Jaxson (11 page)

Kehau had never been with a man so patient. Sione was more of the wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am type. Before they’d broken up, she’d meant to tell him how bored she was getting in bed.
Guess I won’t need to worry about that anymore
.
Her tits felt amazing. It was as if Jax was making love to them. She’d always wanted a man who could lavish attention on them, and make her feel excited. The warmth between her legs didn’t help any. Kehau could feel his growing erection underneath the denim and if she was a good judge of size, he was massively proportioned. Sliding herself against him, forward and back repeatedly only added to her growing desire.
This is insane
!
she realized with a start.
I’m going to cum r
ight here, in my parent’s backyard
, and he’s not even inside of me
!
Oh God
,
it feels so good…

Her thoughts trailed off into never-land as her whole body began to shake and tremble. As if Jax sensed her growing arousal, he sucked her whole areola into his mouth as his free hand reached down to gently stroke her inner thighs. A finger slipped inside the tight-fitting denim. Kehau felt it brush down the outer lips of her already wet pussy to finally rest on her clitoris. The stroking became more vigorous as he scratched an itch she'd had building up for weeks.

Kehau gripped his hair tightly as she came all at once, an explosion that left tingling sensations everywhere. “Oh, Jax,” she moaned.

“Yes, my queen?” he asked her coyly.

She looked at him with smoldering, warm eyes. “You have no idea, Johnny Rocket. When we get back to my bedroom, I’m going to—"

“Aunty Kehau? I need some water. I’m thirsty.”

Emily, her tiny three-year-old niece stood in the doorway wearing My Little Pony pajamas and clutching a stuffed doll. Tired hands tried to rub the sleep away from her eyes as she looked at Kehau’s back.

Why
oh why
did she have to come along right now?

"I’ll be right there, Emily,” Kehau said, fingers fumbling to close her shirt before she stood. Jax was struggling not to laugh.

“What?” she said exasperatedly.

“Every damn time we start getting heavy, somebody interrupts us. I know your roommates saw us from the house on our first date. The nun at church, and now this. Almost like the cosmos is in conspiracy against us,” he said, trying to keep from laughing. “Go ahead and go help the keiki. It’s okay, sexy baby.”

By the time Kehau returned, Jax had passed out in a nearby hammock, snoring away.

"Well, this sucks," Kehau said as she watched the rise and fall of his chest.

Anytime you want to pick up the telephone you

Know that it ain't nothing to drop a couple stacks on you

If you want it you can get it my dear

5 millions dollars homes drop bitness I swear.

T.I.

"So where are you thinking of getting your dress from?" Marcia asked her daughter as she drove her red BMW M5 through the afternoon traffic of Downtown Honolulu
.
Carli and Marissa were in the back, enjoying the ride in the convertible.

"I was kinda thinking Ross seeing as we’re
on a budget,” Kehau announced.

"That's nice
,
" Marcia said
.
And drove right past it.

"Hey
,
you missed your turn back there!" Kehau said suddenly.

"No I didn't
.”
Five minutes and a few more turns she pulled up to the valet at Neiman Marcus
.

"What are we doing here?"

Marcia looked at her
daughter
levelly
.
"Your boyfriend
?
Mr
.
Bad
a
ss
?
He asked that we bring you here
.
Said we're responsible for finding you a very nice dress, and he’ll take care of the cost
.
Now, let’s get out of the car and do some shopping, shall we?"

An associate named Lei’Ana was waiting for them at the front counter in a blue and green kimono.

“Good afternoon, ladies, Mr. Kuznia called ahead and asked me to help you with your shopping. He mentioned it’s for the Birthday Ball and to please have fun today.”

“I love a man who plans ahead,” Kehau said cheerfully.

“If you'll follow me right this way please, I'll show you what we have available.”

The dresses came in every style and color imaginable. Kehau couldn't remember spending this much energy looking for a prom dress. And she had no clue what a Birthday Ball was either.
Maybe it's a Marine thing
.
I should ask daddy about that later
.

A dress caught her eye right then. Still half-wrapped in plastic and hanging on a cart, it looked like an odd shade between orange and pink.

