“We’re on our way!” Big Estelle shot her fist.
Lars lifted his head off the table and mumbled, “Ya! Ya!”
Kimo walked out of the kitchen and stood at the end of the bar smiling at Kiki. Then he winked at Em and Sophie.
“Congratulations, Hula Maidens,” he called out. “Have another round on me.”
“Really, Kimo?” Em envisioned a parking lot full of comatose Maidens sleeping it off in their cars.
“Water ’em down, eh?”
“You got it.” Sophie started mixing Sour Notes in a tall plastic pitcher.
“I’d better get to work,” Em told Roland. “Needless to say, things have been piling up around here. I’ve got a ton of potential catering job inquiries to return.”
“No worries.” He polished off his sandwich in four bites and had started on the fries. “Don’t forget to put Friday on your calendar.”
“For sure.” She would rather stay and watch him dip fries into a puddle of ketchup than anything else in the world, but duty called.
Before she knew it she was in Louie’s office. She must have floated in because her feet didn’t seem to be touching the ground yet. She sat down in Louie’s old office chair that squeaked when it swiveled and was sorting and stacking important messages when her uncle walked in the back door.
“What’s all the screaming? I could hear them over at the house.” He sat on the corner of the desk.
“Kiki just got some calls asking the Maidens to dance at two different venues. They’re stoked. By the way, your new Sour Note cocktail is a hit.”
“Hopefully the new creation for the Shake Off will be as well received.”
“We sure have a lot of potential work here.” Em indicated the desk. “I guess we can thank Trouble in Paradise for that if nothing else.”
Louie sighed. “Speaking of the show, I just got a phone call from Randy Rich.”
Here it comes, Em thought. “Don’t tell me.”
“The head of the network saw the standoff on national news last night, and they want back in. They’re willing to negotiate a whole new contract for another season of Trouble in Paradise.
She stared at the file of receipts and phone messages on the desk. There were bills to pay, food and beverage distributors to meet. Em sighed and rubbed her temples, then smiled up at Louie. This was, after all, his bar and his business. She was only the manager.
“That’s great,” she said.
“You don’t sound like you mean it.”
She shrugged.
“I turned them down,” he said.
“Really?” She was stunned. “Why?”
He stood up and looked around at the walls filled with photos of Irene and him over the years, photos of the two of them alone and others with celebrities and friends from all over the world.
“The Goddess is already famous. We’re in every Hawaii guide book and Internet travel website,” he said. “The production company will be running as many episodes as they can put together from the film they’ve already shot, so when it airs, we’ll be riding the crest of that wave for months to come. How much is too much?” He obviously didn’t need an answer, for he didn’t wait for one. “Fame brought out the worst in all of us. I think we can live without it.”
Beyond the office door, another cheer went up from the Maidens’ table in the bar.
“Are you going to tell them Randy called?” Em asked.
Louie shook his head no. “Not today. Probably not ever.”
“Thanks, Uncle Louie. I think that’s for the best.” No more cameras in her face, no more disruptions other than the norm. “Are you all packed for tomorrow?”
“Got everything ready. I’m looking forward to it. When I get back I’m going to focus on finding somebody who wants to publish the Booze Bible.”
“Sounds great.”
“You have any plans while I’m gone this weekend? I don’t want to think about you sitting here behind this pile of work or alone watching TV with Letterman while I’m gallivanting around Honolulu.”
She pictured Roland and smiled.
“Actually, I have a date on Friday night, and it’s not with Letterman.”
“Anybody I know?”
“Let’s just say that with any luck, my evening might turn out to be as explosive as one of your Flaming Infernos.”
(Please continue reading for Uncle Louie’s drink recipes and more information about Jill Marie Landis)
Drink Recipes
Even More Tropical Libations from Uncle Louie’s Booze Bible
Final Cut
Dedicated to the memory of Bobby Quinn, a young cameraman stabbed to death while filming Trouble in Paradise, the reality TV show based on the Tiki Goddess Bar and all the antics that go on there. Unfortunately the murder weapon, Chef Kimo’s special sashimi knife, must remain in the Kauai Police Department’s evidence files.
Per cocktail you will need:
1/2 Fresh Squeezed Orange
2 oz Gin
Splash of Grenadine
Club Soda.
Glass: Uncle Louie uses a tall glass.
Mix first three ingredients in a tall glass over ice and pour in club soda.
Pink Lilies
Created by Sophie Chin, the Tiki Goddess’ young bartender, in honor of a visit from Hula Maiden Lillian Smith’s Official Fan Club from Iowa. Lillian’s devoted fans dye their hair pink and wear it bouffant style just like Lillian. No fan of Lil’s would be seen dead without her black “cat’s eye” style rhinestone encrusted glasses.
Per cocktail you will need:
Chilled Pink lemonade
Caribbean Lime or Coconut Flavored Rum.
Glass: Champagne Flute
Pour 2 oz. of your favorite flavored rum in a champagne flute
Fill with Chilled Pink Lemonade
Frothy Fang
Uncle Louie created this specialty to commemorate the day he lost the tip of his index finger, but Louie can’t remember if he lost it to a pit bull on the Okolehau Trail above Hanalei, or if it was bitten off by an eel when he was snorkeling at Anini Beach! Either way, enjoy!
Per Cocktail You Will Need:
3/4 oz. of Lemon Juice
1 oz. of Simple Syrup
1-1/2 oz. of Pineapple Juice
1-1/2 oz. of Whiskey
Glass: Tall Glass
Shake with ice in a cocktail shaker and strain into a tall glass full of crushed ice.
Sour Note
Who knew the Hula Maidens would save the day with their off-key renditions of hapa-haole melodies and “Ninety-nine Bottles of Beer on the Wall”? Uncle Louie created this one to celebrate their heroic action during the Princeville Standoff and Hostage Crisis for which the Maidens received special commendation from the KPD.
Per Cocktail You Will Need:
2 oz. Sweet and Sour
1-1/2 oz. Tequila
1 oz. Cointreau
Glass: Cocktail or Margarita Glass
Shake all ingredients in a cocktail shaker rimmed with Li Hing Mui Salt, then drop a Li Hing Mui seed into the glass (To make Li Hing Mui Salt mix Li Hing powder with sea salt and sugar. If you can’t find Li Hing Mui powder or seeds in grocery stores, you can order them on line. If you are too befuddled to try to find some, you can always use plain old margarita salt.)
About Jill Marie Landis
JILL MARIE LANDIS has written over twenty-five novels which have earned distinguished awards and slots on such national bestseller lists as the USA TODAY Top 50 and the New York Times Best Sellers Plus. She is a seven-time finalist for Romance Writers of America’s RITA Award in both Single Title and Contemporary Romance as well as a Golden Heart and RITA Award winner. She’s written historical and contempor
ary romance, inspirational historical romance and she is now penning The Tiki Goddess Series which begins with MAI TAI ONE ON and TWO TO MANGO.
Visit her at thetikigoddess.com.
Three to Get Lei'd Page 30
