“You’ll get no argument from me there, old buddy,” Boyd said, taking Danica’s hand. “Some things in life are simply meant to be good.” He smiled at Danica and her face lit up in return, telling him that they were of the same mind.
When he was leaving, Boyd walked Lowell out, curious to see what other comments he had to offer. “So what do you think?”
“I think you’ve got yourself a winner,” Lowell stated. “She’s definitely gorgeous and really seems to be hung up on you.”
Boyd grinned. “I was thinking the same thing.”
“Too bad she’s not a permanent resident here.”
“Yeah, that is a potential roadblock.”
“Doesn’t have to be,” Lowell said. “As we discussed before, if two people are meant to be together, they do whatever it takes to make that happen.”
“I understand.”
Lowell eyed him. “Do you?”
“Yeah.” Boyd shot a quick look toward the house. “I’m sure we’ll discuss it and see where things stand at the end of the trip.”
“Do that, and if you play your cards right, you just might have the type of future you’ve always dreamed of.”
Boyd was still pondering his friend’s words of wisdom when he rejoined Danica inside.
“Well, did I pass the test?” she asked.
He met her gaze. “Test…?”
“That is why you wanted me and Lowell to meet, isn’t it—to see how I measured up in his eyes?”
Boyd cracked a smile. “You know me all too well.”
“I know myself,” she countered. “It’s only natural to want to see what friends think of someone you’re involved with. Just wait till I get you to Chicago. Be prepared for some grilling.”
He chuckled. “Is that an invitation?”
Danica grinned at him. “Yes, I’d love for you to come and visit my city.”
Boyd looked closely into her eyes. Did that mean she wasn’t interested in relocating to Hawaii when all was said and done? Or was she hoping that one day they could go to Chicago together while maintaining the Big Island as their home base?
“I’d be delighted to take you up on that,” he told her. “I’m sure we’d have a ball and I’m definitely up for the challenge of winning your friends over.”
“I like a challenging man,” Danica said. She doubted he was the type who could ever be unnerved by her friends.
“And you’ve got one.”
Danica lifted her face. “Kiss me, my challenging man.”
Boyd didn’t need to be told twice. He held her chin. “With pleasure.”
Chapter 9
The following day Danica arrived at the Hilo Medical Center on Waianuenue Avenue and met Blair in the spacious lobby.
Blair tugged on her white jacket. “I’ll take you up to my department, show you around and introduce you to some of my colleagues.”
“Does that include the man in your life?” Danica asked teasingly.
Blair smiled. “Actually he’s an emergency physician. But I’m sure we can pull him away for a few minutes.”
They took the elevator to the third floor.
“What made you choose pediatrics?” Danica wondered aloud.
“It just came natural,” Blair responded. “I wanted to treat young patients to try and make a difference in their quality of life. I admit, it can be challenging at times, and even heartbreaking, but for the most part I come away every day feeling good about my chosen profession.”
“That’s pretty much all you could ask for,” Danica said. She felt the same way about her profession.
“I agree.”
They got off the elevator and Danica met the director before she was given a tour of the thoroughly modern facility; then she met the rest of the staff.
Blair brought Danica to her office, which was bright and cheery. “I thought you could take some pictures of me first and I’ll pick the best one to hang on the wall.”
“Sounds perfect,” Danica said, taking out her 35 millimeter camera.
She took a few pictures of Blair standing and then sitting at her desk.
“How am I doing?” Blair asked. “I’ve never considered myself especially photogenic.”
“I beg to differ,” Danica told her. She believed that any subject was a good subject, provided she or he had a good photographer. “You’re doing great. You’re a beautiful woman.”
Blair blushed. “Mahalo.”
After they’d finished, Blair and her colleagues assembled outside in a lovely garden, where Danica took some individual and group photographs. She did her job of keeping everyone loose and smiling, and she felt good about being in her element and using the skills she had perfected over the years.
Half an hour later Danica was introduced to Blair’s boyfriend, Palmer Corbin.
“So you’re the photographer Blair’s been bragging about,” he said.
“Yep, that’s me.” Danica smiled at the tall, bald, dark-skinned doctor.
“Hope you made my girl sparkle in these pictures.”
“I can guarantee that she and you will be pleased,” Danica said.
“That’s what I like to hear.” His cheeks dimpled and he gave Blair a kiss.
“He makes me feel so special,” Blair cooed when Palmer left them. “Something I think you can relate to with your man.”
“I certainly can,” Danica admitted. Boyd had often gone out of his way to make her seem like the center of his universe. It never grew stale and she hoped the magic would continue whether she went back to Chicago or stayed in Hawaii.
* * *
A day later Danica strengthened her portfolio by taking some digital pictures of fascinating sights she believed might interest her clients and help her gain new ones. These included shots of breathtaking, triple-tiered Umauma Falls in the North Hamakua Coast region; panoramic ocean views and lava landscapes; and incredible greenery in the Akaka Falls State Park, with massive ti plants, amazing split-leaf philodendron and a green gorge.