“Lei’Ana, could I try that one next please?”

“Of course. It just showed up off the boat today.”

In the dressing room, Kehau slid into it, too scared to look in the mirror. Even though Jax had never demanded it of her the way Sione had, Kehau still felt incredibly critical of her body. “Ready?” she asked.

“Duh, today,” Carli replied from where she and the other women waited helping Kehau choose a dress. Taking a breath, Kehau opened the door and stepped out.

“Oh, Kehau,” Marcia exclaimed softly. The other women nodded their silent agreement.

Kehau turned to the mirror with some trepidation—she had never found a strapless dress that worked on her figure, but the pattern of this one seemed different. She was surprised by the woman looking back at her. She was a vision, with beautiful dusky-toned skin, set off by the white satin band hugging the sweetheart neckline of the coral-colored dress—the satin dipped beautifully into the soft shadows of her cleavage, highlighting her curves with a delicate diamond pattern of rhinestones. Kehau turned and marveled at the snug fit as it skimmed over her body and then elegantly flared into a flowing hem, banded in white like the bodice. As she stepped forward, her movement revealed a daring slit in the side of the gown, showing her tanned leg almost to her hip. The color was perfect—it stood out in brilliant contrast to her glossy black hair and the green of her eyes seemed even deeper.

Oh yeah
.
This is the one
.

“I think I speak for all of us when I say ‘damn, girl!’” Carli exclaimed.

“Kehau,” Marissa interrupted, “is that a hickey on your neck?” She'd said it loudly enough to stop all conversation. Kehau looked in the mirror again. "Oh my gosh! That damned man!”

“So that's what you two were up to in the backyard last night,” Marcia teased.

“Mother!”

“Oh relax. Remind me to tell you the story of how your father and I met. He did almost the exact same thing.”

“I still don't know how we’re going to pay for this.” Kehau glanced at the price tag and nearly fell over. “Where in the hell am I supposed to get eight thousand dollars from?” she cried.

“If I may,” Lei’Ana interjected, “Mr. Kuznia mentioned his business card is good for anything you need to buy today.”

Carli stared hard at Lei’Ana. “What is this card you’re talking about?” she asked, more than a little confused.

“Mr. Kuznia, as well as his associates, come here approximately once a month. As such, he has a rather large line of credit with us,” Lei’Ana explained patiently.

“Define large,” Kehau said in quiet voice.

“I'm not sure I should divulge that information. It could cost me my job. Our clients tend to enjoy the confidentiality of our company. But I can tell you,” Lei’Ana added helpfully, “he's one of our best customers with more than enough credit to cover your purchase.”

Carli was the first to recover. Kehau noticed a gleam in her eyes she'd had never seen. “What about shoes? Jewelry and handbags?” Carli said excitedly.

Lei’Ana nodded. “His exact words were, ‘Let her get whatever her pretty little heart desires.’”

“Very well,” Carli affirmed. “Keep that dress on, Kehau, it's time to go accessorize.” She stalked out of the dressing room, a shark-like grin plastered across her face. Lei’Ana paused to help finish zipping Kehau up, then led them toward the jewelry counter.

Marcia, meanwhile, looked at Marissa. “What just happened?”

“We told a southern Cali girl to go spend money without any worries.”

“Oh God,” Marcia moaned. “Jax is gonna kill us.”

“Too late for that now,” Marissa chided. “We might as well pray for world peace. On a good note, if he can afford to shop here with no worries, he should be able to cover funeral costs. Well, that's if they find the bodies.”

"That's what I'm afraid of," Marcia said as they caught up with the others.

Carli's knowledge of jewelry and fashion paid immediate dividends. By the time Kehau caught up to her, the blonde had circled the case once, directing the clerk to pull a half-dozen different sets out for Kehau to try on.

“Marissa, how would you do her hair? Up or down?” Carli asked.

Marissa frowned, deep in thought. Moving behind Kehau, she gathered the long dark hair up behind her neck. “Kehau, what if we do it up on the sides, and a big loose braid with plumerias worked into it?”

