A Little Harmless Addiction: Harmless, Book 5 Read online

  “My father didn’t raise an idiot.”

  They stood like that for a moment or two, the odd silence filling the air around them.

  “Well, I guess I should let you get back to…” He glanced in the kitchen. “You just got here and you’re baking?”

  A light blush stained her cheeks. “I am little out of sorts. Thought I would work off some nervous energy.”

  “Well, I hope you enjoy the goodies. I’ll see you around.”

  She set the basket on the small kitchenette table. “Oh, please, could you take some of these cookies home?”

  Without waiting for an answer, she hurried into the kitchen. He followed her, but not too closely. He apparently made the woman nervous and she was offering free cookies. He didn’t want to miss out on that especially as the smell grew the closer he got to the kitchen.

  She was sealing up a plastic baggie by the time he reached the entrance. She handed them to him.

  “Thanks again for bringing the basket all the way out here.”

  “No problem.” He turned to leave then stopped. “You wouldn’t be interested in going out to dinner would you?”

  A look of something akin to panic moved over her face before she hid it behind a mask. “I just got here, so I am not really sure…”

  “I understand.”

  “No. It’s…I just got out of a really, really bad relationship. I can’t…” She closed her eyes and pulled herself together. When she opened her eyes, he saw regret and embarrassment. “I just don’t think I am ready for a date of any sort.”

  “No problem.”

  By the time Kai was on his way back down H-3 he realized there was something really off about Chris’s sister. She had been through a bad break up, but there was more to it than that. There were women who wanted nothing to do with the locals. Of course, it could just be that soured relationship. And that made her off-limits. He was sick of being the guy who helped women through breakups. The last one had left him bloodied and a little bit more cynical. He definitely wanted to make sure to avoid any woman who was trying to mend a broken heart.

  With that, he punched the gas and headed into Honolulu. He had an early morning.

  Jocelyn went through the basket trying to ignore the fact she had made an idiot of herself. God, did she have to act like the frightened little kitten that couldn’t take care of herself? It was embarrassing. Where was Queen Jocelyn, the head bakery chef who scared the hell out of the lower staff members?

  She’d turned into a crumbling mess in Atlanta, that’s where.

  She closed her eyes and held herself in check. She would not cry. It was her first night in Hawaii. The first night of the rest of her life. Greg wasn’t here, wouldn’t be here. He couldn’t hurt her. And dammit, she refused to let the memory of what he had done to her ruin her first night.

  The first real interaction with a man and she had acted like a virgin, afraid to even touch him. Hell, she had been scared to let him in the house. Even after she knew who he was, remembered May mentioning him, she had been frightened.

  He wasn’t as tall as Greg. He’d been just an inch or two over her five-foot-eight frame. But he was big. What was it that May had said he did…worked on the docks. And it showed. Sinewy muscles and an alertness that told her he watched everything around him. Oh, he gave off the vibe of a lazy guy, but that was the deception. Her brother Malachi was like that. And he was a Navy Seal.

  Kai Aiona was a gorgeous man, who apparently was afraid of his sister, and had been so nice as to ask her on a date. And she had freaked.

  With a sigh, she lifted the basket and carried it into the kitchen. She would have to take that step when she could, but she knew she wasn’t ready.

  But at least she still had some kind of sexual desires. Kai had proven that. She had always had a thing for Asian or Polynesian men. She knew he was Hawaiian, but May said their mother had been white, and there was a little Chinese somewhere in their bloodline. Damn. Whatever his genetic makeup, it was one hell of a tasty mix.

  And if she was still Jocelyn the Queen, she would have jumped at the chance of a date with him and would have gladly jumped his bones. She could just imagine how those large hands would feel over her skin, or how that fast mouth of his would work magic on her…

  Regretfully, she pushed those ideas out of her mind and set to getting the fruit stored. She needed her rest and there was no use in thinking about a man she would never have.

