“Of course,” she said, breaking into a fake smile and caressing my face lightly. “I’ll see you later, Miles.”

  I stood rooted to the spot long after Beverly had gone, a slow rage boiling in me. She had no right to waltz in on me after what she did. No right. And to think she can just pick up and act like nothing ever happened? The nerve of the bitch.

  The shrill ring of my desk phone rattled my nerves even more.

  “Hello?”

  “Miles, get your ass in my office right now,” Tom Edsel said.

  Shit.

  I walked quickly to the corner office on the far end of the building. Brenda, his bombshell of an executive secretary, shook her head and made a face.

  Watch out, he’s in a foul mood, she seemed to say.

  “What the fuck’s wrong with you?” Tom bellowed before I had a chance to close the door behind me.

  “What the fuck do you mean?” I snapped back. Most people would have gotten axed just by taking that tone with him, but I was still pissed with his daughter’s visit and I didn’t give a shit.

  “That deposition last night was a cluster fuck, Miles. If Jim hadn’t stepped in and stopped the bleeding we would have gotten our asses fucked big time.”

  Jim Blunt was the other senior partner, and a senior prick.

  “Jim stopped the bleeding by lying as usual. The case is doomed anyway, Tom. We should never have taken it on. You got greedy,” I said, pointing a finger at him. “It was you who fucked us over.”

  The blood rushed to Tom’s head. He had alway been an imposing figure, not only because he had total power to hire and fire anyone at his firm, but he was built like an ox. You did not want to get in the ring with this guy unless you had a death wish.

  Perhaps that was what I had.

  Tom stood up slowly, the veins popping and pulsing on his thick neck. “Why you fucking dipshit,” he said softly, staring at me with murder in his eyes. “How dare you talk to me that way.”

  I should have been quivering in my shoes, but I felt nothing.

  “I’m telling you how I see it, Tom. Someone’s gotta say it when you fuck up, or you’ll drive your own company to the ground.”

  “It’s my company,” he seethed. “You don’t fucking get to say shit about how I run my own goddamn business.”

  I shrugged. Whatever.

  He took a few deep breaths, fighting to control himself. Sitting down, he leaned back in his chair and regarded me with slitted eyes.

  I met his stare.

  “I like you, Miles,” he said. “You’ve got balls of steel. I can see what Bev saw in you. I have no idea why you two split up and she ended up with that chickenshit loser.”

  I wanted to tell him we split up because his daughter was a total slut, but in the interest of self preservation I bit my tongue.

  “You remind me of myself, Miles. You’re smart, and you’ve got that killer instinct. You’ve proven yourself worthy of your senior position, so I’m going to let this show of disrespect slide. I think you’re burned out. I want you to take a few days off. On my dime.”

  I stared at him, half wondering if this was some kind of sick joke. I was pretty sure I had just handed him my head on a silver platter.

  “You’re pulling me off the case?” I said cautiously, fishing for a trap I knew must be in there somehow. Tom Edsel never gave away anything without reaping benefits from any situation.

  “You can go on vacation or you can walk out that door and never come back.” he said in a cold voice. He took a few more deep breaths. “Besides, Jim can handle the case until you return. Get some good R&R, fuck a few pussies, and come back refreshed. It’ll do you good.”

  Tom pressed a button on his phone. “Brenda, set Miles up for a trip, will you? He leaves tomorrow, back on Sunday evening at the latest. Where do you want to go, Miles?” He paused for exactly one second, then continued on without waiting for my reply. “Set him up for wherever the fuck he wants to go. Put it on the corporate card.”

  “Yes, Mr. Edsel,” Brenda replied.

  He nodded at me and turned to his computer. The meeting was over. Apparently I still had my job.

  I got up and left the lion’s den. Brenda nodded at me.

  “So Miles,” she said, “you finally gonna take a vacation?”

  “I guess so,” I said, sighing.

  “Where do you want to go?”

  “I don’t care.”

