chapter TWENTY TWO
I’m bouncing around the small kitchen of the Pele suite, listening to Bruno Mars from my cellphone speaker. My bun-clad hair is swaying in the air as I sing to the music.
Olivia Benson comes scurrying across the marble floor—little nails tapping as he prances over. I have no idea what to feed him.
I walk over to the other bedroom in search of where the pig was hiding when I came here last night. Inside the room is a small cage with a blanket, a rubber webbed ball, and a squeaky toy in the shape of a ukulele, inside. There’s a bag that looks like dog food on the dresser. I bring in into the kitchen, scoop some food into a bowl and watch Olivia Benson go to town on some pig chow.
The door to the bedroom opens and Jax comes out wearing a pair of basketballs shorts. The dragon doesn’t look as violent this morning as it has in the past. Today, it’s keeping the fire alive; ever burning in his soul.
He pads over to the kitchen and walks behind me, circling his arms around my waist and burying his nose in my neck.
“You smell good. I would have showered with you,” he speaks into my shoulder as he gives my skin a French kiss.
“You looked so peaceful. I didn’t want to wake you.” I squeak when his hand hits my butt.
“You look good in my shirt.”
I’m wearing one of his white button downs I found in the closet. “My clothes are pretty rancid so I had to call in reinforcements. Lani is bringing me clean clothes.”
I pick a slice of bacon off the plate and hand it to him. He makes an odd sound of disappointment as he chews. “Is this turkey?”
“This is a pork-free relationship.”
“That’s not what you said last night.” He lifts my shirt up over my waist exposing the pair of his boxer briefs I have on as well.
“Says the man with the sense of humor of a twelve-year-old.” I spin around and hold up the plate. “You have to check out today so I thought we’d order in.”
“Perfect. I’m starving.” Instead of eating something off the plate, he lifts me onto the counter, spreads my legs and starts kissing up my thighs.
My head hits the cabinet behind me. “This is not what I had in mind, but — oh, okay, you can do that.”
He’s lapping up and down the inside of my leg, pulling the fabric of his briefs to the side and getting dangerously close to my core, when there’s a knock at the door.
“That’s Lani,” I gasp.
His head falls to my leg. “Can we tell her to go away?”
I fall forward with a sigh. “We could, but I need clothes and you need a shower. If you’re good I’ll come in and wash you.”
He rises and kisses my mouth. “I like the sound of that.” He grabs another slice of bacon and chews. “That fact I’m eating this is a testament of my love for you.”
I climb off the counter and walk to the door. Lani is grinning from ear to ear when she catches my ensemble.
“You look adorable!” she grins. I reach out to grab the hanger in her hand, but she pulls it back. “No way. I want details!”
I lean further into the hall and grab the hanger from her. “Thank you, Lani.”
She scoots under my outstretched arm and into the suite.
“Eek!” she’s clapping her hands at the sight of Jax in the kitchen gnawing on a piece of toast. “Is it weird I’m happy. I’m like, crazy happy for you two.”
Jax holds his toast up in the air. “Wanna stay for breakfast? Trish ordered for an army.” He looks under the covered plates I have lined on the counter. “We have pancakes, two kinds of eggs fruit, cereal—” He looks up at me. “Babe, what are we doing with all this food?”
I shrug. “I didn’t know what you’d want so I ordered everything. I asked them to send up extra ketchup for your eggs.”
Jax lifts a hand to his heart and utters, “That’s how I know you love me.”
Lani walks into the kitchen and grabs a plate and fork off the counter, making herself at home. “You better get packing. You have to check out at eleven.” Her thin frame turns to Jax as she asks him, “Where are you going to stay? Oh, hi Piggy!” she greets Olivia Benson as he puts his snout up to her ankle. “I heard about you from Benji.”
“I was going to get another room here.” Jax looks my way. “That is, if that’s okay with you?”
I shake my head adamantly. “That is absolutely not okay with me.” My tone is serious.
His eyes widen. Obviously, that is not what he was expecting me to say.
