woman, alone on the beach. God knows what could happen to me.”
“ You won't let me rescue you,” he said. His voice deepened with concern. “You don't trust me and the one who is going to pay for it is me.”
“ Why?” she asked, leaning against him. “Why do you think you'll pay for it?”
“ Because I'm already in love with you,” he said.
“ You can't be.”
“ I am,” he said, holding her in his arms. “Kailani...I don't know how to do any of this,” he confessed. “I don't know how to love someone and the last thing I want to do is hurt you so I think you should go.”
She narrowed her eyes and studied him. “When did you fall in love with me?”
“ I don't know. Somewhere between the exploding light bulb and when I held you in my arms in the dark.”
“ Ah God I did drink too much,” she said, putting her hand to her forehead. She looked at him. “Those arms have held a lot of women. How do I know you're not lying to me, leading me on for something?”
“ For what?” he asked, exasperated. “I've already had you and you haven't paid me a dime!”
“ Do y ou want paid?” She giggled and started searching through her purse.
“ Stop it,” he said. “Stop it Kailani.” He grasped her hands. “I don't want money from you. I don't want to take anything from you. You're only making me feel worse about this whole thing.” He walked away from her, toward the ocean. “If I'd have known that I was going to meet you, I'd have done things differently. I didn't know. I never expected...” He paused. “I never expected to fall in love with anyone.”
“ Why?”
“ Because I didn't think I was capable of it,” he said. “I gave up on all those kinds of feelings when I was seventeen years old and I haven't felt that way since then...until now.”
“ You must have really loved that girl,” Kailani said.
He didn't answer.
“ Show me where you live now,” Kailani said. “I want to see how you live on the beach.”
“ No, I'm taking you back to the party.”
“ I don't want to go back there,” she said. “I want to go with you.”
“ You're stubborn.”
Kailani smiled. “Rawr,” she said.
He laughed. “You're worse than Tubbo.”
“ Rescue me?”
Josh smiled and put his arm around her shoulders. “It isn't much,” he said. “It's just an old beach shack. I'll show it to you if you promise me a few things.”
“ What do you want me to promise you?”
“ No more ice water,” he reprimanded. “No slapping and no announcing our lovemaking time to the entire world.”
Kailani laughed. “Deal,” she said, reaching to shake his hand. She smiled when he grasped it and held on.
Chapter 11
Kailani waited as he lit the lantern inside the shack. The soft warm glow lit up the cozy room. There was only a bed and a wooden crate to serve as a night stand. On the night stand were several sea shells, but nothing else. “This is nice,” Kailani said.
“ There's nothing here.”
“ You're here,” Kailani said, turning and looking up at him. “You said you owe me.”
“ After what happened at the diner, I'm a little hesitant.”
“ Do you have anymore dates that you have to go on?”
“ No,” he said, touching her cheek, “and I'm not making any either.”
“ Did you mean what you said?”
“ Yes, I've never said that to anyone,” Josh confessed.
“ Not even your teen crush?” She wrapped her arms around his waist.
“ It was more of a crash,” he told her. “After I was sent away, I wrote her a letter fully explaining how I felt. I told her everything, bared my soul to her.”
“ And?”
“ She wrote back and told me that she didn't feel that way about me at all.”
Kailani winced, “How awful.”
“ I was devastated,” Josh said. “She told me she thought of me as a big brother, a friend and she said she was sorry if I'd been hurt.” He paused. “After that happened, I thought it would be best if I keep my emotions under wraps and
“ You won't let me rescue you,” he said. His voice deepened with concern. “You don't trust me and the one who is going to pay for it is me.”
“ Why?” she asked, leaning against him. “Why do you think you'll pay for it?”
“ Because I'm already in love with you,” he said.
“ You can't be.”
“ I am,” he said, holding her in his arms. “Kailani...I don't know how to do any of this,” he confessed. “I don't know how to love someone and the last thing I want to do is hurt you so I think you should go.”
She narrowed her eyes and studied him. “When did you fall in love with me?”
“ I don't know. Somewhere between the exploding light bulb and when I held you in my arms in the dark.”
“ Ah God I did drink too much,” she said, putting her hand to her forehead. She looked at him. “Those arms have held a lot of women. How do I know you're not lying to me, leading me on for something?”
“ For what?” he asked, exasperated. “I've already had you and you haven't paid me a dime!”
“ Do y ou want paid?” She giggled and started searching through her purse.
“ Stop it,” he said. “Stop it Kailani.” He grasped her hands. “I don't want money from you. I don't want to take anything from you. You're only making me feel worse about this whole thing.” He walked away from her, toward the ocean. “If I'd have known that I was going to meet you, I'd have done things differently. I didn't know. I never expected...” He paused. “I never expected to fall in love with anyone.”
“ Why?”
“ Because I didn't think I was capable of it,” he said. “I gave up on all those kinds of feelings when I was seventeen years old and I haven't felt that way since then...until now.”
“ You must have really loved that girl,” Kailani said.
He didn't answer.
“ Show me where you live now,” Kailani said. “I want to see how you live on the beach.”
“ No, I'm taking you back to the party.”
“ I don't want to go back there,” she said. “I want to go with you.”
“ You're stubborn.”
Kailani smiled. “Rawr,” she said.
He laughed. “You're worse than Tubbo.”
“ Rescue me?”
Josh smiled and put his arm around her shoulders. “It isn't much,” he said. “It's just an old beach shack. I'll show it to you if you promise me a few things.”
“ What do you want me to promise you?”
“ No more ice water,” he reprimanded. “No slapping and no announcing our lovemaking time to the entire world.”
Kailani laughed. “Deal,” she said, reaching to shake his hand. She smiled when he grasped it and held on.
Chapter 11
Kailani waited as he lit the lantern inside the shack. The soft warm glow lit up the cozy room. There was only a bed and a wooden crate to serve as a night stand. On the night stand were several sea shells, but nothing else. “This is nice,” Kailani said.
“ There's nothing here.”
“ You're here,” Kailani said, turning and looking up at him. “You said you owe me.”
“ After what happened at the diner, I'm a little hesitant.”
“ Do you have anymore dates that you have to go on?”
“ No,” he said, touching her cheek, “and I'm not making any either.”
“ Did you mean what you said?”
“ Yes, I've never said that to anyone,” Josh confessed.
“ Not even your teen crush?” She wrapped her arms around his waist.
“ It was more of a crash,” he told her. “After I was sent away, I wrote her a letter fully explaining how I felt. I told her everything, bared my soul to her.”
“ And?”
“ She wrote back and told me that she didn't feel that way about me at all.”
Kailani winced, “How awful.”
“ I was devastated,” Josh said. “She told me she thought of me as a big brother, a friend and she said she was sorry if I'd been hurt.” He paused. “After that happened, I thought it would be best if I keep my emotions under wraps and
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