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Things were finally falling into place. According to Holt’s sources at Palekaiko, Timothy was digging up a whole lot of nothing about him and Joely. Mike and Mel had taken off. Holt wasn’t sure when, but when he went back to check, his brother’s yurt was gone. Tetsuo and Kala went back to Wailea to confront the gardener about what he did or did not do to Kala’s laptop. This left Holt and Joely completely alone in the house, which is what he had planned for all along.
“You gonna sit there grinning like an idiot or are you going to go after that calf?” Joe snarled at him.
Knowing better than to argue, Holt rode off after the stray and herded him back up front where its mother was. It was like he never left. Sure, his thighs were screaming from being in the saddle for hours, but being on top of a horse was as natural to him as breathing.
“Give him some slack. He and his girl are probably up all night playing checkers or something.”
“Watch it, Tony,” Holt warned.
“I’m just saying, if I had a pretty wahine like that cleaning my house and making me breakfast, I’d marry the girl. Am I right, fellas?”
Holt rolled his eyes. Whatever ill feelings they had toward Joely’s inexperience on a horse, faded away when they saw what she did to the bunk house.
While he busted his ass with fencing and taking care of the cattle, Joely put a spit shine on the barracks. At first they grumbled about having their space invaded, but even the crustiest of cowboys commented that it was nice to have a woman’s touch.
“There are hospital corners on my bed.”
“And fresh sheets.”
“It smells like pine in here.”
The paniolos were offended, embarrassed, and pleased as all get out. All the little touches Joely had done brightened up their living quarters. It’s what made her such a good employee at the Palekaiko resort. She knew how to make people happy.
Holt was getting back into the swing of things on the ranch. The early mornings never bothered him like they did his brother. There were even times this week when Holt forgot he had another life and a job waiting for him at the beach resort.
“She’s probably looking for a husband who doesn’t live in a box by the ocean.” Joe was about as subtle as an enraged bull seeing a red cape. He was looking to retire, and Holt knew that he didn’t want any of the paniolos who worked with him to take over.
Holt had a pretty good idea who he wanted to pass the reins over to, but that wasn’t going to happen. That horse had escaped the pen a long time ago. Actually, it had been pulled out kicking and screaming. But in the end, the result was the same.
“Speaking of cooking, what’s for lunch?”
Kala had left a fully stocked fridge and freezer. “Joely’s making a huge pot of chili and loaves of cornbread for lunch. Dinner’s a cookout on the grill with different side dish salads.”
The guys approved and once they finished for the morning and headed back to the ranch house, the devoured Joely’s lunch like they hadn’t eaten in weeks. Holt was surprised when Joe pulled her aside afterwards. Curiosity got the best of him, and Holt wandered over to shamelessly eavesdrop on their conversation.
“If you slice them up and toss them on the grill with some peppers and onions, I can take care of the rest.”
“Fantastic. And I’ll make a few trays of lasagna. All you’ll have to do is warm them up.”
Joe put his arm around Joely. “Better make it a few dozen trays.”
“What are you two up to?” Holt asked.
Joely looked away as if he caught her doing something wrong.
“Nothing,” Joe said. “Just you two have earned the day off tomorrow. Joely’s going to cook up choke steaks tonight so we can have steak and cheese for lunch tomorrow, and her world famous lasagna for dinner.”
“I wouldn’t say that, but it is pretty tasty.”
“Take the compliment when you can, sistah,” Joe said and kissed her on the top of the head.
“Don’t screw this up.” Joe hit him in the chest when he passed by. “I like her.”
Holt shook his head. “He’s something else.”
“I think he’s sweet,” Joely said.
“Then, sistah, you haven’t been payin’ attention.” Holt mimicked Joe’s voice and caught the dish towel she whacked him with.
Because the guys were heading back out to their horses, he risked a kiss. After she leaned against him, Holt realized he was covered in dirt.
“Sorry,” he said, breaking away.
“I don’t mind getting dirty.” She winked at him and sashayed back into the kitchen.
Oh, so that was how it was. He moved to follow her, but was caught up short by Tony clearing his throat.
“We got work to do.”
