14. ‘Ōlena

14

‘ōlena

" B ut I want to go with you," Kiki whined.

"Not tonight," ‘ōlena told her. "You're staying with your aunties and cousins."

"Why can't I come too?"

"Come on," Luana coaxed. "We can color with Rory."

Kiki hugged ‘ōlena's leg tighter and glared at her sister.

"Do you want to go see the goats?" Nate tried.

"I hate the goats! I want my tutu!"

"Tutu and Grandpa are resting."

"I want to go to Tutu's house!"

"Not tonight, little opihi." ‘ōlena tried to pry Kiki's arms away, but she just held on tighter and wrapped her legs around ‘ōlena's for good measure.

"I'm never letting you go!"

"Come on, Kiki!" Luana put her hands on her hips. "Everyone else says goodbye to their moms every day! You can let her go one time."

"No!"

"Hey kids!" Emma called from the lanai. "Who wants popsicles?"

"Popsicles!" Kiki released her hold on ‘ōlena and tumbled to the ground, then scrambled to her feet and sprinted to the house. "I want one!"

"We made them with cane juice!" Kai shouted. "They're so ‘ono!"

Emma winked at ‘ōlena and then followed the kids inside.

"Quick!" Nate put a hand under her elbow and pulled her towards the gate. "Let's escape while we still can."

"She's so clingy all of a sudden," ‘ōlena said. Nate opened the gate for her and latched it firmly behind them.

"She had a tough time when you were at the hospital with your parents. She's never been away from you that much, and not being able to see you or your mom for days was really hard on her."

"I guess. I just want her to be more resilient than that."

"She will be. She's only little." Nate opened the passenger-side door and kissed her before she stepped up into the cab of his truck.

"So?" she asked when he was in the driver's seat. "Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise," Nate said. But when he got to the main road and turned towards the ocean, there was really only one place they could be headed: the cliffs for sunset.

That wasn't much of a surprise, but it would be a pleasant way to end the day. ‘ōlena took the girls down there often. She even took the whole co-op group down to the ironwood forest sometimes, but there was no relaxing at the cliffs with kids. She was always on high alert making sure that no one went over the edge.

Even when it was just her and her girls, it seemed like they did their best to terrify her. Kiki loved playing in the pools of water that the splashing waves made near the tops of the cliffs, and Luana was always trying to peek over the edge. It was a gorgeous place to walk, but never easy on her nerves.

Riding along with Nate, on the other hand?

Sometimes that felt like the one time she could breathe easy.

Growing up, she always felt at ease with her parents. They were her foundation, sturdier than the ground beneath her feet. There were no earthquakes or hidden sinkholes with Mahina and Manō – just unconditional love and support.

Even as a young mother, her parents had been her rock. They had let her move back in after her divorce, and they had parented her daughters every bit as much as she had. Without them, she would have struggled just to scrape by; she could hardly imagine it.

Now, although she was as secure in the knowledge of her parents' love and support as she ever had been, things had shifted. Her dad's heart attack had rocked her to her core, and her mom was just as shaken. It was time for them to refocus their energy on themselves and enjoy some well-deserved rest.

They were still young and able, but those days in the hospital had been a reminder that they were slowly approaching the era in which she would be taking care of them . And that would be her honor; the alternative was too devastating to think about.

But it all left her feeling like she had leveled up into a new phase of adulthood, fully independent of her parents and standing on her own two feet.

And Nate had made that transition ten times easier.

When she was with him, she could relax. The rest of the time, she was a small business owner responsible for the community's children. That too was an honor and a privilege, but it could also be exhausting. Whether she was at work with the Pualena Playschool or at home with her daughters, she was always on . Always responsible for someone else.

And so those rare times that she could fully rely on someone else? Just sit back and let him take the wheel? They were priceless.

He parked on a dirt road on the edge of town. They followed a trail out through the brambles and walked across the black lava rock hand in hand.

The sun was setting, and the shade of the mauna had thrown the eastern side of the island into a prolonged twilight. Golden clouds shone against a dusky blue sky, and their reflected light danced over the surface of the water.

‘ōlena lifted her face to the faint salt spray of crashing waves and breathed the ocean air deep into her lungs. It was such a luxury, this stillness. Standing beside her man in contented silence, staring out at the horizon.