  “You must have an idea. Edsel’s paying for it. I’d milk it if I were you,” she said, winking. My eyes dropped to the significant cleavage popping out of her business suit, the top two buttons open.

  “You can take me with you if you want.” She ran a long, manicured finger along the top swell, making me wonder if those buttons had come undone while I was inside the office. Brenda had been giving me looks and dropping hints ever since she heard of the divorce.

  There was a time before I got married when I would have entertained the idea of fucking someone like her just for kicks, but after what my ex did to me I had pretty much blocked any chance of a relationship from my life. Perhaps someday I would be ready to dive back into that pool. Perhaps someday I would meet the right person, but how could I know for sure she would be the one?

  No, there were no guarantees, and it was best to stay single. Life was far less complicated that way.

  “Just send me somewhere, Brenda,” I said. “Anywhere.”

  She thought for a moment. “Have you been to Kauai?”

  I shook my head.

  “Well, if you want to get away from it all, I know the perfect spot. It’s low key, isolated, and beautiful. I went there last year with a friend, and we had a blast.”

  “Sure, whatever.”

  Brenda swiveled and faced her monitor, her fingers clacking loudly on the keyboard. A few minutes later the printer next to her spat out a sheet of paper.

  “Okay, here’s your itinerary. You leave tomorrow, HawaiianAir from LAX, nonstop to Lihue. Do you want me to reserve a car for you?”

  “No, that’s fine. I’ll just take a cab.”

  “Alright. How about drinks tonight, before you go? We could meet at your place…”

  “You’re a doll, Brenda,” I said, smiling. “Perhaps next time.”

  My cab driver Keith had been blabbering on about some cool, popular spots on the island, but I completely missed what he was saying.

  “How much further?” I asked.

  “Almost there, brah! Just up da kine street.”

  He turned into a small road that snaked upwards for half a mile, then I saw it - a grand circular drive leading to a large white house that resembled something straight out of the history books.

  “We here!” Keith announced, screeching to a halt.

  “Thanks,” I said, paying the fare plus a generous fifty percent tip.

  “Eh, thanks hah! Call me if you need a guide, okay?” Keith said, handing me a business card.

  “I’ll let you know,” I said, getting out and watching the cab pull away. I started up the walkway, noticing for the first time the young woman sitting on the curb. I took the sight in - long cascading brunette hair that sparkled in the fading sun’s rays, a faded Quicksilver tee shirt hugging a tight body, and cutoff shorts that showcased tanned and well-toned legs, but it was when I looked into her large, brown, innocent eyes that I stopped, actually physically stopped in my tracks and stared, my heart leaping out of my chest and coming alive for the first time in a very long time.

  I was staring at the face of an incredibly beautiful island goddess.

  Holy shit, I thought, thunderstruck by the mirage in front of me.

  Holy fucking shit.

  3

  FRIEND

  Taylor

  Shit, I thought, staring at the hunk of flesh approaching me. It’s him.

  I always wondered how I would react if lola Nora’s big prediction actually came true. I often fantasized about that day, and imagined myself wearing some sexy red dress, putting on a touch of makeup, and perhaps even convincing my dad to take me to that fancy salon in the mall to get my hair done, because dammit, this was my soulmate we were talking about, and everything had to be perfect.

  As if I knew exactly when he’d show up.

  Then I grew older and the silliness of youth became glaringly obvious, but a part of me still hoped for something magical, and I held on to this notion that I had to prepare myself to welcome the love of my life.

  I was so not prepared that day.

  The man paused, our eyes locking onto each other, and suddenly my body was reacting in a way I had never felt. My heart rate shot up, the beating in my chest so strong I swore the man could hear it. Sheer panic gripped me, and, inexplicably, I felt my nipples harden, straining through my bra and the old house shirt I was wearing.

  All this happened within the span of a few seconds, and it rendered me speechless, my eyes growing wide with fear.

  The man continued walking until he towered above me. His lips were moving, and it took me a moment to realize he was talking to me, but all I could hear was the thumping of my own heart.

  The man must have thought I was stupid or something.

