Her Hawaiian Homecoming (Mills & Boon Superromance)

by Cara Lockwood

  But, what would one little barbecue hurt? Besides, if she could convince Kaimana to sign her paper at the party, all the better.

  “Sure,” she said. “I’d love to.”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  A FEW PEOPLE turned into more like a hundred. By the looks of Kai’s crowded backyard, he’d invited every local on the island for his little barbecue. Allie stood awkwardly near a banana tree, clutching a frosty mai tai, wondering whether or not she should leave. It had been so long since she’d actually been at a party that wasn’t a bridal shower, she wasn’t sure she remembered how to mingle. Kai was busy manning the grill, and Jesse had her hands full with mixing drinks, and she’d not even seen a trace of Kaimana. She glanced down at her white striped maxi dress and high-heeled wedge sandals and suddenly felt overdressed. Everyone else wore colorful board shorts, tank tops and flip-flops. Allie was the only woman not in an above-the-knee sundress. But she had her reasons. Her legs were bright lobster red after she’d forgotten to apply sunscreen before she’d fallen asleep lying on her stomach on her grandmother’s reclining lawn chair in the backyard.

  Her shoulders still radiated heat. They were so burned that even the thought of putting a strap or sleeve on them made her want to cry. The dress was the only sleeveless one she had, so she’d gone with it. Luckily, her front side was only marginally burned. In a day or so, she’d have a new golden tan. But right now, all she felt was agony.

  Allie sipped at the sweet drink and glanced around, looking in vain for a familiar face. Just as she was considering knocking back her drink and bolting, she felt something pounce on her skirt. She looked down to see a fluffy brown Labrador puppy with steel-gray eyes.

  “Poi! Down, boy, down!” An Asian woman about her age ambled up, deeply tan with her hair up in an elaborate do, a large white flower in her hair. She wore a black tube top and khaki shorts. “I am so sorry,” she said, grabbing the dog by the collar. “He’s not people trained yet.”

  “No problem.” Allie grinned and knelt down, scratching the pup behind his ears. The dog reminded her of the lab she’d had growing up. “He’s friendly, aren’t you, Poi?”

  “I’m Minnie,” she said. “You must be Allie.”

  “How did you...”

  “You’re the new girl,” Minnie said and grinned. “I know everybody here but you, so I just figured. Plus, the sunburn gave you away.”

  Allie shifted uncomfortably. She realized she was the only one in the yard who didn’t have an all-year tan from years living here. It would take her quite a long time to work up to that, she thought. Her shoulders hadn’t seen sunlight for eight months, and even an hour of sun had burned her to a crisp.

  “You need some aloe? I may have some in my car,” Minnie offered.

  “I bathed in it before I came here. Don’t worry. I’ve got plenty.” Allie fidgeted. Her right shoulder blade in particular throbbed.

  “Mind if I say, your eyebrows are...amazing. Where do you get them done?” Minnie studied Allie’s forehead. Minnie still held the puppy’s collar, trying to keep him from lunging again.

  “I did them, actually. I used to do eyebrow sculpting in Chicago.”

  “I have to introduce you to Teri, then,” Minnie said. “She owns the best salon in town.” Minnie glanced around and then waved to a platinum blonde in her midforties who was wearing a bright coral-colored blouse and white Bermuda shorts. Minnie waved her over and Teri came, carrying a nearly empty mai tai glass.

  “Teri! This is Allie. You know, Alani Osaka—Misu’s granddaughter.”

  “Oh, honey! So glad to meet you!” Before Allie knew it, she was enveloped in a big hug.

  “Misu was my favorite customer. She always gave the best advice.” It seemed as if Teri didn’t want to let her go. Allie didn’t mind, though. Instead of an awkward outsider, she was starting to feel like a prodigal daughter returned. In Chicago, she’d always lived in big, populous neighborhoods and gone to overcrowded schools, walked busy city streets, where it was easy to blend in. She wasn’t used to being noticed or singled out. Small island life was a different kind of existence, she was quickly finding out.

  “Teri, you won’t believe this. She does eyebrows!”

  “You do?” Teri asked, taking the last sip of her mai tai. “Threading or waxing?”

  “Both,” Allie said. “And facials, too.”

