Page 33 of Trust

He studied her for a second. “It must be hard not liking your future in-law.”

“You definitely got lucky with both of yours.”

“Well,” he said, “I threatened to beat Aleka to a pulp when I first met him.”

“The former Army Ranger who is trained to kill and resembles a Hawaiian god?”

He frowned. “I’ve been trained. And who gave him the title of a god?”

She laughed. “I bet he would have kicked your ass.”

It only took a second for his smile to flash. With the beard he was sporting, it was hard to see those legendary dimples.

“Yeah, you’re probably right. Mother forbade me.”

She snorted.

“What?”

“Mama’s boy.”

“I am not. I just have a healthy respect for my mother.”

And that softened her even more. He definitely loved his family. Even as she thought it, her phone buzzed on the table.

Aunt Rochelle:I want to bring another guest.

With a roll of her eyes, she picked up the phone. All the relatives were trying their best to get their friends in. This wedding was THE wedding of the year because of her family’s standing.

Lani:You can’t unless we have someone cancel. It’s a sit-down dinner. The final numbers were due a week ago.

“What?”

She set her phone down and dug into her food again. “Auntie Rochelle. She wanted to bring someone else to the wedding. She’s already bringing three people.”

Before she could swallow her bite, her phone buzzed again. Irritation snaked down her spine. She loved her family, but they were getting on her last nerve. When she reached for the phone, Jakob snatched it away.

“What are you doing?”

“You are having lunch. Let them wait.”

“It could be about the wedding.”

“And it can wait thirty minutes.”

Her fingers tingled as she thought about snatching the phone from Jakob. His laugh stopped her.

“What?”

“You. I can tell you’re thinking about grabbing the phone. Take a few minutes just for you. You have one of your favorite meals, a gorgeous view, and a handsome companion.”

“Oh, is Jensen coming? I didn’t even know your brother was on the island.”

His face flushed, and his eyes narrowed. “I didn’t think you had daddy issues.”

There was a beat of silence, and then she threw back her head and laughed.

By the time she could regain control, she had to wipe away tears.

---