Holt stifled his groan. Tony was almost as bad as Uma at cockblocking. “Roger dat,” he said, with one longing look at Joely’s backside.
“She’ll be here waiting for you when you get back.”
Holt was taken aback at how right that felt. He allowed himself a small fantasy. What would it be like to be the foreman on his uncle’s ranch?
Would Joely consider leaving the beach for this?
Would he?
***
AFTER THE COWBOYS ATE their weight in beef, they staggered back to the bunk house. Holt helped Joely clean up in the kitchen.
“The lasagna smells good.” He peeked inside the oven and even though he didn’t think he could eat another bite, the bubbling cheese had him reconsidering.
“Do you think five trays will be enough?” She fretted, tugging at her apron.
“That’s a half a tray per person. Plus, garlic bread. I think by the time these two weeks are over, they’ll be too fat to ride.”
“I like cooking,” she marveled. “I’ve forgotten that.”
“Yeah,” Holt said, pouring them both a glass of wine. “When you’ve got a buffet breakfast and lunch and luau leftovers every night, there’s no need to cook.”
Stretching and wincing, Joely rubbed the back of her neck. “I’m beat.”
“Let’s go into the living room and watch a movie.”
“I’m going to fall asleep.” She smiled, but took her glass and followed him.
Holt tossed a pillow on the floor. “Here, sit on that and I’ll give you a massage.”
“Don’t have to ask me twice.” She settled in between his legs and leaned back against the couch.
Tagging a big swig of his wine, he put it aside. “This would be better if you take off your shirt.”
“Better for whom?”
“Both of us.”
She craned her neck to look back at him. “Go lock the door. I don’t want Joe or Tony coming in for a midnight snack.”
“You got it.”
Holt couldn’t believe his luck. Finally, they were going to spend a nice quiet evening all alone. Locking the door, he popped back into the kitchen for the bottle of wine.
However, when he got back into the living room Joely was snoring like a kitten with her face mushed up against the couch.
Oh well, this was nice too. He poured the wine back into the bottle and jammed the cork back in. There was always tomorrow. Gently, so as not to wake her, Holt lifted her up in his arms and carried her to her bedroom.
After tucking her in, he went downstairs to make reservations to see the sunrise at Haleakala. Looking at his watch, Holt figured if they got up at two a.m., they should be there in time. It was just a little past eight now, so that would give them a good six hours of sleep.
After taking a quick shower, Holt crawled into bed with her. He stifled a yawn with the back of his hand. Joely mumbled something in her sleep and turned so she was in his arms. As he drifted off, he stroked her silky hair wishing she was naked against him. But then again, they wouldn’t be sleeping if she was.
He could definitely get used to this.
Holt allowed himself the fantasy again. He wasn’t a security guard at a tourist resort, where the most exciting thing that happened was separating a few drunks.
He was a foreman in charge of four thousand acres of land and ten ornery paniolos. Smiling, he pictured seeing Joely in the kitchen in the morning. Maybe, he’d take a long lunch and make love to his wife in the afternoon.
Wife?
Holt’s eyes flashed open and he stared at the ceiling. Where the hell had that come from? Joely muttered something that sounded like meatballs and turned over. He spooned into her as he thought about Joe’s words.
What did a security guard have to offer a wife? He tried to picture them living at the Palekaiko resort. If he had been a billionaire like Dude or Marcus, they could live on his yacht or in the owner’s suite. Since he wasn’t, they’d share a room about the size of the ranch’s guest bedroom.
Or they could give up the free room and board and get a place on their own. But that was expensive. Still, he had some money saved up.
Shaking his head, Holt closed his eyes. He was jumping the gun. It was still too early in their relationship, if even that’s what they had, to start thinking about marriage.
Still...
Holt held Joely close. He could get used to this.
***
JESUS, WHO WAS THE asshole who set the alarm for two in the morning?
Oh.
Holt groaned.
That would be him.
“No,” Joely moaned. “It’s our day off.”
He was tempted to fall back into bed, but the thought of sharing the sunrise at ten thousand feet with Joely was an opportunity he didn’t want to miss.
“Come on sleepy head. We’re going to Haleakala.”
