Студопедия

Главная страница Случайная страница

КАТЕГОРИИ:

АвтомобилиАстрономияБиологияГеографияДом и садДругие языкиДругоеИнформатикаИсторияКультураЛитератураЛогикаМатематикаМедицинаМеталлургияМеханикаОбразованиеОхрана трудаПедагогикаПолитикаПравоПсихологияРелигияРиторикаСоциологияСпортСтроительствоТехнологияТуризмФизикаФилософияФинансыХимияЧерчениеЭкологияЭкономикаЭлектроника






CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO. Drew pressed her face against the window, staring out at the endless expanse of ocean, her gaze traveling to the horizon and back again






Drew pressed her face against the window, staring out at the endless expanse of ocean, her gaze traveling to the horizon and back again, seeing nothing but blue-green water. She smiled, remembering her only other trip to Hawaii, a trip given to her for graduation by her grandfather. She'd gone alone, not having any friends who could afford it back in those days. She went alone, yes. She wasn't alone for long.

Her name was Rhea. Tall and dark, she was a surfing lunatic. And Drew had met her that very first afternoon, watching her for over an hour as she surfed the waves on North Shore. Rhea taught her a lot during those ten days. A lot about surfing, a lot about diving, and a whole lot about sex.

She laughed quietly, glancing to her left at Jenna, who was still asleep beside her. Across the aisle of the plane and two rows behind them sat Jay and Katherine. She chanced a look their way. Jay was leaning back, her head turned to the window, her eyes staring outward. Katherine seemed engrossed in a travel guide, her eyes darting across the pages quickly.

She sighed, turning back to her window, again watching the endless passing of water below them. What a crazy month it had been. She and Jay had both been scrambling to complete projects. She was better equipped. Her crews had been with her for years. And in her absence, Johnny would make sure everything ran smoothly. But Jay, she had no one except Connie, a part-time painter and college graduate who wasn't ready to face the world just yet. She didn't blame Jay for worrying. But Randy Kline had been so pleased with her work, he had no qualms with her being gone for ten days, even if the fourth house he'd handed her was not finished.

They'd only seen each other sporadically during the month, meeting a couple of times for lunch. And then the four of them had gotten together at Jenna's place to discuss the trip one night. Now that was a fun night, she recalled.

" Parasailing? " Katherine stared at Drew. " Glide above the ocean as a boat pulls me? You're not serious? " She tossed the brochure aside and picked up another. " Now touring the Royal Palace sounds like fun. Look, Jenna, they actually have an art gallery inside the palace."

" But it's on Oahu. I thought we were on Maui."

" Well, we can hop between islands. That's no problem." She held the brochure up. " How does this sound? "

Drew and Jay exchanged glances. " Boring, " they said in unison. Jay held up another brochure. " Look, we can take a tour boat to Molokini, " she said. " It's an ancient volcanic cinder cone teeming with marine life off the coast of Maui, " she read, glancing at Drew. " Best snorkeling on the islands. And diving, " she added.

" Oh my, there's the Contemporary Museum on Oahu, as well as the Honolulu Academy of Arts, " Jenna said, showing

Katherine the brochure. " That sounds like fan."

Drew smiled, looking back out the window of the plane. Fun? Jay had turned to her, her voice low. " I'm so glad you're going to be with me."

Yeah. And here they were, finally, on the plane, flying high over the Pacific Ocean, heading to paradise. And, truth be known, she was really looking forward to it. Yes, they would have plenty of time alone. Jenna said she and Katherine planned to use this time to get reacquainted, to see if what they once had was still there. And Drew's job, according to Jenna, was to keep Jay occupied. Not a problem, she'd told Jenna.

How they planned to pull it off though, Drew had no idea. Didn't they think Jay would question them? Wouldn't it look odd if the two of them went off alone? Surely Jay would suspect they were up to no good. And when she did, would she then question Drew's actions? As far as Jay was concerned, she and Jenna were dating. So two couples vacationing on the islands, yet neither of them are spending time with their respective partners. Surely Jay wouldn't just dismiss that.

Drew glanced again over her shoulder, finding Jay watching her. Their eyes held, neither trying to pull away. Slowly, Drew felt her heartbeat increase, felt her shortness of breath, felt the energy between them. What was Jay thinking? But the slight smile, the intense stare... Jay was looking forward to this trip as much as Drew was.

And it had nothing to do with Katherine and Jenna.

Oh, yeah, there was going to be trouble.

Jay finally looked away, pulling her gaze from Drew and glancing quickly at Katherine. She still had her nose in her tour book, flipping through the pages like she'd been doing the whole flight. There was no conversation, no visiting. She'd simply been reading. Oh, occasionally Katherine would show her something, flashing a picture at her.

Like now.

" The Big Island has active volcanoes, " she said, showing the picture.

" Are you interested? "

Katherine shook her head. " I don't think so. There's Jeep tours and hiking." She smiled. " Sounds more like your thing than mine."

Jay stared at her, wondering when their tastes had grown so far apart. In the beginning, they'd only wanted to spend time alone, with each other. They cooked meals in, rarely going out. They enjoyed each other's company back then. When did that change? When she took the job at Wilkes and Bonner? When Katherine went to work for Miles? Their time together got less and less. And the more Katherine moved up in her world, the further Jay moved down. Katherine was from a prominent family, from old money. She knew all the rules, all the proper etiquette, the right clothes to wear, the best restaurants. And Jay? No, not so much. She was lucky if she knew which fork to use at the fancy restaurants Katherine dragged her to. She rolled her eyes. Really, were four different forks necessary?

And now here they were, only hours from landing in Hawaii, a romantic destination for most. But for them? No. There would be no romance. There hadn't been even a hint of it since Katherine had fallen asleep in the middle of making love a couple of months before. Jay shook her head. No, not making love. Even if they had completed the act, she wouldn't call it making love.

She rolled her head to the side, looking out the window, seeing nothing. Ten days. She would spend much more time with Drew than she would Katherine. That was a given. Katherine already had excursions lined up for her and Jenna. She wondered at Katherine's sudden interest in art, in museums. In all their time together, Katherine never gave more than a passing interest in it. Perhaps it was a passion of Jenna's. Or maybe it was an excuse. Katherine knew, given the choice, Jay would much rather spend her time in the water. So to avoid being around her, she planned things she knew Jay would hate.

Again, that nagging feeling that Katherine just couldn't stand to be around her any longer hit full force. Going through the motions took on a whole new meaning. But if that was the case, then what the hell were they doing here? Why plan ten days in Hawaii with someone you had no interest being around?

Jay suddenly lifted her head, sliding her glance back to Katherine. Well, I'll be damned. They were going to Hawaii because Katherine wanted ten days with Jenna.

 


Поделиться с друзьями:

mylektsii.su - Мои Лекции - 2015-2024 год. (0.008 сек.)Все материалы представленные на сайте исключительно с целью ознакомления читателями и не преследуют коммерческих целей или нарушение авторских прав Пожаловаться на материал