Better vs. Worse

by Mary E Thompson

  I tipped my head back and laughed. It felt good to let loose with someone. Someone I didn’t have to be the big brother for. Someone I wasn’t responsible for. Someone who wasn’t looking at me to solve his problems.

  “What did she say when you told her?”

  “First she was a little pissed off that I lied to her. Then she was…impressed that I’d gone to those lengths to get her attention.”

  “And judging by that look, she showed her admiration in a very good way.”

  Braden’s grin widened, and he nodded slowly, reliving that memory, too.

  “You’re lucky, dude. You’ve got the job and the girl and the look. My dad told me I’d never do anything with my life that had any real value if I didn’t get my head out of the water. He was right about me.”

  “Ouch. That’s a shitty thing to say. What did you say?”

  “I told him to fuck off and get his nose out of my life. That I was going to do what I wanted no matter what he said. It was the last thing I ever said to him. He got on a place a few minutes later. It went down in the ocean.”

  “Holy fuck. I had no idea.”

  I shrugged, trying to shake the mood. I never talked about my parents. If Kiki asked something, I’d always tell her, but I never brought it up. It was too painful to know the last words I ever said to my father were in anger. That he died disappointed in me. That he was right about me.

  “It was a long time ago,” I said lamely.

  “Yeah, but shit. That sucks. Why would he tell you that?”

  I snorted. “That’s how my dad was. He wanted me to be the man he was. Providing for our family. He taught me to surf, but he had a real job. He worked at a coffee plantation, moving his way up to management by the time he died. The owner’s daughter and I became close friends, but we both always had the surfing bug. It drove our dads crazy. They ganged up on us more than once about doing something worthwhile, reminding us how many surfers are never good enough to go pro.”

  “Obviously it never stuck.”

  I shook my head. If he only knew the half of it. “I quit after my parents died. I got a real job so I could provide for my sister. Their life insurance gave her enough money to go to college and start her business, and helped me buy my house, but I needed to work. I ended up at the plantation for a while, but it killed me to be away from the water every day. When Kiki finished college, I started surfing again. It took me a few years to get to where I am now, but my dad’s still right. I couldn’t support a family. I don’t have health insurance. I love what I do, but it’s not a good long term plan.”

  “Have you thought about expanding?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Hiring people. Reaching out to cruise ships and the resorts. Getting in with some other groups to teach more people.”

  I shook my head as he spoke. “I’m not smart enough to run a business like that. I don’t want to do anything that would take me out of the water that much. And I only have so many hours in the day. I don’t know that I could offer enough lessons to ever support a family.”

  Braden shook his head. “There’s got to be a solution. If you had a brand, you could even sell products. Make videos teaching people how to surf. Sell stickers and boards and clothes. There are all kinds of things you can do.”

  Something must have flashed across my face because he latched on to it and grinned.

  “There’s something. What is it?”

  I shook my head. “It’s nothing.”

  “No, no, no. That’s not nothing. What is it?”

  I sighed. “I started making a surfboard. It’s just one, and it takes a lot of time. I don’t think it’s what you’re talking about.”

  He shrugged and stared at the shoreline teasing us. We bobbed in the water for a few minutes, him thinking and me stressing. He thought it was dumb.

  “It could work. Once you’ve made a few, you can market them as something unique. Handmade, custom surfboards. Obviously a high end clientele. Not everyone is going to want or need a custom surfboard, but some people will.”

  “I have a friend who wants one.”

  “Is your friend a professional surfer, by any chance?”

  I nodded and shrugged. “Sort of. She’s going to compete again. But she hasn’t made it in a while.”

  “And she wants to ride your board?”

  I nodded.

  “Perfect. Get it done. Get it under her for the competition. Then we’ll be off and running. Passive income, man. That’s what you need. Something you can make once and sell it over and over again. Products that go with the surfboard.”

  I laughed. “You’re way over my head. I barely graduated high school. What you’re talking about is beyond my ability to understand.”

