Page 75 of Big Island Horizons
‘Olena could hear the smile in his voice. She went silent, her face pressed against his shoulder.
“I missed you, Lei.” He was the only one who had ever called her that, the only man who had ever made her feel feminine and beautiful instead of overgrown and intimidating.
There were advantages, definitely, to being larger than most everyone she met. Even when she was a teenager, grown men had been afraid of her. She’d never had to deal with the sort of harassment that girls like Lani did; she had never even seen it up close, because no one hassled her cousin or her friends when she was nearby.
But it was exhausting, too, always being the strong one.
That was one of the reasons she had fallen for Nate. When she was near him, she was able to relax and let someone else take on the role of protector. With him, she’d felt like her truest self.
And each time that he left, it hurt her down to the marrow of her bones.
Gently, she pushed herself away from his embrace.
He let her go, though she could see in his eyes how much that pained him.
“You were always the only one for me,” he told her. The words were low and heartfelt, almost desperate in their intensity. She wanted so badly to believe him, to fall into his arms and let the rest of the world fade away.
Fresh tears rolled down her face as she shook her head.
“But you still left,” she said, her voice cracking.
“Aren’t we ever going to get past that?” he pleaded. “I’m done with the ships, Lei. Give me one more chance.”
“I’m all out of second chances.” Her voice was heavy with grief and exhaustion. “I don’t know how to trust you again.”
He stood and watched her go as she walked up the front steps and into the house.
27
Tara
“There they are!” Piper pointed to their neighbors as they stepped out of the shade.
Emma’s auburn hair shone almost red in the noonday sunshine. Even Kai’s hair, which looked black when he was in the shade, revealed a hint of red sheen in the strong Hawaiian sun.
“Over here!” Piper leaned halfway out her window and waved them over. Her own roughly cropped hair glowed like a fire when the light hit it.
Tara jumped out to open the back of her van, then greeted Emma with a hug. Kai brushed past them and climbed up into the van, tumbling up and over the back row of seats.
“Welcome home!” Tara said.
“Thank you!” Emma stepped back and hefted her suitcase into the van.
“Does Lani even know you’re here?” she asked as she closed the hatchback.
“I told her that I would come home as soon as I could, but that’s it. I didn’t send her flight info or anything. I didn’t want to give her one more thing to worry about.”
“Makes sense.”
“How’s Tenn?”
“Last I heard, he needs one more surgery before they’re ready to send him home. I guess the bullet did a number on his shoulder blade.”
Emma winced. “I can’t even imagine.”
“I’m glad you’re back.”
“Thank you so much for picking us up. And for taking care of the animals the past few days.”
