Hawaiian Holiday: Destination Desire, Book 2 by Crystal Jordan Page B

stood there, hands covering their mouths, eyes wide.
    Incredulousness filled Lukas’s voice. “Are those the same—”
    “Yep.” Julie snorted on a laugh and held him tighter. He chuckled with her and the next thing she knew, they’d been engulfed by the next wave of water. She came up sputtering and only laughed harder.
    He shook the water from his hair, and drew her close again. “Those kids are the bane of my existence.”
    She nodded, arching a brow. “I found out this morning they’re on the same floor I am.”
    The tips of his fingers ran down her sides. “You remembered what they looked like? All I remembered was the interruption.”
    “Nope, but they remembered me.” She offered a rueful look. “The giggles were unmistakable. Fortunately, I don’t think they’re old enough to understand what it meant that I was wearing the same clothes as last night, or it would have been a walk of shame too.”
    “I’m going to have nightmares about them.”
    She chortled and popped a kiss on his mouth. “So, shower and figure out how to get downtown?”
    “Sex in the shower first?” A hopeful lilt filled his voice and he pulled her tighter to him, so that his erection was more than obvious. Want pulsed through her, and her pussy contracted on nothingness.
    “I think we can arrange that.” She grinned, letting her head fall back. Her grin widened when he brushed a kiss over her throat.
    In under twenty-four hours, everything seemed to have changed. She’d come here looking for an escape from her life, her grief, her memories. Looking for perspective and closure. Maybe she hadn’t found all of that—at least not yet—but she was smiling, laughing, having a good time. She hadn’t felt this free since the hospital had called her with the news that Eloise had had her first stroke.
    She’d spent the last year thinking about how much she hated change, how much it hurt, but Hawaii had definitely brought some good changes. Maybe they were temporary, but she’d take what she could get.

Chapter Five
    “This traffic is awful. ” Julie frowned, her voice fretful. “We’ll never make it to the palace in time for our tour. Maybe you should have made the reservation for later.”
    Something in her tone made Lukas’s muscles tighten in automatic reflex. He shook himself. Not every woman was like Lilith. Five years after the divorce and he still had to remind himself of that. Then again, he’d had seven years of conditioning before he’d finally called it quits. His ex liked to be on top of every detail. So did he, but he knew when and how to be flexible. She hadn’t. If he were with Lilith right now, he’d be in for a tirade. The whining would escalate and bam , the world would be ending because of a traffic jam. And somehow, it would all be his fault. Because he should have made the tour reservations for later.
    The bus continued to inch forward, and he made a non-committal noise. It seemed the safest response after Julie’s comment.
    She bumped her shoulder into his. “Well, if we miss it, maybe we’ll get lucky and the next tour will have openings. Fingers crossed.”
    Holding up her hand, she demonstrated the overlapping fingers. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. Again, she seemed much more laid back than he anticipated. She looped her arm through his and swiveled her head around to watch the buildings and people that passed by. Not a glimmer of distress showed on her countenance. Yeah, he really needed to stop assuming that any woman he was attracted to would eventually melt down on him. But old habits died hard and his ex had trained him far too well to expect the worst and not even bother to hope for the best.
    He blew out a breath, forcing those thoughts down. It was rare for him to think about Lilith, but she’d cropped up more than once in the last day. Maybe because Julie was the woman he’d been most attracted to since his ex, which was disturbing to realize, but attraction did not