Life's a Beach (16 page)

Dude gave her the shaka, but her hands were white-knuckled grasping the ropes, so she couldn't give it back. The ropes on her rig creaked as she went up. And up. And up. And…
oh dear God, will it never end?
The boat picked up speed and she leveled off. She could barely see Dude below her. A bird flew by her head, and she laughed. So what if it was slightly hysterical? But then the scenery caught her attention. Maui was beautiful when she was standing on it, but when she was flying over it without being in an airplane, she was enchanted. What struck her next was the silence. She couldn't even hear the roar of the waves from up here. No tourists talking or boat motors. Even the wind was silent.

This had to be what it was like to be Wonder Woman in her invisible jet. As the ride went on she was able to relax her grip on the ropes. She could even see fish swimming in the ocean—although, she realized, she was up so high that what she was seeing was probably sharks or whales.

Just as she had begun to breathe normally and enjoy the sun on her face and the breeze between her feet, the rope began to pull her in.

This was fun, she realized. She'd have no problem recommending this trip to families. As she looked down at the boat, she saw Marcus and Dude chatting with each other with their heads close together, and she was struck by how similar they looked. A thought twinged at the back of her mind, but just as she was about even with the boat, the tow line snapped and the rope whirled out of the pulley. She was adrift from the boat.

“Amelia,” Dude shouted.

For a moment she thought the wind would pick her up and keep her in the air, but it wasn't that strong today, and she hit the water with a splash. Luckily, she hadn't been too high. Still, she hit hard enough that it stung her legs and backside. Thinking quickly, she unhooked her rigging. Her jacket kept her upright as she tried to wiggle her legs out of the seat, but the damn parasail swooped over her and dragged her under with its weight.

This stupid thing is going to be my burial shroud if I can't kick free,
she thought, knowing that the more she wriggled, the worse it was going to be. At least she'd gotten to tell her mom she loved her. No, she wasn't going to think like that. Strangely enough, she wasn't as terrified as she thought she should be. She could hear the boat and Dude and Marcus yelling. They would rescue her, she was sure of it. A wave popped her up, and she filled her lungs with air, then went back to working on kicking free of the parasail.

Strong hands grabbed her and pulled, while another set pulled the sail off her. Dude had her and was treading water, while Marcus was wrestling with the parasail.

“Are you all right? I'm so sorry. I should have gone first. I'm going to kill Kai.”

“I'm good,” she said, her teeth chattering.

“Right. Onto the boat.” Dude swam with her back to the boat, where Kai and Pika helped her aboard. She lay on the floor, refusing to let go of Dude.

Pika was in tears. “The line is brand-new. It was just checked. It wasn't frayed. It just snapped.”

Marcus came onto the boat next and flopped beside them.

“It didn't snap,” Kai pointed out, holding the end. “It was cut. Look. It's too clean.”

“I thought you had your permits!” Dude exclaimed.

“I do.”

“Did you pay off the yaks?” Kai muttered.

Pika didn't answer.

“Shit,” Kai said, and sat down with his face in his hands.

“Yaks?” Amelia said, unable to stop trembling, even though Dude had wrapped her in towels.

“Yakuza,” Marcus filled in. “Japanese mafia.”

“We don't know that for sure,” Amelia said. “Maybe it's just a very competitive businessperson.”

“They tried to kill us,” Dude said.

“There have been other incidents over the past few days,” Kai said, “but not as bad as this. Little things, more annoying really. The freezer being unplugged and food being spoiled. Bugs in the rooms—more bugs than normal, and only in rooms occupied by older women.”

“It looks like someone is trying to make us sell at the lower price,” Marcus said.

“They've gone too far,” Dude said between his teeth. “And I think we should let Tetsuo know that.”

“What are you going to say?” Marcus said. “You've no proof, and you'll just give him what he wants if you storm into his place making threats.”

“Sell the damn place. It's not worth someone…” He swallowed hard. “It's not worth dying for. If the rope had snapped when she was up higher…”

Amelia let out a breath. “Can we not bring up the nightmare I'm going to have tonight? I'd rather not think about it while I'm trying to control my bladder and my hysterics.”

