Kendall
Because the guys were sharing a rental car, Gil picked the late arrivals up at the airport. He was driving a little yellow Jeep Wrangler with the top down—cute but tight. They stuffed in their luggage and barely had room for the four of them. But at least Kendall got to ride shotgun. Nice, since she’d felt a little queasy on the last couple hours of the flight. But with the fresh warm air washing over her face and tousling her hair, she started to feel much better.
“Woo-hoo!” she shouted as Gil pulled out of the airport area and onto the busy street.
“So how’s it going?” yelled Anna from the backseat.
“Great!” Kendall yelled back at her.
“No, I was talking to Gil. How’s it going for Lelani?”
Gil stopped for a traffic light, then glanced back and kind of frowned. “I’m not sure.”
“Poor Lelani,” said Kendall. “It must be hard seeing your baby. I mean after such a long time.”
“That’s not really the problem,” said Gil.
“What’s wrong?” asked Kendall.
“Lelani’s mother.” Gil shook his head.
“What’s she doing?” asked Anna.
“She’s making it very difficult for Lelani.”
“How so?” asked Kendall.
“For starters, she wouldn’t let Lelani go into the nursery to see Emma until after her nap.”
“That seems understandable,” said Anna.
“Maybe, but when Lelani finally went into the house, Emma was gone.”
“Gone?” Kendall felt alarmed. “Like kidnapped gone?”
“Not exactly. Mrs. Porter claimed that Emma needed to be at a playgroup. The nanny had taken her there.”
“So Lelani hasn’t even seen Emma yet?” Kendall frowned. “That’s sad.”
“Yeah. Lelani is pretty bummed.” Gil pulled quickly into the intersection now, causing Kendall’s head to jerk back.
“Hey, take it easy, cowboy!” she yelled.
Soon they were on the open highway. Kendall wanted to enjoy herself, but something about the smell was making her feel sick. Plus, there didn’t seem to be any ocean anywhere nearby. “What is that smell?” she finally demanded.
“The sugar-cane plantations,” Gil told her.
“Ugh!” she made a face. “And where is the beach?”
“We just cut through the center of the island,” he told her. “We’ll be driving along the coastline in a few minutes.”
“Oh, good.”
But by the time they reached the coastline, the sun was already going down. As Gil drove them down a very curvy road, it became dark and Kendall started to feel like she was carsick again. At least if she had to hurl, she could lean out the open window. Or maybe she should ask him to pull over. But the road seemed so narrow. And so busy. Where were all these crazy cars going anyway?
“How far is it?” she asked after they went through a tunnel.
“About twenty minutes.”
“You’re kidding,” she groaned. “I thought Maui was a small island.”
“It is.”
“Are we there yet?” teased Anna from the backseat. “Just relax, Kendall, feel that warm night air—isn’t it wonderful?”
“Wonderful,” she muttered.
For some reason this was not how she had imagined Maui. This dark, curvy road never seemed to end, the weird smells seemed to come and go, and she feared that she was going to hurl around the next corner, or that Gil was going to get them into a head-on collision with one of these other cars that seemed to be driving way too fast. Or maybe he was going to take a curve wrong and plunge them off a cliff and straight into the ocean, where their remains would probably be devoured by sharks. She thought she’d heard there were sharks in Maui. Oh, why had she wanted to come so bad?
Gil hit the brakes and she felt certain they were doomed for a wreck. But then nothing happened and he just kept driving, a little slower now. What if they did get into a wreck? Kendall’s hand went protectively down to her midsection and she realized that, maybe for the first time in her life, she felt more concerned for someone else than she did for herself. She didn’t want anything to hurt her baby.
“That’s Lahaina,” Gil told them. “Lelani’s house is on the other side of town.”
“Thank goodness,” said Kendall. She sighed as Gil slowed down even more, but the traffic thickened. “Lelani said it’s busier than usual here, thanks to spring break.”
“I’m starving,” announced Edmond from the back.
“Me too,” echoed Anna.
Kendall didn’t feel hungry yet, but she knew as soon as this horrible car trip ended, she’d probably be famished.
“Lelani made reservations for us in town.”
“Why don’t we just meet there?” suggested Kendall.
“Your bags,” he said as he slowed for a traffic light. “They might not be safe in an open car.”
“Oh, yeah.”
Soon he was turning toward what Kendall suspected was the ocean, then they went through some gates. He parked in a circular driveway and hopped out. “Here you go, ladies.”
The guys helped Kendall and Anna unload their bags, then hopped back into the Jeep. “I’ll run Edmond to the hotel to dump his stuff, and we’ll meet up with you girls at the restaurant.”
“What do we drive?” asked Anna.
“Lelani’s parents are letting her use a car.” He lowered his voice. “It used to be her car, but they took it back.”
