Chapter 14
KAWEHI
Kawehi had never been much of a superstitious person. You had to have a few growing up in Hawaii. Like you don't take pork off the Pali. Be careful of old women by the sea and beautiful women in the mountains walking along all by themselves. But those were more cultural myths and warnings than superstitions. At least that's what she told herself.
The strange feeling of something crawling across her skin on the back of her neck was new.
When she described it to her uncle, he gave her a strange look and told her to watch her back, but she didn't know what she had to be worried about. For the first time in what felt like forever, she had everything in front of her and a light at the end of the tunnel that wasn't a train.
Business at the bowling alley was hopping. Once she'd gotten Maile to put out pictures of the guys bowling on social media, the women starting flocking in and like Mike Taffer said on Bar Rescue, if you want guys to come to a bar you have to have women. It was a good thing that the Coconut Wireless was an unspoken rule for Hawaii.
There was every indication that they'd have money to keep things going, including the large property tax bill that was coming up.
Still, she had that feeling.
It had to be something crazy. She wasn't used to this kind of feeling.
A knock at the door was quickly followed by a yell.
"Cuz! Cuz! Open the door!"
Shaking her head, Kawehi moved into the hallway, calling out as she went. "I'm coming! Hold your horses!"
"Coming?" Maile called back. "Oh, then I'll come back when you and your Dom are done!"
Kawehi's head dropped back, and she came to a slow stop in the middle of the main room of the house. "Why?"
"Come on, Cuz! Open the door!"
"Why do you keep talking about this?" She lifted her head and stared at her cousin. "Maybe I should ask how things are going with Axl, huh?"
Maile's jaw dropped open and then she folded her arms across her chest. "Seriously? You're going to bring that up? That's a low, low blow."
"Well, I think it's fair. But I'm also curious. I think you guys like each other, but you don't want to say it."
"Stop." Maile yanked on the door handle. "This isn't grade school. He's not pulling on my pig tails."
"Please," Kawehi joked back as she unlocked the screen door, "this is very much grade school for you and Axl."
Maile skirted around her and dropped her purse on the couch as she moved toward the kitchen area. "Hardly. If it was grade school, I would have kissed him already."
Kawehi covered her mouth to hide her laugh. "I would have sworn you would have."
Maile turned around with the gallon jug of POG in her hand. "If I had I would have told you. I think he's just trying to drive me nuts." She let the refrigerator door close and pulled out a cup from the cupboard. "But it's okay. I'm planning on pushing him across the line first."
Kawehi drew in a deep breath trying to put the right words together in her head. "Maile, are you sure? I don't think that's a good idea."
"Why not?" Maile set the jug down and turned around with a full glass in her hand. "He started it."
Kawehi's chin dropped a little. "You were the one who said this wasn't grade school."
Maile lifted her mouth away from the glass and gave her a stare. "Well you and I went to different grade schools." She grinned. "You went to Punahou, and I went to Kam."
Kawehi folded her arms across her chest. "I thought you said to call it Kamehameha."
Shrugging, Maile took another sip. "That's when I'm not trying to drink a glass of juice, Cuz."
Kawehi moved through the room and looked at her reflection in a magnetic mirror she'd gotten as a gift and stuck it on the refrigerator door. It had words at the top and bottom.
LOOK AT THIS FACE! WE LOVE IT!
"Better drink it quick. We were supposed to leave for the festival almost ten minutes ago."
Maile leaned her hip against the counter. "I know I joke that you're a little uptight sometimes, but I love that you're getting all done up for the festival. When was the last time you wore make-up?"
Kawehi lowered her hands down and stared at the mirror, her gaze blurring as she tried to remember. "I think it was when I married Nick."
"Oh, shit." Maile put her glass down with a soft thump as she walked over to her. "I'm sorry."
Kawehi barely felt the hug, but she appreciated the gesture. "It's okay," she reached her arm across her body to rub at her cousin's arm. "It's okay, really."
Maile lifted her head and set her chin on Kawehi's shoulder. "Not to say I told you so, because I didn't, but do you remember that judge that married you guys?"
Lifting an eyebrow at her cousin, not that Maile could see it, Kawehi smiled. "Not that I like to think about it, but yeah. He came over to the offices at Restaurant Row on his lunch from the First Circuit Court building across the street, but I'm guessing that's not what you were thinking about."
Maile lifted her chin from her shoulder and moved so she could get her glass off of the counter. "Yeah. You and I pay attention to different things. It's cool but can be so damn frustrating." She took a sip. "What I was talking about was what he said before he put his seal on your marriage certificate."
Kawehi knew that her cousin wasn't trying to upset her but thinking back to anything about Nick upset her no matter what. "Why? What did he say?"
Maile looked at her over the lip of the cup with a raised brow. "He held that embosser thing with the certificate in it and he looked at you, not Nick, but you. 'Are you sure? 'Cause I haven't put the seal on it yet.'" Maile sighed and gave her a weak smile. "I remember because while I was there for you as your bridesmaid. I was also hoping that you'd take the judge's offer and change your mind."
