Chapter 6
Paradise
I met Jake’s parents for the first time at LAX. Sandy, a fairly tall, slightly round woman in her late fifties, gave me a hug and welcomed me with a warm smile. Bobby, a tall, light-skinned and very handsome man in his midsixties, also greeted me with a family-style bear hug and kiss on the cheek. Nick was also there with a brotherly smile that made me feel very welcomed into the Reid family. Nick took our bags, whispered something in Jake’s ear, and checked them in with the rest of the family’s. Jake stood just steps away, grinning.
“Where’s Jane?” Jake put his arms around my waist and kissed my cheek in the middle of my question.
“She’s still in San Francisco. She will meet us in Hawaii around the same time we get in.”
Turning to Sandy and Bobby, I expressed my appreciation. “Thank you very much for inviting me on your family trip. I couldn’t sleep last night thinking about getting to know all of you.”
Sandy beamed a tender look only a mother could give. “I’m so glad we finally get to meet. All Jake does is talk about you.”
“I hope he only tells you the nice things about me.”
“According to my son, there’s nothing bad about you.”
My cheeks went red, and Jake led me to the boarding area. The only other time I rode in first class was when Jake upgraded my seat when I flew out to New York to meet Sarah. Because I’d slept the whole way there, I didn’t fully appreciate the comfort of the plane ride.
Today, I realized this was way better than my first experience. It almost felt illegal to experience such comfort while others were cramped in coach. The seats were double the size of what I was used to, with one attendant to every five passengers. I was thoroughly spoiled.
“I don’t know if I can ever fly again in my usual economy seats,” I lamented.
“Stick with me and you’ll never sit back there with the masses again.” His tone was more arrogant than I’d ever heard, but I knew what he was saying was more for my sake than for his ego.
Laughing, I turned to talk to Jake about Hawaii, when out of nowhere his lips attacked mine. Jake refused to let me pull back, though he saw my extreme discomfort with his family sitting right in front of us.
“Excuse me, Dr. Reid,” the flight attendant interrupted apologetically. “We need you and Ms. Logan to return your seats to their upright position, as the plane is about to take off.”
Mortified, my face turned bright red as I heard giggles from his parents and brother.
“What are you doing? You can’t make out with me on the plane in front of ten people. You have to stop.”
Jake laughed at me, rose up the armrest and pulled my body close to his. Separating our two bodies was not an option. To my delight, he showed no mercy.
We landed in Maui at 8:00 a.m. and rented two cars—one for us, and another for the rest of the family. We met Jane at the hotel, got checked in, and left for our first activity. We drove to a helipad where a helicopter waited to take us on a scenic tour. We flew over the Haleakala National Park and Crater, the Hana Rainforest Preserve, the largest rainforest in America, and through countless number of waterfalls.
I wanted to tell Jake how the scenery took my breath away but didn’t want everyone to hear through the headsets, so I sat quietly enjoying the view and the warmth of Jake’s caresses throughout the ride. After lunch, we met up with a guide and hiked a five-mile trail leading to a dormant volcano. The end of this hike led to snorkeling, which eventually turned into scuba lessons for me, as I hadn’t ever been scuba diving. If this weren’t enough excitement for one day, Sandy and Jane wanted to go to a late afternoon yoga class to unwind. I honestly just wanted to go to my room and sleep the rest of the night, but of course, there was the luau. Who can come to Hawaii and not attend a luau? One would have thought we were leaving tomorrow with all that was conquered today. After the last hula dance/fire breathing show, I got up to say good night, and Jake walked me back to my room.
“I can go by myself. Why don’t you stay with your family a bit longer?” I encouraged.
“Are you kidding? I’m just as wiped out as you are. Nick made me go surfing while you were at yoga.”
“Not that I’m complaining, but why does your family feel the need to do everything in one day? I had a wonderful time, but I am so exhausted, I don’t know how I’m going to function tomorrow.”
Jake started laughing. “That’s just how all of our trips are. Go, go, go, go, go!”
As much as I wanted to conk out immediately, I hopped in the shower while Jake stuck around to use Jane’s computer. When I got out of the shower, Jake was fast asleep, snoring on my bed. I’d never seen his sleeping face before. He looked so sweet! My heart did revolutions thinking about waking up to this every morning. Then all of a sudden, the insecurities spun out of control.
