Page 18 of Keeping Kama

As he approached Leia’s house, Derek spotted a truck idling in the driveway. Leia appeared walking down the driveway, carrying a surfboard under one arm. Her hair was thrown up in a messy bun. Dressed in shorts and a tank top, Leia’s swimsuit straps were poking out.

Derek gulped, extra aware of his attraction to Leia. The thought of seeing her in a swimsuit made his nerve ends simmer.

When she spotted him, Leia smiled brightly. “Aloha, Derek.” She slid the surfboard into the back of the truck.

Derek finally remembered how to speak. “Hi, Leia.” He stopped at the back of the open truck bed, a few feet from Leia. “Can I help you load anything else up into the truck?”

The windows of the truck were rolled down, blasting out Hawaiian music. He tossed his towel and wetsuit into the back of the truck.

“I only need to load up the surfboard for you.” Moving back toward the garage, Leia waved him on. “Maybe you should come pick one out. We need to find one that is the correct size for you.” Over her shoulder, Leia added, “I don’t need you claiming you didn’t surf well because you had the wrong size board.”

Derek forced a laugh. “Absolutely. You’re completely right.”

After he filed around the truck, Derek followed Leia back to the detached garage at the end of the driveway. It was filled with beach stuff: beach chairs, surfboards in every size imaginable, coolers, umbrellas, and piles of sand toys.

Shimmying her body sideways, Leia squeezed through a small path to the wall with the surfboards. She cradled one, meeting Derek’s gaze. “Let see what board will work.” Leia glanced between him and the surfboard. “You need it extra-long, right?” she grinned.

With an eye roll, Derek replied, “Hilarious.” Weaving his way through the mountains of stuff, Derek stopped in front of the array of surfboards lining the side of the garage wall. Leia rifled through a few, and Derek did the same. Finally, he found one that he thought would work. Snatching it, Derek said, “Can I use this one?” He pulled it all the way out from the rack.

Leia peered around the surfboard toward Derek. For a few seconds, Leia’s gaze slid up and down Derek and the surfboard. Biting her bottom lip, Leia finally said, “I think it will work. That’s the board Kai usually uses, and he’s an excellent surfer.”

As he scrutinized the board, Derek asked, “Will Kai care that I’m borrowing it?” Somehow, he had managed to get off on a good foot with Kai, Derek didn’t want to jeopardize their rapport with one another by using his prized board without permission.

“Kai hasn’t surfed in a long time. He won’t care at all.” Leia unhooked a wetsuit from where it hung on the wall. “Come on. Let’s head out.” Then Leia walked to the side of the garage. Derek followed her with the surfboard in his arms. She stopped in front of a keypad to the left of the garage door and punched in a code. Slowly, the garage door lowered. “Are you ready to be creamed?” asked Leia, as she gave him a sideways glance.

His back stiffened. Something told him he was about to make a complete fool of himself. “Are you?” he countered, though he felt extremely far from the confidence he was trying to exude.

Her lips puckered together, and then Leia scoffed. “I guess we’ll see who’s bluffing soon enough.” Leia stepped toward the truck. “Let’s hit the road.”

Both walked down the long driveway, Hawaiian music blared back at them. Derek loaded the surfboard into the back. Leia tossed in her wetsuit and towel, closing the tailgate. Then they both walked around to their respective sides and climbed in.

After they settled into the cab of the truck, Leia turned down the music a tad. “I purposely had Hawaiian music playing for your arrival,” stated Leia. Her lips twitched in an incredibly cute way. Derek forced himself to look out the windshield. “I needed you to heargoodmusic.”

Derek laughed. “Okay, enlighten me.” Turning his body toward hers, he asked, “Who should I be listening to?”

To reverse the truck, Leia rested her arm along the back of the bench. Slowly, she backed her way out of the driveway, turning on to the road.

“Umm, what do you think of this song?” Leia reached forward, turning the music up a little louder.

Leia drove down the road. For a minute, Derek concentrated on the words and melody of the song. He liked the rhythm and beat, finding it soothing and cathartic like music he’d want to listen to if he was out on a catamaran, sailing.

Finally, when the song ended, Derek remarked, “I like it. Who sings it?” He fidgeted with the end of his boardshorts, caught himself and placed his arm along the back of the truck bench.

“Kolohe Kai,” replied Leia. Tilting her head nearer, she continued, “He beats Tom Petty. No contest.”

His hands went up in defeat, Derek said, “We don’t need to fight. We can like different artists, but I like the sound of this artist’s voice. Can you play another one of his songs?”

They made a left onto the two-way highway, Leia flipped through two songs until she landed on another song by Kolohe Kai.

The words of the song were displayed across the dash, Derek read them out loud, “Cool Down.”

Shifting in his seat, Derek glanced at Leia. Her gaze held steady on the road, but Leia seemed more at ease, relaxed in a way Derek hadn’t seen before. Without even thinking, he tapped his fingers against the grey fabric of the truck bench.

Leia bobbed her head to the beat. “Listen …” She glanced out her window, staring at the ocean then back at the road. “This might be my favorite song he sings.” Her lips curled up at the corners, forming a half-smile, like she was trying to hold back her enthusiasm. It made Derek like her even more.

Intently, he took her instructions. Derek listened to the not-quite-reggaeton beat. As he stared out the window at the ocean, he admired the view as the sunrise sneaked above the water. Golden light dripped in through the window, casting a captivating glow on Leia’s face.

Derek scratched his chin. “What’s ohana?” He allowed himself to further study the silhouette of her face. “The song says, ‘Go grab your ohana’. I’m just wondering about the meaning.”

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