by Reina Torres
“Do you think your friends will be upset that they didn’t come to the reception?”
He shook his head. “Baron’s a wuss about weddings and the others are afraid it’s like an infection.”
Turning a little in her seat, she looked over at him sitting behind the wheel. “Infection, huh?”
“Well, Ajax and the two of us share a house on base and he’s already looking for a house of their own.”
“So, he’s not looking forward to paying for half of the rent?”
“Maybe, or maybe he’s afraid that we’ll all fall victim to the curse.”
“The curse!” She coughed up a laugh and sighed at the idea. “I’ve never thought of love as a curse.”
Efrain signaled to turn onto the main road. “What are your thoughts on love?”
It was a pretty heavy topic to handle, especially after watching James and Hilarie marry and share their first few moments after that.
She was feeling pretty wonderful about love, but not necessarily her own. She was too busy. Too driven at the moment, but did she want to say that to him. What would he think of her dilemma?
Instead of answering him outright, she wanted to give herself a little time to think before she spoke. These kinds of conversations didn’t happen to her.
“What about love?” She tried to keep her tone light. “Anything specific?”
He turned the car into the driveway and the light tone of their conversation died away. There was a dark car in the front of the lobby with a police light on the roof.
As they came to a stop, someone got out of the driver’s side and walked around to the front of the car.
When Ku‘uipo reached for her seatbelt buckle he covered her hands with his. “Do you know who he is?”
She felt her heart warm to his protective nature.
“That’s Detective Santos. He came by while we were renovating. He’s a good guy.”
He heard her words and nodded, easing away, trailing his fingers over the back of her hand. Efrain opened his door and started around the car, but she didn’t wait for him, opening her own door and stepping out on her own.
She didn’t see any irritation in his eyes as he saw what she’d done. He just gave her a smile that made her want to curl into his side, but there were other things that had to come first, like speaking with the Detective. Before she could even greet him, he started the conversation
“We found your missing people.”
Questions were rocketing around in her head, but she kept quiet knowing that Detective Santos would explain.
“They gave us quite a scare at first. One of the arson investigators caught sight of them first. A foot, visible in the tall grasses in the easement between your property and the hotel beside you.”
Her heart thumped heavily against her ribs as she drew in a deep breath. “Are they alive?”
“Yes.”
She heard the answer, but she also heard his tone. There was something tight… guarded, in the way he spoke.
“They were both taken to the hospital.”
The breath she’d been holding rolled out in a shuddering exhale. It was only Efrain’s hand on her lower back that kept her calm.
“Miles,” he consulted his notes, “Kirkendahl was the one in the best shape. He had burns on his hands and along the underside of his forearm.”
She touched her arm along the underside from her wrist to her elbow, trying to get a grasp of Miles’ injuries. “He’s conscious?”
Nodding, Detective Santos continued. “Pono Sanderson is in the burn unit with second degree burns on one arm, his chest, and up the left side of his neck. Right now, his doctors have him in a medically induced coma.”
“I can’t believe it,” she felt a little out of breath at the thought.
“The doctors said that tox screens showed that both of them were drunk and high when the fire started. So, we’re going to be looking long and hard into this case, Ku‘uipo. I want you to know that.”
The news felt like a deep rolling wave pushing her onto the beach, buckling her knees. She reached out a hand and felt Efrain weave their fingers together effortlessly.
Ku‘uipo saw the detective’s eyes look down, but she didn’t care what the other man thought. She was lucky to have Efrain’s support, like a rock in the middle of all this turmoil. “Someone called his parents.”
It wasn’t a question. She knew it had been done.
He nodded. “Uluwehi called them to the hospital and was there when we gave them the news.”
“I’ll call his mother in the morning and see if there’s anything we can do.”
“Are you sure you want to?” Detective Santos gave her a curious look, tilting his head to look at her. “There’s a good chance that one of them… or both, started that fire.”
Her mind struggled to understand the detective‘s words. “But why?”
Efrain squeezed her hand, but his attention had shifted to the detective. “Why would you say that?”
“Right now, Mister Kirkendahl puts the responsibility squarely on Pono’s shoulders. To hear him tell the story, he was going about his duties when he caught sight of Pono starting the fire.
“He explained that he grabbed Pono from the back, trying to wrestle the lighter away.”
“That’s how he says he got his burns.” The detective reached up a hand and rubbed at the back of his neck. “It seems to fit the evidence that we collected, but there’s something that feels odd.”
“I agree.” Ku‘uipo felt something inside of her stomach turn over at the idea that Pono was responsible for the mess.
“Part of this,” Detective Santos confessed, “is because I’ve known his family since I was a keiki, small kid time.
“Sure, Pono can be kolohe from time to time, but he’s never done anything like this.”
Ku‘uipo nodded in agreement and turned to look at Efrain. “When I was deciding whether or not to bring him into the program, his sister came into the office. He had trouble in school when he was younger, but he had been working hard and his sister asked me to give him a chance.” She let out a long breath and struggled to reconcile the young man that she knew with the idea that he might have actually set the fire that burned down the pavilion.