“Is it erupting?” Joely’s voice was muffled from the pillow she had over her head.
“No, I want to show you the sunrise.”
“I’ve seen it,” she said sourly.
“Not from up there you haven’t. Come on, take a quick shower and get going. We want to get a parking space.”
“We do?” She yawned.
“Come on, sleepyhead. We’ll have all day to sleep.”
“Promise?” she grumbled.
“I promise.” When she didn’t move, he said, “Don’t make me carry you into the shower.”
“All right. All right. I’m going.”
She probably thought he didn’t see the tongue she stuck out at him. He hurried upstairs to change into jeans and a T-shirt.
Joely surprised him because she was downstairs waiting for him. “It’s cold.”
He tossed her one of his hoodies. “Put this on. I’ve also got a blanket in the car.”
Opening the car door for her, he draped the wool blanket over her lap. “I feel like such a lightweight,” she said. “I’m usually coming home from the club at this hour.”
He got behind the wheel. “When was that?”
She yawned so wide, he was afraid she was going to crack her jaw. “In my head, it was just a few weeks ago. But now that you mention it, the last time I was awake at this hour was Marcus and Michaela’s wedding.”
“I remember. You danced with me.”
“I was trying to seduce you, but I drank too much.”
“If you were sober, I would have been happily seduced.”
“If I was sober, I wouldn’t have had the nerve to ask you to dance.” She leaned her head on his shoulder. “Why didn’t you ask me to dance before I let Makoa talk me into trying his Auntie’s home brew.”
“You drank that?”
“It only hurts your stomach on the first glass. After that you don’t feel a thing.”
“Literally.”
She nodded. “Don’t change the subject.” She poked him in the leg.
“I thought you were with Makoa.”
“What?” Joely jolted upright. “Why?”
“You’re always together.”
“He’s my friend. We’re usually with Kai and Hani too.”
Holt turned on the heater and pulled out on the highway. It was near deserted this time of night, and it was hard to concentrate on the road. “I should have brought some coffee.”
“Amateur,” she said, and reached in the back for a Thermos. After pouring him a cup, she smirked.
“Beauty and brains,” he said, inhaling the aroma. “I don’t know how I missed smelling the coffee brewing.”
“It’s pretty early in the morning, even for a hunky paniolo like you.”
“Thanks for coming with me. I really wanted to share this with you.”
She snuggled back up to him. “Too bad the sunrise has to start so early in the morning.”
“Don’t you want a cup?” he asked.
“I’m going to take a nap. Wake me when we’re on top of the world.”
“Will do.”
Joely snoozed all the way up to the peak.
He couldn’t blame her, but he knew it would be worth it once she saw it. She’d love all the colors. It was breathtaking. He remembered when his Mom and Dad took him and Mike up here. That was before everything turned to shit. It was a magical morning, just the four of them.
When they got to the park, Holt paid the entrance fee on his credit card. He had managed to get his wallet out of his pants without waking Joely. They still had a half hour of driving to go and it was straight up another three thousand feet. He was glad he had the coffee because the road became very windy and he needed all his wits about him.
Checking the temperature on the dash, Holt turned on the heat. Forty-six was a cold morning.
“Wake up, Sleeping Beauty.”
“I’m awake.”
“Then why are your eyes closed?”
Joely wrapped the blanket around her and got out of the car without answering him. He went around to the trunk to pull out the two beach chairs he had brought.
“Grab the coffee,” he said.
As they walked from the parking lot to the viewing area, Holt was glad they had beat the tourist buses up and had their pick of spots. He set up the chairs facing east.
“I’m freezing,” she said, her teeth chattering.
“Come here and sit on my lap.”
She gave him a suspicious look, but came over. Unpeeling some of the layers, he held her close to him. Joely yawned loudly in his ear.
“It’s still dark.”
He kissed her chilled cheek. “You can snooze a little bit more. I’ll wake you up when it starts to get light out.”
She jumped when he slid his hand up her shirt.
“Your hands are cold.”
“Sorry. Let me warm them up.” He unbuttoned her jeans and pulled the zipper down.
“Holt,” she whispered, scandalized.
“There’s no one here. Yet.” Dipping his hand inside her underwear, he rubbed his finger between her legs.
