Burning up the Rain (Hawaiian Heroes)
Page 16
Jack nodded, restraining himself from shrugging. Practically every layperson knew that much.
Sondra’s dark eyes sparkled with renewed energy. “Well, compare that to this.” She toggled screens to the one they’d started with, showing the traditional view of the islands with their Ahupua`a divisions, from mountaintop to seashore, with the Ho’omalu land marked in red. “If we compare these two…” She busily minimized and stretched until the two views of the mountain above Nawea sat side by side. “What do you see?”
Jack leaned over, his eyes narrowed. Then he froze, and his eyes widened. “They overlap.” He stared at Sondra, who nodded excitedly.
With a whoop, Jack clasped her face in his hands and planted a smacking kiss on her lips. “You did it. Oh, my lord, you did it. If the section overlaps the ahupua’a, the sale of the section is invalidated. Whoever sold that land had no right to do so.”
She blinked, looking a little dazed. “We did it,” she corrected him and then laughed at his jubilant grin.
Jack laughed with her. “Damn, you are good. And I’m gonna make sure everyone on the Ho’omalu team knows it.”
He turned back to the computer. “Okay, let’s print this screen, and then I want a printout of the 2009 transaction, including listing agency.”
As she worked, he rose, pacing back and forth, hands in his pockets. “This is great. I need to get this to the lawyers first thing in the morning.”
Thunder rumbled again. “But now I need to let you get home,” he realized. “Been a long day for you.”
Sondra rose and handed Jack a stack of printed pages. “Here you go. I e-mailed copies and all the URLs to you so you can get them to the lawyers.”
He took the papers and then looked down at her. “Sondra, you’re a wahine in a million.” Stepping forward, he gave her a hug. She hesitated and then hugged him back.
Jack stepped back, lifting the papers in a salute. “Thanks again. I’ll be in touch, let you know what happens.”
She nodded. “Okay, good. See you.”
As he walked out, she was standing in the middle of the office, watching him go. Jack thought about asking her to join him for a drink but decided against it. He’d just have a quick one and head back to Nawea.
When Lalei discovered that Jack had gone to see Sondra Baker again, she was suffused with anger at him for leaving her without so much as saying good-bye and jealousy that he’d gone to see a woman who clearly admired him. He admired the widow. In fact he seemed to think she was some kind of brave heroine for keeping her realty open without her husband.
Lalei grimaced at herself—okay, Sondra did deserve admiration for that. Just not Jack’s. ‘Aue, she was a jealous bitch. And she had better things to do than wallow in it.
Putting a smile on her face, she spent time visiting with Melia on the lanai.
She snorkeled along the reef.
She showered, dressed and worked on her computer for a while, choosing the pieces she wanted for the new show opening next month. She talked to Serge, her friend Bette, and her mother.
“When are you coming home?” Suzy asked, her voice strained. “Benton has a big business dinner coming up.”
Lalei gritted her teeth. “Mother, I will not be going to any more functions with Benton.”
“Oh, I just can’t believe this.” Suzy played the doting, bewildered mother to the hilt. “Poor Benton.”
Lalei smiled at the phone, her eyes narrowed. “Why don’t you go with him, Mother?”
There was a short silence. “Lalei,” her mother gasped.
Lalei rolled her eyes. “Mama, if you want Benton’s money so bad, you marry him. Now I have to go—the family’s here for dinner. Bye.”
She put her phone away and walked up across the lawn to greet Homu and Tina. Hilo was with them, which lightened her mood considerably. The aging warrior always had a twinkle in his eyes and still teased her as if she was a keiki.
“You gonna bring the rain and spoil our dinner?” he asked her, giving her a big hug. “Maybe we should go swimming now, if we gonna get wet anyway.”
“I will bring a special little rain cloud, just for you,” she threatened, to hide the nerves his remark brought.
Hilo laid his huge hands on her shoulders. “Hey, nani girl. It’s okay, your old uncle knows a thing or two about suddenly discovering you have the power. It will be okay, yeah?”