“You sound like you have your doubts about the story.”
Tapping his pen against the notebook in his hand, he let a moment go by before he spoke.
“That’s basically it.” He sighed and she swore he sounded like he was carrying a great weight on his shoulders. “It’s a good story. It seems to fit the facts. The burn patterns. I’m just not sure it was Pono.”
“Maybe it was just a prank that got out of hand,” she was really grasping at straws, “but…” She looked over at Efrain and shook her head, “I would be more inclined to believe it was Miles who was responsible.”
“He’s come across our radar too,” Detective Santos admitted, “mostly in connection with some of our narcotics cases.”
Ku‘uipo felt her breath catch in her lungs. “I’ve suspected, but we don’t really have a drug testing protocol in our contracts. I probably should change that soon.”
“Do you think he’s dangerous or was he just intoxicated when this happened?” Efrain’s tone was calm, but Ku‘uipo could hear the concern clear as a bell.
The detective didn’t look sure either way. “I’ll keep digging for now. And if we’re lucky, Pono will heal up enough for them to bring him out of the coma and we can get his side of the story. As it is right now, unless the arson investigator finds more evidence or we get a different story. We’ll have to keep the case open. Is that going to be a problem for you?”
Ku‘uipo hadn’t planned to have this conversation in front of Efrain, or anyone else for that matter. “I’m meeting with the insurance agent tomorrow.”
Detective Santos looked over at Efrain for a moment before turning back to her. Fishing into his pocket, he pulled out a card and handed it to Ku‘uipo. “I know I gave you
my card earlier, but you can give that one to the insurance agent if he or she has any questions about the fire. I’ll do what I can.”
“Mahalo, Palani. Let me know if you need anything from me.”
Tapping his notepad against his leg, he shook his head. “I’m good. For now. Take care of yourself.” He turned and moved toward his car but stopped short and looked over his shoulder. “Be careful with that Miles guy.”
She nodded. “I will.”
“And I’ll be here with her.”
Detective Santos gave him a stoic look before he turned to Ku‘uipo and gave her a wink. “Then I won’t worry so much. He looks like he could give a guy aching for a fight a few good reasons to walk away.”
“I’m lucky that he hasn’t run away after all of this mess.” Ku‘uipo reached out and lightly touched his arm. “I wouldn’t blame you if you did.”
Efrain stayed silent for a long moment and during that time, Detective Santos managed to get into his car. He waved as he pulled away along the drive to the street.
Alone, Efrain moved closer to her. He smoothed his hands up the backs of her arms and felt her shiver when his fingertips trailed along her skin. “Maybe I haven’t made it clear, Ipo.”
Again, his fingers moved and followed the curve of her off-the-shoulder dress.
“I’m here, because I want to be.”
His fingers traced up along the tops of her shoulders until they reached the base of her neck.
“I’m here, because I care about you. I want to help you.”
“I don’t like being needy. You’ve just met me at a bad time. When I’m struggling to make all of this work out and I’m running in circles. You should come back when I’m not ready to tear my hair out and curl up in a little ball.”
Efrain moved closer to her, lifting his hand to her cheek. “Don’t tear out your hair. I like it a lot.”
She smiled at him, rubbing her cheek into his hand. “I like it when you comb your fingers through it.”
His eyes darkened and his breath slowed. “I’d like to take out those pins you put in your hair earlier. Maybe spend a little time here before I go back to the hotel.”
She wanted more than that, but it felt odd offering to let him stay. Ku‘uipo wasn’t sure that she was ready for him to stay the night in the way she wanted him to.
The way he touched her, without actually touching her, had kept her awake at nights.
Just imagining what it would be like to feel her skin against his was a fantasy that made her skin tingle and the length of her breaths shorten.
“If you want to come back to my house, I can change out of this and we can talk for a bit before you leave.”
And there it was.
The offer she’d made paled in comparison to what she wanted to give him, but again she wasn’t sure if she was ready. Physically, she wanted him, would beg for him to touch her… taste her… and more. Emotionally, she was scared.
Hi‘ilani had fallen for Jackson quickly. She’d been so sure of her heart with him and she knew that everything would work out. The only hiccup for them was Jackson and something about his work. Something that kept them apart.
And whatever that obstacle had been was gone now. The ring that her friend wore on her hand was a testament of Jackson’s devotion to her. And her gift to him.
Ku‘uipo just wasn’t sure that she had that devotion to give. The hotel was going to keep her busy for years. What could she give to a relationship beyond falling dead asleep every night and groaning as she rolled out of bed in the morning? Between those events it would just be work and more work.
She just couldn’t see Efrain being happy to have someone in his life that could only be there for special events or not even then sometimes.
“Hey.”
She heard his voice but couldn’t quite seem to move her mouth to answer him.
“What’s going on in your head?”
Ku‘uipo felt his hands on her face, felt him tilt her face up so he could look straight into her eyes.
