Page 26 of Big Island Moonlight
Juniper gasped and feigned offense. “Rude!”
“How about this?” Emma pulled out a pale blue sundress and turned towards Jun, holding the frock in front of her.
“You own a dress?” she exclaimed.
Emma rolled her eyes. “Very funny.”
“Anything you wear is fine. The guy has basically only seen you wearing your dead husband’s t-shirts and he likes you anyway. I’d say you’re in there.”
“I don’t like you right now,” she huffed, turning back to the closet.
“But you love me,” Jun said in a sing-song tone.
Emma pulled out a transfer-station find that she had never worn, a beautiful leaf-print dress that brought out the green in her eyes.
“That one!” Her niece said, serious now. “Definitely that one.”
She hastily pulled the dress over her head, refusing to overthink it anymore. Then her legs gave out, and she collapsed onto the bed next to Jun.
“What am I doing?” she moaned, dropping her head into her hands. “I’ve never dated! I don’t know how to do this.”
“What about Uncle Adam?”
“We were good friends in high school, and then we were boyfriend and girlfriend, and then we were husband and wife. I’ve never even dated anybody else. I don’t know how.”
“Don’t think of him as a date,” Jun advised. “He’s just… a friend you’d like to kiss.”
Emma stared at her for a minute. “I have no idea what to say to that.”
Jun sighed, a world-weary seventeen. “You’re overcomplicating things, Auntie Em.”
“I know,” she moaned.
Jun checked the time on her phone. “He’ll be here any minute.”
Emma sucked in a breath and got up off of her bed.
“Can I stay here?” Jun asked. “My bed is so far away.”
She chuckled. “That’s fine.”
“Have a good time. You deserve to have some fun.”
“There are plenty of leftovers in the fridge. Kai and Prince are crazy about the mac salad, but try to get some protein into them too. I don’t think I’ll be out too late, but you can put them to bed around nine if I’m not back yet.”
“Aye aye, captain.” Juniper gave her a sleepy salute.
“I love you.” Emma kissed her niece’s forehead. “Thanks for watching them.”
“They’re easy. They watch each other.”
“I’ll see you in a bit.”
“Get out of here!”
“Okay, okay, I’m going!” Emma retreated down the stairs and grabbed her beach bag. With the tote slung over one shoulder, she slipped on a pair of sandals and went to check on the boys.
Kai and his friend were out on the old trampoline that they had inherited from Tara’s family when they moved to the ranch. The boys weren’t jumping; they had carried a whole stack of library books out to the trampoline, where they sat reading in the mild winter sunshine.
