women.”

  Tim chuckled. “Just because you dated a few sorority houses full of them, you think that gives you the right to understand them. Don’t believe everything you think.” He settled back in the lounge chair. “She probably needs some time on her own. She’s worked that nice ass of hers hard since we got here.”

  “Hey, what’s with the nice ass comment? She’s not your hump-and-dump type.” So much for not interfering.

  Tim sat up straight in his seat. “Screw off. You know damn well Maddie’s my friend and I wouldn’t even consider anything like that.”

  “Yeah, yeah.”

  “And even if I did, what business is it of yours?”

  Alex scowled at Tim. “You wouldn’t, would you?”

  Tim flipped him the bird and was about to say something, but Alex interrupted, lifting his hand to halt him. “Yeah, I know, it’s none of my business what she does.” He settled back in the chair and looked up at the sky.

  “And for the record, I wouldn’t go there with her.” Tim settled back in his chair. “What the hell is wrong with you lately? You’ve been acting like an asshole.”

  Alex rubbed the back of his neck. “Not enough sleep. I have a few things on my mind.”

  “You’re still an asshole.” Tim slipped out of his T-shirt and hung it on the back of his chair. “Fuck, I know I’m going to regret this. Spill. What covert operation do you have up your sleeve?”

  Alex was hoping that for once, his instincts would prove wrong. He had a few days to investigate, dig deeper into Hollister’s past, get some timelines, some questions answered, and then confront the man. He signaled for Frank. “I’ll let you know if I need you.”

  Tim nodded and Alex ordered them each a beer.

  “You’re too wound up,” Tim said. “You need a diversion. Look around, man.”

  Alex checked out the bikinis. That’s exactly what he needed, a diversion. “Let’s hit a club tonight.”

  He couldn’t even remember the last time he had had sex. On his travels to the Middle East and southern Mexico, he’d put all thoughts of sex out of his mind. It hadn’t been hard to do—he’d spent most of his time dodging landmines.

  The odd journalist or civilian worker he had considered tangling with had either been married, and that was a boundary he’d never cross, or he’d heard her biological clock ticking loud and clear, another boundary he’d never cross. He’d substituted exercise for sex, resulting in the buff body that could now earn him some much needed and deserved sex on the island. He would have put that theory to the test with Stella the airline hostess, but Maddie’s creative mischief had interfered.

  A tall blonde wearing a black thong approached them, winked and flashed Alex a smile. He nodded, admiring her bikini and her smooth skin, tanned in all the right places.

  He closed his eyes and imagined this blonde in his bed.

  The blonde’s hair changed to auburn and her skin turned vanilla, with a sprinkling of freckles. His blonde fantasy flight crash-landed when he pictured Maddie’s long legs wrapped around his waist. Her lips were pressed against his. Damn, she tasted good.

  Oh, boy. It was going to take a lot more work than he’d bargained for to exorcise a certain green-eyed babe out of his system.

  “Hi,” the blonde said, snapping Alex out of his Maddie fantasy.

  “How are you?” Alex answered.

  “Interested.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  “He’s a guy. They don’t talk, they fight. It’s all that crazy testosterone.”

  —Kim Cattrell as Samantha Jones in Sex and the City

  Later that evening, Alex sat with Tim in the Mad Monkey bar with Codi, the blonde he’d met by the pool, and her friend Nicki, a brunette who held onto Tim’s arm and his every word. Codi sat next to Alex, flashing him smiles with her Angelina Jolie-like pillow lips, and every so often, winking. She wore a tight red halter-top and a matching miniskirt. A guy would have to be comatose not to want find out if her drapes matched her carpet.

  He tried to blank Maddie’s funky mood that afternoon from his mind, but it seemed futile.

  Codi giggled irritatingly at something Tim said.

  Maddie had an infectious laugh.

  Codi had blue eyes.

  They were too perfect a shade of blue. Had to be contact lenses.

  Even when Maddie wore glasses, her green eyes sparkled from behind the rims, especially when she ordered and ate dessert before the entree.

  Codi had a big rack.

  Okay, so Maddie’s were more like two champagne glasses, but they did fit nicely in the palm of his hand.

  Codi was stunning in a high-maintenance way.

  Maddie looked delicious even without makeup.

  What the hell? Stop with the compar
ison shopping.

  Alex pointed to Tim’s empty beer mug and the women’s empty wine glasses. “I’ll get us another round.”

  He rose and walked to the long lacquered bar strung with orchid leis. He ordered drinks from the bartender, glanced around the club, and took in the multi-colored surfboards lining the walls.

  His eyes rested on the raised dance floor and his stomach dropped.

  He recognized the too-short black dress, those curvy hips swaying to the music, and the face smiling up at the tall dude whose hands were too damned close to her ass.

  Well, Maddie sure knew how to lift herself out of a funk. It would seem she got over it.

  God, she was so beautiful he ached.

  He clenched his jaw at the sight of the other man moving his selfish hands over her sweet body.

  What the hell did he expect? He’d pushed her away more than once.

  He grabbed the tray of drinks he’d ordered and barreled back to his seat. “Let’s go,” he said to Tim. “Changing tables.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with this table.” Tim took the tray from Alex’s hands. “There is, however, something wrong with you.”

  “The other side of the bar has a better view.”

  Tim served Nicki and Codi their wine, glanced around the bar and stared at the dance floor. “Should have guessed.” He lifted his brow. “Better view, huh?”

  “Yeah.” Alex pointed to the open patio. “Of the ocean.”

  Codi winked at Alex. Again. Did this chick’s contact lenses bother her?

  “I don’t mind changing tables,” Codi said. “I would like to see the ocean at night.”

  Alex grabbed his beer and Codi’s wine glass and turned to Tim. “See, the lady wants a better view.”

  He stalked off toward the table closest to the dance floor. The clicking of Nicki’s and Codi’s do-me heels told him the rest of the group wasn’t far behind.

  Tim waved hello to Maddie and pulled out Nicki’s chair. “Oh, boy, this ought to be good.”