  “I just lost my eyebrow girl, and I haven’t found a good replacement yet.” Teri studied Allie’s face. “You did your own eyebrows?”

  Allie nodded.

  “That’s good enough for me! They look great. You might be too busy with Misu’s place, but if you want a job...” She raised her glass as if a paycheck were inside.

  Allie’s first impulse was to jump at the offer, but then the small voice in her head told her she ought not to get too comfortable. She wasn’t putting down roots. Here or anywhere else, she vowed.

  “Oh, I’d love to, but I’m not sure how long I’m staying, actually.”

  “You’re not staying?” Minnie asked, surprised. Teri and she exchanged a quick glance. “You’re just going to let Dallas run Misu’s place?”

  “Or sell,” Allie said. “One Realtor told me it was good land for condos, maybe.” The mixed feelings that passed across Minnie’s and Teri’s faces told her they liked that idea about as much as Dallas did when he first heard it. “But I haven’t decided yet,” she finished quickly. Both women looked relieved.

  “No need to rush something like that, honey,” Teri agreed. “Take your time. And hey, stop by the salon anyway. You want to just work something totally temporary until I can find a permanent replacement, that would be great. The tourists wait for no one! Just think about it, okay?”

  “Sure, I’ll think about it,” Allie said, realizing it would be the perfect way to make a little extra cash while she waited to get her ducks in a row to sell. But only if Teri didn’t expect her to stay long-term. She was still planning to sell and get out—quickly.

  “By the way, how are things going with my boyfriend, Dallas?” Minnie asked, her eyes bright.

  Allie felt a ripple of shock. “Your boyfriend? Dallas... Uh, I didn’t know...”

  “Don’t listen to her,” Teri quibbled, giving Minnie a shove. “That’s how she talks about Dallas, but they aren’t...”

  “Hey, a girl can dream, can’t she? Besides, my boyfriend is the best kind imaginable: hot and completely imaginary. If I ever had a real conversation with him that wasn’t a passing hello, it would ruin the whole fantasy. So how is it living next to one of the hottest guys on the island?”

  “He’s got an ego to match,” Allie grumbled, feeling a flash of annoyance at the mere mention of the man’s name.

  “Ha! Lady after my own heart.” Teri grinned her approval. “Thank God you didn’t fall for that Texas charm. Dallas is bad news.” Teri rattled the ice cubes around her mai tai glass.

  “Why bad news?” Allie asked, interest suddenly piqued.

  “He’s a player with a capital P,” Teri said. “He’s not a one-woman man.”

  “He can play me any day,” Minnie echoed in a dreamy, far-off voice. “Have you seen those abs? And that accent! I mean, ‘Cowboy, Take Me Away,’ you know what I’m saying? When he goes kayaking out of the bay, women just line up to watch and see if he’ll take his shirt off. I mean, a guy who looks like that? Maybe he should have more than one woman. We ought to share him, for the sake of the sisterhood.”

  Teri laughed. “Minnie!” she exclaimed, giving her friend a shocked pat on the shoulder.

  Allie had to admit he did have a nice chest. She could see why women would follow him around. Not this one, though.

  “How do you know he’s a player?” Allie asked, curious now.

  “Besides the fact he takes a new tourist home every Saturday night?”

  Allie gulped. Every week? Not that she ought to be surprised. She knew Dallas was proud of his body. Why wouldn’t he want to show it off naked to a new woman weekly?

>   “An expensive proposition,” she said, thinking aloud.

  “Oh, Dallas can afford it. Rumor has it he’s rich. Big sale of a family’s ranch back in Texas,” Minnie said. “He owns tons of stuff around here.”

  “Like what?”

  Minnie shrugged. “Real estate. Stores. Whatever. I’m surprised he’s not married already. He almost was last year.”

  “Until he cheated on his fiancée,” Teri muttered, frowning as she held up her cup of mai tai in a grim toast.

  “He cheated on her?” Allie asked, feeling suddenly angry for the woman. She knew what that felt like. Poi nudged her leg, and she absently bent down to give him a soft pat.

  “Yeah.” Teri took a sip of her cocktail, as if to wash the truth of it from her mouth. “They made a really pretty couple, too. She had this beautiful little girl from another relationship. They were a pretty little family, even moved in together, until she had to work longer hours, and Dallas took advantage.”