On Thursday she went swimming with Boyd at Leleiwi Beach Park. She loved the tall palm trees providing cover from the sun, and the rocky shoreline. The water was warm and calm, and the setting perfect for some fun and frolicking in the ocean.
She and Boyd showed off their swimming skills, rotating between butterfly, back and breast strokes, along with dog paddling and gliding. But her favorite part of the day was when she splashed him and, to stop her, he took her in his arms and kissed her.
Danica had no problem blocking out the other swimmers, happy to be in her own little world with Boyd. “This is so much fun,” she said between kisses and catching her breath.
“I know,” Boyd concurred. “We should have taken to the water sooner.”
“Then I would have beat your butt back to shore that much quicker,” Danica told him daringly.
“You think so?”
“No thinking about it. I know so!”
With that, she made a dash for shore, swimming as fast as she could in even strokes. “Catch me if you can.”
Boyd grinned, allowing her a head start before diving into the water and coming up with his strong arms and legs moving powerfully toward the shore.
In the end they were there in about a split second of one another, with Danica edging Boyd out.
“I won, I won!” she declared, taking a deep breath and doing a little victory dance.
This was one time when Boyd had no problem with her winning, especially when she looked so hot in her yellow bikini that clung sexily to her wet body.
“Yeah, what can I say, I was too damned busy admiring the view.”
Danica blushed. She was just as taken with him in black swim bri
efs, his sculpted body on full display for all to see. She was happy knowing he was hers, at least until the end of her trip.
That didn’t mean she believed for one moment that he didn’t want to win. “Right. Likely excuse.”
“Think I’m lying?” he teased, moving up to her.
“Let’s just say some people find it difficult to accept losing.”
“I’m not one of those people.” He put his arms around her waist. “From where I’m standing, I’m a winner all the way!”
“Oh, really?” Her eyes flashed.
“Are you prepared to debate me on that, too?” Boyd asked.
“Not at all. If you say so, then I believe you.” Especially when he had taken the words right out of her thoughts where it concerned him.
“Well, you can believe this—”
Boyd kissed her, resisting the desire to go deep into her mouth with his tongue, content in keeping it PG rated till they were behind closed doors.
Danica savored the kiss. She had no problem with public displays of affection. Not when she was with easily the most desirable man in all of Hawaii. And, indeed, anywhere else in the world.
She decided at that moment if Boyd asked her to stay here, it was an offer she could never refuse. Going back to Chicago alone and frustrated no longer seemed an option.
But then again, maybe Boyd didn’t see the future between them that his kisses strongly suggested.
* * *
“I’m crazy about your brother,” Danica told Ashlyn the next day on a Skype call, deciding it was time to lay her cards out on the table—if she hadn’t already.
“Tell me something I don’t know,” Ashlyn said, rolling her eyes.
“I mean, really crazy about him.”
“Oh, my…you’ve got the love fever!” Ashlyn smiled.
Danica sipped some of the macadamia wine. Was that what this was all about? Love? She could hardly deny what her heart was telling her, along with her body.
“I suppose I do,” she said.
“Kind of figured it was only a matter of time,” Ashlyn said. “The way you two have been connecting, it was obvious where things were headed.”
“That’s just it, I don’t know where they’re headed,” Danica told her. “Not exactly.”
Ashlyn gave her a puzzled look. “You haven’t talked about it?”
“Only in generalities. I know Boyd is feeling it, too, but he lives here and I live in Chicago. Thus far we haven’t spoken of possibly bridging the gap, though the idea of a long-distance relationship has been put on the table.”
“And that doesn’t do it for you?”
“Yes and no,” Danica said. “Absence would definitely make the heart grow fonder and make our time together that much more potent. But it’s the time apart that would drive me crazy. I think I want something more permanent and constant at this point in my life.”
“So you’re saying you’d like to relocate to Hawaii?”
“Who wouldn’t?” Danica asked. “It’s not like I have anyone waiting for me back in Chicago. And my work can be done anywhere.”
“Then I say go for it!” Ashlyn said. “You’re certainly welcome to stay at my place as long as you like. Or maybe you and Boyd can shack up.”
“You’re sweet in making that generous offer.” Danica paused. “The shacking up sounds great, too. But I still need to know if Boyd is on the same page in either case. In spite of the charming words that come out of his mouth, maybe he’s really viewing this as a great short-term romance and, once it runs its course, we both simply go our separate ways and say thanks for the memories.”
Ashlyn sighed. “That certainly doesn’t sound like the brother I know. Boyd is smart enough to know a good thing when he has it—or her—in the palm of his hand. He’s also a man. Men sometimes have a problem communicating or hesitate to put forth their feelings.”
“So should I just be more direct with him and see where that gets me?” Danica asked, putting the wine to her lips. “Or see if he steps up to the plate on his own? Which hopefully would be before I board the plane to leave.”
