Chapter 3 Axel
He was staying for her. After a mental calculation of when his parents and fitness coach would nag him about summer in Sweden, he decided two weeks would work.
He had no plans beyond the fact that he wanted to see her again and again for as long as he could. All he had to do was convince Oleanna to spend time with him.
It was unusual for Axel to be this, well, eager. Attraction, he understood. This felt like something else. As if he was at the precipice of something significant. As if fate brought him to that edge and he couldn’t wait to jump.
Axel didn’t think he was imagining her interest. She stayed in his arms for a while, allowing him to notice her shallow, labored breaths and giving a front-row view of her nipples pushing through the flimsy fabric of that pretty dress.
He was so aroused, having her hair graze his nose nearly made him moan. The erratic pulse on her neck, the gentle leaning of her shoulder against his chest as if it were involuntary—that wasn’t his imagination.
And the way she looked at him, as if she knew him, was a thrill he didn’t expect.
No longer tired, Axel needed to work out his body’s stiffness—in his back and in other places. He resolved to get to the beach as soon as possible. He scarfed down protein bars and nuts from the pantry, grabbed a beach towel, and remembered to wear flip-flops.
Axel easily navigated the rocky terrain before approaching a sandy beach. He noticed the shore loosely dotted with local families, many with children jumping into the water and men cooking over portable barbecues. Women sat under canopies, their gossip and songs tinkling through the air.
It was nothing like the beaches of Miami or the Mediterranean. There was something uniquely Hawaiian about the scene—the ease, the laughter, the locals.
Except him. He looked down at his glowingly white body and snorted. Better jump into the water before his pallor blinded the kids. The shoreline was vast, the sand fine, and the ocean inviting.
Approaching the water, Axel watched in amazement as a father dipped his toddler into the water right when a small wave crested. The little round body rode a wave for three feet and landed on the shore. The child sputtered out some water, then squealed with joy as the father offered words of praise. It was like no other swimming lesson Axel had ever witnessed.
The ocean crept up his body like a balm, caressing his muscles from feet to legs and around his aching back. It was heaven. There was no other way to put it.
Immediately, he decided this would be a yearly trip.
What better way to end a season on the ice than to float on ocean waves?
And what luck to stumble into this secret paradise surrounded by red clay and thick tropical foliage, minutes from the sandy edge of the Pacific.
He relished a breeze carrying the now familiar smell of salty-sweet, an aroma he would always associate with Oleanna’s voice, her smile, her body.
Her body. He savored the image of her hips swaying. Long hair that ended on her lower back grazing the beginning of her lush backside. Axel palmed his hardness under the water and grunted in frustration.
What was this extreme and immediate infatuation?
Axel wasn’t as much of a player as some of his teammates, but he was no monk either. His phone was filled with numbers of beautiful women, eager to hear from him any time he could fit a casual night into his schedule.
Oleanna wasn’t someone he was trying to fit into his schedule. Axel was, for lack of a better word, struck. Struck with the desire to be with her.
He couldn’t shake the sense that he had seen her before, that her presence wasn’t a surprise but a discovery. Like he knew her subconsciously, in his dreams. Maybe that was it. Maybe she was the woman of his dreams.
Instead of smacking himself on the head the way he deserved for that weird and semi-creepy thought, Axel dove into an incoming wave and swam hard. When he was out of breath, he turned toward the shore and swam hard again, riding the waves by kicking through the force of their forward movement.
He worked out every day for most of his athletic career, from the time he was ten till now at twenty-eight. It was rarely this much fun. He was enjoying physical exertion, childhood play, and a primal dance between human and nature, all rolled into one.
By the time he got to the shore, he was exhausted and smiling so hard his cheeks hurt. Axel collapsed on his towel, the hot sand relaxing his lower back and the wind soothing him into slumber.
When sleep came, it came fast.
“Axel, Axel.” The salty-sweet air spoke into his ear. He turned sideways, hoping to chase the musical voice. If he could get closer to the sound, he would find her, hold her, take her. The throbbing in his pants intensified, then—
“Wake up, Axel.” The voice turned urgent. “Oh no, you’re so burnt! Axel, wake up, please.” She sounded amused, concerned, and so damn cute.
Closer. Axel wanted to be closer to that cute, sweet voice. When he moved, awareness pinched him awake. Literally—his skin was prickling like no one’s business. His eyes shot open.
Oleanna’s face was inches away. Long, wet hair framed her cheekbones, some strands grazing his face. He felt a small hand on his shoulder, which registered both arousal and something else.
Pain. So much pain.
She must have noticed him flinch. Oleanna pulled her hand back and sat on her heels.
If he thought she was gorgeous earlier, with her hair combed to the side and a dress hinting at a shapely figure, right now, she was utterly breathtaking.
She must have recently come out of the water, her hair and chest dripping with moisture. She wore a bikini top, her modest cleavage peeking between the triangles of black cloth. The strip of skin that marked the sun’s darkening against her natural, untanned skin was so beautiful he wanted to worship it.
Worship a tan line? He must be losing his mind.
“How long have you been asleep?” she asked softly.
“I don’t know. I swam for a while at around three, I think. What time is it now?”
