Sydney wouldn’t buy it.
Apelu turned onto a highway, and the scenery changed from businesses and hotels to masses of trees and flowers. Simply put, it was gorgeous.
“Are those wild hibiscus?” Lexi asked of the giant red flowers edging the sides of the road.
“Yeah. Aren’t they amazing?” Sydney said.
Lexi was glued to the window and barely followed the conversation up front—about the wedding cake Apelu’s auntie was going to make. Maybe Lexi should have been a better maid of honor by contributing to the conversation, but the hibiscus make her think about a past ecology class, and plants in their native habitats versus growing in controlled conditions. She wanted to come back to check out the terrain. “What’s the name of this road?”
“Kamehameha Highway,” Apelu said.
“Isn’t it a great name?” Sidney said. “I love saying it. Kamehameha, Kamehameha. Like a tongue twister. It’s named after a Hawaiian king.”
Lexi nodded, committing the name to memory so she could come back when she had a break. “The plant life is incredible.”
“The whole island is like this. We’ll take you on a hike to some waterfalls. You’ll fall in love,” Sydney said. “In fact, we’ve decided to move back here after Apelu graduates next year if he doesn’t get drafted to the NFL.”
“Really?” Lexi said. Hawaii seemed too remote, too small for Sydney’s huge personality. Since high school, Sydney had always talked about moving to New York and working for some big fashion designer. Lexi guessed that’s what relationships and marriage did to a person. Their goals changed.
Sydney smiled back at her. “Really.”
Lexi believed it. If radiant should ever be used, it described Sydney now. She was definitely in love, happy, and seemed to have everything she wanted. For a second, Lexi felt envious, then she reminded herself that she had everything she wanted in a full-ride scholarship to a great university with a prestigious science program. She’d been thinking lately of getting a graduate degree.
Apelu pulled off the highway, and they drove through a copse of trees. Moments later, the road opened onto a row of houses. Behind them, the ocean stretched as far as she could see.
“Wow,” Lexi said. There was really nothing else to say. Blue water glittered in the late afternoon, moving back and forth against pristine sand.
“Isn’t it fabulous?” Sydney practically bounced in her seat. They climbed out of the truck, Apelu grabbed Lexi’s suitcase, and they followed him into the house.
Stepping inside, Lexi entered into a whirlwind of introductions, kisses and hugs. She met Apelu’s parents, a couple of aunties, an uncle, and a horde of cousins, ranging from little kids to a guy about her age—maybe another cousin. She couldn’t remember his name apart from the others’. Was this David?
Sydney hugged everyone as if she hadn’t been gone only a short time. Lexi could see the connection between Sydney and her new in-laws immediately. No wonder she wanted to move here. Sydney’s home life was sparse—her parents had divorced, and a sister several years older lived on the east coast.
After the greetings, Sydney led Lexi to the back door, where they literally stepped out onto the sand.
“What do you think?” Sydney asked.
Lexi was speechless at first. The Pacific expanded before them, moving gently in colors of blue and gold as the sun began to set. Palm trees collected at the left and on the right, and the beach extended as far as she could see on both sides—pure white sand, immaculate. It looked like a postcard.
“Not all beaches are created equal, huh?” Sydney said.
“Beautiful.” Lexi lifted her cell phone and snapped a picture then saved it as the wallpaper on her phone. “I need to get my notebook.”
“Oh, no you don’t,” Sydney said. “You’re here for me. For my wedding and to have fun.”
“But the light’s perfect.” Lexi snapped another picture. “And the tide is going out.”
Sydney heaved a big sigh. “Okay, you have one hour. The barbeque will start then, and I expect to parade you around Apelu’s family as my maid of honor.”
“Didn’t I just meet them?”
“Ha. You’ve met only a fraction of them. Just wait.” She laughed. “David will be here too, probably with Angel.” She rolled her eyes.
“I thought he was in the house. Who was that guy I met?”
