29-Megan.html

The Jeep, with Marcus, Megan, Anna, and Edmond, pulled into the driveway right behind the Sebring convertible. Lelani and Gil were just getting out.

“Oh, dear,” said Megan. “I hope her injuries weren’t more serious than they thought.”

“That still doesn’t explain why she’s not here.” Megan was getting irritated.

“First of all, quit calling him the Maui man.” Lelani poked Gil. “His name is Killiki and he’s a friend of mine.”

“And Killiki took Kendall away somewhere?” Megan was determined to get to the bottom of this.

“Maybe it was love at first sight,” suggested Gil. Then he winked at Lelani like he knew something about this.

“Yeah,” Anna agreed. “Last night she looked kind of pathetic and wiped out. And now you let her run off with some stranger.”

“Killiki is not a stranger.” Lelani held up her hands. “Like I said, he’s my friend. We’ve surfed together for years.”

“The Maui man’s a plumber?” Marcus started to laugh. “Are you telling us that Kendall has run off with Killiki the plumber?”

Lelani frowned at all of them. “Trust me, Kendall is in good hands. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going inside.”

“I just think she’s nervous,” explained Gil. “Her dad wants to talk with her this morning.”

“Do you think he’s mad about the things that Kendall said to Mrs. Porter?” asked Megan. Lelani had told them the whole story last night.

“I think he’s pretty concerned. The good news is that he wants to speak to Lelani in private—without her mom there.”

“Unless he plans to read her the riot act and send her packing,” said Edmond.

“Totally epic,” added Edmond. “Did you know Haleakalā is more than ten thousand feet high? One of the older dudes on the ride actually fainted.”

“It was downhill,” Anna reminded him. “All we had to do, for the most part, was stay on our bikes and coast.”

“So what’s everyone doing today?” Gil glanced back toward the guesthouse as if he was concerned about Lelani.

“We were talking about driving down to Kihei,” Marcus told him. “Want to come?”

“Thanks, but I think I should stick with Lelani today.” He frowned. “Especially since we won’t be seeing each other for a while after tomorrow.”

“I don’t know.” Gil seemed to be weighing this. “I actually think Lelani would feel badly if you gave up your last day to mope around with her. Why don’t you go on down to Kihei and maybe Lelani and I can catch up with you later this afternoon.”

So they agreed that was a good plan, and the girls went inside to get changed out of their biking clothes and gather some things for the beach.

“Did you talk to your dad already?” asked Megan when she found Lelani sitting in the bedroom, staring out the window with an unreadable expression.

“You know. About Emma. I’m wondering if it’s wrong for me to take her away from here. I mean she’s got everything she needs. She has a beautiful nursery. A nanny who actually seems fond of her. Private swimming lessons. A lovely yard. Beach within walking distance. How selfish is it for me to take her away from all that?”

“That’s it.” Lelani was actually wringing her hands. “I don’t know for sure.”

Megan didn’t know what to say. So she actually sent up a quick help-me prayer and just waited.

“I work at a department store,” continued Lelani glumly, “and I rent a room in a house. I don’t even own a car. I haven’t finished college. Seriously, am I mad to think I can do this? Am I even thinking of Emma? Or is it just all about me?”

“Okay.” Megan took in a deep breath. “Think about this, Lelani: If you were Emma, which would you choose? Would you want to be raised like a princess with, well, your mother as a mother? Or would you rather be raised by someone like you?”

“Okay, let me say what I would want. And I can say this with confidence because I have a wonderful mother who loves me and forgives me and I would be lost without her. I have to say, if I were Emma, I would pick you for my mommy—hands down.”

“Absolutely. Because here’s the deal, Lelani. You are looking at where your life is right now. Sure, it’s not that impressive to work at Nordstrom, rent a room, and all that. But you could finish your degree. You could be a doctor or whatever. You could buy your own home and car if you wanted. Not that those things are going to make Emma any happier than having a devoted, kind, caring mother—one who truly loves her. Honestly, Lelani, what could possibly be better than that?”

“Do you want us to stick around for moral support, because we don’t have—”

“I’ll be praying for you,” promised Megan. Then she hugged Lelani. “Somehow this is all going to come out right.”

The beach in Kihei was nice, but crowded. Even so, the four eventually found a quiet spot, which they claimed. But before long, they all fell asleep. When Megan woke up, she realized that she’d forgotten to put on a new coat of sunscreen, which she’d been wearing religiously since they got here, and now her fair skin was turning pink. She grabbed her bag, noisily dumping it onto her towel, then located the sunscreen and began lathering it on.

“Need some help with that?” asked Marcus quietly.

“Sorry, did I wake you?”

