by Tara Lain
Kai barely got words out between his gritted teeth. “Goddamn meddling bitch.” He looked up, grimaced, and shook his head. “Sorry. My apologies for the language.”
Lani put a hand on Kai’s arm. “It’ll be okay.” The look they exchanged conveyed layers of secret understanding.
Rand walked slowly to the kitchen table and sat. “You can tell me it’s none of my business. You can tell me to leave. But I’d really like to know what’s going on here.”
Kai scowled. “It’s none of your business. You should probably leave.”
“Kai, stop that!” Lani ran to Rand. “I’m so sorry, Uncle Rand.”
“He’s not your uncle.” Kai crossed his arms.
The fantastic fierceness he’d seen when she wielded that baseball bat fell over her like a mantle. “If I want to make Rand my uncle, I damned well will.” She mirrored his crossed arms.
They stared at each other intensely for a minute, and then, wonder of wonders, Kai blinked first. He dropped his eyes and sighed. “Okay. I’m sorry. I’m just so used to keeping everyone away.”
“I know.” She walked over and put her hand on his arm. “You protect us all the time, but you need a friend too, Kai, and Rand is trying to be that.”
Anxiety closed Rand’s throat. What have I done? Jesus, how deep do I want to get into this mess? He swallowed and met Kai’s gaze. “I know I’m just a haole who’s going home. You don’t have to tell me anything.”
Lani turned on him, and those wise eyes narrowed. “Do you want to know or do you want to leave?”
Man, she did get to the heart of things. “I want to know whatever you want me to know.”
She sat opposite him on the aging easy chair. “So ask.”
Kai sat on the couch with Aliki snuggled against his side. Not the usual posture for those two. Rand inhaled. “Where’s your mother?”
Lani gazed directly at him. “Dead.”
He flinched. “I didn’t guess that. I thought maybe she’d left you guys.”
“She did that before she died. Moved away. We found out later she went to Lahaina.” Lani might as well have been telling him a rainstorm was expected.
“I see. When did this happen?”
“Four years ago.”
“Holy shit!” He stared at her steady gaze. “You’re telling me you’ve been—-what? Pretending your mother is alive for four years?”
“Yes.”
He fell back against the thin couch cushion, staring at the three of them. Lani held his gaze, but Kai looked at the carpet, and Aliki kept his eyes shut. “I don’t understand. Why?”
Lani was in charge of this briefing. “We have no living relatives. Our mother was a drug addict. When she died, Aliki was six and I was eight. Kai was only sixteen. No one would have let him keep us.”
Kai finally spoke. “They would have gone into the system. I wasn’t going to let that happen.”
Rand’s lips wouldn’t close. His brain clicked. “Sixteen? That means you’re—”
“Twenty.”
“Jesus. You’ve been taking care of a family on your own—”
“No big deal, except that it was illegal.” He shrugged.
“Your auntie?”
Lani took up the thread. “Mrs. Mikio. She’s a woman who lives a few houses away. No relation. She’s looked after us when Kai works since we were little. Nice lady.”
“My God.” Rand shook his head. “But now you’re over eighteen.”
Kai nodded. “Yes, but I’m scared if anyone looks too closely into the past, they’ll find out the whole thing. I mean, look around. This isn’t exactly nirvana for kids, and I’m no prize as a wage earner. I doubt they’ll let me adopt them, and I’m only their half brother. Maybe not even that, since it’s possible I was taken in by our mother from her sister. We’re not sure. Anyway, I don’t want anyone nosing around here. We do fine. Great, even. I just want to get the kids out of high school. Then we’ll be able to work everything out together.”
Rand wiped a hand over his face. “That’s a long time, Kai.”
He frowned fiercely. “We’ve made it this far.”
“That woman seems really nosy.” At Rand’s words, Aliki looked up at Kai with huge, terrified eyes, and Rand’s heart flipped. He swallowed. “But I think she’s satisfied with what she saw, right?” He smiled. “You guys are amazing. Anybody can see what a great family you are.” Aliki cracked a small smile, Kai glanced at him gratefully, and Rand slowly breathed out. Great family? Shit, incredible family. Three people who’d given up their childhoods to be together.
