Chapter 1

ONE

“BUT WHY WOULD they put a flamingo in jail?”

“Did he lie?”

“You don’t go to jail for lying.”

“I lied to my mom about hitting my brother—am I going to jail?”

Lahela Young clapped twice, cutting into the rising excitement leading dangerously close to uncontrol. From the learning carpet, twenty-three sets of hands clapped twice back. The eyes of her second-grade class all on her. Well, except for Blaise, who had just plucked his finger from his nose and was inspecting his treasure.

“No one’s going to jail.” Lahela tried again to explain what she learned about the story behind the infamous Pink Floyd—the flamingo, not the 1960s rock band. A fact she discovered through the cackling laughter of Mrs. Margo Bell, Cottonwood Elementary School’s eighty-year-old librarian. “Pink Floyd wasn’t put in jail. He escaped the zoo.”

A second before another round of chatter erupted, the familiar tune of “Aloha Friday” started playing from the timer Lahela had set on her phone to indicate five minutes before the end of school. “Okay, my little coconuts, all pau. We’re done, back to your desks.”

Twenty minutes later, Lahela’s students were on their way home and she was back in her classroom straightening everything in sight—all to avoid looking at the text message from her friend Daphne on her cell phone. Again.

As if it wasn’t already ingrained in her brain.

I think Briggs is going to ask you out tonight.

Briggs Turner was going to ask her out? The possibility made her head fuzzy and the rest of her warmer than a sunny day on Waikiki Beach.

“Looks like you’re glad it’s Friday too.”

Standing in the doorway of her classroom was Nancy Bart, wearing bright pink flamingo sunglasses on top of her head. The bubblegum color complemented the teal-green dress she wore with a pair of shiny patent-leather boots.

“My students would’ve loved to see you wearing those sunglasses today.” Lahela tossed the trash she collected and made sure her computer was shut off before grabbing her bag and meeting Nancy at the door. “All they could talk about today was Pink Floyd.”

“That’s better than what I caught two of my students writing on their desks.”

“Uh-oh.” Nancy was a great fourth-grade teacher who Lahela always thought would make an excellent kindergarten teacher with her quirky personality and matching style.

“You know...” She sighed, stepping back into the hallway so Lahela could turn off the lights and close her door. “I thought once I was an adult I’d hear less ‘Nancy Bart likes to fart.’”

They started walking down the hall toward the exit next to the faculty parking lot. “At least they’re generationally consistent?”

Lahela glanced at the woman walking next to her. Her brows were pinched together, and she had a distant look in her eyes. Had her students’ juvenile remarks truly bothered her? She gently elbowed Nancy in the arm. “You’re a great teacher.”

Nancy flipped her sunglasses back down to her nose. “And I’m fun.”

“That you are.”

“What are your plans tonight?” Nancy held out her key fob and her yellow VW bug beeped. “Want to grab a pizza and watch a scary movie?”

Lahela wrinkled her nose. “I can’t tonight. I have plans.”

“Oh, okay,” Nancy said, but something in her tone said it wasn’t. “With Daphne?”

Ugh. Had Nancy meant to say Daphne’s name like that? If fourth-grade boys never matured past fart jokes—and Lahela’s older brother, Kekoa, was proof they didn’t—then fourth-grade girls never matured past the fear of rejection and being the girl left out.

It wasn’t intentional. When Lahela moved to Miracle Springs, Texas, in January, Kekoa made sure she met his friend Colton Crawford’s cousin, Daphne, and they clicked immediately. Nancy was nice and fun, but Lahela’s friendship with Daphne just felt more ... natural. Like they’d been friends forever.

But it still bothered her that this felt like she was picking one friend over the other. “It’s a birthday dinner for Nash. I’m sure no one will mind if you join us.”

“Oh, no. It’s totally fine.” She slid into her car. “Maybe I’ll see you at the festival tomorrow or something.”

“Yeah.” Lahela felt like she was letting Nancy down somehow. “But we’re still on for Mocha Monday, right?”

Nancy’s face brightened. “Yep! I have a feeling I’m going to need extra caffeine if I’m going to survive this year as Ms. Fart.”

It helped that Nancy was quick to laugh at herself. It eased some of Lahela’s guilt as she watched Nancy zoom off in her little car with a wave. On Lahela’s first day, the woman had quickly made it her mission to make Lahela feel welcomed at Cottonwood Elementary. She’d personally introduced the entire faculty, invited her to coffee dates and lunch, and even talked Lahela into signing up for spin class. Lahela regretted that last decision immediately after a sculpted man named Basil tortured her via stationary bike for thirty-three minutes and nineteen seconds. She counted down the seconds and then waddled up to the front desk afterward, politely canceling her membership.

Nancy had even been there for her after Trevor.

Maybe she should’ve insisted Nancy come to dinner with her and her friends. She didn’t think any of them would’ve minded ... except ...

Lahela opened the text message from Daphne.

Reading the message again turned her insides tingly. But she was also conflicted.

Lahela placed her phone in the cupholder, started her car, and then twisted her long, dark brown hair off her shoulders and up into a bun on the top of her head. It was October and summer had finally ended in Texas, bringing cooler temps—but thinking about Briggs had suddenly driven up the temperature for her.

Or maybe that wasn’t it at all.

It’d been six months since she’d had her world flipped and the man she thought wanted a future with her—the man she’d left her home on the islands for—had decided he wasn’t ready to commit.

A different kind of heat flooded her face. Embarrassment.

This was when homesickness hit rock bottom. When she missed her family the most. Buckling her seat belt, she stared at the two-story brick building where she taught. Even if she wanted to go back to O?ahu, she couldn’t afford it. She’d spent most of her savings to move across the Pacific Ocean, find a house, and fill it with furniture in the hope that she’d one day be sharing it with the man she’d loved.

So what made her think dating Briggs was a good idea? Clearly, she’d made a huge mistake with Trevor. What if she did the same with Briggs? They were friends—good friends. And she literally had only a handful of them here in Miracle Springs. Was she willing to risk it for the hope of something more?

The warmth blooming in her chest said yes. But the reality of her past with Trevor echoed in her head like a tsunami warning. Briggs, Daphne, and Nash were a group of friends before she came into their lives. If things didn’t work out, she could lose them all.

Reaching for her phone, she decided inviting Nancy might not be a bad idea after all. Her text message was interrupted by a call. Lahela’s breath stalled in her chest at a number she didn’t recognize. She swallowed, debating whether to answer it or not. It’s been weeks . And she’d changed her number...

“Hello.”

Silence. A chill skirted down the back of Lahela’s neck and stretched down her spine.

“Hello?”

Nothing. A stinging sensation burned at the back of her eyes, but she didn’t know if it was fear or frustration. Was it the same person? How would they have gotten her new number? Why were they doing this?

Pulling the phone away from her ear, she stared at it a second before ending the call and immediately blocking it. Her eyes moved across the now-empty school parking lot, and she suddenly felt not only alone but exposed.