"You knew better than I did. I thought Nick was a good guy."
"He was all about you, Cuz. That's the thing. He poured all that love all over you and was constantly telling you all the right things. And I wanted to believe he was all in for you, too."
Kawehi turned and put her back against the counter beside her cousin. "Are you saying I shouldn't be with Dom?"
Maile shook her head. "He's a good guy." She put her free hand over her heart. "I don't get all the yucky feelings with him that I got with Nick."
"Yucky feelings. That's a strange diagnosis."
Maile bumped her with her hip. "I'm serious."
"I know," Kawehi countered back. "That's why I love you. You were there for me no matter what. I hope you know that I'm going to be there for you the same way."
Maile let out a breath. "What's going to happen when Dom gets transferred halfway across the world? All of our lives, we've been living a couple of blocks away from each other. What's going to happen when you leave?"
Kawehi lifted her arm and wrapped it around Maile's shoulders. "Things are different now than they were just five or ten years ago. We have facetime and we can call across the world without crazy fees. I know that no matter where I go in this world, I'm going to love you like crazy where I am. And no one said Dom's going to ask me to go with him if he gets transferred to a different base."
Maile looked up at her with her jaw dropped. "Are you kidding? He's head over heels for you. I bet he's just waiting for all this crazy with Nick to get figured out before he drops down on one knee."
Kawehi shook her head. "I think you've been reading too many romance books."
"And I think you haven't been reading enough." They stood together in companionable silence for a moment before she spoke again. "I think it's time we break out Princess Bride."
Kawehi groaned. "You're trying to kill me."
Maile shook her head. "If I wanted to kill you, I'd break out The Lake House."
Kawehi sagged against the counter. "You're trying to make me cry."
"Never. I just want you to be happy. I want you to believe in Happy Ever Afters."
Hugging Maile against her side she sighed. "I want you to believe in them, too."
Maile gave her a nudge with her elbow. "I believe in them," she sighed.
"Then why are you fighting with Axl so much?"
"Axl?" Maile lurched away and stared at her. "Him? That's not a Happy Ever After thing!"
Kawehi shrugged her shoulders. "Why not?"
"He's a... He’s a neanderthal! And his Marine name? Whatever they call it. Axl? You know what that is?"
"It's a car thing, right?" Kawehi had no idea.
"It's that little sea creature thing. The Axo- Axal-"
"Axolotl?"
"I don't know how to say it. But it's such a cute animal and he's just a jerk."
"You think he's sexy. I've seen the way you look at him when he can't see you doing it."
Maile looked at her as if she had been betrayed. "Being sexy isn't enough."
Kawehi nodded. "No, it's not. But if you're not looking for Happy Ever After. What's wrong with Happy for Now?"
Maile narrowed her eyes at her. "I take it back. You might be reading too many romance novels."
"Okay. We can talk about this more later-"
"No, we don't have to." Maile rolled her eyes.
"Okay. Okay. So let's get going. I want to hear the Velasco Family play."
Maile went to the sink to wash out the cup and Kawehi put the POG jug back in the refrigerator. She really needed the festival to take her mind off of everything rushing around in her head.
She smiled when Maile hugged her from behind.
"I love you, Cuz."
Kawehi smiled and covered Maile's hands with her own. "I love you right back."
The line of cars trying to get through to the public parking area was like the line of slugs, it was a pain creeping through the base, but there were Marines in uniform directing the cars, so they weren't going to get lost.
"Oh. My. God. I'm sorry I was late to your house."
Maile leaned her head against the window.
"It's okay," Kawehi smiled to put it in her voice, but she wasn't happy about being late. She was looking forward to seeing Dom. She was hoping that they might get a chance to dance. If they ever got to the festival.
PALLAS
Looking at his phone, he didn't see any messages or missed calls. He blew out a breath and barely resisted the urge to call.
"What are you looking for?"
Pallas looked up and smiled at Buck. "A message from Kawehi. I don't want to miss her when she comes in."
Buck looked at the double lines of people making their way through the discreetly covered metal detectors on their way into the hangar. "It's going to be awhile with this line." He gestured out into the night. "I heard that the guys at the gate say its bumper-to-bumper out there."
Pallas nodded. "I doubt she's going to message me if she's on the road."
"True." Buck shrugged. "You want me to wait with you?"
Pallas shook his head. "Let me message her and then I'll go with you to the static display. I'd rather do something with my time than sit here staring at the line of people coming in."
He looked down at his cell phone at the messages they'd already sent and decided to leave it be. She had to be on the way, and he didn't want to bother her on the road. At night with a lot of cars trying to make their way onto the base, a momentary distraction could be enough to cause an accident.
He knew that she'd send him a message when she arrived, so he slid his phone back into his pocket and walked through the hangar on his way to the tarmac on the other side.