  Braden narrowed his eyes at me. The wheels were turning inside, and it was only a matter of time before something that would confuse me came out of his mouth.

  “I’m going to call you when I get back to the mainland. I have a few ideas.”

  “You’re here to get married, not work.”

  “Lucky for you, I love my job almost as much as you love yours. I’ll call you. I have a few ideas, but there are a few things I want to look into first. We’ll get you everything. Then you can go get that woman you think you’re not good enough for.”

  “What woman?” I blurted.

  Braden snorted. “I might not be a great surfer, but I’m not blind. You’ve got guy-in-love written all over your face.”

  “Nah. Single remember.”

  He circled his finger, pointing at all of me. “Bullshitter.”

  I laughed and quit arguing. There was no point. He called me, and we both knew it.

  Chapter Eleven

  Two hours later, I pulled into Opposites Attract, still turning Braden’s ideas over in my mind. He made a few more comments that had my brain spinning. The only people I knew who made surfing a career instead of just a hobby were pros. With endorsement deals and circuits and the entire surfing world knowing their name.

  I had none of that.

  But Braden made me wonder if I could make it work without the fame that normally came with a surf career.

  “Get business cards,” he said as we walked inside. “That way when someone asks for more information, you can give them a card. You need a name for your business. And a website.”

  “Dude, you’re getting into things I’ll never figure out.”

  He laughed again. He definitely enjoyed life. He laughed easily and found my absolute ignorance of the business world, and everything dealing with life outside the island, hilarious.

  “I’ll walk you through all of it. Just trust me, okay?”

  I nodded and clasped his hand before we tugged in for a slap on the back that said we were buds. Or something along those lines.

  “Oh, hey. Um, can you kind of keep all this between us?”

  He paused and turned to face me. “Why?”

  I shrugged. “No one really knows I’m making a board.”

  “Except your friend the pro surfer.”

  I laughed and rolled my eyes. “Yeah, except her.”

  “Does the woman know? Or is she the woman?”

  “No. And no.”

  Braden nodded once. “My lips are sealed. For now.”

  I thanked him and followed him down the hall. We headed to Kiki’s office where the ladies’ voices beckoned us. Braden forgot I existed when his eyes met Lynn’s. He crossed the room to her and swept her up in a kiss that said being away from her for a couple hours was painful.

  I knew how that felt.

  “Thanks for bringing him back,” Kiki said with a grin. “We’re going to do a quick tasting if you want to stick around.”

  “Free food?” I teased.

  “Yeah, and even better, I’m not cooking it.”

  I laughed and wrapped an arm around Kiki’s shoulders. She had her hair tied up in a ponytail today, leaving her shoulders exposed by her sleeveless top. She always looked professional,
though, with pressed dress pants adding a touch of elegance to the lightweight top.

  Maybe I should ask her about running a business. She had the skills, clearly. She had a website and a business license and clients that paid her to make their wedding dreams come true. She kicked ass at it, too.

  Damn, I was proud of my little sister.

  “So, who’s cooking? Did you finally hire a new caterer?”

  Kiki pulled me a little farther away from Braden and Lynn. “I’m giving Micah a trial run. Since I needed someone for this wedding, I told him he could have the job if they like what he prepares for them. If not, he’s out.”

  “I don’t trust him,” I said.

  I never got involved in Kiki’s business. Ever. It was her baby. I always let her make her own decisions, from day one. She had a good head on her shoulders and was a terrific judge of character. She rarely made a poor decision when it came to work.

  But I was not going to let her hire that guy. Between the way he looked at Ada and the feeling I got from him, I knew he wouldn’t be anything but trouble.

  “Why not?” Kiki asked, immediately curious.

  I shrugged, knowing I couldn’t tell her I didn’t like him being around Ada or that I had a weird feeling about him. I had to come up with something that was real, not emotional.