  “What?” I said, practically shouting.

  Great, now he thinks I’m deaf AND stupid.

  “I said it’s a nice sunset,” the stranger said, nodding back at the sun which was almost completely swallowed by the sea. “Mind if I join you?”

  I shook my head, fully incapable of speech. The man dropped his duffle bag on the grass beside my bike, sat next to me on the curb, and together we watched the great ball of fire slowly sink over the horizon.

  I should say he watched the sunset. The great spectacle was lost on me. I was completely overwhelmed by the powerful presence sitting within touching distance, my mind caught in a senseless oh shit, oh shit, oh shit loop. My heart was pounding so fast I thought I having a heart attack, my stomach knotting up, and there was a low buzzing between my legs I had never felt before. I had to press my knees together tightly to prevent myself from squirming.

  What’s happening to me?

  The sun disappeared, and a cool breeze whipped up around us.

  “Well, that was nice,” the man said, getting up. “My name is Miles, by the way.”

  “T-Taylor,” I stammered.

  “Nice to meet you, Taylor. Are you staying at the B&B too?”

  “Staying?” I said, comprehension coming in at a snail’s pace. “Oh, staying. No, I live here. With my dad.”

  “I see,” he said, staring at me with eyes as blue as the ocean, his gaze penetrating deep in me, as if he were looking straight into my soul. There were so many things I wanted to ask him, so much I wanted to know about him, but I was thunderstruck, and the words simply refused to form.

  The silence between us stretched out to an uncomfortable level, until finally the man cleared his throat.

  “Well, I guess I’ll see you around, Taylor.”

  He smiled, picked up his bag, and walked up the steps to the lobby.

  I turned and watched him go, marveling at how his tight white shirt clung to his muscled body. Another knot assaulted my stomach, and I held my knees tightly, not trusting myself to move. It seemed like my whole body was trembling, and a layer of fear was slowly wrapping itself around me.

  I had found my soulmate, the man I had been waiting for all these years, and I was scared shitless.

  It took me a full ten minutes to pull myself together and walk inside. I thought he would have checked in and gone to his room, but I was surprised to see him still at the reception counter, chatting and laughing with my dad.

  “Tay-Tay,” dad called, spotting me and waving.

  Shit.

  I took a deep breath and walked over.

  “Miles, I’d like you to meet my daughter, Taylor. Tay, Miles is an old friend. We were at Punahou together in high school.”

  My dad knows him? He knows my soulmate?

  Miles turned, his handsome, chiseled face boring into me, and I felt myself blush. “Yes, we bumped into each other outside,” he said, smiling.

  “It’s actually Taylor’s eighteenth birthday today.”

  “Oh, wow, happy birthday!” Miles said, his eyes glistening.

  “Thanks,” I said, so nervous I could not keep eye contact.

  “Taylor will be going to Kauai Community College for a couple of years, then probably move to the Mainland for her major.”

  “Oh, where to?” Miles said, directing the question at me.

  “UC Irvine,” I managed to mumble.

  “Cool. That’s a nice school. Good neighborhood too.”

  “Miles went to UCLA,” dad said. “He’s a lawyer now.”

  My breath hitched in my throat. My mom had divorced my dad and left us for a lawyer, and I knew how much dad disliked them. But Miles was his friend. Maybe this was different?

  “Well, enjoy your stay, Miles,” dad said, handing him his room key. “We’ll grab some beer later and catch up. Tay, would you show him to his room, please?”

  “Thanks, John,” Miles said, shaking dad’s hand.

  “You bet.”

  I bent to pick up Miles’ black duffle bag at the same time he reached down, and our hands touched. A white-hot bolt of current shot through my entire body, and I gasped out loud. A sharp intake of breath from Miles told me he felt it too, and we stared at each other in surprise.

  “I, uh, got it,” Miles said, recovering fast, but there was a confused look on his face as he slung the bag across his shoulder.

  He doesn’t understand what’s happening!