“Oh.” Kendall nodded. Maybe Lelani’s parents were kind of like her parents. They give and then they take it back. At least Lelani’s parents were giving them a place to stay, and this didn’t look too shabby.
“The guesthouse is around back,” Gil told them, nodding to where a well-lit path led around the side of the house. “You need to go directly back there—not through the main house.”
So Kendall and Anna lugged their bags along the pathway alongside the sprawling house and past a pretty nice pool and on back until they finally found a smaller house. “This must be it,” said Kendall in relief.
“You’re here,” said Lelani as she burst out the door to greet them. “Aloha!” Then she put real flower leis around their necks. “Mahalo,” she said, kissing them both on the cheek. “Mi casa es su casa.”
Anna laughed. “Hey, that’s not Hawaiian.”
“No, but Gil’s been teaching me some Spanish.”
“Come in, come in,” called Megan from inside. “Check out our digs.”
“This is nice,” said Anna as they entered the spacious room with polished wood floors and bamboo furnishings. “Pretty.”
“This couch makes into a queen bed,” Lelani told them. “And there’s a small bedroom that Megan and I already dumped our stuff in, but if you like I’m happy to—”
“No,” said Anna. “Kendall and I will be fine out here, won’t we, Kendall?”
Kendall wanted to protest but thought it might sound selfish.
“Actually, it’s a lot roomier in here,” said Lelani. “And those doors open right out to the beach.” She pointed to sliding glass doors.
“Cool.”
“There’s a closet for your stuff here,” said Lelani. “And those end tables are really dressers.” She glanced at the clock on the wall. “But we should head out to meet the guys.”
“Not until I have a potty break,” announced Kendall. “I’m not only eating for two, but I’m peeing for two as well.” Lelani showed them the bathroom that all four of them would be sharing, but at least it was fairly roomy and the shower was nice.
Soon they were back in the car. Lelani’s car, unlike the Jeep, was pretty comfy and a convertible too. “What kind of car is this?” asked Kendall, who had asked to ride in front again, explaining about her carsick feeling on the way from the airport.
“It’s a Chrysler Sebring,” Lelani told her. “My dad gets good deals on cars from the rental car places. The year he got me this one was the big Sebring convertible year.”
“I like it better than the Jeep,” admitted Kendall.
“But the Jeep is good for the beach,” Lelani pointed out.
Soon they were back in town, which appeared to be right on the ocean and filled with lots of cars and people. Kendall almost felt dizzy as they pressed through the crowds of people—the music, lights, the smell of good food, and activities on every corner—toward the restaurant, which overlooked the water. Finally, what Kendall had hoped Maui would feel like.
“This is nice,” she told Lelani after they were seated at a table that overlooked the ocean. Kendall knew it was the ocean because lights were spotted out over it, and she guessed boats were bobbing out there.
“Welcome to my Maui.” Lelani smiled, but her eyes seemed unhappy. “The guys should be here soon.”
“So you’re glad to be back?” asked Anna tentatively.
“Oh, yes, definitely.” Lelani nodded. “I really do love it here. It feels so good to me.” She sighed. “I mean things aren’t going too smoothly on the home front.” She glanced at Megan now. “You got to see that firsthand today.”
Megan made an uncomfortable face.
“My mom sent the housekeeper out to greet us,” said Lelani. “By telling us to go directly to the guesthouse.”
“The baby was sleeping,” Megan explained.
“Yes.” Lelani fiddled with her napkin. “And then Emma had her playdate.”
“Which took all afternoon.” Megan looked skeptical.
“And then Emma was so worn out that Ginger, the nanny, fed her supper and put her down for the night.”
“So you haven’t even seen her yet?” asked Anna.
“No.” Lelani forced a brave smile. “But tomorrow is a brand-new day.”
Kendall nodded. But still she wondered. How would it feel to be the mother of a child you couldn’t even see? Then she realized that could actually be her. Would that be her?
The guys arrived. They took seats next to their girlfriends and Kendall was aware that she was the only one without a date. Her hand reached down to touch her midsection again, and for some reason that was reassuring, like she wasn’t totally alone. Still, it felt odd being the dateless girl. Even the waitress gave her a slightly sympathetic glance as she took her order. But Kendall just smiled. No big deal.
Still, she didn’t talk much. Not that there was room to get a word in edgewise. It seemed everyone was talking at the same time, sharing their travel experiences, talking about what they wanted to do tomorrow, where the best surfing beaches were, how to book snorkeling trips, and whether it was a good time to go whale watching. Kendall felt like telling them all to put a lid on it. If they’d shut up, maybe they could hear the ocean.
At least the food was good. Kendall ate everything on her plate and wished that the others wanted to order dessert. But they were eager to walk around the town before the shops started to close. So she trailed behind the couples, since she didn’t really fit in, though she also was careful not to lose them, since she didn’t want to be left behind.