She smiled as she gently patted Kai’s back, happy that at least one thing had worked out well in this awful situation. So many lives had been hurt by the deceit that it was warming to know that at least one aspect of her family’s life was a little better because the truth had finally been revealed.
As she hugged her potential grandson-in-law tight, she murmured into his ear, “You’ll always be family to me, Kai. I love you.”
As he squeezed her back just as tight, she heard him respond with, “Blood or not, I love you too.”
Sniffling like an old semimetal fool, Millie pulled away from him. She knew that Kai was handling the news much better than she’d believed he would. She also knew that he would have his good moments and his bad moments. Learning something hard about your family was never an easy thing, especially when the family in question was your parents. Children tend to idolize them, place them on slim-footed pedestals that are so easy to fall from. Learning that they are fallible human beings, just like everyone else, can be crushing. While Jessica Marie had taken care of Kai in a way that Millie hadn’t anticipated, she was immensely grateful that the caring woman had. Millie was certain that Jessica’s presence was the reason for Kai’s acceptance.
Smiling brightly at the pair of beloved people before her, she pushed away from the couch to gingerly stand up. “Well, since I seem to be such a frail, near-death woman to the both of you, how about you stay and make sure I eat something.” She smirked at Kai as he stood and offered her his elbow for support. “You wouldn’t want me plopping over from malnutrition, now would you?”
Kai nodded, his face quite serious until he broke out into a soft laugh. Millie chuckled herself, patted his arm in thanks, and looked down at her seated granddaughter. Shaking her head, she sighed, “I suppose I’ll have to stop trying to set you both up with people?”
Jessica Marie stood as well, offering Millie her arm. Raising one corner of her lip, she sullenly replied with, “Please do. I don’t need any more Simons calling me up twenty-four seven.”
Millie laughed softly as she pulled her children into the kitchen so they could all have a late lunch together. As Kai led the way, he looked back at Jessica with a small frown on his face. “Who’s Simon?”
Millie looked back at Jessica, sharing a moment of secret knowledge with the younger woman. Jessica’s eyes twinkling, she smiled coyly back at Kai. “No one important, sweetheart.”
Millie shook her head at the loving nickname and wondered again how she’d missed the signs. They were so easy to see now, as the two of them paraded her off to have a seat at her hard kitchen table. Kai gave Jessica loving looks as he went about preparing a meal that Mille herself had taught him to make. Jessica Marie gave him light touches and brief kisses as she rinsed off some lettuce for the salad. Millie supposed that she’d just glossed over the affection as a brotherly/sisterly bond, but it was clearly so much more than that. It pleased her that even at her age, life could still surprise her.
And of course, that was what made every day worth getting up to see.
Chapter 25
Aloha
Kai stretched back in his padded seat and sipped the remainder of his champagne. The roar of engine noise was faint to his ears as he reclined back as far as the seat could go. Kai had never flown first class before, but as the meticulously put together woman walking down the aisle stopped, took his glass, and asked him and Jessie if they needed a refill on their drinks, he thought he may never fly any other way again.
Smiling, he shook his head at the stewardess. “Alright, let me know if you do need anything.” Her voice was bubbly and bright as she fluffed his pillow before stepping off to help another passenger.
Kai’s eyes drifted to the windows that had been behind her. All he could see out of the tiny ovals were swatches of wispy, white clouds, but he knew that below the cloudbank they were quickly approaching his hometown, his home island.
Jessie squirmed excitedly beside him, her eyes glued on the cabin window immediately to her right. Kai smiled at her enthusiasm. She was just as eager to see the ocean as he’d been anxious to see the snow. It was something that was remarkably odd to both of them, since he’d lived all his life near the water and she’d lived all of hers near the mountains. Kai loved that he could give this experience to her, even if landing back home was filling him with dread.
He wasn’t worried about his parents accepting his relationship with Jessie. After Gran had more or less accepted them, his stress on the matter had eased considerably. Besides, after what they had both done to him, and each other, did they really have any room to talk on the subject of love? As far as Kai was concerned, they really didn’t have a say about him dating the person they would probably always see as a family member. Especially his father. He would always view Jessie as family, since he was her legitimate uncle. There was no getting around that one.
But, no, Kai had come to terms with that situation. What was tightening his stomach, sizzling his nerves, was the thought of confronting them on the lie that had permeated so much of his childhood. His rational head understood the reasons why he had been kept in the dark, but his heart was screaming and protesting, yelling at the top of its loud, thumping voice that he’d been betrayed, betrayed by the people who were supposed to be his rock.
He hated that his body was in such disagreement. That wasn’t his style. He saw facts and made a logical conclusion from those facts. That was how he worked his job. That was how he had tried to live his life. If he’d come across this situation in the wild, say, a gorilla female had duped a strong male into accepting her child as his own, he would have been awed by the miraculous ingenuity and perseverance of mother nature. But, when the subjects in question are human…when they’re you…the detachment of science goes right out the window, leaving only emotion and pain.