They walked along the sea cliffs towards the ironwood forest that grew just a few yards from the edge of the island. Those woods, with their climbable trees and spongy forest floor, were one of her daughters' favorite places to play. She made a mental note to bring the co-op out there soon for a low-key field trip.

"Wait here." Nate put his hands on her shoulders and turned her so that she was fully facing the water, standing with her back to the woods.

Maybe he did have plans beyond a sunset stroll, though that alone would have been enough. More points for him, then.

She stood on the black expanse of lava rock, looking out at the subtle beauty of an east-side sunset. The sky took on a purple hue, still punctuated by fiery clouds. The endless white noise of water rushing in and out of the cliffs below soothed her soul, and the ground beneath her feet vibrated slightly with each crashing wave.

Behind her, she heard the strike of a match and caught a faint whiff of sulfur. She kept her eyes trained on the golden glow of the clouds, intent on not spoiling his surprise. Finally, he walked up beside her and took her hand.

She turned and saw a candlelit dinner laid out against the backdrop of the woods. Not a picnic meal, but a wooden table and chairs complete with table settings and flickering candles. The trees provide just enough shelter from the wind to protect the candle flames.

"How did you do this?" she marveled as they walked across the rocks.

"I stashed everything earlier, before I got home. You like it?"

"This is amazing."

Nate had laid out her favorite foods in the sort of plating arrangements she would expect from a fancy restaurant: a circle of sashimi with chili pepper water, seared ahi with mango salad, and a cheesy pasta dish that was still steaming. He had packed everything so carefully that the hot food had stayed hot while the sashimi was still fresh and cold.

He pulled out her chair with a flourish and helped her find a steady spot on the uneven ground.

"Thank you."

"Can I pour you a drink?"

"Sure."

He opened a glass bottle and released the sweet smell of lychee and lemon. It was the cocktail that their restaurateur friends had made out of the lychee from Nate's farm. He poured her a glass – real glass – and handed it to her. She took a slow sip, savoring the bright sweetness.

He sat down across from her, and they ate in the comfortable silence she had only ever truly found with him.

She had gone on a small handful of first dates over the years, mostly setups by well-meaning friends and aunties, and every single time they had been insufferable. Even with friends, their need to fill the air with small talk exhausted her.

With Nate, she could just be . The sound of the wind in the trees and the waves crashing below was utterly peaceful, and she savored it as much as she did the phenomenal food that Nate had brought for them to enjoy.

When dinner was done, he cleared the table and brought out two jars of lilikoi curd with coconut cream. The light was nearly gone now, with bright stars appearing in a dark blue sky, but she could still see his handsome face in the glow of the candlelight.

‘ōlena didn't say one word until she had scraped the last of her sumptuous dessert out of the glass jar. Only then did she set it down and reach across the table to take Nate's hand.

"This was the perfect date," she told him.

"I'm glad. Because I have something to ask you." Candlelight flickered over his face as he turned over ‘ōlena's hand and set something in the middle of her palm.

A diamond ring shone and sparkled in the faint golden light – the same ring that she had flung at him the day their divorce was finalized. Five years ago now… it seemed like a lifetime.

"You kept it," she breathed.

"You told me to go slow," he said, "and I've been trying. But we've already spent so much time apart. And I've hated it. Every day without our daughters and every night without you.

"If you're not ready, I'll keep waiting. I would wait for you forever, because any amount of time with you is better than a lifetime with anyone else. But I want to be close to you, Lei. I want to be a family again."

One of her hands was held in his. The other was over her mouth, as if the pressure on her lips could keep her from falling apart. Mixed in with the love in Nate's eyes, she saw fear. There was so much vulnerability there, his heart laid bare.

‘ōlena couldn't find her voice, but she nodded.

"Yes?" he asked, his voice unsteady.

She dropped her hand, taking his in both of hers. "Yes."

With a sudden laugh, Nate gripped the edge of the table that sat between them and sent in flying into the tree. ‘ōlena laughed too as he pulled her onto her feet and to his chest.

"The ring," she protested through her laughter. She looked towards the overturned table and the candles that had been extinguished by the damp forest floor, but he just held her tighter.

"I've got your ring." He held up one hand, and the diamond gleamed in the light of the rising moon.

"How did you do that?"

"I've got you," Nate said as he slipped the ring onto her finger. "Always."