I raise my brows as I tell him, “I figured you’d come stay with me. At least for a few days until you figure out what you’re going to do next.”
From the way his mouth parts and his eyes get that adorable glassy eyed look, I know my offer means more to him than anything else I could have said.
He smiles. Oh, he smiles big and those gorgeous dimples come out. I may melt here on the marble floor.
“You mean, we. I’m going to stay with you until we decide our next step,” he says and now I’m the one with the glassy eyed look.
Lani is looking back and forth between us, her fork full of scrambled eggs hovering in front of her mouth. “You two are so cute I can’t take it!”
She puts the plate down and wipes her hands on a cloth napkin. “You have twenty minutes to get in that bedroom and make good use of a four poster bed until,” she points to me, “you have to greet your guests,” and then she points to Jax, “and you get your ass out of here so the maids can clean up. The second bedroom stinks of pig.”
Lani opens the door and gives us a wink before leaving. “Aloha!”
I’m standing here with a hanger in my hands and a very determined Jax approaching me.
“You heard the woman,” he takes the clothes and throws them on the top of the sofa.
“Yes, I have a long day of work ahead.” I try to speak as Jax makes work of unbuttoning the shirt I’m wearing. “The Black Dog Entertainment folks are arriving, including my former boss, which means I will be indisposed all day.”
He pushes the shirt off my shoulders. “That’s right.” He falls to his knees and hooks his fingers in my underwear.
“And then there’s the new guest, Noah Kanë, who’s staying in this room,” I speak with a gulp as he slides the underwear off my legs and tosses them onto the floor.
Jax rises to his feet and looks down at me standing here in the buff. “Then we better make use of the next nineteen minutes.”
“I still have to get dressed,” I mutter as he snakes his hands around my waist.
“Then we better leave five minutes at the end.”
I let out a yelp as he lifts me up and throws me over his shoulder and runs us into the bedroom for what I’m sure will be the best fourteen minutes of my life.
…
The morning goes by smoothly. Despite my hectic week, I am back on task as a personal concierge.
With the Pele Suite vacant, I check in, Noah Kanë, the up and coming pop star who Black Dog Entertainment is here to promote. Noah is staying with his manager in the suite and will be hosting interviews from the lanai.
Despite Noah’s laid-back attitude, he came with a list of activities and personal demands, including a special thread count sheeting, baths to be drawn, and expensive water flown in from Tahiti.
I have a feeling it’s all his manager’s doing. The only thing I think Noah really wanted was the macadamia nut pie.
I look extra proper in my navy blue skirt suit and pink shirt. Lani didn’t have many options when I told her I needed something to wear so a Kauai Princess uniform it is.
I’m standing at the front entrance of the hotel, waiting for the black SUV I commissioned to arrive with my next guest.
Eric moved from the Maui suite to a room on the eighteenth floor where we have a block of rooms for his colleagues. The suite is now for his boss, and my former boss Alexander Asher.
His plane landed on time and our driver told me they were minutes away. Right on time, I see the car turning down the path leading to the hotel. I stand and wait for it to arrive.
“Welcome to the Kauai Princess. It’s a pleasure to see you again.” I greet him as he exits the SUV.
He doesn’t look surprised at all by my presence. Though, he does do a second glance at the hair. “Thank you, Trish. How have you been?” he asks, his eyes twinkling in the sunlight.
While I may have found the man intimidating, I never denied he is incredibly good looking. With blonde hair and golden eyes, he’s like an Adonis in the flesh. He adjusts the buttons of his gray suit that’s coordinated with a white shirt and dark tie. The ensemble probably costs more than my rent.
“I’m good,” I smile. “Really good actually.”
A bellboy meets the driver at the trunk. While they gather his bags, I’m walking with him through the front doors.
“Eric says you provided exceptional service this week,” he says, turning with me toward the corridor that leads to his room.
