Chapter Five
Momentarily confused, Sara looked down at the drink Maile had given her and wondered if maybe it was more than just fruit punch.
Sniffing at the glass, she didn’t smell liquor.
Maybe she merely misunderstood. Leveling her eyes to meet his waiting gaze, she took a breath. “I’m sorry. Say that again?”
He chuckled and leaned in, his gaze momentarily darting over his shoulder to where Maile and Mrs. Alani stood watching. Placing his hand over hers, he leaned even closer. “Don’t look, but they’re watching us.”
“No surprise there.” She sighed and started to lean back, but he held tightly onto her, keeping her close.
“They really are going to set you up with every eligible male on the island all winter, aren’t they?”
“More like all year, but yes.”
“So, let’s give them what they want.”
Her head dipped to the side. Maybe he was just as crazy as her mother. “I’m sorry, you’ve lost me. What?”
His eyes lit with amusement. “It’s really quite simple.
We pretend that we’re dating.” His gaze drifted in the direction of the two women intently watching them from the house.
“If they think you are in a relationship, they won’t keep thrusting unsuspecting men on you, and you won’t have to pretend to not know what they’re doing. ”
Part of her wanted to shout what a brilliant idea, the other part of her considered she might be as crazy as he was for even considering such an odd plan.
“They’re still watching, aren’t they?” His voice was low, and deep, and smooth as a top shelf whiskey.
She nodded.
“See what I mean? They’re never going to give up. At least we can give you a pleasant and peaceful holiday season.”
He did have a point. Though a bit out of the box, but then again, isn’t that what SEALs were especially good at? Thinking outside the box. “How exactly do you see this going down?”
“We can go out now and again for a friendly meal or movie and whenever we’re both at any of the family gatherings, we pretend we’re actually together. You know, hold hands…”
Her gaze dropped to where his hand still covered hers.
“Maybe laugh together, sit together, and if they’re watching, we could even stare into each others eyes like a couple of besotted teens.”
That made her laugh. “Besotted, huh?”
“Smitten?” He shrugged.
“How old are you? Those are words my grandmother would have used.”
“Mine too,” he grinned at her, “which is probably why I use them. Grams was a firecracker.”
From across the yard, when her mother and Maile should have been overseeing all the food and beverages for half the island, they were inside the patio doors, spying at them from behind the blinds.
Kenny’s idea, ridiculous as it was, had a silver lining.
A holiday season free of her mother’s scrutinizing gaze and Maile’s not-so-subtle maneuvers.
It was a tempting offer, a perfect solution to a problem she hadn’t been able to solve on her own.
He was offering her a shield, and she couldn’t find a single reason to say no.
“So, we keep holding hands, go to family dinners, and if you’ve got this right, I have the first ever Christmas season without having to look over my shoulder every five minutes, and then, after the new year, we can just say we make better friends than a couple? ”
He nodded.
“And if it doesn’t work?”
“No harm no foul.”
“I suppose.” Though she wasn’t completely sure if this was a brilliant idea or the worst one she’d ever heard.
“You know what we always say?”
Her gaze narrowed with his, not sure where he was going.
“Hope for the best, plan for the worst, and prepare to be surprised.”
She chuckled at that, incredibly aware he was still holding her hand, and without looking knew her mother was still watching them. She just wasn’t so sure she was ready for the worst—or any surprises—but she wouldn’t mind the best. “Let’s do it.”
Kenny laughed, and Sara realized that for the first time in months, she wasn’t dreading the rest of the holiday season. In fact, she was actually looking forward to it.
“So, boyfriend,” she playfully tested out the word. “Tell me about your day.”
“Well, girlfriend.” Still smiling, Kenny settled back in his chair. “It just got a whole lot more interesting.”
Of all the words that came to mind to describe this new bargain, she wasn’t sure interesting was the one she’d have come up with, but it would do. “So, what do we do now?”
“Nothing.” He shrugged. “If we lay it on too thick—”
“They’ll never believe it.” He was, of course, right. “In that case,” she pushed to her feet, “I’d better go see what help is needed in the kitchen. Will I see you later?”
“Count on it.”
And to her surprise, she was definitely looking forward to later.
The laughter and chatter of the party were a pleasant, low-level hum in Kenny’s ears.
Cutting through the maze of tables and people, he’d pause, smiling and chatting with friends and acquaintances.
Every year the list of friends here on the island had grown considerably.
Several of the men he’d once worked with like Nick, and Doug had settled on the island the Everrett family called home.
Every so often he found himself glancing toward the house.
From the yard, through the massive patio doors that extended across the living room and half the kitchen, he could see Sara elbow-deep in sudsy water, washing dishes alongside Emily and Angela while Maile directed traffic like a seasoned field commander, her voice cutting through the noise with clear, concise instructions that could be heard even from where he stood.
