Page 40 of Try Easy

“You have the blood of a murderer running through your veins.”

“We all probably do. I just know about mine.”

Lou burst out laughing. Keoni smiled. He hadn’t really been making a joke, but he liked hearing Lou’s laugh so much that he didn’t point that out.

A gust of wind suddenly tore through the valley, plastering their clothes against their bodies.

Lou held the scarf in her hair in place, laughing harder as the wind tried to rip it away.

“That was the ghosts of the dead soldiers,” Keoni said when the wind died away.

Lou’s face fell, and Keoni smiled.

“That was a joke,” he said.

Lou shook her head, chuckling, then her laugh died away. “I don’t think we should see each other anymore,” she said.

“K’den,” Keoni said.

“It’s for the best.”

“K’den.”

“I mean it.”

“Me, too.”

“You have that rule about tourists…”

“Who told you about that?”

“Kimo.”

Keoni nodded. “It’s a good rule.”

“Right,” Lou agreed. “And I have Paul.”

“Paul?” Keoni asked, hating to say the name.

“Yes. Paul and I have been seeing each other for almost two years.”

“What’s wrong with him, eh?”

Lou’s shoulders straightened. “Nothing.”

“Well, then why didn’t he marry you already?”

“What do you mean? We are getting married soon.”

“I woulda married you already,” Keoni said, shaking his head.

Lou laughed, and then fell silent as she saw that Keoni wasn’t joking.

Bones and Penny came back again, and they got in the car and drove off. Keoni hadn’t really meant to say he would marry Lou, but now that he thought about, it didn’t seem so bad. He’d only known her a few days, but he could already tell that she could be the girl he’d been looking for his whole life. Too bad she was a tourist.

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