AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I was drawn to Smooth Kai more than I’d ever been drawn to any man before, but this new side of him was even more attractive—if that was possible. It was like getting a peek behind the curtain, and I liked what I saw.
I liked it a little too much.
Kai’s mother disappeared into the hut, and he handed me something that looked like a snow cone, only better. “Wow. I didn’t expect this.”
Kai grinned at me. I had to focus on the sweet scent of my Hawaiian ice so I wouldn’t get lost in that smile of his. “What did you expect?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I cup of ice cubes, I guess.”
“You’re kidding! You’re telling me you’ve never heard of Hawaiian ice before?”
“Do I look like someone who’d be an expert on Hawaii?”
“Don’t worry, nani, by the time I’m done with you, you’ll have the equivalent of a PhD in the islands.” Only Kai could make a PhD sound sexy. The warmth in his voice hit me in the gut and sent a shockwave of conflicting signals raging throughout my body.
A clatter came from the hut behind us. I turned in time to see Lolani ducking out of sight.
“Sorry about that,” Kai said. “She’s…” He seemed to be at a loss for words for the first time since I’d met him.
“A mom. I get it.”
Relief washed over his face. “Yeah, I believe you do.”
We shared a laugh, and her head peeked out at us from the window.
“You want to get out of here?” Kai whispered.
I shot to my feet. “Lead the way.”
We headed toward a footpath next to the road. “Have you gotten settled in at your hotel?” he asked.
“No, not really. Last time I checked, my luggage hadn’t even arrived yet.”
“Do you want to do a little more sight-seeing today, or do you need to track down your bags?”
I ached to see more of this island that was now my home, but I needed time to clear my head. When I agreed to take on Chuck’s pet project, I hadn’t realized what an emotional toll it was going to take on me.
I hadn’t disliked myself so much since the seventh grade when the only thing worse than my braces were my nearly constant breakouts.
I had some soul searching to do, and I’d never get it done with Kai nearby.
“Why don’t we call it a day for now and get started tomorrow?” I suggested.
“Works for me.”
Quiet settled between us as we continued walking and eating our cold snack. I kept my face stuffed with so much ice, I was on the verge of a grade-A brain freeze. But it was worth it to make myself look as unavailable for conversation as possible… just in case Kai got any ideas about continuing the discussion I never should have started.
“This stuff is so good.” I pointed at the last bit of Hawaiian ice in the bottom of my bowl. “What flavor is it?”
“Lilikoi.”
I muttered the word back to myself, trying to burn it into my memory. If I ever saw lilikoi on a menu somewhere, I’d definitely be ordering it again. It was a little bit of heaven on a spoon.
I put the bowl to my lips to slurp the last bit of the melted mixture, not willing to let a single drop go to waste.
“I wanted to kiss you, you know.”
Cough. Sputter. Wheeze.