He grinned. “If you haven’t noticed, this is a pretty noisy beach.”

“Want to get my shoulders and back?” She handed him the bottle. Maybe it was prudish, but she usually asked one of the girls to help with this task. For two reasons—one, she didn’t want Marcus to see the freckles on her shoulders. And two, she wasn’t sure she wanted him rubbing her with his hands. She was only human! But just then, she didn’t care. He didn’t seem to mind either.

“Thanks,” she told him when it seemed he had applied more than enough.

“You know, you have beautiful skin.”

She felt her cheeks getting warmer. “And it’s turning a beautiful shade of pink too, isn’t it?”

“That’s not what I meant.”

Megan shoved her things back into her bag and slid her feet into her flip-flops. “I think I need to get some shade,” she said as she stood up.

“And something to drink?” he offered.

She nodded. “That sounds like a good plan.”

They walked over to the nearby hotel kiosk and got pineapple smoothies, then found a shady spot to drink them.

“Are you okay?” Marcus asked as he wiped the cool drink over his brow. “You seem kind of agitated or something.”

“Sorry.” Megan frowned. The truth was, she was still thinking about the conversation that they almost had in Hana. But she wasn’t about to bring that up again. “Actually, I’m concerned about Lelani.” Then she told Marcus about how Lelani had been doubting her ability to adequately care for her own daughter. “And I encouraged her.”

“What’s wrong with that?”

“Well, it’s easy for me to sit there and say, hey, no big deal. Sure, you can do that, Lelani. Go ahead, be a single mom, even though you work at Nordstrom and rent a room. I mean babies are expensive, Marcus. You have to buy diapers and baby food and there are doctor bills, and what about day care? I’ve heard it’s really expensive.”

“All good points.”

“So where do I get off telling her that it’s best for Emma to be with her?”

“Because you know Lelani loves her. And because you’ve seen Lelani’s mother in action.”

Megan nodded. “I know we’re supposed to love everyone, Marcus. But that woman makes it hard.”

“She’s a little on the cold side.” He grinned. “Like ice cold.”

“But even so, how is Lelani going to do all that? I mean she’s already looking for jobs here, and a cheap place to live. But Maui is expensive. And then there’s the whole court battle.” Megan shook her head. “Lelani is a strong person in some ways, but not when it comes to confrontation. She’s a peacemaker at heart.”

“Maybe she’ll toughen up.”

“Or maybe they’ll crush her.” Megan thought of another thing. “And she won’t have us around—or Gil—to help her. She’ll be all alone.”

“It does sound kind of dismal.”

“Maybe I should call her and take it back. I mean what if she was having second thoughts for a legitimate reason? What if her instincts are telling her that Emma is better off here?”

“Maybe we should just pray for her.”

Megan was surprised. She knew that Marcus had been changing, that he’d been drawing closer to God and taking his faith more seriously. But he had never said anything quite like that before. “You mean, you and me? Praying together?”

He gave her a half smile. “Why not?”

And so right there, amid all the tourists and busyness of a popular resort during spring break, Marcus and Megan bowed their heads and prayed for Lelani. They prayed for her to have wise discernment, for God to lead her, and finally for Emma’s best interests. Then Marcus said amen and grinned. “See, what was wrong with that?”

“Nothing. That was great. Thanks!”

They sat quietly, watching the tourists going to and from the beach, children throwing tantrums, couples holding hands—and the whole while Megan kept wondering what it was that Marcus had been going to tell her in Hana. Still, she was determined not to bring it up.

“This has been a great week,” she said finally.

“Yeah. Who knew Maui was this cool?”

“Or how fun it would be to vacation with all your friends?” She sighed happily. “I mean despite the drama with Lelani’s parents. But we knew what we were getting into before we came.”

“It’s been cool having time to think.” Marcus turned to her now. “To really examine my life, to consider who I am and where I’m going, and how that compares to who I want to be, where I’d rather go. Those are things I don’t usually take the time to reflect on.”

“I guess we get caught up in the daily grind.” Megan studied him as he looked out toward the ocean with a thoughtful expression. “So … who do you want to be, Marcus. Where do you want to go?”

He frowned now. “Well, I know this much. I don’t want to be an investment broker anymore.”

“Really?”

He nodded.

“What then?”

“I was going to tell you something in Hana.”

She took in a quick breath. “In Hana?”

“You know when you were talking about being a missionary?”

“Well, I was kind of rambling, Marcus. I mean it’s not that I really plan on being a missionary, although I must admit I admire people who give up everything to go serve others. I do think I want to be a teacher. Maybe not just an art teacher, even though it was my focus in college. Mostly I just want to be involved in young people’s lives—and to make a difference.”