Sigh…heartbreak…tears…
I sat down on the edge of the bed and wiped away my tears. Jake. I love you so very much. What am I going to do if you leave me? How will I piece back my broken heart? It took me a few minutes to talk myself back into reality. I didn’t want to get caught up in this made-up heartbreak, nor this happily ever after feeling. No matter the myriad of times Jake mentioned forever with me, I wouldn’t go down that road again till I was literally walking down the aisle. It hurt too much when fantasies morphed into an ugly reality. Dry-eyed, I nudged Jake’s shoulders to wake him up.
He didn’t budge. After a few more tries, I gently placed my lips on his and kissed him many times before he realized what was happening. He jostled awake, grabbed me by my shoulders and pulled me onto the bed with him and continued our kiss—though not as gently. His arms around me were like a steel cage.
“Emi.” Jake had a serious expression on his face. “What’s the matter?”
“Nothing’s the matter—except for the fact that you’re sleeping in my bed. Please get up and go to bed.” He didn’t look convinced till I kissed him some more.
“I am in bed,” he murmured between kisses.
“No, your own bed!”
He pretended to snore. I tried to get up but his grip around me got even tighter. With his body holding mine hostage, there wasn’t much I could do.
“Love, let’s just sleep like this,” he coaxed.
“My hair is still wet and your sister will be here any minute now.”
“Oh yeah.” Without moving, he easily freed one hand to reach in his pocket and began texting.
“What are you doing?”
He handed me his phone.
Jane, sleep in my room tonight. I will sleep here with Emi.
He sent the text before anything could be done.
“Too late.” He smiled a wicked smile. “It’s done. Now sleep here with me just the way you are and let’s talk tomorrow morning. I am very tired.” He showered fading kisses upon my face, and I knew there was no way out. I fell asleep comfortably in his arms that night.
The next morning, my body froze from the shock of pain. Yesterday’s activities had crippled me. Once again, I’d fallen asleep with Jake holding me. I wondered how I could give in so easily to spending the night with him when I wouldn’t give in to Max’s attempts all those years. The only answer I could come up with was that I was too tired to push him away—but I knew this wasn’t the whole truth.
Realizing my robe had unraveled itself in the course of the night, I tried to get up but my aching body wouldn’t listen. Eventually I managed to tie the robe around myself, and forced myself out of bed. Jake immediately complained.
“Emi…come back to bed. It was amazing being in bed with you the whole night. Let’s stay a little longer.”
“Jake, we have to meet your family for breakfast. We might be late already. Oh gosh, what will your family think?”
“They will think nothing of our night, and even if they do think something, who cares?”
“I’m hopping in the shower. My hair is a mess from sleeping with it wet. Go back to your room and
get ready,” I commanded.
“Can I hop in with you?” he dared to ask.
“No! Go, please,” I begged.
Smiling faces greeted us when we got to the breakfast table. Everyone seemed to be quietly laughing at a joke that Jake and I were not privy to. I felt uncomfortable, and Jake looked smug that he had wormed his way into my bed last night.
“What’s on the agenda for today?” I asked trying to change the silent subject.
“We’re going to the Maui invitational to watch our basketball team play,” Sandy told us.
“Mom, I gotta warn you, Emi’s not a fan of our school.” Jake’s remark brought on a round of boos for me.
“Emily, your school’s playing here as well. We’ll get you tickets to that game. You and Jake can go together,” Jake’s father offered.
“Thank you, but that’s OK. You don’t have to bother. I’d like to spend the day with the family, if that’s all right with you.”
“We would love nothing better!” exclaimed Sandy. I spied an enormous smile on Jake’s face that filled my heart with joy.
Tuesday was no different than Monday—breakfast, basketball game, lunch, scuba, followed by surfing. Jake dove with me while I was having my hour lesson, then he and Nick surfed near me while I had another hour lesson. The Reid children seemed competent in just about every water sport.
Jake saw the exhaustion on my face and rented a cabana at the pool for me to a nap. We walked in and he closed the cabana curtains just enough to protect us from any prying eyes. He traipsed over to my lounge chair and gently pushed me far enough to one side so he could lay down with me. It became apparent this cabana was more for his benefit than mine.
“I thought you were going to let me take a nap.” An accusation coupled with a giggle sounded more like an invitation.
“I’m helping you take a nap,” he grinned, putting his arm under my neck. Within seconds, his free hand cupped my hips and his lips began to travel on my body. He carefully found his way to my lips, and we began to explore each other again. His soft hands refused to listen to my weak complaints as he reached under my cover-up and began caressing my back. I could feel his fingers working around the knot of my bikini. My low moans encouraged his hands, and they soon started sliding down my thigh. He moved my body on top of his and worked on my bikini bottom. I tried to wriggle away and participate at the same time, and he knew that I wanted him as much as he wanted me.