  Of course he didn’t understand. How could he? He never had the benefit of a fortune teller describing in great detail how he would meet his soulmate.

  The problem was, how do I make someone like him understand? As a lawyer, his world was probably centered around facts, not superstitious delusions of an old woman, or the young girl who believed in them.

  “Could I see your key?” I said. He handed it to me, and I noticed how careful he was to avoid any kind of contact. A sharp pang of hurt burrowed its way into my heart.

  The brass room key was attached to a mini wooden surfboard that my dad had carved himself. The number ten was etched on the tip and right under it, embossed sideways, was the word Moikeha.

  “What does it mean?” Miles said, nodding at the wooden key fob.

  “Dad labeled each of the rooms after ancient Hawaiian monarchs. Moikeha was the name of the first king of Kauai. Looks like you’ve got our biggest suite.”

  “That’s a good thing, right?” Miles said, smiling.

  “It depends.”

  “Depends on what?”

  “On whether or not you like stairs.”

  I walked ahead of him, taking the stairs at a brisk pace. I was hurt and furious. I knew we both felt the connection when we touched, and I wanted it to last longer, to feel him more, but his reaction, avoiding any further contact, was not at all what I expected.

  “So how many rooms are there?”

  “Ten rooms. Three rooms per floor except for the top floor. The Moikeha suite takes up the entire fourth floor.”

  “And you live here with your parents?”

  “My room is on the ground floor. My mom and dad are divorced. Mom took off with another man, dad lives in a small cottage next to the house.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” Miles said.

  I shrugged. “No biggie. I heard it’s pretty common on the Mainland.”

  “You could say that. I’m divorced too.”

  The words hit me with the force of a bomb, and I staggered to a stop halfway up the fourth floor. “You, you were married?”

  “Yes,” Miles said, a puzzled look on his face. “But we got divorced two years ago.”

  I couldn’t breathe. The thought of Miles being married to another woman had the effect of a thousand daggers stabbing my heart. Marriage was a sacred vow, and I had always imagined my soulmate and I sharing this momentous occasion together, for the first time.

  “Taylor?”

  Why was everything turning out so wrong? Meeting my soulmate was supposed to be a perfect love at first sight moment. He was supposed to be perfect. I was supposed to be his first real love. He wasn’t supposed to be married. It just wasn’t right. What was going on?

  “Taylor?”

  Maybe it was a lie. Maybe lola Nora really was nothing but a crazy old woman, and I was the dumb, gullible girl who believed her. Maybe there was no such thing as a soulmate.

  My world spun. I stared at the handsome face of a stranger I still felt a deep connection to, but that must also be a lie, nothing more than a girl’s stupid infatuation. The face blurred, the staircase darkened, and I felt myself falling backwards into a black void.

  4

  DINNER

  Miles

  Whatever the hell I had in mind for a relaxing time at a small island in the Pacific, it was certainly turning out to be anything but that.

  I was surprised to see my old schoolmate from Punahou. John and I were classmates in high school. We were in the same tennis team, and we graduated together. I moved to California for college and he stayed on Oahu, opting to go to the University of Hawaii at Manoa. We went our separate ways and fell out of touch.

  What was even more surprising was meeting his daughter, Taylor. I was completely floored by her beauty. There was an old 80s song by Berlin called ‘Take My Breath Away’ which was used in the movie Top Gun, and I never quite understood how someone could take one’s breath away.

  Seeing Taylor on that curb for the first time, with her tanned skin, expressive eyes, and young, tight body, left me breathless.

  It also scared the shit out of me.

  I had no idea what caused me to sit down next to her and watch the sunset. It was almost as if my body was acting on its own and I was a spectator helpless to do anything about it. Before I even knew what was happening I was inches away from this stranger, watching the sun dip into the horizon and inhaling the intoxicating sweet scent of her presence, my heart hammering in my chest. I had this wild impulse to reach over and kiss those full, slightly quivering lips, and an even wilder thought of pushing her onto the grass, ripping her shirt and shorts off, and fucking her silly.