Page 9 of Rough Ride

He shook his head. “First, I refuse to have my daughter put her own life off because I might have a relapse. Secondly, you know Joe. There will be a provision in there. You have to stay.”

She sighed again. “Yes. If anything, Joe knew doing what he did…I wouldn’t allow it. I know how he felt about Eli. He did this for a reason and it wasn’t to screw him over. It was to get me back here.”

“Back to what you love.”

She hadn’t been riding in months and she did miss it. But…

“Stop worrying. You stay for six months. Spend the time learning about Hawai’i.”

“I already know about Hawai’i, Dad.” Why was she arguing with her father? Her father was right. Joe would have made sure that she would not be trapped here if he got sick. So, what was it? She was feeling antsy, as if she were trying to avoid something that excited and scared her at the same time.

Not something. Someone.

“No, you don’t,” her father said breaking into her thoughts. “What you know you’ve learned from Joe, books and movies. You need to be here, learn about it firsthand.”

“Meaning?”

He turned and looked out over the land. “Your mother said that no matter where she was in the world, she could always feel Hawai’i in her soul. You need that.”

“I don’t know if it will happen.”

He turned around. “Keeping you away at the time was the only option, but I regret I didn’t plan a trip for both of us once you were older. Now you have this chance. Take it, Crysta. Your mother would be happy with it.”

She slanted him a look. “You are such a butthead. Using Mom to convince me to stay.”

He laughed. “She would have used it too, and it wasn’t like you weren’t going to stay. And it is true. She would have been thrilled that you were back on Hawai’i for six months.”

It was hard to remember her mother, remember the way she was. The memories she had of her were warm and happy, but it was mostly embellished by a man who had never remarried. What she did remember told Crysta all she needed to know. She would never walk away from a situation like this.

“I can’t let those bastards have the land.”

The stipulation if she left was that Eli lost everything and the Kaheakus took over the ranch. They would run it into the ground, and she knew Joe had done that on purpose. He had told her enough about his brother so that Crysta knew they did not respect the land. She would not allow that to happen and he used it against her, the old fart.

“That’s always good to hear,” Eli said.

She jumped at the sound of his voice. How did a man that tall walk so quietly in boots across a wooden lanai?

“I guess there are some rules about it?” her father asked.

Eli nodded, though he kept looking at her. She couldn’t tell if he were mad at her, at the situation, or just not letting her read his thoughts. Probably all of the above.

“You have time to go back to the mainland to get your stuff. After that, you can’t spend any more than seven days away from the ranch, unless there is a medical emergency.”

At that point, he glanced at her father, and she knew Eli understood the situation. Then he looked back at her. For a second, all the worries and most of her thoughts, slipped away. Those green eyes had her head spinning. She forced herself to look at her father.

“I guess that settles it. I have some arrangements to make.”

Her father nodded.

“I’m sorry about this, Eli.”

He gave her a small smile. “I knew Joe was up to something, but when was he not up to something?”

She nodded and walked into the house then up the stairs, avoiding the family. She wasn’t in the mood. Crysta knew now that she would never be in the mood for them. As she walked to her room, she looked at the pictures on the wall again. Downstairs there were lots of pictures of the ranch. Here, it was family. Old pictures of her mother when she was a girl, of her on her mother’s lap, then of Joe’s time in the service. At the end of the hall there was Eli. Joe had as many pictures of Eli as he did of everyone else in the family.

She smiled as she straightened one.

“I’ll do right by him, Joe. Don’t you worry.”

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