Page 27 of Try Easy

Keoni took another step back, but his hand snaked around her wrist when she tried to slide past him.

“You understand, eh?” he asked. “This can’t happen.”

“You don’t have to tell me again, Keoni.” Her cheeks were on fire. She shook off his hand. Raising her chin, she glared up at Keoni. “I understand,” she said.

“K’den,” he said.

“Penny will be wondering where I went,” she said.

“Yeah.”

The time came for them to move, and neither one of them did. Lou stared into Keoni’s eyes for another long moment. She thought she saw regret in them as he finally stepped back and led the way to the house.

They climbed the stairs to the porch in silence. At the front door, Keoni toed off his shoes and added them to the pile of footwear at the door.

Glancing down at Lou’s sandals, he said, “We don’t wear shoes in the house,” he said.

“Oh,” Lou said, feeling like she was wearing a bright sign that read “tourist.”

She bent down and unlaced the ribbons of her espadrilles. It was a task that seemed to take forever. She felt Keoni’s eyes watching her every move. Her fingers stumbled over the laces, and she slipped the sandals off her feet.

When she stood up, she was eye level with Keoni’s throat. She raised her eyes to his, daring him to say another word about their kiss. He kept his mouth shut, and his eyes were unreadable.

Reaching across her, Keoni opened the door.

The low buzz of conversation ground to a halt as everyone turned to look at them. A moment passed, and then greetings were called out, and they were welcomed inside.

Lou glanced around the house curiously. The living room was open to the kitchen, and both rooms were painted a soft yellow that rivaled the sunny day outside. Windows on one wall overlooked the spectacular view of the mountains.

Lou was desperate to find Penny and convince her to leave, but she didn’t see her.

“I’ll go find her,” Keoni said, reading Lou’s mind.

“It’s fine,” Lou said.

“I’ll be right back,” Keoni insisted.

He left Lou to wander around the house on her own. The house had a cozy feel that made Lou think of family. The furniture was clean, but well-lived in, and it seemed to be decorated in a hodgepodge style. It was the opposite of her parents’ home in Seattle, which was cold and modern.

Keoni’s parents’ house was as warm and welcoming as the islands themselves. Everywhere she looked was a celebration of surfing. Surfboards leaned against the walls and hung from rafters. Surfing trophies lined a bookshelf between two tall windows in the living room.

Lou walked over to the trophies and saw that most of them were engraved with Keoni’s name.

Lou picked up one of the trophies and read it. “Makaha International Surfing Contest 1959,” it said above Keoni’s name.

That was nearly ten years ago. Keoni would have been just a kid when he won that trophy.

Lou heard someone come up behind her and turned around expecting to see Keoni. Instead, she was found herself face-to-face with a younger version of him.

“Howzit?” he asked, flashing a white-toothed grin.

His voice was deep and melodic with a heavy island lilt. He looked enough like Keoni that he must be his brother.

“Hi,” Lou said.

“You want a malasada?” he asked, holding out the tray.

“What are they?”

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