She smiled up at him, even though her heart was thumping double-time. “If you say so.”
He raised his heavy, silver brows at her. “‘Aue, now if I could just get my clients to say dat, yeah? Don’t wanna believe their boat needs big repairs, just small ones.” He laughed heartily, and Lalei couldn’t help but join in. Hilo owned a small marina at Honokohau Harbor west of Kona and had a devoted group of boaters who would bring their crafts to no one else.
Melia’s SUV rounded the curve of the driveway and slowed to a stop beside Homu’s bigger one. Lalei tensed as Jack stepped out, looking tired but happy. She stepped back, wrapping her arms about her middle as Homu and Tina greeted him fondly.
Then he turned to shake hands with Hilo, and finally to smile down at her. With a vague smile, she turned away to follow the older people toward the house.
Jack walked close beside her. “Miss me?”
“Oh, were you gone? I’ve been so busy, I didn’t really notice.”
His warm hand settled on her waist and tightened, swinging her around into him as the Ho’omalus disappeared into the house. He gave her a knowing look. “Yes, you did. Sorry I couldn’t hang out. I was working.”
She flicked a glance over him and sniffed. Anger fired deep in her breast. With elaborate casualness, she reached up and rubbed her thumb over his face, just under his mouth. The bristles of his five o’clock shadow roughened his smooth skin. Lifting her hand, she made a show of looking at it. “Working? Really, Jack? Then why do you have lipstick on your chin?”
He blinked and reached up to swipe at his face, a red flush under his skin. “Hey, that was—I can explain that. I just—”
Lalei shook her head. “Don’t bother. Unless Sondra held you down and mauled you, that means you kissed her. While you two were having drinks, from the smell. And you know what my teachers always dinged me for in kindergarten, Jack?” She sketched little quotes with her fingertips in the air. “‘Does not share well with others.’ Still don’t.”
Glaring at him, she turned on her heel and marched away.
“Yeah, thanks for listening to my side of the story,” he snarled behind her. “Appreciate your open mind on that.”
She smacked the door open with the flat of her hand and hurried through. It closed behind her, leaving him on the other side. And if it felt like part of her was still there with him, she’d deal with that. She was never, ever going to be with another player.
Dinner was served on the beach lanai. Bella and Joel arrived bearing a huge green salad from their garden.
Lalei got herself under control, channeling her years of social training. She helped Tina and Leilani dish up the rice dish, fruit, warm rolls, platter of grilled mahi mahi with fresh pineapple salsa and then carried the food with the others down to the table. Ignoring the empty chair next to Jack, she slipped into one at the far end of the table beside Hilo.
As she leaned forward to take the rolls from Joel, she glanced down the table and found Jack watching her. He gave her a level stare, his blue gaze full of…hurt? Accusation? Then he looked away, dismissing her, and tossed back the rest of his drink. It was his third one since he’d arrived.
Lalei sat back in her chair, feeling as if he had stabbed her with the long fork from the fish platter. Why was she feeling guilty? He was the one who’d been kissing that woman.
“Jack, you have some news for us?” Homu asked.
“Hell, yeah.” Jack began to talk, holding everyone’s attention as he related his afternoon’s work. He told them about the long, tiring search through years of records and what he and Sondra Baker ha
d discovered about the conflicting property boundaries. He was expansive, gesturing with his hands and smiling.
Lalei’s stomach sank, even as her heart fluttered with foolish hope. Oh Pele, he really had been working, and on something important to her family. Maybe he and Sondra had simply stopped for a quick drink after that.
She leaned forward just enough so she could watch him around Daniel, drinking in the way he held everyone’s attention so easily, bringing them all into the story—everyone but her. No wonder he was such a successful Realtor. He was intelligent, articulate, and he knew his field.
She frowned at the untouched roll in her hand and then dropped it on her plate. Wiping her fingers on the napkin, she watched to see the family’s reaction to Jack’s story.
They were clearly impressed.
