Page 43 of Trust

“One bite.”

Then he took a bite. The hit of seaweed with the sweet rice, then the salty SPAM, was surprisingly delicious.

She laughed. “You like it. Before long, you’ll finally try moco loco.”

He made a face. “No. I can’t handle eggs sunny side up. Or just…no. It has to be well cooked.”

Jakob took another little nibble as she scooped up her saimin. The Hawaiian noodle soup smelled delicious, but he was not hungry. He had gotten dinner.

“What are your plans tomorrow?”

She shrugged. “I’m having some kind of lunch with my brother and Royal.”

“You don’t know what it is?”

“No. I know what it is. I’m surprised he didn’t invite you so you could spend time with Sienna.”

It was even more evident at the wedding that Royal wanted him to be interested in the woman. She was nice enough and definitely pretty in that Instagram model way. But…she just couldn’t compare to Lani. And it made no sense because Sienna seemed to be enamored with Rick.

“I’ve been hearing rumors.”

He cocked his head. “You should never listen to rumors.”

“There’s a new show that’s being set in Hawaii.”

He shouldn’t be surprised. Ben was the face of Kingston Surfing. Everyone who paid attention knew that Lani was the brains behind a lot of it. She also had all the connections.

“Is there?”

Irritation moved over her expression, and he almost laughed. It was so much fun to mess with her. “Jakob. Tell me.”

He sighed. “I’m not supposed to say anything.”

“Which is an answer. Is it finalized?”

He nodded. “The rest of the cast isn’t set yet.”

She ate a little more of her saimin. “So you’re going to move over here. Going to live in your family’s house?”

He shook his head. “I thought about it, but I would be in the way whenever someone comes over. Also, when I’m filming, I can have insane hours. Most of the filming will probably be in and around Honolulu.”

“That makes sense. It’s not that far, but you could get stuck if there is an accident or weather issue.”

“Where are you living?”

“I bought a condo by Ward Center. It’s a little busy, but it has a killer view.”

Then she started eating again, and he enjoyed watching her. When she realized he was watching her, she made a face. “What?”

He shook his head, unable to put into words exactly what he felt. It was nice to hang out with nobody bothering them, and no older brother giving him accusing looks. Not that Ben would notice his attention these days.

“Do you think they’ll last?”

She shrugged. “Probably as long as Ben doesn’t realize.”

“Realize what?”

“That she’s probably cheating on him. Not that I know anything, but when I walk into a room, and she whispers into the phone and hangs up, it makes me suspicious.”

---