  Chapter Two

  By midafternoon the next day, Kai was ready to crash. It had been a bitch of a morning and now that there was a threat of a nasty storm, he had called it a day and brought in the ships. In the tourist and fishing business, it wouldn’t be smart to even mess with it. One screw up, one injured or stranded tourist and your business was gone. The storm clouds were already rolling in and for the first time in months it looked like Honolulu was about to get hit with a pretty nasty storm.

  He walked into Dupree’s and found his sister manning the booth.

  “Hey, bra, what’s up?”

  “Bad weather rolling in. I cancelled the afternoon outings.”

  She nodded. “I have a feeling we’re going to either be so busy we won’t get breaks or we’re going to be dead. Not sure which one I’m wanting.”

  He smiled. “Since I did your little errand yesterday, I think I deserve a free lunch.”

  “Moocher.” But it was said with an affection that he was used to with May. Less than two years apart in age, they had always been close and even more so after their mother had died when May was twelve and he fourteen. When most brothers and sisters were growing apart, their mother’s death had brought them closer together. And while there were times he’d hated it in high school, he now counted himself lucky.

  “How about a plate of Kalua pig?”

  She nodded. “Come on. I’ll take my break with you.”

  After she grabbed them both a plate, they settled in the back booth by the kitchen. “So, you didn’t have a problem getting in Cynthia’s house?”

  He shook his head and finished the bite. “No. Jocelyn was there.”

  She’d been raising her fork to her mouth, but stopped and looked at him. “Jocelyn didn’t have a problem with letting you in the house?”

  “A little at first.” He jerked his shoulder, trying to forget the way she had treated him. “But she seemed to feel a little better when I mentioned your name.”

  “Oh.” She didn’t resume eating.

  He stopped and looked at her. When she didn’t say anything else, he asked, “What?”

  She sighed. “It’s just that she has been through a bad time.”

  “Yeah, she told me.”

  “She told you about Greg? I’m not sure how much she told the boss.”

  He shrugged again. “So, she had a bad breakup.”

  “No. She wasn’t dating the man. He was her boss at one time. I’m not sure what happened, but in the end, she was in the hospital.”

  That had him setting his fork down. “Really?”

  She rolled her eyes. “Remember when I was in the hospital, after the whole crazy bitch Lee thing?”

  Of course he did. It was hard to forget the crazy woman who had tried to kill his sister. And how like his sister to mention it like she talked about a common event.

  “Chris was in Atlanta, remember? He had to go back there for her.”

  “She had a breakdown?” Which he couldn’t see. She might have been uncomfortable with him the night before, but she didn’t seem like the type to fall apart.

  “No. She was attacked.”

  Anger churned his gut. “Attacked. By the guy?”

  She nodded. “I’m not sure exactly what went on, but I’m still amazed she let you in.”

  He sighed then dug back into his food. “Well, shit. I wasn’t sure what it was. It didn’t make sense, but I thought it was because of being Hawaiian.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Really, can you imagine Chris having a sister who was prejud
iced? No, she is just a little skittish around men. I thought for sure they would be out for dinner.”

  After swallowing a fork full of food, he said, “Oh, well, she seemed okay with it.”

  “Either way, just be sure to be nice to her.”

  He rolled his eyes. The woman would always think she could tell him what to do. “It isn’t like I was an ass to her. And it isn’t like we are going to spend a lot of time together.”

  “She’s coming over tomorrow night for the cookout. Dad’s making some Huhi Huhi chicken. I thought it would be easier for her to meet everyone that way.”

  His heart did a little jerk as his body warmed. Just the thought of seeing her again was getting a reaction out of him, which was not a good thing in his humble opinion. He’d been steering clear of women for a month or two now, for good reason. He definitely didn’t need a woman with so much baggage.

  “I was planning a poker night with the guys tomorrow night.”

  May paused in lifting the fork to her mouth again. She narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips. Shit.

  “No, you don’t and you are not missing my party.”

  Kai knew it was a lost argument, but he couldn’t keep himself from doing it just the same. Old habits with siblings die hard. “It’s not your party. It’s at our house.”