“One of Apelu’s cousins. You will know when you meet David.” Sydney lowered her voice. “If I weren’t engaged already…”
Lexi stared at her. “Apelu is perfect for you.”
“I’m just saying, you’ll have no doubt when you meet David.”
“You know what happens when you set someone’s expectations too high?” Lexi said. “They’re sure to be disappointed.”
“You’ll just have to trust me, then,” Sydney said.
“Does David know about your plan to break up him and his girlfriend?”
“Apelu bugs him about it all the time, and David just laughs about it. He doesn’t think Apelu’s serious.”
Lexi shrugged. “I said I’d meet him. But you know my record with guys.”
“You think they’re all jerks.”
“Except for Apelu, of course,” Lexi said.
Sydney grinned. “Of course.”
Chapter Three
Lexi heard Sydney call her name, but she wasn’t finished inspecting the tide pool. She had her phone trained on the small pool of water, recording two tiny crabs fighting over a mussel shell. Sydney’s voice floated over the wind again, which had picked up in the past few minutes, tugging Lexi’s pony tail free. But Lexi held her phone steady and didn’t bother to fix her hair.
She only need a few more minutes. Lexi sensed someone—likely Sydney—walking on the reef toward her, but she continued to focus on the crabs as the person walked up and crouched next to her.
A quick glance brought Lexi up short. Unless Sydney had muscled calves and dark leg hair, a man was beside Lexi. Keeping her phone trained on the battle below, she slowly lifted her eyes. Definitely not Sydney.
He had the darkest brown eyes she’d ever seen. They reminded her of tide pools on her midnight explorations in San Diego. The man looked more tanned than Polynesian, and his hair was lighter than Apelu’s, touched by the sun, so golden highlights were woven in with the brown.
“Hi,” he said. “I was told to confiscate your notebook and escort you to the barbeque.” His deep voice had a bit of a lilt—the way Apelu’s family spoke too.
Lexi must have been staring at him open-mouthed, because he smiled. “Sorry to startle you. I’m David, by the way.”
Of course.
He held out a hand, and she maneuvered the phone to her left so she could shake his with her right.
“You’re Lexi, I assume?” he said.
It was a question, but she couldn’t speak for a second.
What’s wrong with me?
“Uh, yes, Alexis, actually. But everyone calls me Lexi.”
Why did I just say that?
Here she was spouting useless trivia to someone she’d just met, a man her best friend wanted to set her up with, even though he had a girlfriend. What did he know about her?
David nodded and looked back at the tide pool, giving Lexi a view of his profile. His dark eyebrows pulled together as he watched the crabs. “Feisty little guys, aren’t they? Maybe we should drop another mussel in so there’s enough for two.”
“No!” Lexi said, a bit too strongly.
David looked up, surprise on his face.
“I mean, I’m observing their natural reactions,” she backtracked. “To disturb their habitat would make it unnatural.”
The sides of his mouth tugged up, as if trying not to laugh at her. She felt like an idiot. For the second time. She had turned on full scientific-geek mode. The heat of mortification flashed through her.
Lexi paused the video recording. She was done with this tide pool now.
“Don’t you want to see who wins?” David asked with a mocking tone.
At least she could tell Sydney that while David was attractive, they had nothing in common. A single date was sure to end in disaster. She ignored his question.
“I’d better get back,” Lexi said. “Sydney wanted me to meet Apelu’s family, and you… but since I already met you, I guess I’d better go.” She turned and picked her way across the reef.
“Hey, check this out,” he called after her. “The mussel opened.”
Lexi froze, wanting to see it. David sounded sincere this time, but what was he really thinking? And why did she care? She turned and hurried back to the tide pool, tee-ing up her phone to record. She crouched by David and aimed her phone at the scene.
The crabs were practically climbing on top of each other to reach their feast. Lexi watched, fascinated by the desperation and brutality. David stayed quietly next to her, and she was grateful he didn’t feel the need to make some sarcastic comment.
Several minutes passed, and the recording stopped, running out of memory. Lexi would have to download the video to her laptop before recording anything else. She rose. “I think I got everything.”
