He’d done enough crying the past week that he thought he might never be able to breathe or swallow right again. But, he wouldn’t get drunk—his sister’s kindness over watching Keola would only stretch so far, he knew. Besides, his daughter had wanted him and no one else. Not Keeana’s parents or sisters, not her cousins on their side of the family, not Nalani or anyone else who offered to distract her. With one exception: Gia. Kai couldn’t blame his daughter. The woman was a powerhouse; a hurricane of confidence and conviction. She stepped off the plane with her earphones in and the funeral director already on the line.
“Come this way, Kai,” she told him, directing him away from the few locals who’d spotted him and begun to converge. Gia had been all soft edges and sweet tones when she dealt with him. To everyone else that seemed intent to do anything other but help or comfort, she became a fierce mama bear.
“Mr. Pukui is not giving out autographs,” she told the locals, then glared at the airport security guard for not keeping them back. That one terrifying look had the man hurrying his team to block Kai and his teammates from their attention.
“Damn, Miss J,” Wilson had commented, taking in the whole scene. “Remind me to never piss you off.”
“Fumble the damn ball like you did against the Panthers,” she told him, not bothering to look back at the man, “and you’ll see me really pissed.”
Kai had caught his friends watching her, staring at her ass like he’d done when she moved ahead of them to speak to the airport security.
“Ball buster,” Wilson muttered to Pérez, getting a grin from the tight end.
“Gotta be honest, I don’t think I’d complain about her busting my—” but Pérez didn’t finish explaining what he wouldn’t complain about. Kai shot him a glare, one that he hoped told his friends he didn’t appreciate their bullshit comments and both men pretended to be interested in their cells.
Gia had taken over quickly, being a hard ass when bullshit started—Kai wondered what she’d said to the florist to make the big guy cry like someone had smacked him—but when she was with Kai and Keola, when she needed to be soft with Keeana’s family and the people he thought mattered, there was no one better.
Like with his pēpē…when no one’s attention would make her happy. Gia had gone to her without anyone asking, taking off her three-inch heels and pulled down her fancy skirt to sit in the middle of Keeana’s back yard, lying next to Keola as the sun set and the stars began to dot across the cloudless sky.
Kai didn’t know what they said to each other. He didn’t know what questions among the dozens his daughter had that Gia managed to answer. But with his girl, Gia was gentle. She pointed out constellations to Keola, moving her fingers to write invisible words in the black sky with the little girl until she began to yawn. Then, Gia brought her to her bedroom and stayed there when Keola asked her. She read to her endlessly, hours sometimes while Kai was distracted by Wilson and Pérez.
But when everyone left and Gia had gone to sleep in the guest bedroom, his little girl would crawl on the sofa with Kai, not complaining that he’d refused to sleep in her mother’s bed. Not asking why everyone had left that room completely untouched. All Keola wanted was her father and he didn’t see that changing anytime soon.
“You’ll miss us if we stay on the mainland,” he told his sister, half teasing, half hoping she’d readily agree. “You know,” he said, offering her the bottle, “I could get a house, on lakeside. We could find something with a guest house.”
Nalani stared at him, the bottle hanging from her hands as though she’d almost forgotten she held it. “You want me to move to New Orleans?” When Kai shrugged, determined not to beg her, his sister relaxed, her shoulders dropping. “I have a job here.”
“In a tourist trap restaurant. It’s dead-end and you know it.” He turned toward the house when he heard Wilson calling his name and waved back.
“I’m the manager now,” Nalani said, but there was no conviction in her voice. Kai guessed she’d stayed in Maui because he’d gone and his sister thought one of them should be there to help Keeana look after Keola.
When Kai shook his head, moving his mouth down in a frown, his