“Not harmless,” he said with a proud smile.
“Soph, I’m losing the chill, easy-going vibe you love so much,” I said, shaking my leg.
“Uncle Eric,” Sophia said sternly. “I’m going to call Kennedy and tell her you’re not behaving.”
He smiled and shook his head. “There’s no need for that. We all know she’s the one to really fear around here. Welcome to Oahu, Leo. Ifyou’re having sex with my niece, keep that information to yourself and you and I will be just fine.”
Sophia snorted and Kat smiled adoringly at him.
“Yes, sir,” I said. There was no world in which I was going to admit to this man that I touched Sophia beyond a chaste hand hold.
“Eric is fine, you don’t have to call himsir,” Kat said, tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear.
“I don’t hate thesir,” Eric said, walking back to the counter. “But she’s right. You can call me Eric.”
Kat laughed and hugged Sophia again. “Okay, I did my job. Kind of. I need to go to the store and get a few things. Elena’s letting me redo her room.”
Sophia laughed. “Do you have enough black things for sale in your store?”
“I’m aware of her style choice and I’ve ordered a few things,” Kat said, standing up. “She gave me permission to go heavy on dark purples and blues as long as the main color scheme is black.”
“Good luck,” Sophia said. Kat scurried over to the counter to kiss her terrifying husband goodbye.
Sophia smirked and took a sip of her iced latte. “Still love me?”
“Always, Hawaii.”
“You made it through them all in just under a day.”
“Well, I’ve never met a woman’s family before but if I had known it would be like this, I’d have gotten on my private jet and flown home immediately.”
I glanced at the counter and saw Eric’s eyes on me again.
“I’m not positive it’s over, Soph.”
She laughed. “If you want to do relationships now, you’ll have to get used to this.”
“You seem to be grossly misunderstanding this situation, Hawaii. I don’t want todo relationships now.I want to have a relationship withyou. I guarantee you this is the only family I’ll ever need to impress.”
She smiled sadly at me, but she didn’t say anything. Maybe she was honoring our agreement not to think about life after graduation. But what she didn’t understand was that I’d let her go so she could be happy here with her family—who were all obviously as great as she’d said—but there wouldn’t be anyone else for me after her. I’d find a way to make peace with that eventually.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Sophia
Having Leo in Hawaiiwith me was like living in a dream and it was impossible not to think about how much I wished this could be our future. On his second day with us, I took him surfing on the North Shore, and like the athletic champion he was, he’d picked it up in no time. He’d looked pretty damn hot out there in nothing but swim trunks, and it’d taken a lot of effort to keep myself focused on the waves so I could impress him for once. Which I did, of course.
Since Leo didn’t have hockey practice and lifting to do like he did back at school, he spent each morning doing my fancy Navy SEALworkout and cursing Eric’s name the entire time. “No wonder he looks like a fucking tank,”Leo had said after we’d jogged to the top of Diamond Head one morning. He’d shut up pretty quickly though once he realized how beautiful the view at sunrise was.
Leo took the twins and Koa skating one afternoon, after which they spent an hour talking my ear off about how awesome it had been. I’dopted not to go so I could have some one-on-one time with Elena, but I almost wished I’d been there. I had no doubt Leo was patient and gentle with them the entire time, and I would have enjoyed watching him.
By the time the week was over I was dreading the moment he headed back to Boston, but I also wasn’t ready to leave yet. We still had more than two weeks left of winter break and I wanted to spend more time with my family. Plus, my mom had booked that girls’ trip to Kauai for the end of break.
I sat between Leo’s legs on a blanket on Waikiki Beach as the sun finished setting over the ocean while we waited for the New Year’s Eve fireworks to start. Elena and the twins were fighting over snacks while the six adults were all coupled off and cozy, enjoying what had always been one of my favorite traditions growing up. I’d loved watching them, happy and content with each other, while us kids had played and laughed, and I’d always hoped that one day I’d do the same with my family.
I tipped my head back, letting it rest on Leo’s shoulder as I looked up at him. “If Sloane and Kennedy are to be believed, supposedly this is where we met,” I said.
“You think they’re right?” Leo asked, smiling at me.