Kehau’s eyes widened. “You can do that?”

“Easily,” Marissa assured her. “Very easily.”

“Good,” Carli stated. “Then what about these earrings and necklace?” With Carli seemingly in her environment, it wasn't long until they had finished with everything Kehau would need to have a complete ensemble for the special event.

“How do you do it?” Kehau asked her afterwards, as all of them sat relaxing in the café. Lei’Ana was seeing to their purchases, having them packaged and bagged before they left.

Carli looked up from her Crab Louis salad and iced tea. “My favorite cousins are Jewish diamond merchants on Rodeo Drive. I know more about gems than all of the clerks behind the counter combined. The rest of it is just a matter of practice.”

“Kehau,” Marcia interjected. “Do me a favor, keep this boyfriend. I kinda like him.”

“I thought you liked Sione!”

“I tolerated him, dear. I’ve got heels taller than his standards.”

Carli choked on a bite of salad.

“Truth be told, your father was glad to see him gone,” Marcia told her.

“Why didn’t you say anything sooner?” Kehau frowned at her mother.

“Because you’re a grown woman, and you deserve to make your own choices. We just wish you would've talked to us more.”

“Oh.” A feeling of sadness and guilt overwhelmed her then. All those months of not talking, wasted. “I'm sorry, Momma.”

Marcia smiled. “Everybody makes mistakes, sweetheart. Even your daddy and I. We may not be able to get time back, but we can certainly improve the future.”

*****

“Daddy, what's a Birthday Ball?”

Jerry looked up from his Saturday paper to see his daughter looking at him with worry written all over her face.

“If you're asking me what I think you are, it's the celebration of the Marine Corps’ birthday on 10 November. Why do you ask, sweetheart?”

“Because Jax is taking me to one next weekend. And I have no clue what it's about.”

Jerry stood and went over to a bookshelf. He returned carrying a large dust-bound black leather scrapbook. “Your momma made this for me years ago.”

He opened it, fingers skimming through pages to find a specific area.

“Marines are clannish by nature. Everything about being a Marine is important. That includes celebrating the birthday of our founding.”

He turned the book around for her to see. “It starts with a ceremony, then a dinner, followed by dancing and loads of drinking.” He smiled. “It’s the kind of party worth going to.”

“Okay.” She looked down at the pictures, seeing a much younger version of her father, alongside friends in old faded Polaroid shots. “Why don’t you talk about it very much, Daddy?”

Jerry sighed. “When I joined the service, it was very unpopular here on the island. I had family who thought I was a traitor for joining the American Marine Corps. There are aunts and uncles you’ve never met because they disowned me for enlisting.”

“What about after you got out?”

“Trying to explain combat to people is hard. So is explaining why you went there in the first place. Especially with an unpopular war like Vietnam. Private places to mourn your dead are hard to come by. What has Jax shared with you?”

“Not much.”

“In some ways, it’s a trust issue. There’s a whole lot of emotional baggage that comes with combat and surviving it. Nothing compares to being shot at and missed. Trying to share that emotion makes a man feel very vulnerable. When he chooses to share that with you, don’t talk at all. Just listen, hug him, kiss him, and love him. Because it’s a damned hard thing to do.”

“Momma’s seen that side of you, hasn’t she?”

“Every year on Veteran’s Day and Memorial Day.”

Suddenly, so much about her childhood made sense. Kehau had always been sent to the house of friends or relatives, and she stayed there until dark. The few times she’d asked her momma, Marcia simply said, “Daddy is sick and needs some rest.” Now she knew.

“Is that why you opened up to him the other night?” she asked quietly.

“We’re both veterans. We’ve walked those fields where men die. We have respect for each other. We share the guilt of living, where so many didn’t come home.”

Jerry hung his head, a tear rolling down his cheek as his broad hands gripped the table edge. “You miss your friends. Every day.”

Kehau stepped up to her father and wrapped her arms around him. “Thank you, Daddy.”

“You're welcome, sweetheart. Just remember, what he shares with you in those moments is nobody else's business. That’s only meant for you.”