Our acrobatics were too much for the narrow lounge chair and we wound up falling off. I burst into laughter. “Jake, I think this is our signal to stop. Sorry. I don’t want to aggravate you anymore, so let’s forget the nap and go out and enjoy the rest of the day.” I smiled apologetically.
“OK.” He huffed and puffed his way out of the cabana and mumbled something about tonight.
Dinner was a long six-course meal. Nick and I talked about how dissatisfied we were with the meal, and decided to drive around town tomorrow to eat at popular local hangouts. We were tired of hotel food.
Thankfully, dinner lasted long enough to curtail any evening activities. I was secretly jumping for joy. My body hadn’t been this sore since Sarah and I went on a half day hiking trip. After dessert and coffee, I saw Jake whispering in Jane’s ear and she nodded subserviently like a little sister listening to her older, wiser brother. What was my scheming boyfriend up to now?
“You want to go watch a movie tonight?” Jake asked, though it seemed more like a command.
“Um, yeah.” I hesitated, afraid of how I was going to fight him off tonight. “Jane, Nick, you want to come with us?”
Both started laughing and refused my offer. “We are…busy…yeah, busy.”
“What’s going on?” I asked Jake.
“You’ll see,” was all I got for the time being.
We got back to my room, looked through the DVD collection, and found a movie for the evening. My body leaned on Jake’s, half comatose, when I suddenly realized that Jane had not come back to the room. I reached for Jake’s cell phone to call her, but he took it out of my hands and turned it off.
“Where’s Jane?” I asked innocently.
“She’s with Nick. They’re at the movies,” he answered coyly.
“Why didn’t we go with them or why didn’t they come here with us?”
“Sweetheart, they’re trying to give us some privacy.”
As soon as he finished these words, I understood that Jane was not coming back into this room tonight. In fact, I looked around the room and realized that Jane and Jake had switched out their belongings. How had I not noticed this from the moment we walked into the room?
“Why is all your stuff here? And, where are Jane’s belongings?”
“Jane and I switched rooms. She is going to stay with Nick the rest of the trip, and I’m going to stay right here,” he smiled nervously, showing all of his pearly white teeth.
I tried not to look flustered. “Jake! Do I need to have this talk with you again?”
“Come on, Emi. Wasn’t last night wonderful? Let me stay here with you. I promise I won’t do anything naughty.”
“Jake, I’m not comfortable with you spending the night with me again. Last night, I was so tired, I couldn’t fight you off. Tonight, though…it’s not proper for us to be together, especially with your parents right next to us. I’d like to be more respectful than that.”
“Emily.” He turned into his five-year-old self again. I had to be strong and not give into his darling tirade.
“Just one more night, please? I’ll switch back with Jane tomorrow.”
“No. Will you please ask Jane to come back into this room?” I gave him a choice that was really not a choice. He’d have to respect my wishes.
“Oh, all right. I’ll call her right now.” He retracted his arm from my shoulder and moved to the other side of the sofa.
“Thank you. Now where were we?” I inched toward him and laid my head on his lap. He didn’t hold his grudge too long this time.
Jane and I walked to the breakfast table early Wednesday morning to join the rest of the family. Bobby and Sandy were a bit surprised to see that Jake and Nick came as a pair as well.
“Did you meet each other in the elevator?” Sandy asked Jane, referring to our entrance together.
“No, we came together,” she replied and gave her mother an I don’t know what happened look.
Sandy threw a worried and puzzled look over at Jake and he explained, “Emi didn’t want to sleep with me. She chose Jane’s company over mine.”
I politely smiled.
Sandy started talking about the day and I realized that we were not going to be bound by any tight schedules. “Your dad and I have to attend three different college alumni activities, so I’m afraid you are all on your own. We tried to get out of it but since your dad is the president of the association, there wasn’t any way around it.”
I was thrilled not to have any strenuous activities for the day. I could go lay out by the pool or even go back to the room and sleep. The day was looking good.
“What shall we do today, Emily?” Jane asked.
“I don’t know. What do you want to do?” I high-fived myself, I was so happy.
“Let’s go get a facial and a massage. Maybe even a pedicure. Oh, how about a whole day at the spa?” She was so excited.
I was also getting quite excited thinking about unwinding all day before leaving tomorrow night.
“Jane! What am I to do if you take Emi away from me?” Jake’s sour look came back.
“I don’t know. You and Nick find something to do. Go watch another basketball game.” Jane could be stubborn if she wanted to be, and it was a bit comical watching the two argue like five-year-olds.