  She sighed. “It isn’t like I’m trying to fix you up. And if you want to, make sure to invite your crew.”

  Just thinking of his crew intermingling with the group caused his lips to twitch.

  “I mean, if you want to avoid her, I am sure one of them would be happy to spend time with her.”

  He stopped smiling.

  “I thought you said she was recovering.”

  May rolled her eyes. “Yeah. But it doesn’t mean she’s dead. And your guys are nice.”

  He snorted. “Nice? Do you mean just the ones without records?”

  She shook her head. “Kai, you know most of the charges stem from bar fights.”

  Sometimes May was a little too naïve, but he figured he’d let her think his men were just misunderstood. Otherwise she would start worrying.

  “I guess I can make it tomorrow night.”

  She smiled, bright, sunny, and dammit, she had done all of that on purpose. He’d known it from the beginning but couldn’t seem to stop himself. She did it to him every chance she could get. From the time she could talk, May was clever with a devious bent.

  “I’ll probably be late.”

  She rolled her eyes. “That’s fine. Just as long as you get your butt there.”

  He was walking to his truck when he realized just how well she played him. May knew that Jocelyn was his type, would be a woman he would take an interest in. His sister was a pain in the ass. Damn. He needed to stay far away from Jocelyn, and he knew May. She was going to try and pair them up.

  Well, he would just avoid her as much as possible. It would be easy enough with that many people there. Knowing May, she’d invited a lot of people, maybe even some people from Rough ’n Ready, which made him frown. Jocelyn didn’t strike him as a person who would be interested in that. Or, if she was, someone who had been attacked probably shouldn’t be involved in anything to do with the life his sister and brother-in-law lived. He didn’t disagree with it, other than he didn’t like to think of his sister doing those types of things. That was just not right. But he knew without a doubt that it wasn’t the thing for Jocelyn.

  He groaned. Shit, he was coming up with reasons she couldn’t be involved with someone from the BDSM club his brother-in-law co-owned with Micah Ross. Why? It wasn’t as if anything would happen between them. He had sworn off damaged women and she didn’t seem that interested in him.

  But as he turned on Kapolani Boulevard, he knew he wasn’t being truthful with himself.

  Jocelyn smiled as Mr. Aiona gave her a glass of water.

  He returned the smile. “If I had known Chris had such a beautiful sister, I’d have made him bring you over here years ago.”

  This she could handle. May’s father was a short, happy man. He flirted with her, but he was harmless. As was May’s grandfather who asked her if she would be interested in a bingo date.

  Before she could answer, Chris slung his arm over her shoulders. “What? You thought that someone in my family wouldn’t be gorgeous? With me as her brother?”

  “Ah, but you’re ugly,” Mr. Aiona said. “How would I have known such a beauty would be related you?”

  Her brother laughed, the happy sound warming her heart. In the last few months, he had rarely laughed around her. It was one of the things that made her feel even guiltier for what had happened. She knew it wasn’t her fault they happened, but it didn’t make it any easier to know that she had caused her family and friends worry.

  She took a long drink then said, “I have it on good authority that out of everyone, Shannon and I got all the looks. The boys are just ugly as sin.”

  “How many brothers do you have?” Mr. Aiona asked.

  “Three. Although Chris is the worst of the bunch. Being the oldest, he always thought he could boss us around.”

  Before Mr. Aiona could ask her another question, she heard the door behind her shut. Even without looking, she knew who it was. She glanced over her shoulder, and even though she had tried to prepare herself, she couldn’t stop her body’s reaction to him.

  Kai Aiona had been gorgeous a few days ago, but tonight, damn, he was mouth-wateringly delicious. He was wearing a Hawaii University T-shirt that stretched over his massive chest, leaving little to her imagination. He was built, that was for sure, his shorts were short and stopped just above his knees. It gave her an excellent view of a dragon tattoo on his right leg.

  “Kai. You are late.” It wasn’t said as an accusation, but said by his father with a smile and a wealth of affection.

