Page 63 of Two Tickets to Paradise

He'd never seen people take cooking so seriously.

With the number of people that showed up to the private party at Lanikai Lanes, it made sense that they'd had six different turkeys on the table. Cora was relaxing against his chest as they watched Arctic and Riptide take their turn in the seventh frame. Rubbing his hand along Cora's forearm, he leaned in close. "I can't remember... What was that oven that the last turkey came out of?"

She turned to look at him, the wry look in her eyes told him that he had to be more specific.

"Not the one that came out of that green egg thing, but the one they said was cooked in the ground?"

Cora's expression froze for a moment. "Huh. I can't... Maile?"

Cora leaned away from him and reached out across the backs of the chairs on the next lane.

"Maile?"

Maile turned around and grinned at Cora. "Hey. What's up?"

"I can't remember. The turkey that was cooked in the... in the ground, that was called-"

"Oh!" Maile nodded. "Uncle Wes cooked that in the imu."

"Emu?" Vince felt his brow furrow. "Like the bird?"

"No," Maile shook her head, "imu. I. M. U. Rocks are heated in a fire and then the meat is placed in the ground with the rocks. They put the pig in the imu, too. That's what we normally do for big family celebrations like weddings, graduation parties and baby's first birthday. Luaus. That kind of thing."

Vince's free hand rubbed against his stomach. "That was the best turkey. I think. It was so tender and-"

"Don't say it." Cora turned around to look at him. "Please don't say it."

"Say what?" Vince looked at Maile and then back at Cora. Both women had the same look on their faces, a kind of expectant horror. Mock horror, but still horror. "Moist?"

"Ugh!" "Gross!"

The two women laughed and then leaned against each other.

"What?" He looked up to see Kawehi walking over toward them. She was taking a break from consolidating the leftover food to relax. "What's going on with those two?"

Vince looked at the two women and then back at Kawehi. "I think they've both lost their minds. I was asking about that in-ground cooking thing-"

"The imu," she interjected, and he smiled.

"Yeah," he grinned in reply, "the imu. I was saying how I thought it was the best turkey since it was really tender and-"

"Moist!" "Moist."

Maile and Cora dissolved into giggles, leaning on each other over the chair-backs that made a kind of division between the two lanes.

Vince looked up at Kawehi and saw her standing there with her hand over her mouth. Her eyes were wrinkled at the corners as if she was silently laughing. "Not you, too."

She lowered her hand slowly away from her mouth and gave him a quirky grin. "It's one of those words that you either don't care about or you think it's..."

"Gross?" He sighed. "I'll have to keep that in mind."

Cora turned around and put her hand over his where he'd left it on his stomach. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I just think it's funny."

He reached his thumb around and stroked the back of her hand. "I think you're funny."

She tipped her head forward and then looked back up, meeting his gaze. "I'm so glad you're here with me."

"I'm glad you asked me to come."

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