As Kai’s clammy fingers tightened on the leather seat, he marveled over the fact that Mason had secured these tickets for him. When Kai had gone back to Jessie’s home after visiting with their grandmother, there had been a message on her machine from Mason, leaving the details of their flight.
Not only had he arranged for them to leave the very next day, but he’d booked them first class. It made Kai smile that they were roundtrip tickets. It made him surprisingly happy that his father wanted him to stick around. He’d been so sure that the man hadn’t liked him that it was still sort of a shock that Mason might actually love him. That still blew Kai’s mind. He wasn’t sure if he felt love for the man in return, he was still practically a stranger to Kai, but he was willing to give him a chance. He was willing to get to know him. It seemed like the least that Kai could do in all of this.
Kai exhaled slowly and steadily as the cloud cover broke and the dark blue depth of the Pacific Ocean hit his vision. He knew that before too long those near-black waters would shift to a bluish-greenish color that sort of matched his eyes. Then he’d be back at home. Mason had also told him in his message that he’d spoken with Kai’s mother. She was meeting them at the airport.
Jessie beside him squealed and grabbed his hand, squeezing it. His stress relieving exhale turned into a light laugh. She was so excited about arriving that it took away a great deal of his tension. When her face turned back to his, her wide, chocolate eyes were nearly glowing in their delight. She giggled and bit her lip, but her smile faltered as she looked over his face.
Her eyes flicking between his, she softly said, “Hey, you okay?”
Kai forced the smile back to his face but her frown only deepened; clearly she saw right through it. He sighed, knowing that he couldn’t keep his emotions from her anyway. She knew too much, she knew him too well. Shaking his head, he shrugged. “I’m just…a little nervous about this.”
Her hands squeezed his tight as she leaned in and placed a light kiss on his lips. “I know.” Pulling back, she gave him those smoky eyes that quickened his heart. “I’m here.” Smiling, Kai leaned in for another kiss.
Reveling in the light,
languid sensation, he peeked out the window over her shoulder. Seeing something he knew would interest her, he pulled apart from her mouth. “Hey,” he whispered, nodding towards the window. Her eyes burning like she no longer cared about any view that wasn’t him, she leaned back in to find his lips. Laughing, he kissed her lightly then muttered, “Jess, you’re missing it.”
“No, I’m not,” she mumbled huskily.
He laughed again, then forcibly turned her head away from him. Resting his chin on her shoulder, he looked out the window with her. Out of the corner of his eye he watched her mouth fall open as she gasped. “God, Kai…how could you ever leave this place?”
Kai returned his full vision to the view that was stealing her breath. They were still a ways away, but the closest island in the string of islands that collectively made up the State of Hawaii, was quickly growing larger and larger in the glass pane. Kai smiled at the innate beauty of his home. Green was the first thing you noticed. It was green in a way that most places weren’t anymore, green with the lush life of jungle vegetation. Fog ringed the taller mountain peaks, mere hills compared to the mountains of Colorado, and the blue-green water endlessly lapped against the white-sand beaches.
It really was, as Jessie was constantly telling him, paradise. For a moment, Kai’s exhale was a soft sigh of contentment. True, he was coming home to a bittersweet reunion, but he was still coming home, and a part of him had really missed it.
Jessie’s face was glued to the window as they finally started their descent. She giggled as she watched the emerald island gems grow and expand, until the only thing visible in the window was the lushness of life. As the more urban areas drew near, she finally turned back to him. “We’re here!”
Kai nodded as he felt the plane lower. Yes, they were here and his parents were waiting for them. Smiling at Jessie, Kai clenched her hand as the plane lowered, lightly bumped the pavement of the runway, and then screeched to a stop. He was immensely happy that she’d been able to make this little trip. She hadn’t been positive at first, since she’d called in sick to work so many times already this week. But the last phone call she’d made had ended with them telling her to just take the rest of the week off. Apparently, no one in the clinic wanted her around, just in case what she was suffering from was a deadly contagion - the Ebola virus or something.
So Kai had her until Monday…and he was really happy about it.
The plane disembarked, first class exiting, well, first, and Kai clenched her hand even harder. He’d never imagined that seeing his parents would ever cause him so much stress. But he supposed that was part of the problem – they weren’t his parents. At least his dad wasn’t, and his mom…she sort of felt like a stranger after all he’d learned about her.
A beautiful Hawaiian girl greeted them as they exited the plane. She gave them the standard “aloha” greeting and draped a couple of leis over their necks. Jessie smiled warmly at her and giggled as she fingered her flowers. Her clear delight momentarily flooding his discomfort, Kai thanked the greeter with a quick “mahalo” before pulling Jessie towards the waiting area.
He wanted to whisper in Jessie’s ear that she’d just been leid in public, but at that moment, his eyes locked onto a pair of people that he’d known very well at one time in his life. He instinctually straightened up as he locked gazes with first his father and then his mother. They’d surprisingly come together; they generally avoided that outside of work, and Kai knew exactly why now.
Jessie stopped laughing when she felt his stance change and twisted to look at what had his attention. “What is it, Kai? Are your parents here?”