  “Sorry, Dad. I picked up some more ice because I figured you’d be running low.”

  He gave his father a hug and then turned to face her.

  Mr. Aiona’s smile took on a conspiratorial slant. “Jocelyn, this is my son, Kai. He’s my oldest.”

  “We met the other night,” she said, without taking her gaze from Kai.

  “You did?” This came both from Mr. Aiona and her brother.

  She laughed, then looked at Mr. Aiona. “Yeah. He stopped by my first night with a basket from May. And I sent him home with sugar cookies.”

  Kai smiled and it brought out two dimples. Lord.

  “They were delicious, thank you.”

  “Cookies? I never had any cookies.” His father sounded suspicious.

  She looked at Mr. Aiona, then to Kai. “I sent a dozen home with Kai.”

  A blush stained Kai’s cheeks. “I ate them on the way home.”

  “All twelve?” she asked.

  His father let out a booming laugh and slapped Kai on the back. “You’ll get fat, my son.”

  “Not a chance. I’m going to grab a beer. Does anyone want anything?”

  No one did and she watched him walk away. Inwardly, she sighed. It had been a long time since a man had caught her attention, but it seemed her libido had just come back to life. Damn, the man was put together fine. As she had noticed the night she met him, he wasn’t tall, but he was built. She studied the way the worn fabric moved over his shoulders and could tell that he was definitely defined. And from what Cynthia said, he had more than just that dragon tattoo.

  She noticed that her brother and Mr. Aiona had gotten quiet. Kai’s father wore a knowing smile that had her face heating in embarrassment. God, how horrible. Caught ogling his son. When she turned to Chris, his thunderous expression didn’t settler her nerves. She didn’t need her brother going into protection mode the first night she met all of his friends.

  Jocelyn knew she needed to get out of there. Chris was opening his mouth to say something when Cynthia walked up and saved Jocelyn from his wrath. She slipped her arm through Jocelyn’s and tugged.

  “May, Dee and I want some girl time with J
ocelyn. Go look at the meat and make manly sounds.”

  Chris didn’t look all that happy about it, but he wasn’t about to make a scene, especially with Cynthia pulling her away.

  Once they were out of earshot, she said, “Girl, thank you. That was embarrassing.”

  Cynthia laughed. “Yeah, I could see that. I can’t blame you. Kai is hot. And he is a sweetie.”

  Again, Jocelyn felt her face heat. “Yeah, well, nothing like lusting after a man in front of my brother. Not to mention his father. I thought Chris was going to say something.”

  Cynthia’s blue eyes sparkled with mischief. “I’m sure he wanted to, but he has to weigh how it will look. If he makes too big of a scene, he’s afraid Kai will intrigue you even more.”

  Jocelyn stopped and pulled her arm out of Cynthia’s. “What does he think I am, fifteen?”

  “Yeah, I think so. He still sees you that way. And I’m going to warn you, Chris is going to be overprotective.”

  She laughed. “Yeah, tell me something I don’t know. He’s always been that way. My first date he sat on the couch pretending to clean our daddy’s gun.”

  “No, really?”

  Jocelyn sighed. “Yeah. First real date and he wouldn’t hold my hand. Chris can be a pain in the ass.”

  “Of course.” Cynthia slipped her arm through Jocelyn’s again. “I just want you to know that he was so very scared when we went to Atlanta.”

  Shame washed through her. She should have never allowed it, should have never been in that position. Greg had pretty much escalated things and it had been out of her control in the end. But it didn’t mean that every day she didn’t fight the battle of shame versus anger. She’d learned through therapy she had to quit blaming herself, but there was a part of her that never would. It was the part that hated her family had been hurt by Greg’s actions and the resulting incident.

  “Don’t start looking like that,” Cynthia said.

  She glanced at her soon-to-be sister-in-law. The militant look on her soft features almost made Jocelyn smile. She might be petite, but Cynthia could be a tiger when it came to people she cared about.

  “I hate that he went through that,” Jocelyn said.