“There's a head belowdecks.”

“Thanks,” Amelia said. “I'll just squish on down there and take a moment.”

“You need help?” Dude said.

“Oh, no, I've got this.” She held on to the railing as she made her way to the bathroom. She told herself that she just needed to get behind closed doors before freaking out. They couldn't sell the hotel. Not now. Not after she had just been hired. Amelia closed the door and started to sob as quietly as she could.

Samuel wanted to take her back to the yacht, tuck her into his bed, and leave her there while he took off Tetsuo's head with his bare hands. But, stubborn as always, Amelia insisted on going back to the resort. She even spent most of the boat trip back convincing Marcus that this was an isolated incident and it wouldn't happen again. Samuel didn't like to see her pleading her case, especially when her eyes were red-rimmed from crying.

Marcus told her that he hadn't made his decision yet but would take her thoughts into consideration. On the sand, Zarafina was waiting for them, and Kai and Pika went back to the boat once everyone was on dry land.

“There, there, you've battled the dragon and have come out victorious. Let's get some tea in you.” Zarafina turned to Samuel. “You calm down. She's all right. Everything is going to be fine.”

“You've seen this in your cards?” he sneered.

“Dude, don't,” Amelia said weakly.

“I see everything.” Zarafina stared him down, then gestured with her chin at Marcus. “Deal with him. I'll take care of her.”

Samuel glared at her, his fists clenching and unclenching, then headed over to Marcus. Zarafina put an arm around Amelia and walked them over to the tiki bar area.

“When are you going to tell her how you feel?” Marcus asked when the two brothers were alone.

“I've known her a week. She's rebounding from a bad relationship. The yakuza almost killed her, and—wait for it—I've been lying to her this whole time.”

“You need to tell her who you are, and then you need to rub Tetsuo Hojo's face in the sand and make this a five-star resort.”

Samuel cringed. “It's never going to be a five-star. It's too much work.” He rubbed his hand over his face. “I'm not going to have a heart attack ten years from now and be paralyzed on one-half of my body because of Wall Street or this stupid hotel.”

“Okay.” Marcus hugged him. “Calm down. You are not Chris Thompson. You're half his age and in better physical shape.”

“I can't calm down. That's why I sit in a hammock all day.” Samuel spewed out his dirty secret. “I can't breathe if I think about Chris lying in that hospital bed with all those tubes and machines, and Della sobbing at his side.”

Marcus walked him over to his hammock and pushed him down. He opened a beer for both of them. Dude guzzled his down and then took Marcus's.

“That's not going to help.” Marcus opened another one.

It was frosty cold and it went down like liquid Xanax. “Don't knock it until you try it, brah.” Samuel lay back and swung. “You know people say how someone is afraid of hard work, and they're being sarcastic? It's true. I'm literally afraid of dying from working too hard. I can't take the stress. I have enough money that I don't need to. Let's just sell this place and go down to Fiji or something.”

“Fuck him. And fuck you too. You're better than that. You are not afraid of hard work. You just don't want to go back to Wall Street. Running a resort in Maui isn't a cakewalk, but it's a far cry from trading stocks.” Marcus added a slice of lime from the cooler to his Corona. “Dropping his offer price was an insult. You were right to tell him to go scratch. And now that the deadline's expired, he's bullying us.”

“He wins. I'll pay you the difference in the sale price. It's worth it to me to keep her safe.” Samuel closed his eyes, still able to see the shocked look on her face when the tow line snapped. If she had been up higher, she'd be dead from the fall or in the hospital. If they hadn't gotten her free from the parasail, she would have drowned. He threw an arm over his eyes and tried to stop the trembling. “I'll be all right,” he said at last, when he'd gotten himself under control. “I'm sure you've got mergers to acquire and employees to harass.”

“I like her,” Marcus said. “Mom would like her. I think she can handle the truth.”

“Not today,” Samuel said.

“Soon, shithead. The longer you wait, the worse it's going to be.”

“I know,” he said.

