smitten, but I’d seen the signs often enough. I had grown up watching Evie bowl people over with her charm, after all.
“How’s your Aunt Evie?” Kimo asked as if on cue, pulling the van off the highway onto a lonely dirt road.
“She’s fine,” I replied, remembering how quickly Evie had wrapped Kimo around her little finger. I was afraid I had that effect on him too, only I wasn’t doing it on purpose.
Shayla launched into a detailed account of how Evie had flown us to Paris in her new jet and knew all the fashion designers. I could feel Matt watching me like Kimo always did, suddenly much more impressed. I turned away to look out the window, thinking that this little field trip might not have been such a good idea.
We drove through vast fields of pineapple and sugarcane, slowly maneuvering around the potholes, and finally coming up to a sinister looking stretch of road. The sides were lined with burned out, torn apart old cars, and it felt like some kind of warning.
“Locals don’ like nobody on dis lan,” Kimo said, “Cept me and my brahs.”
We continued on through the post-apocalyptic landscape until we reached the end of the line, finding several cars at the edge of the cliff, a few spectators looking down with cameras and binoculars. We parked, and the roar of pounding surf greeted my ears, sending my heart beating a little faster.
Kimo turned to me, “Les go!”
We climbed out of the van and Gabe came trotting up, “It’s going off!” he told Kimo, “Kaiko has a ski ready for you.” He looked at me and Shayla, “Kimo… It’s too big for them.”
Kimo tossed his head dismissively and we all walked over to the edge of the cliff to look down. It was hard to judge the scale of the wave, until a tiny speck that turned out to be a jet ski appeared on its flank. Rising up like a mountain of water, curling elegantly down, the wave must have been at least forty feet tall. I was so excited I could barely breathe.
“Whoa!” gasped Shayla, “I’m not goin’ out on that!”
Matt puffed up a little, flashing Shayla another charming smile, “I can handle it.” Gabe gave Kimo a warning glance, but he was already off, rushing back to the van to unload the boards. He called me over to show me a board and explain why it was different; narrower and shorter than usual, with straps to slip my feet into. He told me how he would take me out past the break, towing me in to drop me down onto the face of the wave, circling around to pick me up before the next big one came crashing down on my head.
It was exactly how I surfed with Lorelei.
Kimo leaned in close to me, “Are you finally done wit your high school boyfriend?” he asked playfully.
“No, not at all,” I cast him a sour look.
“What, are you gonna get married or sumpin’?” he said mockingly.
I held his gaze, “As a matter of fact, we are.”
He started to laugh at my joke, but stopped when he saw the look in my eye, “He’s one lucky dude,” he said quietly.
“I’m the lucky one.”
He looked down, shaking his head sadly, and then up at me with the mischievous twinkle back in his eye, “Leas’ I can surf wit you!”
“Yeah. Now let’s go!” I said urgently. I couldn’t wait, and I didn’t need any coaching; I knew the routine, for Lorelei always helped me catch waves that were simply too big and too fast moving for any human being to paddle out onto. Only we did it in the dark.
Kimo’s gleaming eyes smiled into mine, and I could see the same fire in them. For a split second I wondered if he wasn’t being overly reckless, but I was past the point of caring.
We all hiked down to the shoreline, where Kimo introduced us to a group of local guys that waited with the machines down at the rocky shore. They started excitedly telling Kimo about the unexpectedly good conditions, describing some horrific wipeouts. The air crackled with excitement and energy.
Shayla came close, nudging me with her elbow, “Check that out… Marina, those waves could really mess you up.”
I was poised to jump in, shifting impatiently from foot to foot as Gabe pulled Kimo aside.
“He doesn’t think you and Matt should go,” Shayla whispered in my ear, “Are you sure?”
“Yes,” I snapped impatiently. Shayla looked at