I’m thankful things didn’t turn out too uncomfortable with Eric. After walking Kevin to the elevator yesterday, I spied Eric walking through the lobby. I almost tried to avoid him until I realized I had to clear my path completely, even if it was for someone whom I didn’t even have a real date with. We sat for a half hour while I explained why I should never have agreed to a dinner with him. Needless to say, he was a gentleman.
“He is very kind. He required minimal work.” I hit the button for the elevator to the Maui Suite.
“I hope you enjoyed the reprieve because we have quite the needy bunch with us this weekend. Myself included,” Asher says with a grin.
I find his charm disarming. “I’m up for the challenge, sir.”
He shakes his head and loosens his tie. “Don’t call me Sir. You make me sound like my grandfather.” The elevator comes and he waits for me to enter first. “Hawaii agrees with you,” he says as soon as we’re inside.
His blond hair is brushed back and while he looks just as dapper as always, there is something slightly relaxed about his personality. It’s in the way the skin around his eyes are crinkled in, like he’s smiling on the inside out.
“Monogamy looks good on you,” I say and then cover my mouth. My eyes shoot up for his and I’m instantly apologizing for being so rude. “Oh, my God. That was awful of me. I’m so sorry. It’s just that you’re married. Which I never thought you would.” I smack myself on the head for saying the most inappropriate things.
He laughs. It’s loud and boisterous and comes from deep within his gut. I’ve never heard him laugh like that. It’s kinda weird.
“You always were a little odd. I see that hasn’t changed. You’re not as jittery though.” His comments on my obscurities relax me.
“I’d like to start that again.” I swish my hands in front me as if I’m physically wiping the slate clean. Then, I stand with my shoulder back and extend my hand. “Congratulations on your marriage. You seem very happy. I haven’t seen you since you took the plunge.”
His laugh is now lighter. He takes my extended hand and gives it a shake. “Thank you. I’m also a father now so if you want to pass out from shock, now’s the time.”
The doors open and I walk ahead of him toward his suite. I open it and give him the grand tour, showing him everything we’ve arranged per his assistant, even laying down the itinerary I’ve set. He doesn’t seem too impressed – having spent many years experiencing only the finer things life’s has to offer.
When I’m done, I stand near the door with my hands closed in front of my body. “Is there anything I can get for you before I head to the lobby?”
He takes off his jacket and starts unbuttoning his shirtsleeve. “Yes, actually. My wife is coming in tomorrow. She thinks she’s surprising me, but I’m a hard man to catch-off-guard.” He winks. “Arrange for a private lunch up here on the lanai in between events. Then book her a spa treatment. She deserves it.”
I can’t help but stare at him. For years, I watched him date countless women, use them, abuse them, hell, he even liked to bed the married ones. I know it’s not my place yet, for some reason, I open my mouth and ask, “What changed?”
He looks over at me, having rolled his sleeves up three quarters of the way. There’s an understanding in his gaze. He knows exactly what I’m asking.
“I met the right girl.” He places his hands on his hips and dips his head seeming to be laughing to himself. “You know, I used to look at married people and think they were pathetic. No, seriously, I envisioned them with chains around their ankles.” His laughing smiles turns almost nostalgic. “Someone once told me that when I meet the right woman, I’ll want to show her the real me. We each have so much to give but we won’t know until we meet the person worth giving it to. I thought that was bullshit advice and then one day,” he looks up and me and snaps his fingers. “All of a sudden I wanted to be the genuine me and give everything I had to this girl all because she looked up at me from a piano. It sounds crazy, but it’s exactly what happened.”
I look down at my feet to hide my grin. “I know exactly what you’re talking about.”
“And now I’m here running a recording studio, among many things, with the girl of my dreams.”
Like a light bulb going off in my head, my brain comes alive with a crazy idea. My mind getting a funny idea. “Black Dog Entertainment. Are you hands-on or more of a silent investor?”
He tilts a lip up. “It’s my pride and joy right now. I have my hands in a few other things,” he motions toward the hotel, which I know he has a stake in. “Black Dog is my life blood. Why do you ask?”