Lani folded her hands in her lap. “So now you know. Are you leaving tomorrow?”
He looked at Kai then at his hands. “I think Kai wants me to go.”
“No he doesn’t. He’s just protecting us, as always. He needs you—to be his friend. I think you should stay, and you and Kai should go have some fun tomorrow. Aliki and I will get along fine.”
A flash of heat filled Rand’s head. Talk about love and devotion. My God, these three put saints to shame. “I want to give you and Aliki another riding lesson.”
Aliki smiled full-on for the first time since the woman arrived.
Lani nodded. “Okay. That would be nice. Maybe we can go today. Tomorrow is for you to have fun. Can you do that, kaikunane?”
Kai flicked his eyes to Rand, then looked at Lani. “Yes.”
“Good. Kai has to do trail rides today at Hana Maui. Maybe you can get some horses from the stables.” She grinned.
Rand laughed. “If my charm won’t do the job, I’m sure money will. Get your boots on, kids. We’re headed for the roundup.”
Both Aliki and Lani gave little whoops and ran toward their bedroom. Despite it all, they still had their enthusiasm. Well, Lani’s was pretty muted, but she did love to ride. Rand looked up at Kai. “You’re amazing.”
Kai shook his head.
“Don’t fucking argue. You’re amazing.”
Kai glanced at Rand, then at his flip-flops. For the flash of a second, his lip trembled. Never thought I’d see the day. Rand covered the space in two steps, grabbed Kai around the shoulders, and dragged him against his chest. Wrap you so tight, no one will ever hurt you.
For an instant Kai fought; then his whole body relaxed. His head fell against Rand’s shoulder, and his breath came hard like he couldn’t bear to cry. Rand pulled Kai even closer and rocked him just a little. Somewhere behind him he heard steps, and then they disappeared. Smart Lani. He just kept rocking until Kai took a breath and pushed away. “Better get my boots on.”
“Yep. Better had.”
Chapter Seventeen
Rand stared out the window of his cottage. Bright sun glinted off the waves. Waves. A few dozen lived in his stomach. They’d had a fun day yesterday including Lani and Aliki on the trail ride. He’d ended up giving the whole group from the hotel an impromptu riding lesson, which might have even drummed up some business for his ranch when he got home. They’d laughed and joked and shared the picnic lunch the hotel had provided the riders. Very relaxed—until the van left the stable and Kai loaded the kids into his truck, tipped his hat, and left. Okay, he’d said he’d be by to get Rand in the morning, but Rand had still lain awake until after midnight—hoping. No visitor.
He might have spent a couple of minutes cuddling Kai yesterday, but the guy was about as cuddly as a horned toad. Rand had pressed to get the truth. Now he had it. What the fuck good did it do knowing the life situation of Kai and the kids? Nothing he could do. Hell, nothing Kai would let him do, even if he could think of something. The fact remained, his life centered thousands of miles of ocean away. He was on vacation.
The crunch of tires on gravel somewhere outside made him stand and slip on his flip-flops. He opened the door and looked out as Kai came around the small building.
Kai stopped. “Hi.”
“Hi.” Rand looked down at his shorts and flowered shirt. “Am I okay?”
Kai cracked half a smile. “Best I
ever had.”
He grinned back. “I mean the clothes, asshole.”
“I know what you mean. Yeah, I thought I’d take you to the pools.”
“You mean the not seven, not sacred pools?”
“The same.”
“I’m all yours.”
“Sounds promising.”
“Do I need anything?”
“Do you have a hat?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ve got sunscreen. That should do it.”
“Okay.” He went back inside, grabbed his cap from the drawer, locked the door, and followed Kai to the parking lot. “Want to take my car?”
“What? Afraid my truck won’t make it?” He cracked that half smile.
“No. I have faith in the old broad, but save wear and tear. I’m paying for this thing anyway.”
“Good point.” Kai walked to the passenger door of the rental.
Rand let them both in, pulled to the road, and said, “Which way?” Kai pointed left, and they took off.