“You made up your mind yet?” Billy slapped him on the back. “There’s always room for an experienced diver at the Big Island Dive Shop.”
He knew that. For years, his friends had always made it clear he would be welcome, if not needed. Kenny had to admit, any time he’d gone with his friends on a group dive, he’d always enjoyed himself. More than he would have thought without a mission at stake.
“Now Billy, what did we agree?” Nick came up beside his longtime friend and business partner, shaking his head and rolling his eyes. “What part of the memo, give the man some time and space, did you not get?”
Kenny patted his friend on the arm. “No worries. We all know I have some decisions to make.”
“Who knows,” Billy shrugged. “Maybe you’ll find a pirate’s treasure and be set for life.”
“What?” Kenny blinked.
“Don’t mind him.” Nick rolled his eyes. “We’ve had an unusual uptick in treasure hunters the last couple of years and it sometimes makes life a little crazy.”
“Well, they do call Hawaii paradise,” Billy reminded him, not for the first time. The mantra had been engrained in Billy’s vocabulary since the first time Kenny had come to visit when everyone was still deployed together. “Angela has a friend from work she wants you to meet.”
His head snapped around to face Billy. Was matchmaking genetic in the Everrett family?
“Don’t look so startled.” Billy held back a laugh. “I told her you could find your own woman.”
Bullet dodged. “Thanks.” Kenny settled his hand on his buddy’s shoulder. “I hate to eat and run, but it was a long flight yesterday and I’ve got a way to go before I catch up on the right time zone. I’m just going to thank your mom, and I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”
Everyone nodded and Kenny turned on his heel and marched to the kitchen.
At first, he’d offered to fake date Sara just to keep the women from playing Dolly Levy on her, but it struck him that his offer was as good for him as it would be for her.
He’d been on his fair share of blind dates thanks to the women in the Everrett family, some worse than others.
This arrangement with Sara was going to ensure they both had a pleasant and unsupervised holiday.
Stepping past the open doors into the kitchen, he resisted the urge to wink at Sara when their eyes met briefly.
This was a mission. He had a part to play.
And a job to do—convince everyone that he and Sara were infatuated.
“Maile, I can’t thank you enough for another perfect evening.
As always, the food was amazing, and the company even better. ”
His friend’s mother gazed softly at him, her mouth tipped in a sweet smile. “You’re leaving already?”
“Yes, ma’am. Long flight yesterday, and I’m still in the wrong time zone.” Kenny grinned and turned toward Sara. “Sara, can I offer you a ride home?”
Sara looked up from the sink, suds clinging to her forearms. “Thanks, but I’ve got a ride with my parents.”
Before Kenny could respond, Mrs. Alani appeared at his elbow as if summoned by magic.
“Oh my,” her voice pitched slightly higher than normal, “I promised to help Maile with…” She paused, her eyes wide open, a look of panicked realization on her face, her gaze darted from Sara to Maile, a silent SOS as she clearly scrambled for something plausible. “With…uh…”
Maile’s eyes went wide for a split second before understanding dawned. “Oh yes, that’s right, you did promise.” She spun to face Sara, practically beaming. “You two run along. No sense making you wait around for your parents.”
Kenny had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing. The two women were about as subtle as a freight train, but their enthusiasm was almost endearing.
“Are you sure, Mom?” Amusement danced in Sara’s eyes.
“Absolutely sure.” Mrs. Alani made shooing motions with her hands. “You go on. We’ll be fine here.”
“Well,” Sara shrugged, untied her apron, and hung it on a nearby hook, “if you insist.”
They made their way through the house and out to the front yard, maintaining their composure all the way to Kenny’s rental car. Settling into their seats, Kenny caught sight of the two women peeking from behind the blinds.
“They’re watching,” Sara murmured.
“I see them.” He backed out of the driveway slowly, resisting the urge to wave goodbye to their audience.
They maintained their serious expressions until they reached the first stop sign, and then, as if someone had pulled the plug on a helium balloon, they both leaned forward, bursting with laughter.
“Who knew it would be so easy?” Sara gasped between giggles.
“And so much fun.” Kenny shook his head in amazement. “Did you see your mother’s face when she was trying to come up with an excuse?”
“I thought she was going to hyperventilate.” Sara wiped tears from her eyes. “And Maile jumping in to save her was priceless.”
“They’re going to be planning our wedding by morning.”
“Probably our children’s names too.”
Kenny turned onto the main road, still chuckling. To say the evening had taken an unexpected turn was the understatement of the decade. He glanced at the time on the dashboard. It was still early. “I’m not in a hurry to get home.”
“Me either.” The moonlight painted her profile in a soft, silver light.
“There’s a great little place down by the water that serves incredible ice cream. What do you say to our first official fake-date?”
She looked at him, and her smile was real and unguarded. “I’m in.”