Heat Wave(52)

I’ve been to the coffee shop a few times since that day I arrived when I was with Charlie and the redhead behind the counter has been increasingly nice to me, though I still think she gives me a bit of the stink-eye.

But that’s been nothing compared to what I see with Kate.

I’m first in line, ordering a shot of noni (which a horrible tasting fruit elixir that does wonders for your insides) and my usual banana coconut mocha iced drink and the redhead gives me the head nod—no smile—while she takes my order.

When Kate steps up to place her order though, the redhead's eyes narrow into little blue slits, the line deepening between her penciled brows. I could feel Kate stiffening up a bit as we made our way through the line, moving her weight from one foot to the other, but I didn't think anything of it until now.

These two obviously know each other.

And the redhead seems to be the one with the grudge. She just stares at Kate, not saying a single word. Kate clears her throat. “Uh, I'd like an iced macadamia nut latte with coconut milk. Please.”

The barista's eyes linger on her for another moment in that death stare until she starts punching in numbers on the register.

“Five dollars and twenty-five cents,” she says in a clipped voice.

Kate can't pay her fast enough and quickly moves on down to where I am, picking up my noni shot from the end of the bar. Kate's eyes are wide, the first time I've probably seen her look anything more than blasé.

“What was that about?” I whisper before I down the noni shot, full-on shuddering at the taste. It’s like bad, stinky cheese mixed with rancid fruit.

“I'll explain later,” she says, looking furtively over her shoulder at the barista. “It's not a big deal.” She frowns as I put the empty shot glass back on the counter. “Why do you torture yourself with that stuff?”

“Look, I've been living off beef jerky and granola bars for the last twenty-four hours, my body needs this.” Thankfully my drink is ready next and gets the horrid taste out of my mouth.

Once Kate gets hers, we hurry back to her car, nearly tripping over a hen and her chicks as they dawdle down the sidewalk. Last month I would have been taking pictures of the sight, now the chickens are as natural as crows and pigeons back home.

“Okay spill the beans,” I tell her when we’re in the car, continuing on up the highway toward the north shore.

She rolls her eyes and turns down the volume on the radio that was blaring some new Rhianna song. “It's a long story.”

“It better be a long story,” I tell her, “because there has to be a reason why that girl hates you. I mean, she's always been kinda bitchy with me but not like that. She looked like she wanted to murder you.”

Kate reaches into a compartment between the seats and slicks on some lip balm, rubbing her lips together. I'm not even sure if she's heard me or not.

Then she lowers her sunglasses down over her eyes and sighs. “This is a judgment free zone.”

“Of course.”

“I'm not asking, I'm telling you,” she says. “All right. That girl, Ana, used to be one of the regulars at the restaurant and the bar. She lived somewhere in Hanalei and obviously had a giant crush on Charlie. She was there pretty much all the time. And Charlie being Charlie, well they start fucking around. Charlie never committed to her but that didn't seem to matter because she was head over heels and all that bullshit. Meanwhile, I started dating this guy call Honu. Honestly I don't even know what his real name is. He was a surfer and a good time and it wasn't anything serious. But it turns out Honu was her ex-boyfriend and even though she had a thing with Charlie, she wasn't too happy about that.”

“Ah, I see,” I say, sucking back on the drink and letting the sugary, caffeinated goodness pump some life back into my veins.

“Well that's not all,” she goes on, quieter now. “See . . . before Charlie started up with Ana, well, he and I were kind of a—” she clears her throat, “an item.”

“I knew it!” I exclaim, nearly jumping in my seat. “I could tell, I could so tell.”

She cocks her head toward me and peers over her sunglasses. “You don't have to act so smug about it.”

I grin back at her and shrug. “Hey, I've worked in the hospitality business forever, you learn to pick up on those things.” I'm tempted to start talking about what happened with me and Erik since we're in the mode of sharing with each other, but I decide to hold back for now. This is Kate's story and I've had a hell of a time getting her to open up about anything.

“Anyway,” she says with a wave of her hand, “I'm not proud of it but it happened. What can I say . . . I had just started working here and I was lonely and Charlie, was . . . “