They rode quietly—but not comfortably—for a few minutes. Rand glanced over at the back of Kai’s head. Staring out the window again. “Anything you haven’t seen before?”
“What?” He looked at Rand finally. “No, sorry. Just a lot on my mind.”
“I was wishing I could see you last night.”
Kai frowned. “I didn’t want to leave the kids after such an upsetting day.”
“Are you really worried about that woman who came to the house?”
He shrugged. “I worry about everyone.” He paused. “But she did have a kind of suspicious way about her, didn’t she?”
“Yeah. And I really hated what she said about Aliki. Fuck, some people call any kid who moves in his chair hyperactive.”
“Sounds like you’re speaking from experience.”
“Yeah, kind of. Teachers constantly told my parents I couldn’t focus or was hyperactive. Hell, I was just bored. I liked being outdoors, and they kept cutting recess shorter and shorter. But that didn’t stop them from suggesting Ritalin.”
“They’ll give Aliki Ritalin over my cold, dead body.”
Rand nodded. “How far are the pools?”
“About another twenty minutes.”
“I thought they weren’t so spectacular?”
“Actually, they’re beautiful. It’s just that the whole ‘sacred’ thing was created for tourists. But I have a surprise there I want to show you.”
“Oh. Okay.”
Kai smiled, and they settled into a more companionable silence.
A few minutes later, he started to see signs for the pools, and a short way ahead, Kai directed him to a parking area on the right. There were already cars there. “We’re not the first.”
“No. This place is a madhouse after noon. That’s why I wanted to get here early. Come on.”
Rand locked the car and followed Kai, who set a brisk pace up what he called the Pipiwai Trail. On their right, the pools of ‘Ohe’o Gulch flowed one into another. “Hey. This is beautiful.”
Kai called over his shoulder, “Now you know why they’re so famous.”
“Even if they did get a little extra PR, right?”
“Right. Beautiful but not sacred. We can see more of them on the way back. I want to beat the crowds up the trail.”
About a half mile in, a waterfall appeared, and Rand stared as they whizzed by.
“Those are Makahiku Falls.” Kai didn’t slow his pace.
“Whiplash sightseeing.”
“You’ll understand.”
As they tromped along, they saw fewer and fewer people. The big attractions were the pools and the waterfall. Walking farther required huge motivation. Obviously Kai had it.
The landscape changed gradually. Still lush and amazing, but with more and more bamboo. He loved the look of that stuff. If it wasn’t so “not cowboy,” he might have planted some at the ranch.
The stands of bamboo stalks got taller and taller. Kai veered to the right, and—
“Wow.” Rand stared around him. “It’s a bamboo forest.”
“Yep.”
“That’s what you brought me to see.” It wasn’t a question.
“Yep.” He extended a hand. “Come on.”
Rand glanced around, but no one else walked the paths between the bamboo clumps. Alone. He took Kai’s offered hand, and they walked deeper into the forest.
A breeze drifted across Rand’s face. Kai stopped. “Listen.”
All around him, the stalks clicked together in a symphony of hushed sounds——like a choir performing with Hawaiian glottal stops—clacks, wooshes, pings, flicks, and susurrations. “Magic.”
“Yes.”
“What? Oh.” He smiled. “I didn’t know I said that out loud.”
Kai grinned. Funny, he seemed more relaxed here. Still holding Rand’s hand, he walked deeper into the towering grove of stalks.
Rand stared up toward the sky as he dragged his feet through the dense blanket of leaves on the ground. Sun filtered down in shafts of soft light, and the music of the bamboo sang around them. “I wish I didn’t have to go.” He actually gasped softly—the words took him so much by surprise.
Kai looked up at him.
“I mean, I’m really going to miss the kids and”—he grinned—“the bamboo.”
In one step, Kai closed the distance between them, grabbed Rand by the chin, and pulled his head down for a blistering kiss. He leaned back, lips shining. “You make me crazy.”
“Crazy good or crazy bad?”
“Both!” He grabbed Rand’s head again with both hands and kissed him until their tongues practically fused.