“It’s nearly sunset,” she stated. “Oh my god, did you wear any sunscreen?”
He sat up and immediately regretted it. He heard his skin crinkle in complaint because charred skin did that.
“Oh, fuck,” he eloquently summarized.
“We have aloe vera gel in the cottage. It might help. Uncle Greg had been calling your cell for a while because my aunt wanted to know if you were hungry.”
“I must have left it up there.”
“That and sunscreen. The rays are much stronger than on the mainland, especially if you’ve been swimming,” she said, compassion and amusement making her voice achingly intimate. Damn, she was sweet.
“Too bad I turn into a red lobster instead of a golden goddess like you,” he stated, enjoying the grin that brightened her features.
“Golden goddess?” she retorted with a raised brow. “I’m no less immune to getting burnt. That’s actually why I do most of my swimming just before sunset. The water is warm from the sun all day and I don’t have to worry about burning.”
“Ah, pro tip. I should write all your advice down. Otherwise, I won’t last a day, never mind two weeks.”
“Well, first, bring your cell in case you’re out here on your own. Swimming at dusk is nice, but please make sure you leave a light on in the cottage if you plan to be out late. No streetlights”—she pointed to the palm trees swaying with the wind—“so it gets super dark.”
“And beautiful,” he mumbled, unable to turn away from her face.
She sat back, looking toward the horizon. “I know,” she agreed amiably. “It’s almost here.” Her voice was reverent.
Just as the light caught the edges of her long lashes, he understood she meant the sunset.
In what felt like a blink, the horizon exploded with color: purples and pinks, oranges and blues, streaks of silver and hints of black. They sat quietly, legs stretched and arms scaffolding them as they leaned back.
“I’ve never seen a sunset like this,” he uttered.
“That’s because there’s nothing like it. We’re on the west side of the island where the sugar cane plantations were established for decades, so it has the least tourist development in Oahu. There are no hotel lights or pollution.”
“And no tourists.”
“What do you call yourself?” she teased.
“I’ve got my list of pro tips. And I’ve got an expert on the other end of a landline. I’m practically local.”
She chortled, a sound that shouldn’t have been sexy, and yet it turned his semi-erection to a steel rod. Thank goodness the darkness hid his body from the waist down.
“Kama?āina now, yeah?” she said with that singsong accent he heard from other locals.
“Kama, what?”
“Kama?āina. That’s what I’ll be calling you from now on, local boy,” she joked before standing up. “We have decent light for five more minutes. I’ll walk you over.”
She had a flowery shawl wrapped around her waist and water socks. He wanted to touch the delicate ankles that peeked out from under that wrap. Instead, he gathered his things and stood beside her.
“What did your aunt make us for dinner?” he asked. “You’ll join me, right?”
“That’s not what usually happens. I don’t eat with the guests.”
“C’mon, Oleanna. You’ve seen what happens when you leave me to my own devices. I get burned and lost,” he teased.
“And what exactly do you expect me to rescue you from when you eat my aunt’s dinner?”
He didn’t know her enough to be certain of her tone. Was she irritated? Amused? Guarded?
That was a nauseating thought, that she would feel remotely threatened by his interest. Axel was rarely this clueless around women; not since he was a teenager. With her, he was as lost in his head as he was burnt on the beach.
“Sweet barbeque chicken, a pile of white rice, macaroni salad, and, because I made sure she added it, a lot of roasted veggies. Does that sound good?”
“It sounds amazing,” he agreed. They were quiet until they got to the cottage.
“Food should be ready in an hour. Is that enough time for you to clean up? There are all kinds of snacks, though, if you—”
“If I wasn’t a guest, would you have dinner with me?”
She looked at him with widened eyes and a parted mouth. “I’m sorry, but—”
“Because if that’s the case, I’m checking out right now. Maybe Greg will let me stay in the van for the night. Consider the cottage guestless and have dinner with me,” he said, trying to shore up all the smooth persuasion that usually worked.
She shook her head and rolled her eyes. “You’re impossible.”
“Is that a yes? Should I repack my luggage? I can move into the van before dinner.”
“OK, fine. I’ll have dinner with you,” she indulged. “And no need to be dramatic about leaving the cottage. I didn’t clean up today for nothing.”
“You cleaned the cottage for me?”
“Well, you were kind of a surprise, so it was, um, occupied. Don’t look so shocked. What’s wrong with me cleaning, anyway?”
Now he was sure. She was definitely annoyed.
“I wanted to thank you, that’s all. The place looks great.”
She blinked slowly and turned away. Over her shoulder, she called, “See you in an hour, Axel.”
“Where do you stay?”
She didn’t hear him or didn’t bother answering.
It wasn’t until Axel stared at his ridiculously red torso in front of the mirror and put aloe vera gel on his rinsed skin that he grasped something.
She hadn’t looked annoyed. Not exactly. The generous kindness in her eyes never left. If he had to guess, Axel would say she looked sad. He wasn’t sure what he said to upset her, but he was determined to make up for it.
Because for some reason, upsetting Oleanna made him nauseous. Her smile and laughter were things he needed in his life. Up there with the Stanley Cup hockey championship and, like, oxygen.