Page 67 of Try Easy

They were both completely naked. Keoni’s eyes wandered over her body. “Absolutely not.”

“K’den,” she said, grinning.

Keoni realized she was making fun of him again and he grabbed her around the waist and swung her into his arms.

“I want to see everything,” Lou said, clinging to his shoulders.

Keoni chuckled, holding her tighter. “You’ve already seen me at my worst. My face was a real mess that first day at the airport.”

“I thought you were…” Lou paused and thought. Then a slow smile spread across her face, and she said: “Majestic.”

Keoni tipped back his head and laughed. “Majestic, eh?”

“It fits you.”

“You think I’m majestic?” Keoni asked. “With a face like this?”

Lou smiled and reached up to kiss his throat. “Yes,” she whispered.

Keoni cupped her chin and tilted her face up to his. “You need glasses or what?” he asked.

Lou smiled. “I can see just fine.” Her eyes sparkled, and her dimple flashed. “Now what did you want to show me?”

“The bathroom,” he said, turning to lead the way down the hall.

“The bathroom?”

“If you think the view from my room is good, wait till you see the bathroom, eh?”

Keoni led Lou down the hallway and into the darkened bathroom. He pulled her inside and positioned her in front of the shower.

“Close your eyes,” he said.

“You love this, don’t you?” she asked. “You love showing me new things.”

“Yeah,” Keoni said, realizing it was true.

It had been one of the best weeks of Keoni’s life, sharing Hawaii with Lou. She was so enthusiastic about every small detail that he was able to see his home through fresh eyes. For the first time in his life, he thought he really understood the spirit of aloha. It meant more than a greeting and an endearment, it meant unselfish sharing.

Keoni said, “Close your eyes, Lou. You are going to love this.”

She closed her eyes and Keoni switched on the light.

He walked over to the glass door of the shower and said, “Open them.”

Lou opened her eyes and looked first at Keoni, then behind him to the outdoor shower. Her mouth dropped open, and her eyes widened.

“My god,” she said. “This is paradise.”

The bathroom was the real reason Keoni had taken the tiny house. It was a small square room with a sink and a toilet on one wall and an iron claw-foot tub on the other. A double glass door that led to an outdoor shower made up the third wall.

Keoni opened the glass door and stepped out onto the wood-planked floor, beckoning Lou to join him.

“You are so lucky to live here,” Lou said.

“We Hawaiians have a saying about that.”

“What is it?” Lou asked.

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