  Allie didn’t like that. Not one bit. How could he do that to his girlfriend? Or to her little girl? She felt a surge of new anger. She’d been right about him from the start, the jerk. He was just like Jason. His nice-guy, aw-shucks demeanor was just a cover for the womanizer beneath.

  “Longer hours?” Minnie scoffed, gesturing with her hands and nearly tipping the edge of her plastic cocktail cup. She saved the mai tai just in time. “She was gone for weeks at a time filming that real estate show. What is it? Hawaii Living?”

  Allie knew Hawaii Living. That was Jennifer Thomas’s show.

  “Wait, Jennifer Thomas was his girlfriend?”

  “Yeah, how did you know?” Minnie asked.

  “I invited her over to the estate,” Allie confessed, awkwardly rubbing her arms. “To look at the land.”

  Minnie and Teri stared at one another and then broke out laughing. “I bet Dallas loved that.”

  “Well, it explains why he was so mad,” Allie confessed sheepishly. First, Kaimana and then Dallas and Jennifer—she felt at every turn like the new girl constantly stepping in it. She had a lot to learn about the island. Not if you don’t plan to stay, that tiny voice in her head pointed out.

  “Well, well, speak of the devil,” Teri declared, as she looked at the back patio door.

  Allie followed her line of sight and saw Dallas McCormick walking into the backyard. If he’d looked good without his shirt on, he looked even sexier now wearing a pressed white linen button-up and khaki shorts. His sharp blue eyes were hidden by expensive-looking sunglasses, but his thick blond hair was perfectly styled, and his broad chest just begged to be stroked. She saw him and her body instantly reacted, as if there was a magnetic pull straight to his navel. He pushed up his sunglasses, and she observed his clear blue eyes find hers in the crowd. For a full second, she froze, unable to move. He gave her a brief nod, and Allie felt a shiver run down the back of her spine. She hated that he looked so good. It made her even angrier.

  Allie mentally shook herself. Was it something about her? Was she just destined to be attracted to unfaithful men?

  “I’m surprised he came alone,” scoffed Teri, as if it were a bad word. “The man can’t do without female attention for ten minutes.”

  “Why shouldn’t he? He’s gorgeous and rich. What else do you want in a man?” Minnie exclaimed.

  “Fidelity?” Allie offered, which made Teri burst out laughing.

  “Oh, I like this one.” She gave Allie’s arm a playful squeeze.

  “You two are insane. Or blind,” Minnie chided. “I’m going to go stand at a discreet distance from my boyfriend and hover awkwardly. See you!” She made a beeline for Dallas, dragging Poi through the crowd. And she wasn’t the only one, either. Pretty soon three girls were standing around him making small talk, giggling and flipping hair.

  “Are you going to head over there next?” Teri asked, a disapproving look on her face as she watched Minnie jostle for position.

  “Me? Never! He’s arrogant and rude, and besides, I’ve half sworn off men anyway.”

  “Did I tell you that I like you already?” Teri asked, as she wrapped her arm around Allie’s shoulders and squeezed. “Don’t forget to come by the salon! We’re right next to Hula Coffee.” Teri spotted a young man, barely older than a teenager, crossing the yard. “Oh, there’s Mason. I have to talk to him about the paint job he’s going to do next week. Will you be all right here on your own?” Teri had a mothering quality about her. Allie thought it was kind of nice, being looked after.

  “I’ll be fine,” she said.

  “If you get lonesome, come on and find me.” The sincere look in her eyes couldn’t be missed. “I only moved here five years ago. I remember how it feels to be the new girl on the island.”

  Allie felt surprisingly glad for the offer. “Thanks, Teri.”

  Allie took another big swig of her mai tai as she turned her attention back to the girls still swooning over Dallas. He didn’t do much to discourage them, she thought. Maybe the rumors were right. She watched for a few more seconds and then decided it was impolite to stare. She’d hate for Dallas to get the impression she cared one way or another.

  She still couldn’t believe he’d cheated on his fiancée. Then again, part of her could. Unfortunately, her opinion of men had gone downhill since Jason. She pretty much thought any of them were capable of severe disappointment. Especially the dangerously handsome ones.