“What’s going on behind those beautiful eyes, Ipo?”
Her smile was real, pulled straight from her heart. “I like it when you call me that. When you say my name with so much warmth in it, it feels like the sun on my face.”
“When I touch you,” he smoothed his thumbs over her skin, “I never want to let you go.”
He felt her shudder, or maybe shiver was a better word. The tremors that passed through her body and into his felt like the whole world was vibrating around them.
A seismic surge of energy.
“Let’s go get you home and we’ll play the rest by ear.”
Train saw her lips part, saw the startled look in her eyes.
“I’d love to see you relax for a bit. Put your feet up. Maybe you’ll let me rub your feet?”
He swore he could see her wavering, melting at the thought.
“Are you serious? Or… or is this just a tease?”
“I don’t tease about those kinds of things.” He loved the way she looked… but at that moment, when her eyes were half-hooded, her lips parted and plump, it was all he could do to breathe.
All he could do to keep this calm, easy.
He wanted to kiss those lips.
Her lips curved into a smile. “I can feel you thinking, I just can’t figure out what’s going on inside your head.”
Train fought down the need inside of him, offering her his arm in lieu of his heart.
At least for a little while. He wasn’t interested in scaring her, just forging a connection that she might consider continuing when he went back to work.
Slipping her arm through his, she leaned against him as they walked, and he felt the cool touch of the conditioned air on his skin. But everywhere he felt her was warm, gentle… beautiful.
The back doors slid open and they stepped out into the night air. Beside him, she lifted her face and looked up into the dark canopy of night. “Just wait,” she sighed, “when we get to my place, the view from the porch, you can see the night sky without all of the lights. The stars look so beautiful in the darkness.”
They continued for a few steps before she turned to look at him, but he was still watching her.
Ku‘uipo looked away, her cheeks darkening with color. “You’re supposed to be looking at the stars!”
“I am,” he turned his gaze toward the small collection of coconut trees off to the side of the property. Beyond it, he could see a couple of cottages close to the beach, but there was one deeper in the shadows, further from the hotel and the lagoon. It looked to be the same size as the others, but its placement gave it a hide-away look. A refuge.
“That one’s yours.”
He heard her soft, melodic laughter blending in with the trade winds.
“Kuʻu home o Lihue,” she murmured in a voice that he could only describe as reverent. “My love for my home, Lihue.”
“I can hear the way you feel, Ipo.”
They mounted the stairs together, with Train giving the base of the house a curious look as they did. “It seems like the style around here,” he wondered, “houses raised off the ground with some kind of lattice work beneath.”
She released his arm as she drew her keys from the pocket in her muʻumuʻu and looked up at him before she set to work opening the lock. “Not so much a lattice in the way that I understand it, but more like long wooden slats. It allows for maintenance workers to go under the house to access things like electricity and the plumbing.”
A strange skittering sound rustled under the porch and Train moved toward the railing to look into the darkness.
He heard the sound of the door swinging open and he looked back at her. “I should go and look around. Make sure that the noise isn’t something dangerous.”
She tilted her head so that her ear lifted toward the darkness beyond the porch. “If you go looking around under the house at this time of night. You might find a few dangerous things. Pōpoki hide and prowl in the night,” she w
hispered as she moved closer to him, “but beware the brutal moa skulking about with their claws that scratch!” She jumped at him with her fingers curled into claws and he grabbed her around the waist, pulling her tight against him. Laughing, she put her palms against his chest and gave him a playful push. “Don’t- don’t… I’m just joking.”
Easing his hold on her, he kept his arms around her supple form. “If you’re trying to scare me away… you’ll have to do better than that. Now, let’s get you inside and comfortable and then you can tell me what you were talking about.”
They managed to walk through the open doorway with his arms still around her body and her hands over his. She pushed the door shut and he turned the lock.
The air around them was warm, but the windows allowed for the breeze to slip through the house.
He wouldn’t mind standing there all night with her in his arms, but he meant what he said about her taking it easy.
“Go ahead,” he loosened his hold, letting his hands drop to her hips and then slowly to his sides, “get changed. I’ll wait for you. No rush.”
She stepped back, her tongue darting out to wet her lips. “No rush?”
She had him there. Just the sight of her lips glistening in the small hallway lamp had him regretting his words, but he’d never tell her that.
“Yeah, take your time.”
She moved off, stepping into a doorway off to the right. Ku‘uipo paused with her hand on the doorframe and her eyes focused on him. “I won’t be long,” she gave him a wink. “I can’t wait to get your hands on me.”
Ten
To say that he was on edge, was an understatement. He couldn’t decide whether to stand or sit while he waited, pacing instead. He rationalized the idea that if he sat down, he’d only have to get up when she walked back in the room.
And standing, moving around, made it easier for him to keep his mind off all the possible ways that he could take the meaning of her words.
It was only too easy to take them where his dreams went.
Train knew how amazing it would feel to put his hands on her body. To touch her silken skin, thread his fingers through her hair, and yes, slip his fingers inside of her heat.