“Yes, that’s it. I want to make a difference too.”

“That’s great.”

“I’m just not sure how to go about it.”

“Maybe you just need to ask God to lead you.” She felt relieved to know that what had been on his mind had not been marriage after all. And then she felt slightly disappointed, which left her feeling rather confused. Didn’t she even know her own mind? Or her own heart?

“I know that some people wouldn’t think this was such a big deal,” he told her. “I mean to want to make a difference. But before, like when I was in college and just starting out in business, I was always so certain that I wanted a successful career more than anything. I wanted to be a millionaire by the time I hit thirty.” He laughed. “Now that seems so stupid and shallow. What was I thinking?”

She shrugged.

“Anyway, I just wanted to tell you. I haven’t told anyone else.”

“Thanks.” She smiled at him, wondering what more she could or should say. But just then her cell rang. “Maybe that’s Lelani,” she said as she fished it out of her beach bag. “Nope, it’s Kendall.”

“Maybe her Maui man has proposed and she’s inviting you to be in the wedding.”

Megan shushed him and answered. “Hey, Kendall, how are you doing?”

“Great. I just remembered something I wanted to tell you.”

“What’s that?”

“Have you considered becoming a pirate?”

“Huh?” Megan was confused. “Did you say pirate?”

“Yeah.” Now Kendall giggled.

“You had a blow to your head, right?”

“Yeah, I’m just joking with you. But didn’t you say you wanted to find a teaching job?”

“Yes.” Megan waited to see what that had to do with being a pirate.

“Well, when I was in the hospital and my mind was kind of wandering, I remembered this woman I met in the maternity department.”

“Kendall, are you okay?”

“Come on, Megan, hear me out. We were at Macy’s. She was a teacher at the same middle school that I went to. The Madison Middle School Pirates.”

“And?”

“And this lady was pregnant, like really pregnant. I meant to tell you before we left for Maui that you should go there and apply for her job, but I forgot.”

“Oh.”

“If it’ll help, you can use me as a recommendation. I used to be a cheerleader there.”

“Are you drinking?”

“No, of course not. I’m pregnant, remember?”

“Yeah.” Megan used her finger to do the crazy gesture on the side of her head, and Marcus just laughed.

“I was afraid if I didn’t tell you now, I’d forget again.”

“Okay.” Megan smiled. “How is your arm? Lelani was concerned that they hadn’t put a cast on it last night, when we stopped in. Did they do that yet?”

“Oh, yeah. I’ve got this ugly green plastic thing around it, and it aches some, but the doctor gave me some pain medication. Do you know where I am right now?”

“Uh, are you still on the island?”

“Sure. I am sitting here in the shade, drinking a virgin piña colada on one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen.”

“And, uh, your friend?” Megan refrained from saying Maui man.

“Killiki.”

“He’s with you now?”

“Oh, yeah.”

Megan wanted to ask if Kendall was aware that Killiki was a plumber but controlled herself. Why spoil Kendall’s last full day in Maui? “Well, thanks for the teaching tip. I guess I’ll see you—”

“Don’t hang up yet. I was wondering how Lelani’s doing. I tried her cell, but it’s off. Did you hear how her chat with her dad went?”

“I haven’t heard from her.”

“Oh. I just hope she’s all right.” Kendall sounded genuinely concerned. It was touching to see her caring about someone else for a change.

“Marcus and I prayed for her.” Megan had no idea why she told Kendall that, not that it mattered one way or the other.

“Wow, so did we!”

“Huh?” Megan tossed Marcus a puzzled look.

“We prayed for her too, Megan.”

“Really? You prayed for Lelani? You and, uh, Klikity?

“Keel-lee-kee,” Kendall said slowly. “Killiki.”

“Right. Killiki. You guys prayed together?” Now Marcus was looking at Megan with a puzzled expression and she just shrugged.

“We certainly did.”

“Well, that’s very cool, Kendall.”

“So, Megan, if you hear from her, could you give me a call?”

“Absolutely.”

“And, oh yeah, in case anyone wonders, Killiki is taking me to a luau tonight.”

“That’s great!”

“Yeah. I was so bummed about missing out on last night, and Killiki has this good friend who’s having an authentic luau—not the kind you buy tickets for—but the real deal where they bury the pig in the sand and everything.”

“Very cool. Have fun!”

“Thanks.”

After Megan hung up, she turned and looked at Marcus.

“Did Kendall tell you that she and Killiki were praying together?”

“That’s what she said.” Megan giggled. “I wanted to ask her what kind of pain meds she was taking, but I managed to control myself.”

Marcus just shook his head. “Well, that is pretty mind-blowing.”

“Makes me think that God is really up to something.”