Squirming, she bit his earlobe.
“Oh, you want to play?” He turned his head and kissed her, thrusting his tongue inside her eager mouth. Wet heat flooded over his finger and he flicked another finger inside her.
Joely moaned in his mouth.
Holt heard the bus chug up the mountain and he rubbed faster, wanting her to come before they were caught.
She held on to his shoulders, her mouth never leaving his. He could hear her slick wetness as he circled around her clit, fast and hard. Joely jerked in his arms and pushed her legs together.
“Oh Holt,” she whispered, a soft tremor going through her.
He touched her gently then, as she cried out against his mouth. When the first door slammed, Joely straightened up and fumbled with her pants.
She leaped off him and settled into her own chair.
“Warmed up?” he asked, licking his finger. She tasted like musk and peaches and he couldn’t wait for some privacy to explore her further.
“I’ll say. Too bad we were interrupted.”
Holt shifted in his chair. “We’ve got all day.” If he hadn’t been watching her, he wouldn’t have noticed the slight frown across her face. Or the way her teeth worried at her lower lip. “Are you all right?”
She took in a deep breath. “Yeah. I’m fine. Just tired. I guess. Do you think we could risk going back down to Lahaina?”
“Why? You want to surf?”
“Yeah,” she said, brightly.
It didn’t feel right. She was so terrified of Timothy, why would she want to go back after only six days? “We can go to Hookipa.”
“The locals hate me.” Joely grimaced.
“Nah, they forgot all about you and that bonehead move you pulled on the reef.”
“I miscalculated the wave,” she said hotly. “I’m human.”
“You almost tore your arm off.”
“Felt like I did.” She rubbed it. “Still got the scars. Fucking coral. Ruined a good day of surfing too. I was out of the water for almost a month.”
“Well, that’s not going to happen again. Besides, you’ll be with me. I’ll keep you safe.”
“I know you would.” She reached over to hold his hand. “I know.” Joely let out a big sigh.
Holt couldn’t wait until all this was over and they could get back to their lives. He didn’t like feeling so conflicted over where he belonged. He wanted to go back to being a security chief and Joely being the head of housekeeping. Then they could start this relationship off right, without any secrets or hidden dangers. He squeezed her hand reassuringly. Just a little more than a week. They could do that.
The sunrise was at five-fifty a.m. It was like someone turned on the lights, but instead of the normal blue sky it was as if all the colors in the world spilled out of a paint box.
Joely caught her breath. “We’re higher than the clouds. It’s almost like we’re on another planet. Are you sure we didn’t fly to Mars while I was asleep?”
Holt wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on the top of her head. “Worth losing a few extra Zs for?”
“Definitely. I feel like my problems are so small up here far away from everything.”
He hugged her. “You don’t have to worry about Timothy. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
She stiffened in his arms and he wondered what he said that was so wrong.
“Can we go back to Palekaiko?” she said in a small voice.
His heart sank. “You don’t like the ranch?”
“What? No, that’s not it.” She turned around in his arms. “I forgot a few things and I wanted to go back to my room and grab them. We’ll be in and out. Timothy won’t even know we’re there.”
Holt frowned. “You want to go now?”
“No,” she said. “I’m too tired. I’m afraid my reflexes would be off. I figured we could go tonight around dinner time. We can circumvent the luau. You can keep watch while I get my things.”
“It’s risky,” he said. It also didn’t make sense. Six days ago, she hotwired a bike to get away from this guy. “What if he sees you?”
“He won’t.”
Holt was glad that she was feeling more confident, but he didn’t want to risk their plan. It was imperative that Timothy thought she was off the island. “No, tell me what you want and I’ll go and get it. If he sees me, I’ll tell him you left me and went to California or something.”
Joely bit her lip and looked away.
“I know you’re frustrated,” he said. “But we’ll get through this. We just have to play it safe. It’s just for a few more days.”
She nodded. “You’re right.”
“I’m always right.” Holt smiled and turned her around so she faced the sunrise. He hugged her tight. “We’re going to get through this.”
Joely sighed. “I know.”
She didn’t sound as happy as he thought she would about that.