I wrap my fingers around my necklace and look around in excitement. I can’t believe I didn’t think of this before.
“Eric mentioned you’re looking for song writers,” I say and I wonder if he can see the gleam in my eye. “I think I have the perfect candidate for you.”
He raises a hand and while the other is still on his hip. “I know this sounds rude but I’m not looking for amateurs artists. This is a high profile production company—”
I interrupt him. “Have you heard the song Die a Happy Man?“
Asher’s golden eyes light up.
Yup, I am the queen of good ideas this week.
…
After leaving Asher’s suite, I walk over to the spa to arrange a day of beauty for his wife. I could call it in but the way my day is going I just need to keep moving my feet or else I’ll lose my momentum.
I make the arrangements with the front desk of the spa and help the girl at the counter move clients around so Asher’s wife gets the best the hotel has to offer. Fernando is available for a massage but I don’t know how comfortable Asher would be with another man touching his naked wife’s body. I switch Shannon’s appointment to ensure she’s free and give her client to Fernando.
I arrange for a facial, massage, manicure, pedicure and a hair appointment. While this is a day of beauty, the woman also has a tight schedule if she wants to escort her husband to tomorrow night’s concert so everyone needs to be prepared to get her into treatments and out in a timely manner.
I visit each staff member, personally, to let him or her know this is a VIP scenario. Everyone understands and no one gives me a hard time.
The last on my list is Shannon. Her schedule says she should have just wrapped up an appointment so I head to her massage room and give a knock. No one answers so I knock again and slowly open the door. The lights are set to dim and the chanting music is playing. I peak in and don’t see anyone on the bed. Opening the door further, I nearly fall on the floor as to why there is no one on the bed.
Instead of giving a massage, Shannon is up against a wall making out with…“Kevin?”
The two spread apart and slam against the adjoining walls in their attempt to separate as quickly as possible.
My hand flies to my heart, which is funny because I’m the one who scared them, not the other way around.
I then cover my mouth as I stand in absolute disbelief that my ex-boyfriend is making out with my masseuse.
Kevin places his hands in his robe and gives me a bashful smile. “You were right. Shannon has hands like an angel.”
Her mouth opens wide, her face one of complete horror. “He doesn’t mean it like that. I wasn’t . . . I didn’t . . . I gave him a massage. A regular massage and we started talking and the next thing we knew the hour was over and we were still laughing and one thing led to another and—”
“Shannon,” I wave a hand and smile. “It’s okay. I’m not gonna say anything.”
She reaches for her chest and lets out an audible sigh of relief. Kevin, on the other hand, is scratching his head and looking at me in mild discomfort. “Is this weird?”
Yes. “No!” I demand. I start to turn around to give them privacy then remember I came in here to tell Shannon something. “I’ll leave a note for you at the front desk.” I close the door quickly and stand with the hard door against my back, stunned for a moment at what just transpired.
“That was awkward,” I mumble to myself and then lean forward to let out a laugh. There’s an odd buzz about the day as if everything is going to work itself out just as it’s supposed to.
The rest of the day is spent running back and forth from the suites to my desk. As the clock nears seven, I start to get nervous I’m going to be late. When Noah Kanë requests a private chef instead of the dinner reservations I booked, I scramble to accommodate him, constantly staring at my phone, watching the minutes tick by.
Once he’s settled in his room, I find a moment to escape to the lookout that sits on the path leading to the other hotels down the beach. This particular area is lined with grass and hibiscus plants, where people usually relax on lawn chairs and watch the sunset. This afternoon, it’s clear of furniture and filled with people and the soft strum of Jax’s guitar..
Shayna and Mark Waimer are standing face to face. They’re exchanging flowers as Isaiah speaks about the lei as an eternal symbol of unity.
Jax is seated to the side playing the “Hawaiian Wedding Song.” He’s dressed in his white linen pants and a coral shirt. With every strum of the strings, a gorgeous melody plays, eliciting a beautiful tone. There’s a hum and echo to the music that makes my skin prickle in goosebumps. I stand in awe, following as his fingers shift from one chord to the next and become entranced in watching him play.