  It was as if they were too sexy to have to learn the difference between right and wrong. Walking toddlers, the lot of them, using their charisma carelessly on anyone who stumbled into their path.

  She took another drink and glanced around the yard. It was spacious and wide, and didn’t have a fence. Kai’s aunt’s house boasted a sliver of an ocean view, the same as Dallas’s half of the estate, and the water sparkled darkly under the light of a big full moon.

  A mature mango tree grew near the house, and Allie recognized it as the one with a low V of branches, the one she and Kai would climb all the way to the near top. She realized it was probably all of fifteen feet tall, but then, when she was just five, it seemed like ten stories high. She saw Kaimana suddenly walk near the tree, paper plate heaped high with smoked sausage from the grill.

  “Kaimana!” Allie called, just in time to see the older woman turn and stare. She quickly chewed the remainder of her bite and then bustled off toward the back door, as if trying to escape. Maybe she was. “Kaimana! Wait!”

  But she sure could move fast for a seventysomething woman wearing a muumuu and orthopedic sandals. Kaimana had ducked inside the house before Allie had made it halfway across the backyard. When she got to the patio door, she found it locked.

  That tricky old lady! She’d locked her out!

  Unbelievable. First the fake language barrier and now this. Allie got the distinct impression Kai’s aunt really didn’t want to talk about Misu’s land. Well, it didn’t change the fact that she was the only one standing in the way of selling her share. Allie needed to talk to her whether she wanted to or not. Allie whirled on her foot, ready to stomp around to the front, when she nearly ran into a wall.

  She looked up in time to see the broad chest she’d almost hit belonged to Dallas McCormick.

  “Looking for someone?” Dallas’s lip quirked up in a knowing smile, and right then, Allie thought he and Kaimana might be conspirators working together to keep her little paper unsigned.

  “Uh, no. Just looking for the food.”

  “As it happens, I’ve got an extra plate.” Dallas was carrying two full plates of barbecue, potato salad and something that looked like sliced mango. “I thought you might be hungry.”

  Allie glanced around, wondering where his throng of admirers had gone, and that was when she saw a few of them standing by the barbecue pit, eyeing her with interest. Had he really just ditched his fan club to offer her a plate of food? She looked at the potato salad with suspicion. Why was he being nice? The man who shut off her shower wasn’t nice.

  “Why
? You trying to poison me?” Allie glared at him with suspicion.

  “Ouch. Maybe I deserved that,” Dallas admitted. “It’s a peace offering. I promise. No poison.”

  She looked at the food suspiciously and then back at the ladies near the barbecue pit, who were trying not to outright stare.

  “Come on, Allie,” Dallas coaxed. “I’m trying to say I’m sorry.”

  “You shut off the water to the shower!”

  “I turned it back on right away.”

  He had? That took Allie completely off guard. She’d just assumed it was off, which was why she’d been bathing with bottles of water in the kitchen sink for two days.

  “You did?”

  “You didn’t notice?” Dallas threw back his head and laughed. “I wouldn’t be such a bad guy that I would seriously not let you shower. I just wanted to make a point. Besides, as I recall, you did say please.”

  Allie’s face burned with embarrassment. Why hadn’t she checked? She’d...just assumed the worst. God, what a fool!

  “You should have said something!” Allie folded her arms across her chest and glared.

  Dallas just laughed more. “How? You weren’t talking to me!”

  Touché.

  Allie’s anger faded a bit. So Dallas hadn’t left her stranded without water out of spite like she’d thought. She’d been the one who assumed he had.

  Allie glanced again at the ring of girls watching them and whispering. She suddenly felt like the new girl at school talking to the star quarterback.

  “Look, let’s agree to a cease-fire, okay?” Dallas offered. “You can go back to stomping on coffee cherries tomorrow. But right now, let’s just eat and pretend we’re not going to kill one another.”

  Dallas’s warm smile softened Allie a bit, but not enough.

  “I’m not all that hungry,” Allie said, and then her stomach growled loudly.

  “You’re a terrible liar.” Dallas chuckled. “Either you take the plate or I feed it to Poi, and I’m not sure that pup can handle all this potato salad. Not to mention, Kai and Jesse will be pissed if I tell them you fed their food to the dog!”