Pallas and Buck looked at the scores of booths lining the serpentine path they'd created through the cavernous space.
"They have pretty much everything in here."
Pallas nodded. "Everything from snacks."
"Custom T-shirts."
"And a few car dealerships." Pallas shook his head. "Crazy."
"It's like those impulse buy shelves by the cash register in stores." Buck sighed. "Although I'm not sure how much of an impulse buy a car would be."
Pallas chuckled and lifted his chin at the red car on display at the end of the row. "Definitely not that Camaro. That's a chunk of change for a car. Certainly not something I'd just walk up to and buy at an event like this."
NICK CARTER
The two men continued on, laughing to each other. They didn't notice the man standing beside the Camaro with his back toward them.
But he noticed them.
He'd had his own investigation done in the short amount of time since he'd been served divorce papers. The one with dark hair and muscles to spare was the man trying to move in on Kawehi.
Nick Carter turned around and if his gaze could bore a hole through the other man's head, Domenico Pallas would be crumpled, dead on the floor. He'd barely made it out of Florida alive after Charmaine's father found out about his... trouble, but they'd all agreed it was better for him to come to Hawaii and get things straightened out.
He'd managed to convince them that it was a matter of a paper snafu and that he could find that non-existent paper in Hawaii.
He didn't think he had much time to get things figured out before he'd have to go back home. His problem with the Marines wasn't easy to fix. The brass on base had already told him that he was on thin ice with them. Apparently, this Domenico guy had some friends in high places and that's how they'd found him in the first place.
Time was running out. He'd have to fix things quickly or he'd be in really hot water when he got back to Florida.
KAWEHI
Kawehi was relieved when they finally found a parking space. It had been slow going, but the Marines directing traffic had done a great job keeping people and vehicles moving. As soon as they found parking, she got her phone out and turned it on. She was relieved that she hadn't missed any messages or calls from Dom.
She knew he had stuff to do at the festival and she didn't want to cause him any problems.
She typed out a message to Dom and touched the send icon on the messaging app, but it didn't send.
Kawehi tried it again, but nothing happened.
"What's up?" Maile was standing by the front of the car. "Did you get a message from Dom?"
"No." Kawehi barely resisted the urge to shake the phone as if that would make any difference. "I don't have any coverage."
"What?" Maile dug her phone out of her purse and turned it on. "Weird. I don't have any coverage either."
Kawehi turned off her phone and started it back up again. The phone still had the draft of the message in her phone, but it still wouldn't send. "I'm supposed to message Dom when I got here. Now, I don't know what I'm going to do."
Maile leaned in and sighed. "We can go to the entrance and try again." She pointed at the front of the hangar at the slowly advancing double line. "If we don't get in line now, we might never get in."
Agreeing with her cousin, Kawehi tucked her wallet in her jeans pocket and kept her phone in her hand. "Let's go. Maybe we'll find someone who knows where the guys are."
Maile gave her a wink. "Great! As long as it's not Axl. He can kiss my-"
"Okay, let's go." Kawehi wondered how long it was going to be before her cousin stopped fighting the attraction she felt for Axl. Knowing her, and learning about Axl, they both might out stubborn each other into their eighties! "You know how much I love lines."
"Ugh. Same here." Maile rushed ahead to get in line ahead of some other people who had parked their cars nearby and held a spot for Kawehi. They began the walk to the hangar and while Kawehi tried a few times to get a message through, she heard other people complaining about a cell outage.
An android user in the line laughed at their friend, bragging loudly that he had coverage.
"Jerk," Maile looked up at her. "He's going to get his butt kicked if he says it loud enough."
Kawehi put her hand on her cousin's shoulder. "Down, tiger. Don't do anything to end up in jail tonight."
Maile looked up with doe-eyed innocence as she put a hand over her heart. "I won't do that. I was just thinking someone with an iPhone might if he keeps making an issue of it."
A man in front of them in line turned his head to look back over his shoulder. "I was thinking the same thing."
Kawehi listened as the two commiserated over their mutual hate of the man about ten feet ahead of them. Nick had an Android phone. Right about now he'd be complaining and self-congratulating himself to anyone who would listen.
She really was happy to put him and their relationship behind her.
NICK CARTER
Nick was thrilled to know that Kawehi hadn't changed her phone. He saw the blip on the screen flaring off and on. He could hear people nearby complaining about an iPhone outage, but there must have been enough of a signal for him to see where she was. And that was just outside of the hangar.
Being back at KBAY was a trip down memory lane and while he'd never been with her on base, he had a feeling that this was the best way to get in touch with her.
He'd used his ID to get himself on the base as if he was still stationed here so he got a parking space that was easier to access than where she would have been instructed to park.
As soon as she made it through the hangar, he was sure he'd be able to pull her aside and talk to her. They could work this out quickly and he could get things straightened out with Charmaine.