Page 36 of Try Easy

“Shut up,” Keoni said, climbing out of the car.

He glanced up the hill behind him to Loa Ridge, where Declan had grown up. Declan’s house could be seen high on the ridge. It was a palatial white mansion with ornate columns and three outdoor decks. The land had been gifted to Declan’s family in the 1800s by Kamehameha I. Until the 1950s this property had been mostly farms and ponds. Now, it was subdivided into tiny one-bedroom bungalows like Henry’s.

Keoni had first met Declan on the beaches below. Declan had been a lanky fourteen-year-old just learning to surf when Keoni and Eddie had come down to Patterson’s Break because word had spread that The Bomb was breaking.

Keoni and Eddie had spent the better part of their teens figuring out the point breaks under the shadow of Diamond Head Crater. Most of the surf spots that broke on the south side of the island were only rideable at high tide, but there were a few little sweet spots between the dry reefs that were less regular.

The point breaks all had quirks of their own. They were named after the families who had lived in front of them. There was Patterson’s, Mahoney’s, and Duke’s, named after the wealthy tobacco heiress whose estate was tucked into the cliffs.

The Bomb only broke a few times a year, and it was worth the long walk Eddie and Keoni had to take to surf it. Declan had watched them covertly and had been too shy to talk. But, Eddie decided he liked the skinny haole and had taken Declan under his wing. From then on, it had been the three of them, like a unit.

For years, they had done everything together. Then Eddie got more serious with his girlfriend, and Declan got sponsored by a surf team. They spent less time together than they used to, but they were still closer than brothers until the day Eddie died.

Keoni heard laughter drifting up from the hill behind Henry’s house. It was a musical laugh, high-pitched and contagious. He smiled, recognizing instinctively that a laugh so beautiful must belong to Lou.

He turned to look in the direction of the laugh and saw Lou and Penny walking up the hill from the beach. Lou was wearing a white bikini that showed all her curves, and her skin had a healthy glow from the sun. Penny was dressed in a long, sheer caftan that covered her from neck to ankle, but still managed to look sexy.

Keoni had never seen two girls as beautiful, or as happy. The carefree lifestyle of Hawaii was already working its magic on Lou. She had her hair down around her shoulders, and was laughing so hard that she had trouble walking.

“Heh,” Bones called to them across the yard, getting their attention. “What’s so funny?” he asked.

Both the girls froze when they saw Bones and Keoni. Penny stopped talking, and Lou’s laughter died off. Her face darkened, and she turned to glare at Penny, who shrugged. Without a word, Lou stomped around to the back of the house. A moment later, Keoni cringed as the door slammed.

Penny came forward and greeted them both. She seemed happy to see them.

“Hi,” she said, smiling.

“Howzit?” Bones asked. “Been down to the beach?”

Penny nodded, and a grin broke out over her face. “Did you know there was a nude beach down there?” she asked.

Bones laughed. “Yeah, that’s why I don’t go down past Diamond Head, eh? We call it Secret Beach.” He ran a hand through his hair, looking uncomfortable. “I don’t like the view,” he said.

“It wasn’t so bad,” Penny said, grinning up at him.

“Yeah? Well, I can show you a lot better beaches, eh?”

“I bet you can.”

Keoni rolled his eyes and asked, “What’s the matter with Lou anyway?”

“Nothing,” Penny said. “She’s just hungry. She gets cranky when she doesn’t eat.”

“Oh,” Keoni said, relieved. “Let’s get lunch, then. I can always eat.”

“Always eating, that one,” Bones said, jerking a thumb at Keoni. “I don’t know where he puts it.”

“Shut up,” Keoni said.

“Come on inside while I change,” Penny said, leading the way into the house.

Keoni had been in a few of these houses that had been put up just after the war when he was a kid. They were all like little boxes. The construction had been done on the cheap, and after fifteen years, they were starting to show their age.

Henry’s house was tiny, but the deck out back made up for its size. Keoni could see out the double glass doors all the way to the rocky cliffs of Black Point.

Penny walked down the hall to the bedroom and closed the door. Keoni heard raised voices and then a moment later Lou came out of the bedroom. She stopped short when she saw him, then walked past him out onto the deck.

She had put a dress on over the white bikini, but her hair was still long and loose, flowing over her shoulders. Keoni watched her through the glass. She had her back to him, and she leaned against the railing, looking out at the view.

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