“They’re all good questions…” Ashlyn took a breath and let it out slowly. “My advice to you is to be patient—something I have trouble with myself. Trust that Boyd wants this to work out as much as you do and that he will step up to try and make that happen.”
“You really think so?”
“I know my brother,” Ashlyn assured her. “He’s had his share of forgettable involvements, but you’re not one of them. Boyd’s waited a long time for you to come into his life. He won’t let you walk out of it. Not without a fight!”
Danica sucked in a deep breath and smiled. “I’m so glad I talked to you. Not to mention that you came up with this idea of trading spaces in the first place. So far it’s been the trip of my life.”
“I’m delighted to hear that,” Ashlyn said. “I hear you’ve been hanging with Blair, too.”
“Blair has been really nice to spend time with me,” Danica pointed out.
“She says the same thing about you. I think the three of us will be hanging out in the future.”
“I hope so.”
“Speaking of the future,” Ashlyn said, “believe me when I say, the best is still yet to come for you, girlfriend.”
“And what about you?” It occurred to Danica that she had hogged up all the conversation without asking where things stood between her friend and Hunter. “Are the fires still burning hot with Hunter?”
“Are they ever,” Ashlyn uttered theatrically. “With Hunter, it’s like every day is one big merry-go-round. He’s full of energy, excitement and passion.”
“Oh, really?” hummed Danica.
“Yes. I’ve never been so hung up on a man before and I think that we’re both definitely on the same page in the same book.”
Danica laughed. “Sounds to me like you’re going to have just as hard a time leaving Chicago as I am Hawaii.”
“Very true,” Ashlyn answered. “Hunter and I are weighing all our options. We each have our own lives and success. But we realize that some things—like finding a soul mate—don’t come along every day. So we’re trying to figure out the best way to keep what we have going well beyond my scheduled date of departure, whether that means me relocating or him. Everything’s on the table.”
Danica was excited to hear this, though not too surprised. Hunter had already given her a heads up that his relationship with Ashlyn was not a passing fancy, but rather something that was building steam. Clearly her two friends had forged a bond every bit as strong as the one between her and Boyd, for which Danica couldn’t be more proud.
“So you’re soul mates now,” she teased her.
“Absolutely,” Ashlyn reaffirmed. “Kindred spirits, or whatever you want to call it. Even your friends—now mine as well—are all envious of how much Hunter and I are into each other, stealing kisses and hugs whenever we get a chance.”
Danica smiled. “That surely sounds like you two belong together.”
“I was thinking the same thing,” Ashlyn said. “Just like you and Boyd. Maybe the four of us can sit around a table someday and have a good a laugh about how our love connections originated.”
“I’d like that,” Danica said. But first she hoped to continue building steam in her relationship with Boyd, so it could lead to even greater times ahead. If they secured a real future together, she would be happy to match it with the one Ashlyn and Hunter were forming. She was determined to have it all while settling for nothing less.
* * *
The next morning Danica and Boyd took a helicopter tour of the Kilauea Volcano in the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. It was her first time in a helicopter and she was a trifle nervous. Boyd helped her relax w
ith his steady presence and smooth voice.
“You’re doing great,” he told her with a winning smile, wanting to share this bonding experience with the woman he had grown to care so much for. “Everyone is always a little jumpy the first time in one of these. But by the time we land, I guarantee that you’ll already be thinking about when you can go up again.”
“If you say so.” Danica made a face at him, though she was pretty sure he was right.
They were now directly above the volcano and the pilot was about to speak. But knowing the volcano as he did from his work as a tour guide, and admittedly wanting to impress Danica, Boyd told him, “I’ve got this.”
“Sure thing,” he said.
“Kilauea is among the most active volcanoes in the world,” Boyd told Danica, “and one of five shield volcanoes that, as a group, form the Big Island.”
Danica let go of her grip on Boyd and reached for the camera around her neck, snapping pictures she knew would be priceless from this incredible vantage point. “How often does it erupt?”
“It’s been erupting for nearly three decades now,” he pointed out. “In the process hundreds of structures have been destroyed from lava flows.”
“Scary,” Danica said uneasily.
“It can be, but I believe most Hawaiians are more in awe of the volcano and what it can do than frightened by it.”
Sensing that he may have shaken her up unnecessarily, Boyd switched to a lighter subject. “According to Hawaiian mythology, Kilauea is also home to Pele, the goddess of volcanoes,” he pointed out.
“Interesting.”
“All part of what makes the island special.”
“I think it’s more the people,” she stated, thinking of one in particular.
“That, too,” Boyd agreed, smiling. “Especially people who come here and make themselves completely at home.”
Danica looked at him. “Talking about anyone in specific?”
He leaned over and kissed her cheek. “I am.”
“Who might that be?” she teased him.
“Oh, just a Chicagoan I know and adore.”
She beamed, always thrilled with his compliments, which Danica interpreted as indicative of where his heart lay.
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