  “He gave me a bad feeling. Like I’ve seen him before, but I can’t figure out where. Did you do a background check?”

  Kiki shook her head. “Not yet.”

  “Then why are you even considering this?”

  “Because Ada asked me to. She knows him. She said he’s a good guy.”

  Well, fuck. She was doing it for Ada. Exactly the same reason I wanted him gone. I didn’t want him anywhere near her. A chef wasn’t a big step up from a surf instructor, but it was definitely easier to find a job as a chef. He could work anywhere he wanted. And if he was good enough, he could just about write his own ticket.

  “Listen, I’ll do a background check. I’ll double check his references. I’ll make sure he’s never here alone. I’ll be careful about this. But I need to hire someone. He’s the only who’s shown up that can actually cook. At least, if the smells coming from the kitchen are any indication he can. Stick around and eat with us. Maybe he’ll change your mind if you get to know him.”

  Yeah, and maybe I’d want to claw my own eyes out so I didn’t see Ada fall all over herself for the guy she handpicked to work with.

  “Yeah, okay,” I finally said.

  “Good. Let’s head to the dining room,” Kiki said loudly, to include Braden and Lynn. “The food should be ready. Kapena can show you where to go while I check in with Micah.”

  I led the way across the hall to the small dining room Kiki used for tastings when she had couples in town early enough to choose their own menu. I had to admit it did smell good.

  And when I turned the corner to walk into the dining room, I knew why.

  “Kapena,” Ada said, her gaze meeting mine. “I didn’t know you were going to be here for this.”

  I nodded lamely. “Uh, yeah. Kiki invited me to stay. Braden had a surf lesson this morning.”

  “Oh, um, good.”

  Braden cleared his throat loudly, drawing my attention. I glanced back at him. He raised his eyebrows and nodded toward Ada.

  “Oh, um, this is Braden and Lynn. This is Ada. She’s the officiant.”

  “It’s nice to meet you,” Lynn said, stepping forward to shake Ada’s hand.

  “You as well. Congratulations.”

  “Thanks,” Braden said. He shook Ada’s hand then gave me a pointed look that I had no choice but to answer with a nod, confirming what he already knew.

  She was the one.

  “You guys are going to love everything Micah’s fixed for you. I’ve been in the kitchen with him, and it tastes as good as it smells. He wants to say a few things first, but I know you’re going to enjoy this.”

  The way she talked about him stuck in my spine. I didn’t like her singing another man’s praises, even if it was his talents in the kitchen and not the bedroom she was talking about. I still didn’t like it.

  It reminded me that I didn’t know much about how they knew each other. He wasn’t an ex, I was sure of that, but there was a connection there that I didn’t know about. I knew almost everything there was to know about Ada, but I didn’t know where she met Micah, or why she was so excited to get him a job working side-by-side with her.

  Micah and Kiki walked out of the kitchen a few seconds later, Micah carrying two plates, and Kiki another two. He set his plates in front of Braden and Lynn, who immediately fell into the chairs they’d been standing behind.

  “This smells amazing,” Lynn groaned.

  “So good,” Braden agreed.

  The traitor.

  “Thank you. This is the entree. I know you won’t be eating it first, but I wanted to present this to you before the appetizers since it’s the most important moment of the meal. Your guests will forget the multitude of tiny bites they have with their drinks, but they’ll remember the taste of the main dish on their plate.”

  “What is it?” Lynn asked.

  “This is my version of a surf and turf. It’s honey glazed scallops and a petite filet with a garlic butter sauce. I can serve this with any number of vegetables, but I am a fan of asparagus. Something lighter to offset the meat. Please enjoy.”

  I reluctantly dug in with the others, stifling a growl when Ada crossed the room and whispered with Micah in the corner. I admitted, to myself only, that the food was good. The filet was a perfect medium. The butter had a kick from the garlic that paired nicely with the creaminess of the steak. The scallops were seared just enough to give them a crisp texture on the outside, but soft inside. The honey made them sweet but not so sweet that it gave me a toothache. Even the asparagus was good.