“No way, Emi’s with me. You find your own friend,” he retorted.
Nick jumped into this argument as well. “I thought we were going to go find local food?” he said, turning to me.
“OK. I have a solution. How about if Jane and I do a half day
at the spa while you boys go watch the morning matches? We’ll meet you for lunch around 1:00 and then we can go into town and find yummy food.” I turned to Jake and sweetly requested, “My body hurts badly from all the exercise. I need a massage to unwind me. Would you be OK with that?” I added a few kisses in between the request so he would cave without a fight.
“Sounds good to me,” Nick and Jane both said at the same time. Jake was the only one pouting because he didn’t get his way. We parted for the morning, and Jane and I spent a glorious morning pampering ourselves. This was the Hawaii I had imagined before arriving.
We started with a deep tissue massage, continued with a facial, and then got a manicure and a pedicure.
For lunch, we asked the hotel concierge to point out all the local hot spots. We had small meals at several local joints. My favorite was a little shack that specialized in katsu. We ordered chicken, pork, beef, and fish-fried cutlets. I couldn’t possibly leave Hawaii without having eaten something lathered in mayo, so I chose the macaroni salad with the deep fried goodies. Honestly, I felt sick from all the grease.
After the third meal, Jake and Jane begged us not to eat any more. Nick and I acquiesced, but only after visiting Maui’s most famous ice cream shop where we treated ourselves to strawberry and pineapple ice cream. Today was an ideal day in Hawaii.
Nick and Jane went surfing to work off our lunches, but Jake and I went back into our cabana. After a massage and thousands of calories, I needed a nap. Jake behaved himself after my speech last night, and brought a book to read while I napped on the lounge chair. His hands ran up and down my arm wanting to explore elsewhere, but for the rest of the day, he was harmless.
Thursday was our last day in Hawaii. Nick and I had so much fun yesterday; we tried to convince everyone to go into town in search of yummy food again. Bobby, Sandy, and Jane decided to go off on their own, and then meet us at the airport. Jake had no choice but to go eat some more if he wanted to be with me. Nick and I were only too happy to go find more treasures. We made one more pit stop at the ice cream shop before heading to the airport.
On our red-eye flight back home I pondered over how much this trip meant to me. Fully laid back, Jake held my hand while he snored away. The correct thing to do would be to join him and the rest of the family but I just couldn’t sleep.
“Emily.” Surprised, I quickly turned my head to Jane’s calling.
“I’m sorry. Am I keeping you awake with my reading light?”
“No. I thought I heard a sigh. Is something the matter?”
“Oh, Jane.” I answered with a mixture of dreaminess and dread. “How can anything be wrong? The last four days were heaven.”
“Then why do you sound like somebody who’s headed for ruins?”
I giggled at her comment. Jane giggled back.
With a heavy heart, my voice whispered, “I’m afraid to like your brother as much as I do.” Gently, I placed my free hand on his face and moved the overgrown bangs out of his eyes. His body moved closer toward my seat as he pulled my hand into both his hands, and placed it on his heart.
“He loves you—a lot!” Jane looked happy for us.
“I love him too—a lot!” I sighed again.
“Then why the sigh? I don’t get it.”
“He’s too perfect. You’re too perfect. In fact, your whole family is like a dream. And you know…my life has been anything but a dream. In fact, it’s been closer to a nightmare. I feel like I’m going to wake up from this dream and go back to my reality—a reality where you and Jake and your family are no longer there.”
“Emily.” Even a frown couldn’t mar her pretty face. “A little melodramatic. I don’t see Jake going anywhere, anytime soon. In fact, I’d bet my law degree that you two will be married within a year. No one in my family has seen Jake this in love. You and I are going to be sisters like we promised. I will not accept anything less, you hear me?”
“Emi?” Sleepy-eyed, Jake woke up with a worried gaze. “What’s wrong, Sweetheart?”
“Nothing.” I put on a smile. “Jane and I were just having a heart to heart.”
“Jane. Stop gabbing and let Emi sleep.” Always protective of my well-being, I kissed his head to show him my appreciation.
Like a proper sister, Jane rolled her eyes and ignored him.
“You sure you’re OK?” he whispered while kissing the hand he was holding.
Nodding yes, I turned the light off and reclined. Part of me wanted to cry from being deliriously happy with this man, and another part of me wanted to cry because I couldn’t shake off these unsettled nerves that foreshadowed doom and gloom. Inwardly sighing so no one would hear, I pushed away the dread and welcomed sleep.