Amelia took a long nap and, thankfully, didn't dream of sailing or drowning or finding Samuel doing Noelani on top of a pile of coffee beans. When she woke up she put on a sleeveless shirt and some capris and went down to the pool area to see about getting her hair braided. Amelia was done with the water for today, and maybe even for the rest of the week. She was in luck and was seated right away.

“What are you looking for?” The woman was about Zarafina's age, but instead of having kindness or wisdom in her eyes, her expression was hard and unfriendly.

“Something that will keep it out of my face and will hold for a couple of days.”

The woman grunted and handed her a three-ring binder of styles. After flipping through it, Amelia picked out the one she wanted.

“Thirty dollars,” the woman said, holding out her hand.

Amelia fished in her purse and gave her the bills. She knew that the ladies paid a hundred dollars a day for their chairs. That's what Zarafina was being charged too. She still worried about where her aunt was going to stay, but she figured that if worse came to worst, she could keep her as a roommate.

The hair braider was efficient, and if she wasn't gentle and soothing, it certainly wasn't rough either. But Amelia had been looking for comfort, and that didn't do it. Maybe she should go get a massage at one of the chain hotels, she thought. She felt like a traitor, but the Palekaiko didn't have any massage therapists lined up yet.

The woman spritzed her hair. “You got a boyfriend?”

“Not really.”

The woman stuck a plumeria flower above her right ear, securing it in place with a few bobby pins.

Amelia tipped her five dollars and thanked her. As she left, she saw that there were only a few tourists having their hair braided, and part of her fretted that the braiders wouldn't make their chair fee. She had to think of a way to bring people in.

Joely was just putting away her cart when Amelia walked into the lobby.

“Rosalie working you hard?” she said.

“Not today, but don't say that too loud. You never know where she's skulking about.”

“Say, do you know where the best place to get a massage is?” Amelia asked.

“How much you want to spend?”

Amelia laughed. “I'm on vacation. What's the high end?”

“For two hundred dollars, there's the Hona Bay Oasis. It's on the north shore.”

“I'll find it.” Amelia went for her rental car.

“Have one for me too,” Joely said, waving.

The drive soothed her, especially since there weren't any hairpin turns, just straight road and beautiful scenery. Part of her wished Dude was here with her, but another part rejoiced in the alone time. She needed it to settle back into herself.

The GPS got her to the resort, and she handed her keys to the valet. Had she been thinking, she would have booked the massage before she left Palekaiko, but her mind was in a thousand places. She found the spa after checking the map stand in the lobby.

There were a few people in the spa's reception area, so she took a menu and looked over all the options. The simple answer was to hand the menu to the receptionist and say, “Yes, please.” But she forced herself to stick with a massage. Ideas were already buzzing in her head. She could check to see whether the hair braiders also wanted to do tropical manicures and pedicures. They could work out some papaya or plumeria soak that maybe the local crafters could sell at their tables and in the Palekaiko's gift shop.

By the time it was her turn to book her appointment, Amelia had a plan all worked out in her head. “Hi,” she said to the receptionist. “I'd like to book a hot stone massage with rejuvenating aromatherapy and reflexology.”

“Certainly. I can give you our last appointment today. Can you come back in an hour?”

Taken aback, Amelia checked her phone. It was after seven. She had completely lost track of time. “Sure,” she said. “I'll see you then.”

She hit the bar she'd seen when she came in and ordered an iced pineapple green tea and a chicken salad. While she waited for it to come, she texted Dude.

Hey, sorry I have to cancel dinner. I'm getting a massage at The Hona Bay Oasis.

She scrolled and began texting Kai her idea for the mani-pedis, but Dude immediately texted back.

La dee dah. I would have rubbed your body for free.

Yeah, but would you have used hot stones and aromatherapy?

Kinky. I'll meet you there.

That surprised her, but it would be nice to have a change of scenery. This hotel was amazing. She felt a pang of betrayal at the thought, though. The Hona Bay Oasis was the best of both worlds. It was exotic enough to feel Hawaiian, but it had all the trappings of a high-end hotel, which it was.

She researched it while she ate her dinner and was surprised that this was another Tetsuo Hojo property. What a difference from the one in Hana. As she drank the refreshing tea and enjoyed the excellent salad, she reflected that she didn't mind paying the exorbitant prices. It was so unlike the Hana Shack, where the prices were the same but the quality a solid meh.