David stood too, and Lexi was struck with how tall he was, even taller than Apelu. But he was leaner, where Apelu was stocky but well built.
“That was pretty crazy,” David said.
Lexi nodded. Did he mean crazy-dumb, or crazy-cool, or something else?
“Apelu told me you were a science nut,” David said.
Lexi swallowed. “I guess you could say that,” she said, keeping her tone even. She turned and started walking toward the beach.
David kept pace with her. “I think he meant it in a nice way. I mean, he grew up here, so I guess he’s not all that fascinated. I grew up here, too, and it’s just kind of normal for me.”
They came into view of Apelu’s side yard, which was adorned with tables, chairs, and platters of food arranged on a long table.
“I grew up next to the ocean, and I am fascinated,” Lexi retorted then immediately regretted her sharp tone, but she was seriously getting annoyed.
“Wait, I didn’t mean—” David was cut off by Sydney walking toward them.
“There you are. Didn’t you hear me calling you?” She didn’t look put out. In fact, she grinned, looking from Lexi to David.
Lexi wanted to tell Sydney to save her eager speculating, but couldn’t right in front of David. They were interrupted by a gorgeous, honey-skinned woman practically sashaying over to them.
“That’s Angel,” Sydney said, her smile about as fake as Lexi had ever seen.
The crazy girlfriend. But she didn’t look crazy. She looked like she did regular photo shoots on Waikiki beach. She was tall and curvy in all the right places, and her dark eyes were framed by incredibly long lashes. Angel’s black hair tumbled over her shoulders in soft waves. Her name fit her appearance.
“Hey, baby,” she said to David in a sultry voice. “Where did you go?”
One side of his mouth lifted. Any man would smile if he had a woman like Angel attached to him.
“I had to do an errand for Sydney and fetch the errant Miss Alexis,” he said.
Lexi had to restrain herself from groaning. Why had she told him her full name?
“Oh, I’ve heard all about you,” Angel purred. She snaked her arms around his waist, and his arm settled easily about her shoulders. Angel gave Lexi a satisfied smirk. Why shouldn’t she be affectionate with her boyfriend? Still, Lexi’s stomach rolled. Either she was disgusted or hungry.
She glanced at David; he didn’t seem fazed by his girlfriend’s adoration.
“Come on, babe,” Angel said. “I want some of that teriyaki chicken you made.” She looked at Lexi. “Nice to meet you, hon.”
Lexi could have sworn Angel’s eyes narrowed for a moment, but then widened again in sweetness.
As the couple walked over to the food table, Lexi didn’t realize she was staring after them until Sydney nudged her.
“What did I tell you?” she whispered. “Was I right?”
“About David being good-looking?” Lexi said. “Yeah, but he’s taken. And he pretty much made fun of me.”
“How?” Sydney asked as Apelu crossed to them.
“I’ll tell you later,” Lexi said. What she’d tell Sydney was to give up hope of intervening between Angel and David.
Lexi didn’t want anything to do with either of them.
Chapter Four
“It’s beautiful,” Lexi said, watching Sydney spin in her wedding dress. It wasn’t what Lexi had envisioned for her friend, but the white muumuu with tiny pearls and lace couldn’t have been more perfect.
“Apelu’s mom wore it when she got married,” Sydney said. “It’s a little big, but Apelu’s mom is a fantastic seamstress, and she’ll take it in. She’s also making me a haku to wear on my head.”
“You’ll be gorgeous,” Lexi said.
Sydney squealed and hugged her, then left the room to go change.
Wow. This is really happening. My best friend is getting married. A stab of loneliness shot through Lexi. She’d always been fine not having a bunch of friends or a major social life, but Sydney made up for all of that. Now… things would be a lot different. At least they’d still have the rest of the year together at SDU, although not as roommates.
“We’re leaving in twenty minutes for the hike to Maunawili Falls,” Sydney called from the other room. “David’s picking us up.”