Rand’s cock took off like one of the bamboo stalks reaching for sunshine. Nobody did it for him like Kai. He wrapped an arm under Kai’s butt and lifted until their hips pressed together. Just one touch shot fire through his groin, and humping took over. Kai hooked a leg tight around Rand’s ass and stretched his other so the toes still touched the ground. He thrust upward with his hips and sucked Rand’s tongue deeper with each pump.
Oh fuck. Yes, exactly. Rand pawed at his hip pocket. Did I bring anything? A satisfying crinkle made him reach into the loose cotton shorts, and he hauled out a packet of lube and a condom. He bumped his hand against Kai’s hip until he pulled back and looked down.
“Yes. You wanna get fucked, haole?”
“Yep.”
“Grab some bamboo and hold on tight.”
Kai stepped back as Rand turned and grasped two thick stalks of the smooth, giant grass. Kind of sexy, just touching it. A breeze blew, and the ripping of plastic joined the tapping of the shafts in the music all around him.
Kai grabbed the elastic on Rand’s shorts and pulled down hard. Breezy and promising. With no ceremony, he inserted a slick finger in Rand’s ass and then added another. He curved them, and Rand hollered, “Shit, yes!”
Kai leaned in and murmured, “We gotta hurry. People could show up any second.”
“Do you see me slowing down? Get the fuck in there.” He bent over farther for easier access.
Fingers out. Warm and moist at the entrance. Sheee-it. In it slid. Big, hot, and slick. They’d had enough sex that Rand’s hole had memorized the size and shape of Kai’s cock and made that appendage feel right at home. Oh, baby.
Wham! Kai responded to the need for speed. In, in, in. Hard and fast.
Rand let his head fall back. “Yes, oh yes.” Just let go and he could come, but he loved this so much, he never wanted it to end. The sounds of Kai’s breathing and moans mixed with the whispers and clicks of the bamboo, the smell of precum, musk, and leaf mulch. Jesus, if he got to have sex like this all the time, he’d come out. Oooh, another shocking thought.
Kai leaned a hand on a bamboo pole next to Rand’s head, and his hips jackhammered that cock deep and right on target. So good. Each swipe across his gland lit up his balls like Christmas ornaments. A curtain of sparkling mist filled his brain, and feeling replaced thought. Heat. Fir
e. Blast! His unencumbered cock fired its load into the forest in jet after jet as bolts of pure ecstasy shot through his groin, up his spine to his brain.
Gasping, he relaxed even more against the bamboo as Kai cried out. “Oh God. Oh shit. Oh!”
Somewhere in the distance, a voice called, “Did you hear that? What was it?”
Kai didn’t quit. He hammered his way home, his body trembling and shaking, then leaned heavily against Rand’s back while he held them both up.
“Oh wow, honey. Look at the bamboo.” The voice got closer.
Kai pulled his softened cock from Rand’s butt, slid off the condom, and dropped it into the leaves, obscuring it with his foot. Just that fast, he popped up the elastic on Rand’s shorts and yanked up his own. Without missing a beat, he pointed toward the sky. “Man, did you see that bird? Amazing.”
Rand bit the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing as he yelled, “Oh God, that’s amazing!” A young couple came through the bamboo, and Kai nodded while Rand smiled.
The girl clapped her hands. “Isn’t this an incredible place?”
They have no idea. Rand followed Kai back the way they’d come until he finally saw the car and climbed in, still nursing a smile.
They rode quietly for a while—back to the slight discomfort stage. Rand stared at the glimmering sun shining off the waves. “Tomorrow’s New Year’s Eve.”
“Yep.” Rand stayed quiet until, finally, Kai added, “I have to work.”
“How about I do something with the kids?”
Kai glanced over, a slight crease between his brows. “You want to do that?”
“Have I done anything to imply I don’t enjoy their company?”
“No, no. Sorry. Sure, they’d love that.”
“Okay. Maybe we’ll go riding or to the beach or whatever they want to do.”
“All our horses are booked pretty much the entire day.”
“Aren’t there other stables somewhere?”
“Nags.”
“Okay, then beach.”
“Shall I bring them to the guest house?”