“This is amazing, Jack,” Hilo said. “All this time, and no one noticed this until you found it.”
“No, no, Sondra found it,” Jack said, waving Hilo’s praise away. Lalei froze, jealousy digging deeper into her heart. He certainly seemed bent on giving that woman all the credit. And he’d kissed her.
“But you were the one who thought to look,” Daniel said. The others nodded. “Mahalo, Jack. This gives us something concrete to give the lawyers.”
“It does. What time does court open in the morning?” Joel asked. “We want to get there early.”
Bella beamed at him proudly. “Yes, because there are going to be lots of people, thanks to you.”
“You aren’t eating,” Hilo said to Lalei under the conversation.
“Not very hungry,” she mumbled.
“Hey now,” he reproved gently. “You don’t eat my fish, gonna hurt my feelings.”
Picking up her fork, she took a bite of the fish and chewed with determination. It was succulent and tender. “It’s good.” She took another bite.
Hilo winked at someone down the table. She stared fixedly at her plate, heat flooding her cheeks. Sometimes having a family was great, sometimes not.
Unable to resist peeking, she found Jack watching her again. One corner of his mouth quirked up knowingly.
Then he looked away and ignored her for the rest of dinner.
Jack made her come to him. As the family said their good nights and went off, he stood on the beach, arms crossed, a tall silhouette against the silver sea and the last remnants of the sunset. She stepped into the water beside him. It lapped around her ankles, cool and soft.
“Mahalo,” she said through her teeth. “For what you did…for my ohana.”
“You’re welcome.” He continued to gaze out to sea.
She gave a huff of disgust. “Oh, fine. I suppose you were just all happy and relieved, so you…you just…” She ground to a halt and then crossed her own arms, glaring at the lovely scene. This was so hard, and he wasn’t making it any easier. “I’m sorry. I should have listened.”
That was when she realized he was laughing. Silently, his broad chest and muscular arms shaking as he held it in. With a growl of rage, Lalei punched him as hard as she could on his biceps and then yelped as pain shot up her wrist.
He gave up any effort to be silent. “You don’t apologize very often, do you?” His deep laugh rolled out across the bay. “You’re not very good at it.”
Turning, he wrapped one arm around her and bent to press a smacking kiss on her lips. “That’s how I kissed her,” he said.
His eyes fell to her mouth. “This is how I kiss you.” He pulled her close against him. His mouth opened over hers, his tongue tangling with hers, in a deep, hot, wet kiss that went on until she was leaning against him, hanging on with her fingers digging into his silk T-shirt. He tasted strongly of mai tais, but she was so relieved, it only bothered her a little.
“Okay?” He sounded breathless.
“Huh?” She dragged her eyes open. “Okay.” Then she pulled him down for another hot kiss. His mouth was sweet forgiveness and reassurance, wrapped in his warmth and strength. So what if she could light a match on his breath right now? He’d had a hard day, and he was celebrating.
Breaking the kiss at last, he leaned his forehead on hers, his hand sliding down to cup her ass and squeeze. “Now that was what I call a makeup kiss. You know what else you could do?” he murmured. “To show me how sorry you really are? Buy a thong bikini, and wear it for me.”
She stared up at him, aghast. “You want my ass hanging out in front of everybody?”
“Nah. Just me.”
She thought about it. “Okay.”
“Yeah?” His eyes lit up.
“Sure, if you’ll wear one too.” She pinched him just above the waistband of his shorts. “Do you have any idea how uncomfortable those things are?”
He flinched, but he was laughing as he kissed her again. She could feel his erection pressing against her, and her body responded, her pussy clenching, breasts tightening.
But Jack pulled away and tugged her toward the chairs. “You know what I really want to do? Talk. I’ve been talking to another woman all day, and I know this will probably go straight to your head, but I missed you. As much as I love doing the wild thang with you, I want to know more about you.”
Surprised and a little disappointed that they weren’t headed directly for one of their beds, Lalei followed him, letting him keep her hand in his as she curled up in the chair next to his. “What about me?”