Lexi drew in a breath. She’d thought the hike was going to be the three of them—Apelu, Sydney, and her. “What about Angel?”
“We didn’t invite her,” Sydney said, coming back in wearing shorts and a tank top.
“You guys are really pushing it by not inviting her. What will she think if she finds out that I came along?” Lexi pictured the dark-eyed woman. “I don’t want to make her mad.”
“Why would it?” Sydney said, lifting an eyebrow. “You said there was nothing between you. So nothing for her to be jealous about, right?”
Lexi opened her mouth then shut it. There was nothing between them. But she’d seen how Angel acted around David… Lexi wouldn’t be surprise if the woman had real claws. “Right.”
“We’ll have fun, then. Don’t forget your notebook,” Sydney said. “You should wear one of my tank tops. You’ll sweat like mad on the hike.”
A horn blared from somewhere outside.
“David’s early,” Sydney said. “I’ll meet you out front.”
Lexi turned to the mirror on top of the dresser. Her t-shirt was already damp with sweat from her sojourn to the tide pools that morning. She quickly changed into one of Sydney’s tank tops, not caring for the way it clung to her small curves. One more way she was nothing like Sydney—or Angel. Lexi pulled on the only pair of shorts she’d brought, ones with a floral print—who knew where she got them? Her capris were still wet from the morning’s excursion to the ocean, so the ugly shorts were her only real option.
Again, why did she care? She wasn’t here to impress.
She grabbed her phone and notebook, wishing she would have brought two notebooks; she’d already filled a good portion of this one. But she couldn’t lug her laptop around a mountainside.
When she walked into the front yard, the others sat in a battered yellow jeep. Its body rested at least a foot above the massive tires. What was this, monster trucks? David sat in the driver’s seat, and Apelu and Sydney cuddled together in the back.
Apparently Lexi would be sitting up front. David grinned as she climbed up and into the jeep. “Look at you,” he said. “Dressing like an islander already.”
Apelu laughed from the back seat. “She just needs a flower in her hair.”
David jumped to the ground and picked a hibiscus bloom from one of the many flowering bushes. He climbed back in then leaned toward Lexi and tucked it behind her right ear.
Lexi tried not to flinch when his warm hand touched her.
“You wear it on the right side if you’re single,” he said. “And on the left side if you’re married.”
“Uh, thanks,” Lexi said, feeling every part of her body heat at all the attention. Just relax, she told herself. This is what they call having fun. She smiled, and he winked.
Wow. She was so not going to read anything into that. But David seemed to have forgotten her anyway as he pulled onto the highway. He and Apelu called back and forth to each other, debating the stats of some rugby players they were friends with.
Lexi refused to look back at Sydney to see if her friend had noticed the wink. She let her gaze slide ever so subtlety over to David. Without fully looking at him, she could see his right hand and arm as he shifted gears, gaining speed. His arms were tanned and muscled, as was the one leg in her view.
She looked away, focusing on the right side of the jeep. The humidity must be getting to me. She gazed on the gorgeous scenery speeding by as the wind rushed through her hair. Lexi tried to concentrate on the types of plant life she could make out.
When David pulled off the road, he reached over and touched her arm. “Hold on, it’s going to get really bumpy.”
Soon they were on a dirt road that looked pretty smooth, but a moment later, David took a detour that looked like it went straight up the mountain. Sydney had the advantage of clinging to Apelu in the back, but Lexi could only grip the dashboard.
The jeep careened on only two wheels, tipping on toward the left, then slammed back down, maneuvering over deep ruts. Apelu let out a whoop; Lexi gritted her teeth.
David glanced over. “Don’t worry. I’ve done this a hundred times.”
The knowledge didn’t lessen the tightness in her stomach.
His hand grasped hers, and Lexi found herself gripping back. Somehow, he continued to climb the jeep up the ridge using only his left hand to steer. Then he turned sharp right onto a flat spot and braked.
A Timeless Romance Anthology: Summer Wedding Collection Page 21