She rested her forehead against his, enjoying the sensation of being six-foot-four.
Here was a man whose sheer size intimidated people. And yet all he had ever done was lift her up. A buzzing sense of joy filled her body – pure happiness unlike anything she had ever known.
When Mia was born, the intensity of Laurie’s love for that baby shook her whole world. She hadn’t known that she was even capable of that depth of love.
She certainly hadn’t believed that it was possible to feel love like that for another adult, for a man. And then along came another human being who bypassed her defenses, rocked all of her assumptions, and shook her old beliefs to their core.
She folded her middle and index fingers down and pressed her hand against his chest.
I love you.
He put his hand over hers, then leaned back to look at her.
“I love you,” she said aloud.
The veracity of those words terrified her, and fear crept back in.
Then his lips found hers again, and the warmth of him washed away her chill uncertainty. The sun shone down, awakening all the forgotten color in Laurie’s arms. And for a while, at least, she knew a warm and flawless sense of peace.
13
Oakley
On Kimo Kalama’s sixty-sixth birthday, they gathered at his favorite beach park to honor him with his favorite activity: a family barbecue.
It was the first time that all five Aloha Sisters had been together since Akemi got home, and that alone made the day feel like a celebration. Then friends started to show up, and it really started to feel like a party.
Oakley almost cried when she hugged Uncle Mano and heard his warm Hawaiian accent; he reminded her so much of her dad. The two men were as close as brothers.
The Kalamas and Madeiras had functioned like one big extended family when they were growing up. She supposed they still did; just last year, Auntie Mahina had given Laurie a free place to stay. Kekoa helped her turn the dance studio into a bookshop. And now Pete and Mia were attending ‘Olena’s homeschool co-op, which meant that a third generation was growing up together.
The whole crew went splashing into the water, including her daughters in the throng, and her heart constricted witha mixture of grief and joy. It must have shown on her face, because Anne walked up and put an arm around her.
“I wish he could have seen this,” Oakley said, her throat tight.
“Me too.” Anne’s eyes shone with tears. “I wish I’d moved home sooner.”
“Don’t do that to yourself. You couldn’t have known.”
“It did feel like he’d be here forever.” Anne gave her a watery smile and wiped her eyes. “But our time with everyone is limited.”
“I thought we’d have more than that, at least.”
“We all did.” Anne squeezed her shoulder and looked out at their kids, who were whooping and hollering and jumping off rocks. “We’re all together now, though. He would love that.”
Oakley felt a sudden need to be nearer to her girls.
“I’m going to go jump in,” she told her sister.
“I’ll come too. I just need to put my bag down. I’ll meet you out there.”
Oakley left her dress on the rocks and waded into the cool blue water of the lagoon. Fresh spring water fed into the pools, mixing with the salt water and making it even colder than the ocean waves.
She ducked under, letting the water soothe heat that grief and sunshine had brought to her face. Then she swam straight out to the rock where the kids had congregated. When she surfaced, the kids greeted her with a cheer.
“Mom,” Harper shouted. “Come jump with me!”
Oakley climbed onto the rock and went to the highest point with her younger daughter. Hand in hand, they looked out over the crystal-blue lagoon and the dark sapphire ocean beyond.