  “This is amazing,” Lynn purred. “Wow. I wish I could cook like this.”

  “I wish you could, too,” Braden teased her. He speared a piece of his steak and held his fork up to her.

  She parted her lips and welcomed the steak into her mouth. Her eyes slid closed as she savored the bite.

  I lifted my eyes to Ada, but she was watching Micah. Her smile was broad and proud and promised more than I wanted to see.

  Was he one of the many guys she was happy to sleep with all of a sudden?

  I couldn’t hold back my growl that time.

  All eyes flashed to me.

  I forced a smile and shook my head. “Bit my tongue,” I said lamely, knowing everyone knew I was lying, but none of them were brave enough to question me about it.

  “When you are ready, we will bring out the next dish,” Micah said. The ‘we’ had him squeezing Ada to his side. Like she was his to squeeze.

  Everyone cleared their plate and waited for Micah and Ada to return with the next round. Lynn gushed about how delicious everything was. Kiki assured her everything Micah prepared was within their budget for the wedding.

  The second dish was an appetizer of blackened tuna with a wasabi cream sauce. Slices of tuna with bright flesh split by the creamy green sauce looked as elegant as they did delicious. The food I usually made looked like everything was dumped onto a plate with little care to how it looked. I wasn’t a chef, but it made me feel like all the times I’d cooked for Ada, carefully choosing what I wanted to cook when I knew she’d be there, was all for nothing. Just like me, my food wasn’t fancy enough for her.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever had a tuna appetizer at a wedding before,” Lynn said. “And you’re sure this is in our budget?”

  Kiki nodded. “Absolutely. It’s unusual, but it adds a definitely level of class to the wedding that you’ve been after. With a small wedding like yours, you can do things bigger because you don’t need much of it. Micah’s able to showcase his talents more when he’s preparing food for twenty instead of food for two hundred.”

  “That makes sense,” Braden said, reassuring Lynn. “It’s amazing.�
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  “Is it too much? Too heavy?”

  Micah stepped up. “I thought about that, too. I gave you the heaviest of the food first. We’ll have waiters circling with trays of food. The tuna will be out at the same time as the other items I’m going to bring out. I put the rest on one plate that we’ll set in the center of the table since there’s a lot of it. If there’s anything you don’t want, we can take it off the menu.”

  Lynn nodded. Micah disappeared to get the last tray of food, with Ada on his heels, and Lynn turned to Braden. “Is this going to be too much?”

  “Let’s see what else there is,” Braden said, rubbing his thumb across her neck. “It’s a lot when we’re sitting here and eating it all at once, but at the wedding, people will be eating over the course of a few hours.”

  “That’s true,” Lynn agreed.

  “If it helps,” Kiki interjected, “when you’re taking pictures, it’ll be good for your guests to have food they can pick at. That’s why we pass trays around before the dinner. When dinner is out, the appetizers that are left will go in the fridge, but will be brought out after dinner and dessert. That way if people are hanging around late into the evening, they don’t walk away hungry. Things like tuna are usually big hits. Micah is new here, but he had some great ideas.”

  Braden nodded, staring at Lynn until she did the same.

  “I should know better than to argue with you,” she teased. “You always get your way.”

  “As long as you’re happy, I’m happy,” Braden said, leaning in to kiss her.

  Micah presented the last tray of food, setting it in the center of the table so we could all reach. “The outside is mini shrimp tacos. The next row in is cream cheese stuffed sweet peppers. Then we have melon skewers with prosciutto, blue cheese, and a basil leaf. Last is a cucumber and hummus bite. Everything can be altered to your tastes. And all of these will be on different trays during the event.”

  I didn’t want to be impressed, but it was impossible. Every bite looked delicious. And they all were. The lightness paired well with the heaviness of the previous foods. And he was right about being able to try them all since they were bite-sized.