Hawaiian Masquerade (Destination Billionaire Romance) by Rachelle J. Christensen Page B
Authors: Rachelle J. Christensen
Ads: Link
slant.
“My brother owns Burke Enterprises. He imports things from China and exports to other countries. Just think big business, lots of stress, minimum sixty-hour weeks, and you’ll have the idea.”
“So you must have got a pretty good severance package if your brother owns the company,” Derek said. No wonder Lexi had some free time. Derek swallowed the memory of his mother working overtime and his own teenage years sucked away by minimum-wage jobs.
Lexi shrugged. “You could say that. I’m still figuring out what to do next.”
“I’m looking for a street caller to sell my photos.”
Lexi turned to him and smiled. “I’ll be there. I haven’t forgotten the mahi-mahi, you know.”
“Pika keeps telling me that if I want to make real money, I need to take pictures of him and sell them.”
Lexi giggled. “Well, he is good-looking.”
Derek’s heart dropped to the dirt. Of course she thought Pika was good-looking. Every woman thought Pika was good-looking.
Lexi casually brushed her hand through the air. “In a tree trunk sort of way.”
A flicker of hope brought Derek’s gaze off the ground. “Tree trunk?”
“You know, bulky but kind of a knot head.” She grinned over her shoulder, letting him know she was teasing.
Derek laughed. “You know him better than I do. He doesn’t know that I have some of him chopping coconuts. I took them when he was working hard, concentrating so that his body and face were determined lines. I think they show how some islanders live day to day and by the sweat of their brow. Some people like the pictures that go deeper than the surface. They like to see island life up close.”
“I can see how that niche would be appealing. Do you do many like that?”
Derek lifted a shoulder and let it drop. “Here and there. It’s tricky to get permission from someone, because then they think you need to pay them or give them free coconuts for life.” He reached out as Lexi slipped, grabbing her hand. “Watch out for the tree branches. This incline is brutal, but we’re almost to the vista.”
“Remind me not to work out with you, okay?”
“It’s uphill, downhill, flat, and more downhill on the way. But the way back always goes faster for some reason. Like I said, you’ll do fine.”
Lexi held his hand as he led her over another rock-encrusted part of the trail. He liked the way her slight fingers gripped his with strength. She was just a little thing, maybe five foot five and slight of build, but she held her own as they climbed.
When they reached the overlook, she flipped her braid over her shoulder and gasped. “I can’t believe we’re this high up. You weren’t kidding.” She leaned forward, still holding on to Derek. The turquoise waters stretched out to dark blue and then gray as they touched the horizon. The beach was relatively quiet this early in the morning, but at least a dozen people were setting up umbrellas and chairs along the shore.
It felt like they were a world away from Ke’e Beach, floating in a tropical paradise. The sun burst from the clouds, catching the golden highlights in Lexi’s hair. He wanted to reach out and touch her braid, see if it was as sleek and smooth as it looked.
Lexi turned to him, appreciation in her eyes. “It’s amazing.”
Derek nodded. “And this is your first hike.” He liked the open end to his sentence as they continued hiking, as if he’d said it was her first hike with him. He tore his eyes from Lexi and focused on the rocky trail, guiding her with him down the slope.
8
G oing downhill was much easier on Lexi’s lungs than the uphill climb had been. She figured that if she went hiking once a week, in a few months she could keep pace with Derek without being winded.
“We made it.” Derek pointed to the beach that suddenly appeared around a curve in the trail. “This is Hanakapi’ai Beach, or as Pika likes to call it, Stray Cat Island.”
Lexi squinted, trying to figure out the meaning of
“My brother owns Burke Enterprises. He imports things from China and exports to other countries. Just think big business, lots of stress, minimum sixty-hour weeks, and you’ll have the idea.”
“So you must have got a pretty good severance package if your brother owns the company,” Derek said. No wonder Lexi had some free time. Derek swallowed the memory of his mother working overtime and his own teenage years sucked away by minimum-wage jobs.
Lexi shrugged. “You could say that. I’m still figuring out what to do next.”
“I’m looking for a street caller to sell my photos.”
Lexi turned to him and smiled. “I’ll be there. I haven’t forgotten the mahi-mahi, you know.”
“Pika keeps telling me that if I want to make real money, I need to take pictures of him and sell them.”
Lexi giggled. “Well, he is good-looking.”
Derek’s heart dropped to the dirt. Of course she thought Pika was good-looking. Every woman thought Pika was good-looking.
Lexi casually brushed her hand through the air. “In a tree trunk sort of way.”
A flicker of hope brought Derek’s gaze off the ground. “Tree trunk?”
“You know, bulky but kind of a knot head.” She grinned over her shoulder, letting him know she was teasing.
Derek laughed. “You know him better than I do. He doesn’t know that I have some of him chopping coconuts. I took them when he was working hard, concentrating so that his body and face were determined lines. I think they show how some islanders live day to day and by the sweat of their brow. Some people like the pictures that go deeper than the surface. They like to see island life up close.”
“I can see how that niche would be appealing. Do you do many like that?”
Derek lifted a shoulder and let it drop. “Here and there. It’s tricky to get permission from someone, because then they think you need to pay them or give them free coconuts for life.” He reached out as Lexi slipped, grabbing her hand. “Watch out for the tree branches. This incline is brutal, but we’re almost to the vista.”
“Remind me not to work out with you, okay?”
“It’s uphill, downhill, flat, and more downhill on the way. But the way back always goes faster for some reason. Like I said, you’ll do fine.”
Lexi held his hand as he led her over another rock-encrusted part of the trail. He liked the way her slight fingers gripped his with strength. She was just a little thing, maybe five foot five and slight of build, but she held her own as they climbed.
When they reached the overlook, she flipped her braid over her shoulder and gasped. “I can’t believe we’re this high up. You weren’t kidding.” She leaned forward, still holding on to Derek. The turquoise waters stretched out to dark blue and then gray as they touched the horizon. The beach was relatively quiet this early in the morning, but at least a dozen people were setting up umbrellas and chairs along the shore.
It felt like they were a world away from Ke’e Beach, floating in a tropical paradise. The sun burst from the clouds, catching the golden highlights in Lexi’s hair. He wanted to reach out and touch her braid, see if it was as sleek and smooth as it looked.
Lexi turned to him, appreciation in her eyes. “It’s amazing.”
Derek nodded. “And this is your first hike.” He liked the open end to his sentence as they continued hiking, as if he’d said it was her first hike with him. He tore his eyes from Lexi and focused on the rocky trail, guiding her with him down the slope.
8
G oing downhill was much easier on Lexi’s lungs than the uphill climb had been. She figured that if she went hiking once a week, in a few months she could keep pace with Derek without being winded.
“We made it.” Derek pointed to the beach that suddenly appeared around a curve in the trail. “This is Hanakapi’ai Beach, or as Pika likes to call it, Stray Cat Island.”
Lexi squinted, trying to figure out the meaning of
Similar Books