“Everything. But first…” He turned his head against the back of his chair, gazing at her. “Why’d you go ballistic like that on me? You really think I was trying to start something with Sondra while I’m with you?”
Heat crawled up her cheeks, and she tugged at her hand. He held on. “I’m listening, wahine.”
She shrugged, looking at their hands. He held hers firmly, but his thumb stroked over her wrist in a soothing caress. ‘Aue, this was hard.
“Not that I expect—I mean I know we don’t really know where this is going, or anything,” she fumbled, trying to let him know she wasn’t expecting too much from him. “So this is not about you, it’s—I have trust issues, I guess.”
He made an encouraging noise.
“I was engaged, a few years ago,” she went on doggedly. “I was in love with him, you know? Couldn’t wait for the white wedding dress and the house on Oahu. Happy ever after, Honolulu style. The night he put an engagement ring on my finger, we were at the country club at a big party. It was magical—I was floating. But when he disappeared for a while, he wasn’t having a celebratory shot with the guys. He was…out on the golf course, bonking his boss’s wife. One of my friends saw them.”
“Jesus.” His hand tightened. “What an asshole. I hope you bent a five-iron over his head.”
She snickered, the tightness in her chest easing. “I threw his ring in his face. Then my mother took over.” She told him the rumor Suzy had started.
Jack’s eyes widened in admiration, tinged with horror. “Ouch. Remind me never to get crossways with your mother. On a small island, that would really finish a guy’s career, huh?”
She shrugged. “In some circles, no. But in the Kai-Ho’omalu set? Oh yes.”
“Well, for the record,” he said, “even though we don’t know where this is going…” He gave her a look that said he remembered every word she’d said. “I have never cheated on a woman, and I don’t plan to begin now. That guy was not only a lying jerk, he was a fool. He could’ve had you, and he wanted some cheating slut?”
Her smile began deep inside her and blossomed on her face. “Mahalo.”
“You know, you’re stronger than you think you are,” he mused, watching her. “You run a gallery, you told off this guy who hurt you… How’s come you can’t do the same to Choy? And your mother, for that matter?”
She shrugged uncomfortably. “It’s complicated. Family, you know. My mother…” She struggled for words. “I know she loves me. I guess, it’s been the two of us for so long that I just got used to her running my life—the social part, anyway. This thing with Benton was just th
e last straw. But you’re right, I was too afraid to tell her, so I had sex with you instead. I’m sorry.”
He nodded, his eyes gleaming in the last of the silver twilight reflecting off the sea. Lalei waited breathlessly, to hear what he would say next. Would he tell her he wanted their fling to go somewhere? Somewhere deeper, longer?
“So tell me about this gallery you manage,” he asked. “Do you like it? How’d you end up there?”
Lalei blinked. He wanted to know about her job? Okay, guess that told her he wasn’t interested in talking about them. She sighed inwardly, and let the soft swoosh of the surf carry her fledgling hope away.
“The gallery belongs to the family. I majored in business in college, but I’ve always loved art. I wanted to be an artist myself, but I don’t really have any talent for anything except decorating. So this way I get to be around the best of Hawaii’s art and help the artists sell it. Turns out I’m pretty good at that.”
He nodded. “Including David’s and Daniel’s stuff?”
She nodded. “Their pieces go for top dollar. I could sell five times what they produce. How about you?” She was curious about how he’d gotten where he was. “How did you end up selling property?”
“My dad was a building contractor. Started out doing carpentry and worked his way up until he had a big business. I worked with him, planned to follow in his footsteps, but he insisted that I go to college. Said the building market was going to be glutted soon, and I needed to diversify.
“I ended up at U of Hawaii on a football scholarship and met Malu and Roller and Gabe. My roommate, Tyler, was also from California. His parents owned a WorldWide office in Santa Barbara. Long story short, now Tyler and I own it as partners. And my dad was right—hundreds of builders have gone out of business in the last decade. He’s happily retired, with money in the bank, and I’m selling houses instead of building them.”