I know he’s a guitarist by trade. He’s found moderate success and, hell, I just pitched him as a head studio producing songwriter to my former boss’ entertainment company yet, still, it really hasn’t hit me until this very minute that Jax is a musician.
I’ve had this picture of him as the politician-in-training for so long that I hadn’t realized he evolved into someone else. Not because he made mistakes along he way. He is exactly who he is supposed to be.
Isaiah is chanting, “Ei-Ah Eha-No. Ka Malohia Oh-Na-Lani. Mea A-Ku A-Pau” as he sprinkles the wedding rings three times from a loa wood bowl filled with water and a Ti leaf. The chant means: “May peace from above rest upon you and remain with you now and forever.”
I stand to the side, watching as Shayna and Mark, with her crown of flowers, hold onto eachother’s hands and have their second wedding. The breeze pours off the Pacific and seeps through her long, auburn hair. She has mist in her eyes and a joy in her smile that radiates through her cheeks.
When I first saw her, I thought she was an over-obsessed bride who was a little clingy to her husband. Now, I know she’s just a girl in-love. She isn’t obsessed with being a bride. She loves being married to the man who holds her hand.
Jax looks away from the ceremony and catches me standing over here on the other side of the grass. He gives me an appreciative once over. I do a little curtsey showing off my Kauai Princess uniform.
He then nods toward the ceremony and gives a grin of approval. He’s right. It’s very nice.
I dip my head toward Mark’s head to toe white ensemble. He looks like a Back Street Boy circa nineteen-ninety-nine, yet it works for him. Jax gives a devilish smirk as if he understands my thoughts.
While our banter is silent and said with eyes, there is something else transpiring as our gazes connect. His breathing is deep and the way his smile divots up, and his dimples sink in deep, shows me he is a man content with his life. A breeze washes over us yet we remain unflinching. Just two people caught in a moment of silence in the middle of the noise.
Isaiah concludes the ceremony as Jax strums the guitar again, playing a happy melody. Shayna and Mark kiss sweetly. At least they start sweetly and then morph into slobbers and then their hands roam in a very inappropriate manner. Instead of being grossed out by them, I just laugh.
Jax places his guitar on the side of his chair and rises. Walking toward me, he keeps his gaze fixed. His steps are determined and when he comes just inches from me, I look up into his eyes and fall right into his kiss. He grabs a hold of me and kisses me with more passion and more promise than I expected.
“I have a surprise for you.” I grab onto his shirt and play with the buttons.
He lifts his brow and I notice something different about it today.
“Where’s your piercing?” I touch his face and the hole where a silver bar used to be.
He shrugs. “Took it out this afternoon. Why? You miss it?
I run my thumb over the skin of his brow and then down his temple. “I got used to it. But I can get used to you without it. Doesn’t matter to me.”
His gaze shifts from side to side as if in mischievous thought. “So if I decided to pierce my nose or get seventeen holes up my ears you’d be totally okay with that?”
“Actually, I heard there’s this King Louie piercing you can get.”
His head falls back in laugher. He grabs my face and kisses my forehead. “It’s called a Prince Albert and you’re adorable. If you want me to get my dick pierced, I will for you. I have to warn you, there’s no sex for eight weeks.”
“Eight weeks! That’s way too long. And besides,” I give a little wiggle in discomfort, “it doesn’t seem like it would feel good.”
His laughing gaze morphs into a smolder. “You know that spot I was hitting last night when I was taking you from behind?”
He asks and my shimmy changes from one of discomfort to a lustful reminder.
“Imagine there’s a ring at the end of my shaft, massaging that sweet spot.”
I close my eyes briefly and sigh. “That would feel all kinds of glorious.”
He wraps his arms around my shoulders and pulls me in. “And that’s why you’re my girl. So what kind of surprise do you have for me?”