After she finished she made her way back to the spa. She was a little early, so she sat in the waiting room and finished texting Kai her ideas. Then she texted Dude to let him know when she'd be done with the massage, and turned off her phone.

Ninety minutes later, she was back to normal. The endorphins were filling up her body with happiness, and she felt like she was gliding over clouds. The aromatherapy was a grapefruit-clementine mixture, and the citrus was invigorating. Even though it was closing in on nine-thirty, Amelia was content and ready to take on the world.

Dude texted that he would meet her at the bar, but she didn't see him. So she took a table on the terrace to enjoy the night air. She ordered another wonderful iced pineapple green tea and a glass of ice water. The masseuse had told her to keep drinking to flush out the toxins, and it sounded good to her.

“Excuse me. May I join you?” A Japanese man dressed in an impeccable suit gestured to the chair across from her.

“I'm actually waiting for someone.”

“I won't take up much of your time. I'm Tetsuo Hojo. I'm the owner of this hotel.”

“Mr. Hojo.” She went to rise, but he gestured that she should remain in her seat.

She shook his hand across the table and said, “I'm honored to meet you, sir.”

The waitress brought him a large seltzer with raspberries floating in it when she brought over Amelia's drinks.

“May I get you an appetizer?” he asked. “The teriyaki meatballs are excellent.”

“Thank you.” Amelia could eat again, especially on Tetsuo's dime. She felt he owed her for the cockroach at the Hana B&B. “This is a lovely hotel. I couldn't help but compare it to the place in Hana that I stayed at. The Honu'ea Inn.”

“That's a much different price point.”

“Not that much different.”

“You know what they say—location, location, location.”

“The cabins up there are pretty run-down. They were dirty and filled with bugs, and the sheets and towels weren't very soft.”

“I'm sorry you had such a bad experience. I'll have my business manager credit your card.”

“It wasn't on my dime. It was my friend's.”

“What is his or her name?” Tetsuo pulled out his phone. “I'll make the arrangements myself.”

Amelia's face flamed when she realized she couldn't even tell him Dude's name. “I'll have him contact you if he's interested. He'll probably be mad at me for bringing it up.”

“I hear you've accepted a position at the Palekaiko Beach Resort.”

“Really?” Amelia forced her mouth not to drop open. “Not many people know that. How did you find out about it?”

“I have my sources. I make it a point to keep my eye on properties I'm interested in.”

“Are you interested in the Honu'ea Inn? Because Marcus Kincaide might be looking to acquire property up in Hana.”

“You don't say.” Tetsuo tilted his head. “I'll keep that in mind.”

The meatballs came, and she popped one in her mouth. It was as tasty as he'd promised. She closed her eyes in bliss. “That was wonderful. You would make a fortune selling these up in Hana.”

“I don't need to.”

“The tourists need them. Trust me.”

“You are very opinionated.” He took a sip of his seltzer.

She nodded. “Yeah. I'm sorry if I'm offending you. I'll lay off Hana. It's just fresh in my mind.”

“I was wondering if you would be willing to come work for me instead.”

Amelia had not been even remotely expecting this. “Where?”

“I have several hotels that could use a woman of your skills. I might even be able to find you a sister hotel in Manhattan if you'd like to return home.”

She shook her head. “That's tempting, but I'm happy here in Maui.”

“What about here? I could have an opening for a junior concierge.”

Amelia tried not to wince at the
junior.
“How much would that pay?”

“How much did Kincaide offer you?”

“You mean you don't know that? Your sources didn't tell you?”

“They didn't tell me the price you'd leave Palekaiko for. I'm interested in the amount you think you're worth.”

Amelia knew two things. One was she could probably name a salary double what Marcus had offered her, junior concierge or not, and Tetsuo would give it to her. She also knew that he would be an asshole to work for. Not that she wasn't used to assholes, and not that she couldn't use the extra money. But it didn't come with room and board. And she was pretty sure that once she wasn't useful as a pawn in his chess game, she'd find herself in the same boat she'd been in before.