Kai sighed, not sure how to answer that anymore. Knowing what she meant though, he only said, “Yeah.”
His feet feeling encased in cement, he trudged over to the people who had shaped his formative years. Stopping well before them, he nodded politely. It surprised him a little that he managed to make even that tiny move; his entire body felt like one rigid, immobile piece. “Mother…Nathan.” Kai noted the chill in his own voice, but he couldn’t do anything to alter it. They had sent him thousands of miles away, to have someone else tell him that his entire life had been a lie. Kai was feeling a little bitter about it.
His mother began to cry once she heard his tone. Kai’s eyes drifted to the dark haired woman, her deep skin color an identical match to his own. Her nearly black eyes were flooded with tears building and tears falling. The sight cracked Kai’s resolve, the edge to his bitterness dulling. Regardless of what they’d done, he had no desire to hurt them. They were his family.
Nathan Harper, the man Kai used to think of as his father, cleared his throat. Kai’s eyes very reluctantly swung to meet his. There was so much of Jessie in the color of his eyes that a lump formed a lodge in Kai’s throat that was impossible to swallow away. He watched those deep brown eyes water and felt his own sting in response. He’d loved this man so much, his entire life.
The aged, worn face looking back at him was familiar and calming. It reminded Kai of everything he’d wanted to be when he grew up – strong like his dad, smart like his dad, adventuresome and funny like his dad. While Kai’s hair was pitch-black like his mother’s, and his skin was as deeply tanned as hers, when Kai as a child had envisioned himself as a man, he’d always had his dad’s sandy hair and pale skin. He’d always seen himself as a spitting image of Nathan Harper. Was any of that because he’d believed they shared the same DNA, or was all of that because what they’d shared was an immense, impenetrable love for one another? Kai had to believe that it was love.
As his father struggled with words, Kai found his. “Dad?” he whispered.
Kai had never seen his father cry before – truly cry - not until today. Nodding as the tears streamed down his face, he stepped up to Kai and engulfed him in a tight embrace. Kai’s own tears unstoppable, he hugged him back just a fiercely. Love. DNA. Family. Between a parent and a child, genetics wasn’t what fueled the love. While Nathan may not technically be his father…he was love, and love made him family.
“I’m sorry, Kai. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you myself. I’m so sorry, son.”
That was repeated over and over into Kai’s ear, until Kai heard himself responding with, “It’s okay, Dad. It’s alright, I forgive you.”
Finally pulling back from his father, both of them wiping their eyes, Kai looked over at his mother. “I forgive both of you.” He shook his head at her and shrugged.
How do you hate someone for loving you so much, that they’d do anything to keep you from feeling pain? That’s all his mother had ever done for him; tried to shelter him from the approaching pain of the truth. As the tiny woman attacked him, sobbing apologies into his shoulder, Kai found that he couldn’t even hate them for sending him to Mason. True, hearing it from them would have been better, would have been easier, but the outcome would have been the same.
Plus, Kai had gotten a lot of practice recently at understanding regret. After everything that had happened between him and Jessie, when they’d both believed that they were blood-related, he’d come to regret a lot of things that he’d done. He understood that his parents were most likely beating themselves up every chance they got over the way they’d chosen to break the news to him. He wouldn’t add to their grief by torturing them about their decision. But he did intend to sit down and talk with them about it. Much like with Mason and his grandmother, Kai wanted to understand. He wanted to know them, as people, not the infallible parents that he’d believed them to be. He knew that they had both made mistakes with him and with each other. Kai wanted to sit down and discuss that with them, but first, he wanted to introduce them to his girlfriend.
Peeling his mother off of him, he moved over to where Jessie had stepped back and was watching the exchange from a respectable distance. She was drying her cheeks and Kai warmly shook his head at her. She shrugged and sniffled; that emotional display had gotten to her. He loved that it had. She had such a good heart and he wanted to show it to his pare
nts. He wanted them to be okay with who she was. And after everything that they’d done to him, really, it was the least that they could do.
Exhaling slowly, he grabbed both of her hands and then slung his arm around her waist. That intimate move got both of his parent’s attention and they turned to look at Jessie with raised eyebrows. Kai watched Jessie flush and felt her squeeze his waist tighter. Looking down on her, Kai quietly told his parents, “Mom…Dad…this is my best friend, the love of my life…my girlfriend, Jessica Marie Harper.”
Even though the busy airport was bustling with holiday travelers, Kai swore he could have heard a pin drop at that moment. Peeking up at them, he nearly laughed at the comically slack jawed faces. They knew that name, same as he had known that name. His mother appeared beyond surprised at the revelation, and his father had paled considerably watching them. Since he and Jessie actually were blood related, it had to be a little shocking for him to see Kai with his arm around his niece.
Kai and Jessie gave them another quiet moment to absorb, then Jessie stuck her hand out. “It’s nice to meet you, Leilani.” Kai’s mother loosely took the hand offered and shook it. After that, Jessie waved at Kai’s still openmouthed dad. “Hi, Uncle Nate, it’s nice to finally meet you.”